Muzak

Eitan freaks

Eitan and I share music as long as it has been created in the last six month. Anything older is, like, so yesterday. He cringes at the thought of  the 1980s which is like listening to the 1950s when I was in high-school. Whoa. Still, how can one not bond over Joy Division or Prince or New Order ?  Or how about the Talking Heads, Blondie and The Clash ? I mean, these were important bands. "Don't You Want Me Baby" by the Human League a seminal event for my generation. 

Some bands we like: STRFKR, Alt J, The Foals, Future Island, MGMT, War On Drugs, LCD Sound System . ..

Eitan and I do some backyard work.
Me: "Time to take a break to freak out."
Eitan: "What do you mean?"
I blast "Le Freak" by Chic. Eitan: "Agg. Turn it off!"
Me: "What's the big deal? It's just music."
Eitan: "Exactly, Dad."

Hormones

Wimbledon track

And another Friday. Thank goodness.

Eitan is 5'10. And a half. The boy is in his growth spurt.

The kids in their summer break which means sleeping until 11AM, breakfasting at noon and enjoying the day to themselves.  Of course this doesn't work for me and I require them to draw a daily calendar including 1-2 hours of school revision, running and chores. Each activity to be checked off, of course.

Madeleine has the hiccups. Me: "You know, the record in the Guinness Book Of World Records for hiccups is 60 years."
Madeleine: "That's nice to know Dad. Hic."
Me: "That must have been pretty distracting."
Madeleine:
Me: "Especially when trying to sleep."
Madeleine: "Hic. Was it really 60 years?"
Me: "At least."
Sonnet: "Don't listen to your father."

We watch athletics.
Madeleine: "What happens if that guy wins?"
Me: "I don't know. He gets a meddle ?"
Madeleine: "Does he go to the Olympics or something?"
Me: "Probably not."
Madeleine: "What happens if you, hic, do a random race and you get picked five times and you run an Olympics time in one of them."
Me:
Madeleine: "Do you go to the Olympics then?"
Me: "Sure."
Madeleine: "Really?"
Me: "What was the question?"

We watch the 1500m men's race. Eitan: "Do you think Rusty could keep up with them??

My Vines

Every spring/ summer I do two things : tadpoles and tomatoes. For the former, we barely got beyond the second week as our holiday poorly timed to monitor the little dears. My tomatoes, however, are off to a good start following a nasty fungus which gave me some worry.  I follow Aneta's mother's suggestions: pull tiny growths from between the stalks, don't overcrowd the pot. Water every day.

Brown Sauce

The master

And what's the summer without BBQ ? Eitan takes over the tongues and delivers a classic: chicken marinated in HP sauce which, Dear Reader, has a malt vinegar base blended with tomatoes, dates, sugars and spices... apples, molasses.. raisins and even anchovies. It also carries the mark of Her Royal Highness so you know it's good. Certainly from that era.

HP is one of those things that you either get or don't in this country. It has been around since the 1800s and long replaced by Ketchup in popularity. Even Eitan, the true Brit in this family, prefers Ketchup.  Still, HP goes best with a bacon or chip butty and a hangover. Anyone here will tell you that.

Eitan returns from Surrey where he runs a 2:15 800m.

In England in 2014, 26,000 children between the ages of 5 and 9 have had surgery to remove rotten teeth.

"By Appointment to her Majesty The Queen"
--HP Sauce

Self Portrait XXXXVI

I would like to say this is me, post some ultra-event or at least a loop of Richmond Park. Gardening.

My running days would seem to be behind me as my body rejects the sport following 25 years of punishment. Now it''s walking, yoga and swimming when I am motivated to brave the pool. Sonnet and I will try a glutton free diet starting from next week (as I have my second bowl of ice cream).

Ray

In the house

Ray is over for dinner with newlywed Monica - they are visiting Paris and hop across the Channel for a few days of London, staying in the cool part of town - Shoreditch - taking it all in.

Originally from Louisiana and now Berkeley longtime, Ray is busy making and selling art, teaching silkscreen printing as an ongoing faculty member at the Richmond Art Center and a seminal member of The Art of Living Black, the Bay Area’s longest running annual African American exhibition of its kind. His studio in West Oakland at American Street Studie where his interests includes Graffiti Art, Urban Art, abstract paintings, silkscreen prints and drawings.

"Painting is layers of time, media, gesture and color that allow for declarative expressions of documentation. The act of painting is like breathing; one never stops but is often unconscious of these subliminal acts. My finished paintings are products of balance, color, texture and gesture. The necessity to paint resonates within me and the painting informs me when it is complete."

