Yesterday, Milton Hunter, our neighbor, gave a talk at the recreation center. From what I gathered, Milton has spent his career in investing, and in recent years he has focused on precious metals. His talk yesterday was about investing in gold and silver, with a capital S.
I knew something about this already, because one of my friends has a growing experience and knowledge in it, but Milton has a finger expertly on this pulse. Milton told us about the history of precious metal and coin (specie) trading, and he provided up to the minute and high tech information as to where the enterprise is now, and how to interact in it. He spoke at great length (almost two hours), and he included a slide show. There was a handout that provided printouts of the slide show.
It isn't my aim to explain about precious metals investing. If you're interested, you can ask Milton. He's clearly very good at this. He loves to talk, and if you want to jump in, he'd be happy to be your broker, too. He'd even be willing to do another presentation, if enough people request it of him. He said he has an office in Miami Gardens, where interested people can go see him, or he'll come to you, since you live where he lives. He says to call him at his home at 305-891-9232. What I do want to say is that it was an interesting expansion of the capacity the Village and its residents have to interact with each other, support each other, and develop an even deeper sense of community. Milton's talk was a service, provided by one resident to any and all of his neighbors. He did nothing but inform. There was no cost and no obligation. The few of us who attended all learned something. This is what the Village can do for itself. It's adaptive for us as a population. And we had to wait to get into the recreation center, because a yoga class was finishing up. Yet another example.
Sunday, February 24, 2013
Saturday, February 23, 2013
All That Jazz (And You Don't Have to Go to "Chicago")
It's very easy to find things to do around here. I'm personally impressed at the variety and the choice, and it's not uncommon that I skip something either because it conflicts with something else, or because I need a break from activity. I know people from elsewhere who also note the unexpected good amount of opportunities for activity, fun, and enrichment here in Dade County. Broward, too. And Palm Beach County, if you can be bothered to go up there.
I could make a pretty long list of the regular features and series. But since I'm cheap, I decided to confine myself to a rundown of the good deals to be had, entertainment-wise. So as good as the many and varied Arsht shows are, and the New World Symphony, which is much better than it should be, being comprised of younger musicians, is, and the many shows at the "Fillmore East," the old Theater of the Performing Arts, and the Jackie Gleason Theater before that, are, I'm going slightly off Broadway, to review some of the things you can do for little money and to produce great satisfaction.
GableStage is a playhouse at the Biltmore Hotel, unless it ever really does move to the old Coconut Grove Playhouse, as the artistic director keeps saying it will. It puts on six plays a year, a new one every other month. The artistic director, who also directs almost all the plays, and chooses the actors, is Joe Adler. The guy is a magician. He's provocative, and he doesn't always choose plays you'll love necessarily, but what a job he does putting them on. The are all superbly staged, acted, and directed. The south Florida award for plays is called the Carbonell, and Joe Adler and his actors have lots of them. And, the series is comparatively cheap, especially for the quality and the stimulation. A season ticket for all six plays is $200, and you get one extra ticket with each season ticket, so you can invite someone once a year for free.
There's a ton of great stuff happening at the University of Miami main campus at an auditorium called Gusman Hall, which is not the Gusman Theater on Flagler Street. Many of the musical offerings are U of M projects, and one particular series is not. The highest ticket for the U of M series, which includes two jazz series, one in the fall, and one in the spring, is about $60, which is rare. Most of them are less than $40. Some are $20. Some are free. And they're terrific. The best series there that is not a U of M series is called Sunday Afternoons of Music. Absolutely incredible chamber music. Single ticket prices for individual concerts are $35, which is a crime, because they're so good. Season tickets are even cheaper per concert. And some of the "Sunday Afternoon" concerts occur on Sunday evening or Saturday evening.
I already told you about the Miami Symphony Orchestra (MiSO, or MISO, as they write it), and you really can't do better for the price. They're half the price, or less, of the Cleveland Symphony, which plays a few concerts a year at the Arsht, and they're less than the New World Symphony. Bizarrely, they never fill the auditorium, and they really, really should.
There are non-stop good and interesting productions at the South Miami-Dade Cultural Arts Center (SMDCAC), and the range is breathtaking. There are symphonic concerts, small cabaret room concerts, jazz concerts, modern dance and other dance, and plays. Ticket prices are very low for almost everything. I saw Keb' Mo' there last year. He had just played a date in Stuart the night before, at the Lyric Stage, and his price at SMDCAC was significantly lower. The only problem is it's in Cutler Bay, so it's a long drive south on US 1 to get there. It's worth it, though, and the parking is free.
Siempre Flamenco is a husband and wife team who play guitar/sing, and dance, respectively. Sometimes, they have additonal guitar players, singers, and dancers. It's very good flamenco, though not the elite, always for a low price. If you like flamenco, or you want to find out if you do, Siempre Flamenco is the perfect way to go, and they perform in various places in the County.
There's lots of jazz. Really lots. The free concert is at 8 PM on the last Friday of every month on the front patio outside at MOCA. It's hit or miss as to whether the performers are pleasing, but they are often enough. Some people, like John Holland and his wife Elena Olson, and Tim Horner and his mate Judi Hamelberg, bring food and beer or wine and make a nice picnic evening out of it. Obviously, weather can be an issue, and it's a little noisy, especially if an emergency vehicle comes by, but it's a nice night out under the stars, and you're more likely than not to enjoy the music. And if you do, many performers have CDs to sell.
The almost free concert is on Coral Way at about 30th Avenue, in the WDNA radio station building. These are very interesting concerts, and the significant majority of them are good or very good. The first hour is the headliner, who can be locals or an out of town combo coming through Miami, and the second hour is kids, mostly teenagers, who bring their instruments and either perform something they've worked up, or jam and take a lesson from the headliners. It's often good. And you get wine and food (fruit, cheese, salsa and chips, and sometimes something more substantial, for free. If you just go there for a concert, they'll charge you $15 a person. But if you "join" the station, for $50 a year, your membership card admits two to every concert, so it's $50 for 24 admissions. So they come out dirt cheap. These concerts are at 8:00 on the third Friday of every month.
Rose Max sings Brazilian-inspired jazz in several places in Miami. I think she's free at the Biltmore once a week, and her shows are cheap at PAX (the Performing Arts Exchange) at 3rd Avenue and SW 8th Street. She's a magnificent jazz singer, and she's accompanied by her husband, who plays guitar.
