The Writer's Life 8/2 - Streaks

Sign of the times: Music Row, 48th Street between 6th & 7th Avenue in Manhattan, is renowned worldwide for its shops and famous clientele. It will soon be a fond memory. All its music based stores save one have closed, done in by dwindling business and high rents. Things change, and it has to be accepted. Fret not for the owners, at least not for the last man standing, who has made a fortune in real estate.

A study in Seattle, where the minimum wage was raised to $15 an hour, reveals that many workers are asking for shorter hours in order to hang on to government assistance. Maybe activists should demand $20 or $25 per hour, so workers can work five hours a week.

A remarkable run came to an end yesterday in MLB. Wade Davis, Kansas City Royals’ reliever, surrendered a home run to Jose Bautista of the Toronto Blue Jays, snapping a streak of 125 2/3 innings, 123 appearances, without having yielded one. The streak is actually a little longer, as he pitched in last year’s post season. Believe it or not, it wasn’t even half way to the record, which is held by the retired Greg Minton of the San Francisco Giants, whose streak covered 269 1/3 innings over 178 appearances. Wow.

I snared the perfect parking spot in Park Slope and was able to lean against my car in the shade the entire three-hour session of the floating book shop. Alas, business was disappointing, ending a winning streak of more than a week. My thanks to the wise young man who bought Cervantes' Don Quixote for the bargain basement price of a buck. Just after I'd finished setting up, author Jim Hanas approached, lugging a medium size air-conditioner he'd just purchased on sale. His ebook short story collection, Why They Cried, has sold almost seven hundred copies, justifying the $500 advance he received from the publisher. Small royalty checks continue to come his way as well. Well done, sir. Continued success.

Vic's 5th Novel: http://tinyurl.com/okxkwh5Vic's 4th novel: tinyurl.com/bszwlxh

Vic's 3rd Novel: http://tinyurl.com/7e9jty3

Vic's Short Story on Kindle: http://tinyurl.com/k95k3nx
Vic's Short Story Collection: http://www.tiny.cc/Oycgb
Vic's 2nd Novel: http://tiny.cc/0iHLb Kindle: http://tinyurl.com/kx3d3uf
Vic's 1st Novel: http://tinyurl.com/l84h63j

Vic's Rom-Com Screenplay: http://tinyurl.com/kny5llp

Vic's Horror Screenplay: http://tinyurl.com/cyckn3f

Vic's Blog: http://vicfortezza.blogspot.com/

Vic's Web Site: http://members.tripod.com/vic_fortezza/Literature/