--Ray Haywood

Madeleine: "He's pretty cool, isn't he?"

Me: "Yep."

Running

Crystal Palace

Eitan and Madeleine finish their term - summer holiday ! I own them for chores, and encourage book reading and running or other exercises. A few days in and already lethargy. 

Stan and Katie arrive for a two week visit. Katie a trained classical pianist and night owl and we are often to bed with kitchen lights dimmed and hushed voices and giggling. We have two sets of teenagers in the house.

Despite the clouds at Crystal Palace, the sun pokes through for a sunny afternoon. 

On Astorg

I am in Paris for a couple days and now in the midst of fundraising for Astorg's sixth fund. Our target is €1.5bn, a large amount, but in line with the last GP. Astorg has delivered strong performance while protecting retirement, workers and teachers money - since 1998, Astorg has lost €30m on €1.9bn of invested capital for a low loss ratio of 1.7% (the figure drops to 1.4% if co investment controlled by the GP include in the denominator).

Astorg's strategy similar to any value investor : buy niche leading global companies that enjoy large market shares and barriers to entry like economies of scale or scope. All the things I learned in a few key classes of business school (the best class, Value Investing, taught by Bruce Greenwald, close friend and advisor to Warren Buffet. Greenwald would tell his class of 300 students that he taught for the 2 or 3 students who would be able to employ his concepts. Bruce asked me to be his TA second year). Astorg has not had a write down or write off in ten years.

Eitan runs a 1500m in 3:35 at Crystal Palace.

Eitan: "Do I really have to do this again?"
Me: "What you will find in life is that if you don't do a good job on the final 2% you won't get credit for the 98."

Wimbledon And Greece

Outside Centre Court

It is that time of year, and the best time in Britain: predictably nice weather, late evening sunsets and August holidays around the corner. It makes up for the winter, almost.

The Germans should be the first to offer generosity to the Greeks, having had their own debts resolved in the 1953 London Debt Agreement. The total under negotiation was 16 billion marks of debt resulting from the Treaty of Versailles after World War I which had not been paid in the 1930s, but which Germany decided to repay to restore its reputation. This money was owed to government and private banks in the U.S., France and Britain. Another 16 billion marks represented postwar loans by the U.S. Under the London Debts Agreement of 1953, the repayable amount was reduced by 50% to about 15 billion marks and stretched out over 30 years, and compared to the fast-growing German economy were of minor impact.

No, the Germans just tighten the screws, also being the last and only hold-out for Eurobonds. The 2010 bailout was really from the Western banks, who provided over €300bn of loans - German's 56bn the largest.

Now the debt has been "nationalised" by the ECB or provisioned for by the private sector - hence, some comfort that a banking meltdown reduced.

That said, Greece will never be able to repay - the IMF says so - similar to Germany, Argentina and Brazil in the 90s. Eventually relief will come but how much longer will the Greek European citizens suffer ?

Warm Up

It's a fine thing when a bunch of brothers from the day regroup to raft down a river, which we do on the American River, South Fork. The occasion is Christian's wedding and replaces a stag night or boozy affair, though there is plenty of that.  Despite the terrible drought in California, the river is near full during peak runs due to dam releases for recreational purposes. My family did this trip in 1985 or 86 - photo on the living room piano.

My drama occurs when the boat capsizes dumping us in the current and .. glasses gone. It is a pickle for many reasons including my upcoming meetings and how to drive home? We are in the middle of nowhere.

Yet with 9 guys thinking creatively for a solution, I am able to get a new pair inside three hours (Jorgen: code name "Mission To Succeed"). Crisis averted.

It's remarkable to see friends I have been away from for many years. We have all aged, with ups and downs along the way, but the humour remains above all else.

Roger 49

Roger and I hang out in Palo Alto on his birthday. How the hell did we get here?

Roger's company Box famously went public this year and now he is living in an exclusive postal code in a beautiful house. No commute, either. Older daughter Sophie has become a serious swimmer - having been on the school record-setting 4X100 relay and swimming in state champs last month. She's also a violinist and damn good student. And she has a driver's licence for 4:30AM practices.  College is around the corner.  Thomas is jamming in Lacrosse. Sit back and enjoy, dude.

A Megawatt

I catch up with Tim who has been living the dream, having fully transitioned from Brooklyn to the West Coast, and CFO of Yingli, the world's largest solar panel manufacturer. The margins may be razor thin but the volumes, oi vey.