DJ LeSpam, and the Spam Allstars, are another local group, and they play at various places in town. Andrew Yeomanson, who is the "DJ," works a sound board, which includes his bass tracks, and the group are terrific. Negroni's Trio, featuring Negroni senior and junior, and one other guy, are also wonderful. Negroni junior doesn't look like he'd be a great drummer, but he is.
The Miami Jazz Cooperative also has weekly shows and jams. They might be at PAX now. If I remember correctly, admission is $10, and the local talent is first rate.
That's just off the top of my head, and there's more. I just tried to include what I know and like best, and what's cheap. Enjoy.
I could make a pretty long list of the regular features and series. But since I'm cheap, I decided to confine myself to a rundown of the good deals to be had, entertainment-wise. So as good as the many and varied Arsht shows are, and the New World Symphony, which is much better than it should be, being comprised of younger musicians, is, and the many shows at the "Fillmore East," the old Theater of the Performing Arts, and the Jackie Gleason Theater before that, are, I'm going slightly off Broadway, to review some of the things you can do for little money and to produce great satisfaction.
GableStage is a playhouse at the Biltmore Hotel, unless it ever really does move to the old Coconut Grove Playhouse, as the artistic director keeps saying it will. It puts on six plays a year, a new one every other month. The artistic director, who also directs almost all the plays, and chooses the actors, is Joe Adler. The guy is a magician. He's provocative, and he doesn't always choose plays you'll love necessarily, but what a job he does putting them on. The are all superbly staged, acted, and directed. The south Florida award for plays is called the Carbonell, and Joe Adler and his actors have lots of them. And, the series is comparatively cheap, especially for the quality and the stimulation. A season ticket for all six plays is $200, and you get one extra ticket with each season ticket, so you can invite someone once a year for free.
There's a ton of great stuff happening at the University of Miami main campus at an auditorium called Gusman Hall, which is not the Gusman Theater on Flagler Street. Many of the musical offerings are U of M projects, and one particular series is not. The highest ticket for the U of M series, which includes two jazz series, one in the fall, and one in the spring, is about $60, which is rare. Most of them are less than $40. Some are $20. Some are free. And they're terrific. The best series there that is not a U of M series is called Sunday Afternoons of Music. Absolutely incredible chamber music. Single ticket prices for individual concerts are $35, which is a crime, because they're so good. Season tickets are even cheaper per concert. And some of the "Sunday Afternoon" concerts occur on Sunday evening or Saturday evening.
I already told you about the Miami Symphony Orchestra (MiSO, or MISO, as they write it), and you really can't do better for the price. They're half the price, or less, of the Cleveland Symphony, which plays a few concerts a year at the Arsht, and they're less than the New World Symphony. Bizarrely, they never fill the auditorium, and they really, really should.
There are non-stop good and interesting productions at the South Miami-Dade Cultural Arts Center (SMDCAC), and the range is breathtaking. There are symphonic concerts, small cabaret room concerts, jazz concerts, modern dance and other dance, and plays. Ticket prices are very low for almost everything. I saw Keb' Mo' there last year. He had just played a date in Stuart the night before, at the Lyric Stage, and his price at SMDCAC was significantly lower. The only problem is it's in Cutler Bay, so it's a long drive south on US 1 to get there. It's worth it, though, and the parking is free.
Siempre Flamenco is a husband and wife team who play guitar/sing, and dance, respectively. Sometimes, they have additonal guitar players, singers, and dancers. It's very good flamenco, though not the elite, always for a low price. If you like flamenco, or you want to find out if you do, Siempre Flamenco is the perfect way to go, and they perform in various places in the County.
There's lots of jazz. Really lots. The free concert is at 8 PM on the last Friday of every month on the front patio outside at MOCA. It's hit or miss as to whether the performers are pleasing, but they are often enough. Some people, like John Holland and his wife Elena Olson, and Tim Horner and his mate Judi Hamelberg, bring food and beer or wine and make a nice picnic evening out of it. Obviously, weather can be an issue, and it's a little noisy, especially if an emergency vehicle comes by, but it's a nice night out under the stars, and you're more likely than not to enjoy the music. And if you do, many performers have CDs to sell.
The almost free concert is on Coral Way at about 30th Avenue, in the WDNA radio station building. These are very interesting concerts, and the significant majority of them are good or very good. The first hour is the headliner, who can be locals or an out of town combo coming through Miami, and the second hour is kids, mostly teenagers, who bring their instruments and either perform something they've worked up, or jam and take a lesson from the headliners. It's often good. And you get wine and food (fruit, cheese, salsa and chips, and sometimes something more substantial, for free. If you just go there for a concert, they'll charge you $15 a person. But if you "join" the station, for $50 a year, your membership card admits two to every concert, so it's $50 for 24 admissions. So they come out dirt cheap. These concerts are at 8:00 on the third Friday of every month.
Rose Max sings Brazilian-inspired jazz in several places in Miami. I think she's free at the Biltmore once a week, and her shows are cheap at PAX (the Performing Arts Exchange) at 3rd Avenue and SW 8th Street. She's a magnificent jazz singer, and she's accompanied by her husband, who plays guitar.
DJ LeSpam, and the Spam Allstars, are another local group, and they play at various places in town. Andrew Yeomanson, who is the "DJ," works a sound board, which includes his bass tracks, and the group are terrific. Negroni's Trio, featuring Negroni senior and junior, and one other guy, are also wonderful. Negroni junior doesn't look like he'd be a great drummer, but he is.
The Miami Jazz Cooperative also has weekly shows and jams. They might be at PAX now. If I remember correctly, admission is $10, and the local talent is first rate.
That's just off the top of my head, and there's more. I just tried to include what I know and like best, and what's cheap. Enjoy.
Sunday, February 17, 2013
What's in a Name? The Gourmet Diner
Suppose you open a restaurant (30 years this year), and you call your place "The Gourmet Diner." How do you distinguish yourself?
The physical structure is pretty easy. You said you were a diner, so you set up like a diner. Diner-looking building, counters, '50s style furnishings, you can see into the kitchen through the passthrough where the wait staff clot and try to dance around each other, and you play oldies and some nice and unintrusive classic rock. You use typical diner-style tableware, and you're good.
