TODAY'S RAMBLINGS <3 Minute Read I had a light, informative post for the start of the week, but that will have to wait until Wednesday. I've written previously about corruption, guns, and election reform in America. I stand by each post. But another mass shooting made me realize the issue isn't the guns. There is also no red or blue ti...

TODAY'S RAMBLINGS 6 Minute Read Happy Friday, and this is the third installment of London Calling. Preface and Chapter 1 Chapter 2 Welcome to Our World In between our due diligence trip to London in October of 1997 and Seaco's own to San Francisco a few weeks later, rumors internally at Genstar were running rampant. Although I was not ...

TODAY'S RAMBLINGS 1 Minute Read Happy Valentine's Day. Let's dance. But before anyone asks, no, I do not know who this happy woman is, although this photo was in my parents' ginormous collection of 35mm slides, the best of which I scanned a while back. Like this one. Because, look: I have been to my share of parties. A shocker, yes, bu...

TODAY'S RAMBLINGS <2 Minute Read What Super Bowl? It feels like a bad dream. But happy Monday regardless. And let's take a break from the barrage of me. You're so very welcome, but when you see today's alternative, you might just long for the next chapter of London Calling. And don't panic: Today's post does not signal a return to my "...

TODAY'S RAMBLINGS 5 Minute Read Happy Friday, and this is the second installment of London Calling. But before that gets started: OK. Here we go. Upper Ground and Upper Class (Non-Virgin Atlantic Variety) I had worked for Ernst & Young in Houston in the early 1990s (so in both their and client Chevron's fancy towers downtown) and had a...

TODAY'S RAMBLINGS 2 Minute Read Happy Wednesday, and as if London Calling isn't enough, let me today share an outcome of our recent engagement with a certified financial planner, the fiduciary Heather Liston. Here it is: The World's Most Expensive Man is Dead. Or, in other words, the diamond man is now the lab-grown diamond man. Some b...

TODAY'S RAMBLINGS <3 Minute Read Happy Monday, but I will say I am a bit unnerved by the prospect of a widening conflict in the Middle East. Us attacking Iranian proxies in Iraq, Syria, and Yemen over the weekend, while completely justified in the mind of this diplomat, could still send the region into full-tilt war. With the United St...

TODAY'S RAMBLINGS 4 Minute Read Hello, and happy Friday. No witty repartee: There is obviously no one asking me to tell the story of my stint in London, during 1997 and 1998. But I love to write, so recently hearing from a colleague from that time was all of the impetus I needed. Lucky you. 10 Seconds of Seriousness: Lucky me. I will a...

TODAY'S RAMBLINGS <2 Minute Read Happy Hump Day. Yes, I am still basking in the glory of Brock "Playground" Purdy and our Niners being Super Bowl-bound, for the 8th time. But the haters still be hating, and darn if we don't give the rest of the country good reason. And it's not just our perfect weather and even better geography. Or eve...

TODAY'S RAMBLINGS 1 Minute Read plus Ungodly Hours of Listening Happy Monday and let's jam: the Niners are going to the Super Bowl. But I won't even try to pretend: This is a self-indulgent, narcissistic clusterfuck of a blog post. But is it really? Why is having (a lot of) the world's finest music in one spot not useful? Either way, w...

TODAY'S RAMBLINGS 1 Minute Read + several podcasts Disclaimer: I've touched on this subject before, but it was two years ago, and there's plenty of new information that's come out since. Plus, this subject is important. Because did you know there was a time - and it was just 60 years ago - that fully 80 percent of American citizens tru...

TODAY'S RAMBLINGS 1 Minute Read Hello, and Happy Wednesday. So many (fact check: none) have said, "Portico, your recent posts have been brilliant, as usual. But they've been a bit on the heavy side, and too political. And gee, I'm just dying to know if you are still wearing the same loungewear that you documented so wonderfully a while...

TODAY'S RAMBLINGS <1 Minute Read + 3 Hours of Podcasts I know I've been heavy on the politics recently, and I apologize. Sadly, our week begins with a continuation, and worse, today I cover Israel, Islam, Hamas, Gaza, and more. But it's not what you think. What follows aren't my opinions or thoughts; instead, I am sharing 4 podcasts wi...

TODAY'S RAMBLINGS 1 Minute Read I think it was the daytime and Textbook Daiquiris he made for us that did it. Because Wednesday afternoon found Arthur and I pondering the potential of a third World War. We even went further: Maybe we're in one already? But a new kind? That's crazy - it had to be the rum, right? You tell me. But you may...

TODAY'S RAMBLINGS <3 Minute Read Don't thank me, thank Republicans. Or at least those in Iowa. Because to the surprise of no one, Trump won the Republican caucus in Iowa on Monday and barring a mass awakening, is destined to appear - again - in a presidential election as the Republican candidate. It's almost February of 2024, and this ...