In 2013, 37,007 megawatts of solar PV power were installed and world solar PV power capacity increased about 35% to 136,697 MW. One MW can power thousands of homes.

Europe, thanks to Germany, has dominated annual growth until 2013 when China topped the tables (Germany's subsidies have allowed volume uptakes that have driven pricing down globally).

Installation of solars panels in the UK is now ca. £8k. When I looked into panelling our home in 2011, it was £15K. Solar PV today accounts for 3% of electricity demand in Europe and about 6% of peak electricity demand. Trending in the right direction but will it be enough?

Evolution of global annual installation:

Sweety Pie

The cat

I am at 1530 for several days and my parents surrounded by their wonderful pets and everything else: exercise (Moe: 5AM), the view, NYT, books, a dog walk, some afternoon television followed by cooking/ dinner, a glass of wine and early to bed. Life is good.

I spend the morning with the Stanford endowment, which is loaded, yet I am more impressed by the campus : it has everything including space and nice weather. I watch a team of athletes stroll by without a worry in the world. This really is the best university in America, connected into Silicon Valley, attracting the smartest minds in the country. It makes the Ivy League seem fuddy-duddy. Who cares about the East Coast ? The action is here and now. Get in while you're young.

L.A. Gehry

Catching up following a long absence from my blog . ..

Christian and I join Lisa for lunch in downtown LA then hang out at the LA public library and it's lovely art deco entrance space and soothing Greek fountains, surrounded by skyscrapers (NB, With more than six million volumes, it is one of the largest public funded libraries in the world). 

Christian and Lisa on course to be married in September. We are on course for a weekend down the American River, South Fork. Supposed to be a surprise but that cat long out of the bag.

El Lay

From Los Angeles I take a late evening flight to San Francisco, catching bart to the East Bay. A family joins with six rowdy 5-6 years olds who squeel and scream, climbing over the seats and trampling on each other. Dad has a gold grill on his front teeth and mom every now and then yells at the youngsters to 'shut the hell up." Eventually I move to another seat.

A nice thing, in Berkeley, are the train horns which waft up from the flats into the Berkeley hills. Fog horns boom at the entrance of the Golden Gate Bridge, doing so since 1937, guiding 100s of thousands of ships through the Golden Gate straight and forewarning San Franciscans when fog rolling in to envelope the city. They operate, on average, 2 hours a day (in the summer fog months, it is over 5 hours a day).  In 1994 the fog horns were to be silenced for better technology but the howling protests ensure the fog horns longevity.

Hipster

Following morning meetings, Christian and I connect at Sunset Junction just beyond the Downtown LA, in an area now called "Silver Lake". The mildly predatory skyline visible in the distance (I don't know if it is the concentration,  mismatching styles or height, but I find the center oppressive).  It reminds me of The Mission in San Francisco or Shoreditch - scruffy and tattered yet dotted with coffee shops, music venues and restaurants. We sit outside at a cafe and watch the cool people go by - models, artists, journey men and actors (I recognise at least one). It is sunny and nobody seems to be in a particular hurry.

Christian and I catch up on the usual life stuff. Can we be approaching late 40s ? He prepares for the September wedding which will be in Palm Springs. Otherwises its music and the various gossips that keep us occupied. We have lunch with Lisa then sit outside the art deco Los Angeles library.

Catherine And Anneke

I arrive from Paris to LA in time for dinner with Catherine, Peter and Anneke, who is going on 7 and cute as a button. Peter continues to pull money and projects together for Chinese-American films (he is in Beijing often) while he and Catherine or organising the first China Week in Los Angeles which will actually last three and include cultural events across the city. They are doing exciting things.

Southern California is brown following four years of drought. Yet it is blue skies, Pacific Ocean and balmy temperatures. One could get used to this fast.

Serge Gainsbourg

Rue due Vaneuil

Paris, May 23, 2007: Carefully avoiding eye contact with the tourists in the street, Charlotte Gainsbourg quickly lets me into the small, graffiti-covered house at 5 bis Rue de Verneuil. Two blocks from Boulevard Saint-Germain in the Seventh Arrondissement, the house is where her father, Serge Gainsbourg, lived and, on March 2, 1991, died at the age of 62. In the days following his death, France went into mourning, fans crowded the tiny street singing his songs, and the women closest to him sat in his bedroom with his body for four days because Charlotte didn't want to let him go. For 16 years this house has been shuttered and locked, with only the housekeeper or occasional family member allowed inside. Charlotte, an actress and a huge star in France, is now the owner of the house and wants, with the help of architect Jean Nouvel, to turn it into a museum. For the first time since Serge Gainsbourg's death, she has agreed to reveal the private world of France's most beloved and important songwriter.