But what about the menu? Suppose your breakfast menu looks suspiciously like everyone else's breakfast menu. The same dishes, same choices, and same prices. If you call yourself "gourmet," you would be expected to make the dishes, even if they are described like everyone else's, somehow better, right? Would a menu section called "Benedict," and featuring three kinds of eggs Benedict (regular, spinach, and something else) be enough to fulfill your apparently self-appointed mission? The food should taste better, or be more interesting, or present features that are unexpected, no? The homefried potatoes should have some unusual ingredients, or different spices. And you wouldn't want them to be what seem almost like mashed potato-like food, simply fried, would you? Wouldn't you serve bread you baked yourself, or bought from an artisan-style baker? You wouldn't use factory-sliced bread out of a plastic wrapper, exactly like the loaves they sell in the commercial bread section at Publix, would you? And wouldn't you at least apply some interesting garnish or something?
Oh, here's where you shine: the coffee. Everyone loves "gourmet coffee." People pay extra to get Starbucks, or Pete's in other parts of the country (or Publix), or any of a number of other places. There's Cafe Don Pablo near Miami Gardens. Wonderful coffee they roast themselves. You'd serve that, right? You wouldn't possibly, being "The Gourmet Diner," serve plain old coffee exactly like what is served at Bagels and Company or almost any other source of nondescript joe. Would you?
I'll tell you what would happen if you fell down on every part of the job of living up to your name. Your breakfast customer wouldn't come back for breakfast again, and he would assume there's probably no compelling reason to try you for lunch or dinner, either.
The physical structure is pretty easy. You said you were a diner, so you set up like a diner. Diner-looking building, counters, '50s style furnishings, you can see into the kitchen through the passthrough where the wait staff clot and try to dance around each other, and you play oldies and some nice and unintrusive classic rock. You use typical diner-style tableware, and you're good.
But what about the menu? Suppose your breakfast menu looks suspiciously like everyone else's breakfast menu. The same dishes, same choices, and same prices. If you call yourself "gourmet," you would be expected to make the dishes, even if they are described like everyone else's, somehow better, right? Would a menu section called "Benedict," and featuring three kinds of eggs Benedict (regular, spinach, and something else) be enough to fulfill your apparently self-appointed mission? The food should taste better, or be more interesting, or present features that are unexpected, no? The homefried potatoes should have some unusual ingredients, or different spices. And you wouldn't want them to be what seem almost like mashed potato-like food, simply fried, would you? Wouldn't you serve bread you baked yourself, or bought from an artisan-style baker? You wouldn't use factory-sliced bread out of a plastic wrapper, exactly like the loaves they sell in the commercial bread section at Publix, would you? And wouldn't you at least apply some interesting garnish or something?
Oh, here's where you shine: the coffee. Everyone loves "gourmet coffee." People pay extra to get Starbucks, or Pete's in other parts of the country (or Publix), or any of a number of other places. There's Cafe Don Pablo near Miami Gardens. Wonderful coffee they roast themselves. You'd serve that, right? You wouldn't possibly, being "The Gourmet Diner," serve plain old coffee exactly like what is served at Bagels and Company or almost any other source of nondescript joe. Would you?
I'll tell you what would happen if you fell down on every part of the job of living up to your name. Your breakfast customer wouldn't come back for breakfast again, and he would assume there's probably no compelling reason to try you for lunch or dinner, either.
Friday, February 15, 2013
I Stand Corrected
I recently posted in this blog a letter I wrote to Noah Jacobs. In that letter, I criticized Noah for withholding from some of his neighbors his insights and leanings about various elements of Village business. My feeling was that since Noah is an elected official here, and he represents all of us, he should communicate his insights to all of us.
But I failed to take something into account. Noah does not always, shall we say, tell it like it is. And if he's going to, shall we say, invent something, he might well not like to communicate it to people who care about the truth, or are in a position to know fact from fiction. He would be foolish, for example, to send a description of an event to someone who was there and knows the event did not happen as he described it. At least he wouldn't like to send the fanciful tale to someone who might confront him about the fact that he made it up.
If we look, for example, at the e-mail Noah sent on 2/8/13, providing his recapitulation of the Commission meeting of 2/5/13, we can see that he provides his own summary of the Florida Retirement System (FRS) discussion. Noah correctly indicates that there is a windfall to the Village, of an amount he says was $103,792, that Bryan Cooper suggested putting that $103,792 in the reserves, and that the motion was defeated, with only Noah and Bryan voting for it. Noah's summary was that the transfer "would have shored up the Village's finances, and therefore put us on a better footing for next year." What Noah doesn't include in his story is that there was disagreement about the number of dollars, with some understanding that the amount was in the 70's, not over $103K. It would not have been acceptable to approve transfer of $103,792, if there were in fact only $75K. Noah also omits to summarize the discussion that pointed out that proposed transfers like this are not the correct mechanism for handling money in the municipality. The very next week, there was discussion of giving the Village Manager a raise, and Noah argued against it, noting there was nothing in the budget that would provide for it. He was reminded about the recent FRS windfall, but appears not to have considered it relevant. So one week he considered us awash in money, which we didn't need for active operating expenses and could transfer to the reserve, and the next week he considered us bereft and impoverished. He also failed to mention that the matter was not on the agenda in the first place, about which he had been confronted in the meeting, so there was no opportunity for preparation by the rest of the Commission, and no opportunity for public comment. Some Commissioners voted against it for these procedural reasons. Noah's summary is deeply lacking in depth, perspective, and accuracy, and it runs very much counter to the theme of "transparency" he often says he favors.
Noah's description of the discussion of his new crusade, to ban sales of certain guns in Florida, got a more subtle (mis)treatment. He begins, "During the opening public comment, numerous residents rose in support of the resolution advocating the prohibition of sales and possession of automatic and semi-automatic weapons." So the picture Noah wanted to paint for people who were not at the meeting was that he introduced an idea, and lots of people, "numerous" people, agreed with him. How many supporters comprise "numerous?" Four people addressed this issue during the opening public comment. Two were vigorously opposed to Noah's proposal. The other two thought a communication to the Florida State government could be appropriate, but not Noah's proposed communication. One specified she liked Bryan Cooper's alternate proposal better. So it may be a matter of connotation, but I would have said that to the extent that anyone "rose," or rose up, to express anything on the matter, the strongest sentiment was against the proposal, not for it. And does maybe a half a person, qualifying any sense of even partial agreement, or maybe two halves of people, constitute "numerous" residents? I wouldn't have said so. If we strictly count those residents who "rose in support of the resolution," the total is none. I feel sure that is not the impression Noah meant to leave when he used the word "numerous."
