Friday August 7th, 2009 Machiavelli

This is odd, but probably intentional; I didn't write down today's weight. I probably gained weight since I ate too much good healthy food. Restaurants are horrible. The portions are so huge that you over eat even if you have only eaten half of the plate. How many times do you fill up on appetizers, bread, or chips and salsa and then you try to eat the main course and you end up wobbling out of the restaurant so full you feel sick? Last night, we had a great Italian dinner with our friends from NYC, Jay and Carol, and I ate too much. Guilty! Tonight after the lecture we attended, my wife and I went to one of our favorite Syrian restaurants and over ate... again! Guilty, guilty, guilty! I'm really going to have to ride far and hard this weekend.

Two things: First, the Greene Naftali Gallery exhibition of my late father's work attracted lots of attention and accolades. So much so that the exhibition itself has been nominated for the "Solo Show of the Year, Gallery" category in the First Annual Arts Awards presented at the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum NYC. The Art Awards celebrates select individuals, exhibitions, and projects that have made a significant impact on the field of contemporary art during the past year. The awards ceremony is on October 29, 2009. This is not only a celebration in Paul's work, but also recognition for a spectacular exhibition that was made possible by the hard work of my friends Carol, Jay, Andrew L., Tony C., and the staff of the Gallery. The Sharits and Romeo families are indebted to you.

Second; tonight, the Museum of Contemporary Art Denver (MCA Denver) held lectures on Machiavelli and Molecular Gastronomy (the inventive science of food preparation). Cheri and I were lucky enough to get into the sold out lectures. I particularly liked the Machiavellian lecture because International Relations and the Middle East Conflict is what I studied at Buffalo State College and The University of Denver's Graduate School of International Studies. Niccolò di Bernardo dei Machiavelli (3 May 1469 – 21 June 1527) was an Italian philosopher, writer, and politician. His view on politics could be described as cynical, but a better description would be "realist." He didn't write about world's that could be, he wrote about the world that is. Many people villanize his work, but he understood that human nature allowed for good and evil at the same time. Perhaps the worst thing is to try to be good all the time. While I don't condone Iran's "election," I do believe that Machiavelli would have understood the Supreme Leader's (Ali Khamenei) decision to use force to stop the protests. He believed in a strong republic and, at the same time, understood that there is a time and a place for tyranny. I like to say that he believed in kicking ass and taking names later.