--Vanity Fair, 2007

Update: the house has not been converted to a museum and remains locked. It is a curiosity for tourists.

Selfie - Eric And Simona !

Marias

Sonnet takes me to Au Bourguignon du Maria where we visited 15 years ago when the restaurant first opened and reviewed for its fois gras. Joining us - a complete surprise - are Eric and Simona, who are on their way to Romania and yet there they are for dinner.  We have a truly wonderful evening.

Today we join for a cafe followed by a Sunday at the Clignancourt Les Puces flea market, the biggest in Europe, on the outer edge of Paris. Once may find everything from antiques to taxidermy. It's not quite Kashgar on the Taklamakan Desert but it does have a similar broad variety of wares though not Kalashnikovs nor animal guts. Still, one may find about whatever one needs.

We wrap up a perfect day in the historic Jewish quarter with fafel.

Etienne-Martin

Étienne Martin was a non-figurative sculptor.

Eitienne-Martin (1913-1995) began making sculpture in the mid 1930s. During the Second World War he was a prisoner of Germany, being liberated in 1941.  Soon after,  in Dieuleft, in the South of France, he met the critic and collector Henri-Pierre Roche who would support him on his return to Paris. A modernist fringe-figure, E-M explored his 'individual mythologies', to quote Harold Szeeman, who invited him to show at the Document 5 in Kassel, in 1972.

Why not?

48 And Feeling Fine

Self Portrait XXXXV

Sonnet and I visit three museums: Palais Galliera, where Sonnet sees an exhibition on Jean Labin, a Paris coutuerier active from c. 1900 to 1946; The Musee d'Art Moderne; and Ives Saint Laurent museum for an exhibition on YSL's 1971 collection. That year, Laurent shocked the critics who chastised his revisiting a period of wartime deprivation as a source for inspiration. The collection includes bold prints, boxy jackets and garish colours. Of note, the models had normal shapes and not overly sexualised. 

1971

The Flight Path Is Blue

The schematic presents the areas of London to be effected should Heathrow build a 3rd runway (the area in blue). Basically it is everyone.

No doubt Heathrow needs a 3rd runway given the current operation is running at 98% capacity with planes swooping down every two minutes during the morning and afternoon run. Anyone can see the projections: an extra 25-30 million passengers a year by 2050.  Unfortunately Heathrow is horribly located. Not only that, the flight paths cross wealthy neighbourhoods including Richmond, Chelsea, Barnes and, yes, East Sheen. These communities have the political clout to fight. What London needs is some forward planning and a new airport. Good luck with that.

Study for the Dance Mural

Oo la la Matisse

Sonnet and I visit the Musee d'Art Moderne in the 16e where we check out a dry run of Matisse's "Dance", which he eventually painted for the Barnes Foundation (outside of Philadelphia) in 1931. The painting in the background was lost only to be rediscovered in Paris in 1992 and now on display at the Moderne. It is one of two Dance murals on display in the gallery. Sonnet says, "How they have installed the painting is amazing - as you approach it, down a set of stairs, the mural fills your line of vision."

We leave Eitan and Madeleine with our au pair for a long weekend in Paris. Eitan invited to a teenage party for popular twins at Eitan's sister all-girls school. Richard, our stand-in chauffeur, reports that there were no shenanigans at the 11PM pick-up.

Tyler, my childhood friend visiting from Berkeley, and I reminisce on Eitan's age: for us, it included naked hot tubs, alcohol and marijuana cigarettes (as Moe once called weed). Yours, truly, missed out on the fun for swimming laps (Eitan, Madelein: take note).  Tyler and I agree that the parents of that era or, at least, many parents in Berkeley, swung too far left on the freedom pendulum.

Night Of The Banana

Sonnet orders 13 lbs of bananas instead of 13 bananas in her weekly online shopping which means we have bananas everywhere. I've been giving them away by the dozens. Even Eitan, who is rarely seen outside of the refrigerator these days, balks. Sonnet plans to make a bunch of banana bread. I expect we will be serving it at Christmas.

Hiker

Moe in the '60s. My guess Yosemite or Tahoe.