Noah also fails to recognize, or correct himself about, a crucial flaw in his proposal. He wants to ban "automatic" weapons. They are already banned in this state, and maybe all states.
Much of the rest of Noah's recapitulation of this discussion focuses on his annoyance and frustration at how "remarkably unfortunate [it was] that a single resident can stop the Village from passing a resolution that has overwhelming support." "Overwhelming support?" I'm more virulently anti-gun than Noah is, and I don't support his initiative at all. Two of the four speakers were very much against it. The other two were very tentative in supporting any part of the idea. So it's not clear what sense of support overwhelmed Noah, unless it was what usually overwhelms him, which is his own thought process. But perhaps more to the point is his sense of outrage at the power of "a single resident." When Noah himself was that single resident, or tried to be, he didn't seem bothered at all, except to the extent that his tantrum didn't fully prevail. It did get him a great deal of extra and exceptional attention and accommodation, and he didn't seem to be complaining about that. When that single resident was Steve Bernard, or Bryan Cooper, Noah wasn't complaining. So the expression of distress when Linda Dillon is the one resident complaining comes across as most disingenuous.
So I complained about Noah's sending his interpretations and syntheses only to a selected group of his neighbors, but I see I was wrong to complain. Noah is telling tales that simply could not be told to a wide audience, and he is right to choose his readership carefully. It would be nice if Noah confined himself to the truth, so that he could safely communicate with everyone, but if he apparently isn't going to do that, in keeping with a pattern he has by now established pretty well, then it is prudent and reasonable for him to avoid readers who know enough to give him reactions he has no reason to want.
But I failed to take something into account. Noah does not always, shall we say, tell it like it is. And if he's going to, shall we say, invent something, he might well not like to communicate it to people who care about the truth, or are in a position to know fact from fiction. He would be foolish, for example, to send a description of an event to someone who was there and knows the event did not happen as he described it. At least he wouldn't like to send the fanciful tale to someone who might confront him about the fact that he made it up.
If we look, for example, at the e-mail Noah sent on 2/8/13, providing his recapitulation of the Commission meeting of 2/5/13, we can see that he provides his own summary of the Florida Retirement System (FRS) discussion. Noah correctly indicates that there is a windfall to the Village, of an amount he says was $103,792, that Bryan Cooper suggested putting that $103,792 in the reserves, and that the motion was defeated, with only Noah and Bryan voting for it. Noah's summary was that the transfer "would have shored up the Village's finances, and therefore put us on a better footing for next year." What Noah doesn't include in his story is that there was disagreement about the number of dollars, with some understanding that the amount was in the 70's, not over $103K. It would not have been acceptable to approve transfer of $103,792, if there were in fact only $75K. Noah also omits to summarize the discussion that pointed out that proposed transfers like this are not the correct mechanism for handling money in the municipality. The very next week, there was discussion of giving the Village Manager a raise, and Noah argued against it, noting there was nothing in the budget that would provide for it. He was reminded about the recent FRS windfall, but appears not to have considered it relevant. So one week he considered us awash in money, which we didn't need for active operating expenses and could transfer to the reserve, and the next week he considered us bereft and impoverished. He also failed to mention that the matter was not on the agenda in the first place, about which he had been confronted in the meeting, so there was no opportunity for preparation by the rest of the Commission, and no opportunity for public comment. Some Commissioners voted against it for these procedural reasons. Noah's summary is deeply lacking in depth, perspective, and accuracy, and it runs very much counter to the theme of "transparency" he often says he favors.
Noah's description of the discussion of his new crusade, to ban sales of certain guns in Florida, got a more subtle (mis)treatment. He begins, "During the opening public comment, numerous residents rose in support of the resolution advocating the prohibition of sales and possession of automatic and semi-automatic weapons." So the picture Noah wanted to paint for people who were not at the meeting was that he introduced an idea, and lots of people, "numerous" people, agreed with him. How many supporters comprise "numerous?" Four people addressed this issue during the opening public comment. Two were vigorously opposed to Noah's proposal. The other two thought a communication to the Florida State government could be appropriate, but not Noah's proposed communication. One specified she liked Bryan Cooper's alternate proposal better. So it may be a matter of connotation, but I would have said that to the extent that anyone "rose," or rose up, to express anything on the matter, the strongest sentiment was against the proposal, not for it. And does maybe a half a person, qualifying any sense of even partial agreement, or maybe two halves of people, constitute "numerous" residents? I wouldn't have said so. If we strictly count those residents who "rose in support of the resolution," the total is none. I feel sure that is not the impression Noah meant to leave when he used the word "numerous."
Noah also fails to recognize, or correct himself about, a crucial flaw in his proposal. He wants to ban "automatic" weapons. They are already banned in this state, and maybe all states.
Much of the rest of Noah's recapitulation of this discussion focuses on his annoyance and frustration at how "remarkably unfortunate [it was] that a single resident can stop the Village from passing a resolution that has overwhelming support." "Overwhelming support?" I'm more virulently anti-gun than Noah is, and I don't support his initiative at all. Two of the four speakers were very much against it. The other two were very tentative in supporting any part of the idea. So it's not clear what sense of support overwhelmed Noah, unless it was what usually overwhelms him, which is his own thought process. But perhaps more to the point is his sense of outrage at the power of "a single resident." When Noah himself was that single resident, or tried to be, he didn't seem bothered at all, except to the extent that his tantrum didn't fully prevail. It did get him a great deal of extra and exceptional attention and accommodation, and he didn't seem to be complaining about that. When that single resident was Steve Bernard, or Bryan Cooper, Noah wasn't complaining. So the expression of distress when Linda Dillon is the one resident complaining comes across as most disingenuous.
So I complained about Noah's sending his interpretations and syntheses only to a selected group of his neighbors, but I see I was wrong to complain. Noah is telling tales that simply could not be told to a wide audience, and he is right to choose his readership carefully. It would be nice if Noah confined himself to the truth, so that he could safely communicate with everyone, but if he apparently isn't going to do that, in keeping with a pattern he has by now established pretty well, then it is prudent and reasonable for him to avoid readers who know enough to give him reactions he has no reason to want.
Tuesday, February 12, 2013
A Fork in the Road?
