The Monthly Nut

Well it's official, i'm now a junior member of The Coffee House, a venerable NYC club founded almost 100 years ago as the "foes of finance." This eclectic group of writers, artists, scholars and creatives included notable members such as Herbert Hoover, John Steinbeck, Henry Luce and George Gershwin.

So why me? It all draws back to my father-in-law Michael Barlerin, proud Coffee House member. A few years ago Michael gave me Roger Angell's memoir as a gift. Reading about the literary circle he grew up around made me realize that being on the West Coast meant Caroline and I were less able to extend the wonderful histories her mother and father had created in Dallas and New York through their own involvement in the arts. So for Christmas this year when Michael proposed putting me up for membership of course i was interested. It also helped that perfectly consistent with Michael's outlook, this club wasn't some snooty stuffy affair but a group with renegade spirit.

Now i just need to figure out more ways to get back east in order to meet my fellow Coffee House members.

CB and I enjoyed dinner with Mitch and Freada in Half Moon Bay last night. It was great to catch up - Caroline worked with Freada for four years and Mitch has been heavily involved with Second Life since its inception.

It was India Night at Caroline's Stanford program and festivities included a simulated wedding.

Caroline and I attended last night's opening reception for the Annie Leibovitz show here in SF. Definitely recommended if you're in the area - a very personal retrospective with fewer of the iconic celebrity portraits (although there were some wonderful shots of household figures) and more of her family, friends and landscape work.