TODAY'S RAMBLINGS <3 Minute Read Before beginning the normal nonsense, a reminder that today is a national holiday, honoring the life and legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. I say this every year around this time, but what would America look like today if JFK, MLK, Malcolm X, and RFK had lived out their full lives? On to that normal ...

TODAY'S RAMBLINGS <3 Minute Read It's Friday, so how about a post on obesity in America? No, wait a moment. Better to let my quasi-hero Scott Galloway do it for me. The relatively brilliant Professor Galloway annually makes predictions regarding the upcoming year in technology and business. This year, and on several of his media platfo...

TODAY'S RAMBLINGS 4 Minute Read Yesterday, I finished reading Geddy Lee's amazing and Diamond Certified autobiography, My Effin' Life. If you have even a modicum of interest in the band Rush - or are seeking a personal account of the toll of the Holocaust on one family - this is a must-read. It is powerful enough that I found myself in...

TODAY'S RAMBLINGS <3 Minute Read Happy Monday and I wish I could say I came up with the idea presented in today's post. While I joined many a long time ago and urged Joe Biden to announce he would not run in 2024, he's chosen the opposite path. What, he didn't read my writing on the subject? Accordingly, he's now put the Democrats in a...

OVERVIEW A year ago, my first extended stay in Hoboken resulted in this big Travel Guide. This Addendum - a first in the annals of my Travel Guides - is an update to the original and is based on a three week stay during December 2023 and into 2024. As a refresher, Hoboken, New Jersey is located directly west across the Hudson River fro...

TODAY'S RAMBLINGS <3 Minute Read I hope you're settling into a nice, post-holiday routine, but I'm not ready quite yet. Instead, I'd like to recount some of the bad and worse behaviors I witnessed during our recent trip to the East Coast. Of course I would. In reality, what follows plagues civil people everywhere, and not just while tr...

TODAY'S RAMBLINGS <4 Minute Read Later today, we leave glorious Hoboken after an amazing 3 weeks and return to equally glorious SF. There's a reason I bang on and on about how fortunate I am. I'll demonstrate that when I publish my first-ever Addendum, providing new and/or updated information to last year's Metro NYC Travel Guide. It's...

TODAY'S RAMBLINGS <3 Minute Read Happy New Year and welcome to the year of the Say Hey Kid. And what better topic on the first day of a new year than closure, and its importance? And specifically, the Zeigarnik Effect. Huh? Today's inspiration came from a spin-off podcast I heard last week from Freakonomics, called No Stupid Questions....

Without further ado and in response to the clamoring from many (fact check: nobody), here's who will be taking home a prized Portico this year. The award ceremony is very hush-hush and on a need-to-know basis, but I can confirm an event is in the planning phase. More to follow, but for now, here are this year's winners! Trip of The Yea...

TODAY'S RAMBLINGS <1 Minute Read (Plus Gawking Time at Porsche Website) I write about Porsche often, because, well, a guy can fantasize, can't he? And - in 2024 - it might not even be a dream. But if Ol' Purple Label and I ever do that, we'll have to decide which 911 to drive. And that won't be easy because do you realize that for 2024...

TODAY'S RAMBLINGS A lot of photos today! Try this link if your email seems to be missing photos. 1 Minute Read What? You think it's all just Christmas good cheer? Or worse, only eating and drinking? No - these three weeks have included their share of cultural diversions, including this, which I can only say was one bitch of a place. Ye...

TODAY'S RAMBLINGS 1 Minute Read Merry Christmas! I wrote this last year, and plan on using it each year, with an occasional update. As I've mentioned once or twice, I am a proud atheist. But - and let me be clear - I don't care what you believe or don't believe. Are you fair? Honest? Grateful? Curious? Fun? Productive? GOOD ENOUGH! Ple...

TODAY'S RAMBLINGS 4 Minute Read (inc. FROM THE UNWASHED MASSES) Today's post is a bit of a role reversal. And it's long, so there's that, but at least you have all weekend to enjoy it. It's necessary because my writing Wednesday on respectfully handling a bad meal at a restaurant resonated with at least two readers, one in a blog-lengt...

TODAY'S RAMBLINGS <3 Minute Read Are you honest when a waitperson or host at a restaurant asks how everything is and the answer should be "really not very good?" Do you go as far as to send food back if it is not as you wish? That was the situation Monday night at Hoboken's Barbès, a French-Moroccan brasserie in the north part of town....

TODAY'S RAMBLINGS <2 Minute Read Happy Monday, and don't worry: I rectified my shopping deficiency from a year ago by hitting a grand slam at Belstaff on Saturday, in between pops in the Meat Packing District. Micro Deadhead Silly thought about riding her Hog, but she was pretty buzzed already, so she walked with us to the KillerLavaux...