Tonight, in a special meeting, the Commission continued the Village's contract with Ana Garcia, our manager. There were two processes at work. The explicit one was about the details of her contract, and what raise to give her and other particulars.
The other process was played out as a constant tugging or nagging. There was a resistance, and it influenced the discussion about salary, yearly raises, compensatory time, and a number of other areas.
About six years ago, the Village decided to use a professional manager. A Charter Review Committee made the recommendation, which was approved by the then Commission, and then ratified by the Village as a whole through a referendum. Lay Commissioners couldn't responsibly manage the various departments, and they wanted someone with knowledge, training, and some experience to do it, so it would get done right.
So we got one manager, a very seasoned guy with decades of experience in south Florida municipalities, and he served us poorly. We didn't pay him high on the scale, but we paid him much more than he was worth. Our second attempt was Ana Garcia, who is our manager today. There's general agreement that she is extremely hard-working, very devoted to us, smart, and she has accomplished great things for us. And now, it was time to reconsider her contract. She's never had more than a one-year contract, and other than one "bonus" (she's been with us for almost 3 1/2 years), she's never had a raise. She wants one, and a contract for more than a year at a time, and some other minor concessions. And here's where things got sticky.
There was a certain amount of resistance to doing much more than we're doing for her. She wanted a 10% raise, Roxy Ross thought 9% sounded better to her, Barbara Watts liked 8% better, Bryan Cooper could maybe consider 3%, and Noah Jacobs didn't really commit. It sounded like his preference was 0. Bob Anderson was agreeable to something in the 8-9% range, and when Roxy offered to "split the difference" with Barbara, the two or them and Bob agreed to 8.5%.
Now none of this was about anything, since the numbers were irrational and not connected to anything, except that they were niggling departures from Ana's 10% request, but the discussion led to a deeper consideration of what the Village is about.
The phrase "stepping stone" came up several times. So did Ana's caution "you get what you pay for." The idea seemed to be that the Village is not necessarily fully self-respecting, and it may not consider itself worthy of quality management. There seemed to be real consideration of letting Ana go some place else, where she could get more money, and we'd replace her with a kid just out of school, or someone knocking around and unable to find a better paying manager gig. At some level, we had to consider what we think of ourselves. Ultimately, we found a way to try to hang onto Ana, though not with real enthusiasm. It was one of those failures to see the big picture, unless what the nigglers did was the big picture, at least for them.
What happened last night was not much about Ana. It was about the Commissioners, who elevated their own senses about what percent felt like the right number to them. "I couldn't vote for..." was heard from some, though the numbers were meaningless. There was essentially no attempt to consult the budget before deciding what we could afford. And Ana's notation that we had enough money, and she had saved us enough money, to provide for everything she requested, was ignored completely. It wasn't the point. The personal posturing, the bluster from Commissioners, was the point.
The fork in the road is this: do we want improvement and high quality? Do we want tight and efficient functioning? Do we want what lay residents don't know how to provide for themselves? Or do we want to settle for being a poorly maintained, unambitious, two-big burg, that accomplishes nothing except meeting whatever are the most minimal standards? We must want something more than any of us would get if we chose to live in Hialeah, or even North Miami. So which way are we taking this thing?
It was frankly a bit painful to see these decisions about the Village entrusted to Bryan Cooper, who doesn't care about anyone or anything, and only wants to withhold and insult, and to Noah Jacobs, who is not a stakeholder in the Village and is much more preoccupied with his own little sense of power than actually doing anything useful. Barbara Watts gets very flummoxed when the talk is of money, and it's hard for her to separate her own personal feelings from the task of overseeing a municipality.
So the process was somewhat tortured, and it may remain to be seen how effective we were at building stability into our Village. The good news is that Ana is in fact so devoted, to us and to joining the battle against those who challenge her, that she might stay here after all, even though we foolishly and meaninglessly nickeled and dimed her. The real fact, overlooked by Cooper, Jacobs, and Watts, is that Ana has saved us a good deal more than she's cost us. We should have been much more grateful.
The other process was played out as a constant tugging or nagging. There was a resistance, and it influenced the discussion about salary, yearly raises, compensatory time, and a number of other areas.
About six years ago, the Village decided to use a professional manager. A Charter Review Committee made the recommendation, which was approved by the then Commission, and then ratified by the Village as a whole through a referendum. Lay Commissioners couldn't responsibly manage the various departments, and they wanted someone with knowledge, training, and some experience to do it, so it would get done right.
So we got one manager, a very seasoned guy with decades of experience in south Florida municipalities, and he served us poorly. We didn't pay him high on the scale, but we paid him much more than he was worth. Our second attempt was Ana Garcia, who is our manager today. There's general agreement that she is extremely hard-working, very devoted to us, smart, and she has accomplished great things for us. And now, it was time to reconsider her contract. She's never had more than a one-year contract, and other than one "bonus" (she's been with us for almost 3 1/2 years), she's never had a raise. She wants one, and a contract for more than a year at a time, and some other minor concessions. And here's where things got sticky.
There was a certain amount of resistance to doing much more than we're doing for her. She wanted a 10% raise, Roxy Ross thought 9% sounded better to her, Barbara Watts liked 8% better, Bryan Cooper could maybe consider 3%, and Noah Jacobs didn't really commit. It sounded like his preference was 0. Bob Anderson was agreeable to something in the 8-9% range, and when Roxy offered to "split the difference" with Barbara, the two or them and Bob agreed to 8.5%.
Now none of this was about anything, since the numbers were irrational and not connected to anything, except that they were niggling departures from Ana's 10% request, but the discussion led to a deeper consideration of what the Village is about.
The phrase "stepping stone" came up several times. So did Ana's caution "you get what you pay for." The idea seemed to be that the Village is not necessarily fully self-respecting, and it may not consider itself worthy of quality management. There seemed to be real consideration of letting Ana go some place else, where she could get more money, and we'd replace her with a kid just out of school, or someone knocking around and unable to find a better paying manager gig. At some level, we had to consider what we think of ourselves. Ultimately, we found a way to try to hang onto Ana, though not with real enthusiasm. It was one of those failures to see the big picture, unless what the nigglers did was the big picture, at least for them.