Madeleine has the London Schools Athletic Championships coming up.
Madeleine: "Dad will you fill out and sign this form?"
Me: "You fill it out. I will do the signing."
Madeleine: "I can't! There is all this stuff on there that I don't know!" [Dad's note: I look at the form]
Me: "You can do it. You certainly know your address young lady."
Madeleine fills out the forms. Madeleine: "It says 'visual.' What does 'visual' mean?"
Me: "It's a check-box. You check it if you have visual problems."
Madeleine: "So do I check it?"
Me: "Is there a box for less-than-average intelligence."
Madeleine: "Ha ha ha very funny, Dad."
Me: "Where do you need me to sign it?"
Madeleine: "At the bottom."
Me: "Now that wasn't so hard, was it?"
Madeleine: "For you, maybe."

Eagle

Lazy Sunday

Madeleine has Sunday rehearsal for the school play, "The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe."  She is playing an eagle. Is it a big role? No, but she doesn't care: "I'm fine with it" she tells me now. She is disappointed, however, that the eagle does not get to enter a battle. Her line: "... and joining in the battle as well I hope, sir."  Apparently it is more of a physical character.

Madeleine huddles over her phone in the car passenger seat. Me: "Texting your peeps?"
Madeleine: "Never say that again."

Summer Sunday

Breathe

Another day flying solo. Madeleine and Eitan up at 10 and 11AM, respectively, about right for a Sunday.  We enjoy the summer sunshine.

Me: "Say something for my blog."
Eitan: "Ummm"
Me: "Have we had an interesting conversation about something lately?"
Eitan: "As you get older, you realise it's more important to turn up."
Me: "Nice one. Did you just make that up?"
Eitan: "No, you said that at the BBQ yesterday."
Me: "Glad it's sinking in."

Martin

Martin handles some tooling

Martin, our next door neighbour, helps me install a water butt which I could not have done without his help. We have a good time doing it, too. 

Martin knows a bit about everything on our block which makes sense as he grew up in the house is lives in today (Martin's mother, Kitty Godfrey, won Wimbledon a bunch of times in the 1920s).  I learn, for instance, that our property once owned by a bank manager.  And number 37 down the block owned by the industrialist owner of the stag brewery. 

Martin tells me about the local homes bombed during the Second World War. There were several direct hits (he was evacuated to Surrey). When Madeleine in Year 3 or 4, he told her about the experience for a class project.

Martin an electrical engineer who remains busy. He is currently installing the lighting system on London's Crossrail, a 73 mile railway line under construction for 2018 with a new east-west route across Greater London. His garage stuffed with every tool imaginable.

Talking Italian Glamour

Sonnet presents to the members of the Frist Museum, or about 400 people.  She is an old hand at these things now.  Photo from Adrianne.

Cheek

New Dad

Sonnet and Marcus at the Cheekwood Botanical Gardens, on the grounds formerly occupied by Nashville's Cheek family, in their 30,000-square-foot Georgian-style mansion. The Cheek's founded a wholesale grocery store in the 1880s.

Madeleine and I have a Friday night sushi date (Eitan at a sleep-over). Our conversation covers sports, school and friends. She is a well adjusted kid who has managed to miss the nastiness that often occupies girls at this age. Madeleine made it simple: all her friends are boys. She may not be a Tom Boy any longer but some things don't change.

According to Rightmove.co.uk, terraced properties in London sell for an average price of £594,166, while semi-detached properties fetch £560,744.  London, with an overall average price of £533,018 was more expensive than nearby South East (£332,312), East of England (£268,083) and East Midlands (£175,726).

Nashville

Katie Glams

Sonnet in Nashville for the opening of Glamour at the Frist Museum. Stan and his lady friend Cate join Sonnet on Tuesday while my parents arrive on Wednesday. Katie yesterday along with Marcus and Adrianne and my niece Willa.

Adding to the fun, Tony and Susan are in town with some friends, just in time for the show (Tony sends me this photo).

Eitan finishes exam week and reports, 'all good'. He was prepared and relaxed, putting himself to bed at a reasonable hour, handing over his mobile phone over the weekend (which lasted less than a day). No drama.

Me: "So do you know what a mortgage is?"
Madeleine: "Yeah. It's when you can't afford a house so you borrow money from a bank. You pay it back a little at a time."
Me: "And how does a bank decide to give you the mortgage?"
Madeleine: "Um, they look at your job to see how much money you make. And where the house is located and how much it is worth."
Me: "And what do you do if you can't repay your mortgage?"
Madeleine: "Run?"

So Long, Oscar's

Est 1950

Oscar's burger and hot dog joint in Berkeley is closing after 65 years. A fixture from the ancient past, up there with Top Dog and Giant Burger, Oscar's took on Jack In The Box, Kentucky Fried Chicken and Burger King and won, all opening - and closing - at various times along Shattuck Avenue. Only McDonald's survived Berkeley's fast food wars of the 1980s.

