Catching up

This always happened with diaries when I was a kid.

I'd get a little behind. Then the next time I had time to write, I wouldn't because I didn't have enough time to catch up everything that happened since I last wrote. The gulf grows, the time demand to fill the void increases, and pretty soon the whole thing grinds to a halt.

So I'll just say now that I'm not going to catch up on the last month and a half. Sorry. I'll hit a few highlights, but otherwise, this task is just too daunting.

Euchre comes to Manhattan

The web site for the World Series of Euchre -- yes, there is such a thing -- says the classic card game was very popular in the 18th and 19th centuries, and that during the Napoleonic Era in Europe, Euchre was modernized and introduced to America. Apparently it caught on like crazy, before poker was widely known, but then it lost some of its popularity.

Except in the Midwest, where euchre can be like religion. Yes, the World Series of Euchre is happening in Lansing this fall, if you'd like to plan your vacation around it.

Meantime, I helped organize a euchre tournament for University of Michigan alumni this weekend. We had two eight-team brackets, one social and one competitive, with most teams being U-M grads but also with some competitors from other schools, including Iowa and even Ohio State.

Here are some photos, starting with my co-organizer, Brett, then showing you the crowd.


















Media giants and Michigan Media

The 92nd Street Y is a really active social center that puts on a great range of events, including lectures by interesting celebs like Matt Groening, creator of the Simpsons.

John and I spent three Sundays in April hearing super-huge TV news guys talking about their careers, the state of the industry and what's ahead in news, politics and the country: Tom Brokaw, Dan Rather and Mike Wallace.

Part of what struck me at the Mike Wallace evening was that he said some pretty bawdy things -- like he doesn't like Hillary as a candidate because she reminds him of his second wife -- but it didn't turn up in the media the next day. There's so much happening in New York that someone like Mike Wallace doing a lecture is just another ho-hum who-cares calendar listing. If that same conversation had happened at Mendelsohn Theater at U-M, I wouldn't be surprised to see it on A1 of the Ann Arbor News, maybe with a photo and a quote box.

And when we aren't going to media events someone else organized, there are the Michigan Media dinners I've put on here. The premise is one successful guest of honor in a dinner with only about 20 people, enjoying real conversation rather than a presentation from behind a podium.

Here's a shot from our first dinner, featuring Ellen Agress, a vice president at News Corp. (Oh, to be having that same dinner this week ...)












Here are a few more from our night with Larry Kirshbaum, former head of Time-Warner Books and now founder of his own company, LJK Literary. (which incidentally signed my fantastic friend Lara, and sold her first novel to Putnam!)








Somehow I got not a single picture from the dinner with Rob Roth, the CFO of HBO.

Part of what I've loved about these dinners is they've given me a chance to get to know some truly impressive alums at the height of their careers, plus a whole mix of other grads who've come out for the dinners. They've helped me feel more connected to a community here.





University of Michigan Entertainment Coalition

No one who knows me will be surprised that it didn't take long for me to fall into a leadership role with an alumni club here in New York. An extrovert who likes to throw parties and meet people seems destined to get hit up for such things.

UMEC is an organization with huge potential that's struggled some in recent years because the people heading it just didn't have enough time for it and didn't have enough support. My fervent hope is to avoid the first pitfall by working on the second one.

I'm the new president of UMEC NY, and I'm actively shaking the branches looking for enthusiastic, dedicated people who want to make UMEC thrive as a professional organization, offering networking, professional training, a crying towel, whatever people in the entertainment, media and sports fields need.

Much like the Entertainment, Media & Sports Club at business school, I hope that with a group of maybe 8 officers or so, if each person commits to organizing only one or two events each year, we can provide a pretty good calendar of activities without any one person feeling a huge strain. Plus, it is a perfect excuse to pick up the phone and contact some U-M alum you'd love to know.

Anyone want to be our web master?? http://www.um-ec.org/