What happened last night was not much about Ana. It was about the Commissioners, who elevated their own senses about what percent felt like the right number to them. "I couldn't vote for..." was heard from some, though the numbers were meaningless. There was essentially no attempt to consult the budget before deciding what we could afford. And Ana's notation that we had enough money, and she had saved us enough money, to provide for everything she requested, was ignored completely. It wasn't the point. The personal posturing, the bluster from Commissioners, was the point.
The fork in the road is this: do we want improvement and high quality? Do we want tight and efficient functioning? Do we want what lay residents don't know how to provide for themselves? Or do we want to settle for being a poorly maintained, unambitious, two-big burg, that accomplishes nothing except meeting whatever are the most minimal standards? We must want something more than any of us would get if we chose to live in Hialeah, or even North Miami. So which way are we taking this thing?
It was frankly a bit painful to see these decisions about the Village entrusted to Bryan Cooper, who doesn't care about anyone or anything, and only wants to withhold and insult, and to Noah Jacobs, who is not a stakeholder in the Village and is much more preoccupied with his own little sense of power than actually doing anything useful. Barbara Watts gets very flummoxed when the talk is of money, and it's hard for her to separate her own personal feelings from the task of overseeing a municipality.
So the process was somewhat tortured, and it may remain to be seen how effective we were at building stability into our Village. The good news is that Ana is in fact so devoted, to us and to joining the battle against those who challenge her, that she might stay here after all, even though we foolishly and meaninglessly nickeled and dimed her. The real fact, overlooked by Cooper, Jacobs, and Watts, is that Ana has saved us a good deal more than she's cost us. We should have been much more grateful.
Monday, February 11, 2013
Pardon me, Noah. A request of you, please? (Letter sent 2/9/13)
Noah,
It has come to my attention that you send out e-mails in which you communicate various things that pertain to the Village. One kind of reported e-mail is your recapitulation of things like Commission meetings.
This is fine. In fact, it's a good idea. People should know what you think, since you represent us and affect the Village.
The problem is that it appears you don't distribute these communications to everyone you could, or everyone whose e-mail address you have. You seem to select a subgroup of your neighbors, or constituents, and communicate your thoughts only to them.
Are you conspiring against some of your neighbors, and constituents? If you are, you should probably let them know, since at the same time, you ask for their support and accept their money. Also, if you are choosing to represent some of your neighbors, and not others, you should probably let people know that. I'm sure those (of us) you apparently choose not to represent would like to know not only that your leanings and actions are not for their benefit, and may be to their detriment, but would also like to know whom you do favor, and for whose benefit you do choose to act.
So if you decide to exclude part of the neighborhood, please openly communicate that. Your next newsletter column would be a great place, since we can all see it. You might also include there a list of the people you favor, and in whose interests you choose to act.
By the way, I said I thought it was a good and nice idea for you to send out your view of what transpires at meetings. You certainly wouldn't be the first or only Commissioner to provide that kind of insight. Bob and Roxy do the same thing. But they send their recapitulations to everyone on their lists. Sometimes, they get responses they might actually not want, but they seem to understand it as the price of being an elected official and providing what they owe to their neighbors and constituents, sympathetic or unsympathetic. It's probably just a matter of being graceful, fair, and having nothing to hide. And being "open" and "transparent." Perhaps not everyone's cup of tea.
Fred
Addendum: I realized after I sent this letter to Noah that his approach to his neighbors and his office is somewhat complicated. He has let us know that there are certain days, hours, or minutes when he switches hats, and declares himself not an elected official. It's not clear he has a system for these switches, or that he can predict and communicate when he is an elected official and when he isn't. Personally, I don't think he can alter himself this way, and one of our Village attorneys told him the same thing, but this is what he claims to do. So it may be that he thinks his orations at the Commission dais are under the Commissioner/Mayor hat, but his apparently private e-mails about Village business are under the not-an-elected-official hat. Although if he wasn't an elected official, he wouldn't be sending out his insights at all. He'd be ignoring the Village completely, as he did before he became an elected official. But since he never responded to the letter, I have no way of knowing what system, if any, he uses to decide what he feels like doing, and who he feels like being, from one minute to the next; when he thinks he's an elected official and when he thinks he isn't. What I do know is that he has never calculated what part of his time is spent in what he considers his private, not-an-elected-official, persona, and he has not told Village staff to withhold that proportion of his stipend. So maybe he agrees with me and the Village attorney, that he's an elected official all the time. At least that's his memory of it on pay day. It's very confusing.
Addendum: I realized after I sent this letter to Noah that his approach to his neighbors and his office is somewhat complicated. He has let us know that there are certain days, hours, or minutes when he switches hats, and declares himself not an elected official. It's not clear he has a system for these switches, or that he can predict and communicate when he is an elected official and when he isn't. Personally, I don't think he can alter himself this way, and one of our Village attorneys told him the same thing, but this is what he claims to do. So it may be that he thinks his orations at the Commission dais are under the Commissioner/Mayor hat, but his apparently private e-mails about Village business are under the not-an-elected-official hat. Although if he wasn't an elected official, he wouldn't be sending out his insights at all. He'd be ignoring the Village completely, as he did before he became an elected official. But since he never responded to the letter, I have no way of knowing what system, if any, he uses to decide what he feels like doing, and who he feels like being, from one minute to the next; when he thinks he's an elected official and when he thinks he isn't. What I do know is that he has never calculated what part of his time is spent in what he considers his private, not-an-elected-official, persona, and he has not told Village staff to withhold that proportion of his stipend. So maybe he agrees with me and the Village attorney, that he's an elected official all the time. At least that's his memory of it on pay day. It's very confusing.
Thursday, February 7, 2013
"We're In the Money!"
First, a confession: I was not at Tuesday's Commission meeting. I know, right? How could I have been anywhere else? Well, I forgot to calculate that meeting when I booked a trip to Boston. And I haven't slogged through the recording, either. The ice doesn't get much thinner than that. But I heard about the meeting. And I had an inspiration. I'm not worried about the possibility of getting anything wrong, because Gaspar was there. He'd be all over me like flies and maggots on road kill if I made a mistake. He's a self-proclaimed stickler for accuracy. So here's what I'm thinking.