Oscars served simple greasy food which could be eaten on site or take-away through a simple slide- window on the parking side wall. The burgers weren't particularly great nor the service ever good but it was comforting to see the retro logo in an area now populated by a micro brewery and a bunch of coffee shops. I went out of my way to drive by Hearst and Shattuck just to see it. Oscar's as real to Berkeley as People's Park. Or the original Pete's.

All good things must come to an end.

Good Bye Dear Aggie

For the love of bugs

Madeleine bangs out some homework. On Friday, following exam week, her bio teacher took the class onto the school fields to search for bugs for the microscope (she draws them now for her half-term break assignment). She notes, following those exams, the kids sank into the grass and sunshine, thoroughly spent, taking a moment for themselves. Fair enough.

Aggie returns to Poland after 13 years in London. When she arrived in the UK she knew a handful of people and her English limited to classwork assignments. She joined our family as a nanny. The last 4.5 years she has been a professional at Deloittes. She plans to start a business introducing Western businesses to Poland.

Aggie: "You must come to Poland and visit me in Krakauer." 
Me: "We would love to. What we need is a beach holiday."
Sonnet: "I'm afraid those days are over for me." [Dad's note: Sonnet has been advised not to spend time in the sun as a precaution against melanomas]
Me to Madeleine: "When your mother lived in San Francisco she sunbathed on her roof deck. Naked."
Madeleine: "Dad!"
Me: "Mother. Naked."
Madeleine flees the kitchen.
Sonnet: "We loved Tortoreto Lido."

On Questions

The Christ Church bells ring, something I appreciate, along with the BBC Sunday morning program and Sonnet's waffles.

Eitan going through another "curious" phase similar to when he was 4 or 5 and everything an open question. In a real way, he is navigating similar uncharted territories trying to make sense of the world us adults have created for him . What, for instance, does a job mean? What do Sonnet and I and everybody do during the day and where does one fit in ? How to figure out one's interest and why the fuss ? What the hell is it all about, really ?

I tell him our job is to help him find his path and navigate the uncertainty as best we can as a family. I also tell him, "being a kid is hard work." That never changes.

Dog's Life

Tongue

It's about time somebody did something about FIFA and it takes the Americans, as usual. It's not like there has been a lack of evidence to nail this crummy organisation and its bribe taking members. Qatar? Seriously. Finally something fun in the news. Only question is: will they get Sepp Blatter?

While on football, the FA Cup today: Arsenal and Aston Villa. England and millions around the world tuned in to watch the beautiful game. Regeneration.

Week End

Madeleine in the garbage pale

Just another Friday.

This week has zipped by from meeting to meeting to meeting. Sonnet engrossed in McQueen and preparations for Italian Fashion which opens in Nashville, TN, next week. By my last count, 35 friends and family will descend upon the Frist Center for her exhibition.

Madeleine: "Will I have earned your respect if I climb into the garbage pale?"
Me:
Madeleine: "Will I?"
Me: "Is this a trick question?"

Sonnet, observing Eitan: "He was so cute when he was little."
Me: "At least he doesn't smell bad."
Eitan: "What are you talking about?"
Sonnet: "We were talking about how cute you were when you were little."
Eitan: "I just don't want you to feel bad when I leave for college."
Me: "Are you kidding, it's going to be the best day of my life."
Sonnet: "I'm going to be really sad but I'm not going to show it."
Eitan, me:
Sonnet: "Didn't Grace break down in the airport when you went to Switzerland?"
Me, Eitan:
Sonnet: "Are you listening?"

Katy J

Katy, whom I have know since 1985, visits for the bank holiday weekend. Katy is at Oxford where she is a Senior Researcher in the Environmental Change Institute. She recently raised £500K to study energy strategies in the retail sector. In the UK, surprisingly, there is little information on energy use for commercial and public spaces. Katy is looking to better understand how these organisations can be run more efficiently.  When not on campus, she is happily hiking or biking in the English countryside.

Madeleine Runs

Proud mum

Madeleine competes the 800m at the Surrey County Championships, a UK regional race. Her time of 2:32 just off her standard and nets her fourth in her hear (top 2 advance). She runs a smart race, starting out slowly then picking off three girls on the final lap. 

Proving one can teach an old dog new trips, Rusty learns how to jump in to the car boot. Maybe it's that you can't teach a dumb dog new tricks. Anyway it makes our life easier not to have to chuck the dog in the back since he ways 30 lbs.