We have an untapped resource here in the Village, and it's worth a bundle to us. Here was the deal: there was a move to ban gun sales in Biscayne Park. (I don't know. I have no idea. No, of course there are no gun sales, or sales of anything else, in Biscayne Park, but that was the proposal. And I think Noah Jacobs wants to ban gun sales in other parts of the County, too. We have jurisdiction over the whole County, don't we? We did when we told Coral Gables how to handle Matheson Hammock.) So Linda Dillon, long, long time BP resident, who is a gun expert, decided she'd had enough of this ban-the-guns-in-BP nonsense, since she thinks her rights are being trampled, and she brought an attorney friend with her to the meeting. My guess is he's one of her gun club friends, but she reportedly introduced him as her legal representative. Linda, and he, insisted that we back off, or the attorney might have to take us to court. And this is where Bryan Cooper, PhD, Esq, etc, gets into it with Linda's friend/attorney. And Bryan's junior partner, His Majesty the Emperor or whatever, joined him. Bryan starts reading the law to Linda's friend. I did mention that Linda's friend is an attorney, right? And Bryan, um, isn't? Pish-tosh. When Bryan gets inspired, he can be any f-ing thing he wants. And this is the goldmine for the Village.
I thought back over the last 3+ years of Bryan's reign. I thought about the fights Bryan has picked, with the range of people (for convenience, let's call them professionals) he has challenged. As it turns out, Bryan knows more about the law than attorneys do (four, at this point), he knows more about police procedure than a police officer or chief, he knows more about trees than an arborist, he knows more about record-keeping than a clerk, he knows more about budgeting than an accountant, and he knows more about how to manage a municipality than a municipal manager.
What do we pay Ana Garcia, Maria Camara, John Hearn and his stand-ins, whoever is our Finance Director, and Ray Atesiano combined? What do we pay Bryan? OK, so we give him a massive raise. We dump all the dead wood, and replace them all with Bryan. And he can keep Jacobs as a sidekick. Jacobs has shown his own little shimmerings of omniscience. Hell of a team we can have. And if there's ever any question in either of their minds, about anything, they can consult the godfather, who only lives across the street from Bryan anyway. We're getting rid of Candido Sosa, too. He goes with Ana. This would have to be the hugest windfall the Village has ever seen. And if Bryan ever wants to re-landscape the tangle of weeds he uses as a front yard, we can pay for that for him. It will be worth it. I think even with Bryan's occasional $5000 anti-Village adventures we'll come out ahead. And not only will we get higher than top notch professional service from Bryan and Noah, we'll have the benefit of service from people who have shown remarkable devotion to the Village.
We have an untapped resource here in the Village, and it's worth a bundle to us. Here was the deal: there was a move to ban gun sales in Biscayne Park. (I don't know. I have no idea. No, of course there are no gun sales, or sales of anything else, in Biscayne Park, but that was the proposal. And I think Noah Jacobs wants to ban gun sales in other parts of the County, too. We have jurisdiction over the whole County, don't we? We did when we told Coral Gables how to handle Matheson Hammock.) So Linda Dillon, long, long time BP resident, who is a gun expert, decided she'd had enough of this ban-the-guns-in-BP nonsense, since she thinks her rights are being trampled, and she brought an attorney friend with her to the meeting. My guess is he's one of her gun club friends, but she reportedly introduced him as her legal representative. Linda, and he, insisted that we back off, or the attorney might have to take us to court. And this is where Bryan Cooper, PhD, Esq, etc, gets into it with Linda's friend/attorney. And Bryan's junior partner, His Majesty the Emperor or whatever, joined him. Bryan starts reading the law to Linda's friend. I did mention that Linda's friend is an attorney, right? And Bryan, um, isn't? Pish-tosh. When Bryan gets inspired, he can be any f-ing thing he wants. And this is the goldmine for the Village.
I thought back over the last 3+ years of Bryan's reign. I thought about the fights Bryan has picked, with the range of people (for convenience, let's call them professionals) he has challenged. As it turns out, Bryan knows more about the law than attorneys do (four, at this point), he knows more about police procedure than a police officer or chief, he knows more about trees than an arborist, he knows more about record-keeping than a clerk, he knows more about budgeting than an accountant, and he knows more about how to manage a municipality than a municipal manager.
What do we pay Ana Garcia, Maria Camara, John Hearn and his stand-ins, whoever is our Finance Director, and Ray Atesiano combined? What do we pay Bryan? OK, so we give him a massive raise. We dump all the dead wood, and replace them all with Bryan. And he can keep Jacobs as a sidekick. Jacobs has shown his own little shimmerings of omniscience. Hell of a team we can have. And if there's ever any question in either of their minds, about anything, they can consult the godfather, who only lives across the street from Bryan anyway. We're getting rid of Candido Sosa, too. He goes with Ana. This would have to be the hugest windfall the Village has ever seen. And if Bryan ever wants to re-landscape the tangle of weeds he uses as a front yard, we can pay for that for him. It will be worth it. I think even with Bryan's occasional $5000 anti-Village adventures we'll come out ahead. And not only will we get higher than top notch professional service from Bryan and Noah, we'll have the benefit of service from people who have shown remarkable devotion to the Village.
Friday, February 1, 2013
Guy Walks Into a Car Dealership...
I love FIATs. I've owned three of them in my life. They were all built in the '70s. FIAT stopped selling in this country in 1982 or 1983. It was a supremely fun car to drive. I had an old Ferrari at one time, but the FIAT was more fun.
Well, FIAT is back. I see them increasingly on the roads, and they bring back very fond memories. The "new" model is called the 500, which was the name of a model from the '50s or '60s. It was a minuscule car then, but bigger now. Every time I see one of the new ones, and every time I pass the dealership on Biscayne at Ixora (about 128th Street), I think about dropping in, just to look. Maybe even to cop a feel, or, as they say in the car dealership business, take a test drive. But since I'm not in the market for a gas car, I never bother to go. Until a couple of Saturdays ago.
A collusion of extra time and imperfect will power caused a right turn where I should have gone straight. Well, what's a peek, right? Guillermo descended on me as soon as I got out of my car. An intrusive presence with an assaultive smile, he was all car salesman chatter, non-stop and single-minded. I explained clearly that I don't buy gas cars, and I'm not buying a FIAT. I just wanted to look, and maybe...ride? A test drive, Guillermo anticipated? No problem!
I got about one block on Biscayne, felt what I wanted to feel, and was satisfied. Guillermo practically pleaded with me not to go back yet. I wasn't buying, but he sure was selling. It's a good thing there's a password to get to my bank account, or he would have gone in there and taken out the price of the car.