Sonnet: "I would love to see Fleetwood Mac."

Me: "We can. They're playing at the Isle of Wight Festival this summer."

Sonnet: "I'm not really a festival kind of girl."

Stuttgart

Terminal 5

Eitan leaves Saturday morning bright and early for an American football camp in Stuttgart, Germany. At play: an invitation to the Olympic Development Program (ODP) Region 1 in Pennsylvania, July 2015. US coaches are scouting for players to attend.

Eitan, who has not travelled solo outside of school excursions or, on occasion, with Madeleine (swimming camp, Grandparents) connects with Rocco at the airport and all is good (Rocco's dad, Peter, is from Holland and so utterly dependable). I give him an awkward hug and off the boy goes.

We have Madeleine to ourselves and Katy joins us from Oxford (Madeleine ditches for Richmond to hang out with a friend, returning 9PM. Connected by mobile of course)

Sonnet walks into Madeleine's room, 11AM. Madeleine: "Mom I'm still in my pajamas"

Best Coast

Electric Ballroom, Camden

Friday again. Three day bank holiday weekend. The London mood: giddy.

Madeleine's exams come back and she pulls the 3rd top score on her history exam, 4th in drama and well above average on RS. The history prof notes before handing out the exams that today's result but a grain of sand on the beach of life. Madeleine: "we were kind of worried."

Happy 47

Love of my life

Sonnet the Birthday Girl wakes 6:05AM and out the door to yoga (I roll over, long day ahead). She pampers herself, taking a day off to do her nails, bake a maple cake, bake pulled porc and BBQ sauce which is FABULOUS. We sing our gal happy birthday and so very grateful to have her in our lives.

Last night Sonnet and I go to Camden's Electric Cafe to see LA band Best Coast, which Christian and I caught five years ago at a small venue in San Francisco's Tenderloin district. They were excellent then, excellent now. Since the lead singer Bethany Cosentino (think shampoo. Think hair) there is a large supportive female audience and lots of happy couples on dates (I imagine) or between shagging sessions. This is London afterall and it is springtime.

Madeleine completes her final year-end exam - physics, 26 pages, our gal reports. She is home free. Eitan's exams after next week's half-term break, poor kid. 

V&A Develoment

Self Portrait XXXXIV

In January 2014, the V&A broke ground on a new entrance, courtyard and purpose-built subterranean gallery for temporary exhibitions facing the Exhibition Road across from the Sciences Museum. The budget for the project is £49 million with 80% raised by private donations so far. The naming of the entrance goes for a cool £5 million.

Recently I have joined the museum's Corporate Development Board, invited by Standing Chair of the Trustees, Nicholas Coleridge, who is also the President of Condé Nast. Our aim is to raise support for projects and exhibitions with a particular focus on the 30 and 40 year old jet set who may comprise the museum's future funding base, taking over from an older generation of donors.

We have a tour of the work site led by the project engineer who informs me the courtyard will slope slightly downward allowing for a grande entrance stairway; underneath two galleries and a coffee bar offering 1000s of feet of modern use space. Several massive beams 5 ft in diameter hold the ancient building up as the digging goes down. We learn that the "services" (electrics, piping and cables) took nine months to be removed and, as the original building dates to the 1840s, there was no master plan ("a bit of a mess" our guy tells us). 

The expected opening is for late 2016.

rue d'Italie

A golden year

I spent my 16th year being educated at College de Candolle in Geneva (where I am today for a meeting). CdC a private school whose structure and curriculum similar to my first year of college (maybe better, in fact) : physics, calculus, chemistry, biology, geography . .. French literature, history and art on Saturday. I opted out of PE and the languages: Italian, German and Swiss Romanche. French was enough for me.

Yes, it was an exceptional experience. There were three other American exchange students and I remain in contact with two: Pam (who lives in Berkeley and a documentary film maker) and Kurt (Director of Global Engagement at Southern Utah University). My Swiss friends sadly did not stick.

During that year I had my first girlfriend (kissing, non sexual; can't remember her name), swam with the Swiss Olympics team (Eitenne Dagon won the first swimming medal for Switzerland, a bronze, in the 200m breast stroke) and lived with a local family who I recall fondly. I also set myself up to live in Europe forever.

Me: "If we were in California we would be surfing every day." (Madeliene and I do the secret handshake)
Madeleine: "I would get a long board."
Me: "And hiking in the Sierras."
Madeleine: "Yeah."
Me: "Or wine tasting in Sonoma."
Madeleine: "Why can't we move there?"
Me: "Maybe you will one day.  And I will come visit."

Pinball Wizard

Work'n it

Justin shows his prowess. He's also pretty good at ping pong (we compete doubles at a cool club off Earls Court), bad mitten and bowling.

I am in Zurich for a beautiful evening enjoyed with a long run along the lake.  People sunbathe, play frisbee, read and picnic and it is that sort of a day. This time of year I'm so used to blah weather that it is like, well, sunshine on a cloudy day. I'm not sure why but the Euro vibe different than New York or  Boston or San Francisco with similar sun draped grassy exposures but it is. Or maybe it is simply the young people I tune into.

Madeleine now done with 8 of 12 year-end exams, which has seen our gal revising in angles of repose: on the floor, a couch, the desk and the kitchen table slumped over, listening to music. Concentrating. She reports that the exams have gone well and she has done her best.

Raggae

Just groovy

I play reggae on the soundsystem. Eitan: "Are the people coming over Jamaican?"

Jimmy Cliff's 'The Harder They Come" my introduction to reggae in the 1980s listened to (of course) on my Sony Walkman (the kids have no idea what a tape cassette is).

I spent some time in Kingston, Jamaica, with Help The World See setting up a national eye health program across the Caribbean islands which were up and running in Jamaica and St Vincent and the Grenadines when I split for business school.  The University of West Indies, outside Kingston, the Caribbean's best university, offered the medical statistical data we needed for the preliminary work. It was an efficient place if under resourced. I also spent time in the local libraries on several islands. Good memories.

Of note, during my visit to Kingston, I joined a reggae concert at a local auditorium that was more akin to a school gym rather than concert hall.  Ziggy Marley, the final act, paraded as royalty. And of course he is. Raggae one of Jamaica's most significant cultural exports.

On the day of the concert I visited Bob Marley's house, which is now a museum (Barak Obama paid the museum a visit when he became the first sitting US president to visit Jamaica). For a small country, it plays large on the world stage.

On Town

Chelsea

Sonnet and I celebrate with Arnaud and Julia, pictured. They have two children under age three but one would never know.

Me: "Check out this photo of Ben and his girlfriend." [Dad's note: this week I had breakfast with Dale. Ben is now a freshman at Georgia U. He has a longtime girlfriend]
Sonnet: "They are so handsome together. And having fun."
Me: "Someday Madeleine you are going to come home with a guy and you know what I am going to do?"
Madeleine: "Embarrass me?"
Me: "No!"
Madeleine:
Me: "OK, yes, but it will be in your self interest."

Madeleine's year-end exams begin next week. We strike a deal at her suggestion: I keep her iPhone but she gets the radio.
Madeleine: "But how will you and mom get ahold of me?"
Me: "We trust you. So who cares?"
Madeleine:
Me: "Your mother and I survived, didn't we?"
Madeleine: "Nice one Dad."

Thameside

Rusty and I watch the scenery

From my office, beginning at the Stag Brewery, is a well used towpath that affords beautiful views of our changing tidal river. The Thames Path, as it is known, covers the river's 236 miles from the Thames Head in Gloucestershire to the North Sea. Along its way, there are 45 navigation locks (and accompanying weirs) with 38 named tributaries.  The river contains 80 islands. With its waters varying from freshwater to seawater, the Thames supports 23 species of fish plus eels (30 years ago down to 2 or 3; the river once a salmon run).  Human activity, dating to Pre Roman Britain, is visible at various points of the river. 

Madeleine: "Do you have Spotify Premium?"
Me: "Yes."
Madeleine: "Can I get it?"
Me: "Sure. Ten pounds a month."
Madeleine: "That's a lot."
Me: "You better get a job kid."
Madeleine: "I knew you were going to say that."
Me: "And now is when I tell you that 'money doesn't grow on trees.'"
Madeleine:
Me: "And don't get pregnant while you're a teenager."
Madeleine: "Can we change the subject?"

A Boy And His Dog

Woof

Here we are in mid May and I wonder: how did that happen? Almost half-way through the year.

This year Astorg will raise a next fund and the moment to strike is now: the markets are hot as the the pension funds circulate their record distributions back to private equity, an asset class that delivers 11-12% IRRs and the hope of matching unfunded liabilities. The flows go to the best managers; middling and lesser GPs go home empty handed. It's a mature market.

I'm in pfäffikon and Paris on Monday and Tuesday and home for dinner on Tuesday. Sonnet hosts Deloittes at an Alexander McQueen party at the museum.

Today's blog is what one calls a placeholder.