We got back, and he started introducing me to people. A co-worker, and his "manager." (I'd love to see what managing Guillermo looks like.) I was expecting an invitation to dinner. Thanks, Guillermo, but I just wanted to know how the new FIAT drives, I like it, I'm not in the market for one, and I have to go.
A word to the wise: never say anything nice about a car when you're at a car dealership.
Take it home for a few days, Guillermo implored. Or was it an order? That's very generous, but I really don't need to. Besides, it's too inconvenient. I have my car here.
Leave your car. Park it right next to mine. (The large, white Mercedes.) Bring the FIAT back on Monday.
If you're going to tell me I need to be more assertive, I know. So sue me. I had the car for the weekend. It's a nice car, especially for the money. It drives nicely, in that European small car, not overpowered kind of way, and it's full-featured. Dozens of air bags, radio/CD, good AC. But it's not the old FIAT, where you're low to the ground, you feel every pebble, and the turning radius is about the size of your bathroom. The steering, the brakes, and the clutch were too easy. And besides, it wasn't electric. Which I told Guillermo at the outset. (Aha, Guillermo.) I'll call about an electric FIAT, Guillermo counter-moved. They don't make one, I said. Check, mate.
Guillermo met me as soon as I came in Monday morning. It was no act: he was genuinely disappointed when I was as resolved on Monday not to buy a car as I had been on Saturday. He really thought a couple days of my bonding with the FIAT would get him his commission. I struggled not to feel sorry for him. (OK, OK, I'll get assertiveness training.) They have the electric FIAT, but they're only selling it in California, Guillermo said, cornering me, and very clearly not at all willing to give this up. They do? (Gulp.) Well, here's what I need to know: how much, what's the range, and what kind of charger do they use? I did my best to throw the ball far away, so it would take the dog a really long time to go find it, by which time I would be gone.
By now, Guillermo had gotten reinforcements, in the person of Mauricio, Guillermo's "other manager." Mauricio was much more unintrusive, but he had the website in front of him, and he was already finding the specs on the electric FIAT. Oh, see, it's the 220 charger, I pointed out from the picture. My circuit is set up for two 110s (as if it wasn't easy to change). But what's the range? I bet they only give you 40-50 miles, I desperately suggested. I need 100, minimum.
Well, the dogs were rooting around, looking for the ball. Guillermo had already taken my phone number (I stupidly gave him my real number), and he would call me. So I made a quick get-away, with a true story about having an appointment in a little while.
So the moral of the story is this. If you want a small, modest, very satisfying car, with a back seat in which no one can sit, because there isn't any leg room, get the FIAT. But be sure you really want it before you go to the dealership. Because you won't leave without one.
Well, FIAT is back. I see them increasingly on the roads, and they bring back very fond memories. The "new" model is called the 500, which was the name of a model from the '50s or '60s. It was a minuscule car then, but bigger now. Every time I see one of the new ones, and every time I pass the dealership on Biscayne at Ixora (about 128th Street), I think about dropping in, just to look. Maybe even to cop a feel, or, as they say in the car dealership business, take a test drive. But since I'm not in the market for a gas car, I never bother to go. Until a couple of Saturdays ago.
A collusion of extra time and imperfect will power caused a right turn where I should have gone straight. Well, what's a peek, right? Guillermo descended on me as soon as I got out of my car. An intrusive presence with an assaultive smile, he was all car salesman chatter, non-stop and single-minded. I explained clearly that I don't buy gas cars, and I'm not buying a FIAT. I just wanted to look, and maybe...ride? A test drive, Guillermo anticipated? No problem!
I got about one block on Biscayne, felt what I wanted to feel, and was satisfied. Guillermo practically pleaded with me not to go back yet. I wasn't buying, but he sure was selling. It's a good thing there's a password to get to my bank account, or he would have gone in there and taken out the price of the car.
We got back, and he started introducing me to people. A co-worker, and his "manager." (I'd love to see what managing Guillermo looks like.) I was expecting an invitation to dinner. Thanks, Guillermo, but I just wanted to know how the new FIAT drives, I like it, I'm not in the market for one, and I have to go.
A word to the wise: never say anything nice about a car when you're at a car dealership.
Take it home for a few days, Guillermo implored. Or was it an order? That's very generous, but I really don't need to. Besides, it's too inconvenient. I have my car here.
Leave your car. Park it right next to mine. (The large, white Mercedes.) Bring the FIAT back on Monday.
If you're going to tell me I need to be more assertive, I know. So sue me. I had the car for the weekend. It's a nice car, especially for the money. It drives nicely, in that European small car, not overpowered kind of way, and it's full-featured. Dozens of air bags, radio/CD, good AC. But it's not the old FIAT, where you're low to the ground, you feel every pebble, and the turning radius is about the size of your bathroom. The steering, the brakes, and the clutch were too easy. And besides, it wasn't electric. Which I told Guillermo at the outset. (Aha, Guillermo.) I'll call about an electric FIAT, Guillermo counter-moved. They don't make one, I said. Check, mate.
Guillermo met me as soon as I came in Monday morning. It was no act: he was genuinely disappointed when I was as resolved on Monday not to buy a car as I had been on Saturday. He really thought a couple days of my bonding with the FIAT would get him his commission. I struggled not to feel sorry for him. (OK, OK, I'll get assertiveness training.) They have the electric FIAT, but they're only selling it in California, Guillermo said, cornering me, and very clearly not at all willing to give this up. They do? (Gulp.) Well, here's what I need to know: how much, what's the range, and what kind of charger do they use? I did my best to throw the ball far away, so it would take the dog a really long time to go find it, by which time I would be gone.
By now, Guillermo had gotten reinforcements, in the person of Mauricio, Guillermo's "other manager." Mauricio was much more unintrusive, but he had the website in front of him, and he was already finding the specs on the electric FIAT. Oh, see, it's the 220 charger, I pointed out from the picture. My circuit is set up for two 110s (as if it wasn't easy to change). But what's the range? I bet they only give you 40-50 miles, I desperately suggested. I need 100, minimum.
Well, the dogs were rooting around, looking for the ball. Guillermo had already taken my phone number (I stupidly gave him my real number), and he would call me. So I made a quick get-away, with a true story about having an appointment in a little while.
So the moral of the story is this. If you want a small, modest, very satisfying car, with a back seat in which no one can sit, because there isn't any leg room, get the FIAT. But be sure you really want it before you go to the dealership. Because you won't leave without one.
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