So, once again I am in New York. I love this city, but there are some things you have to get used to, and some things to get over. It is certainly about shopping and finance. But here and there are young families out for walks. You see that there are very real things going on. And they are constantly having to fix things. Water in this hotel will be shut off for 8 hours tomorrow so pipes can be fixed. But we will be on the M-60 bus and on our way home before the water runs out.

The latest buzz word is "authenticity", and whether you are in politics or in the sales of things, "authenticity" is the key to making your point, becoming accepted and approved and selling your stuff. Authenticity isn't something new. Lao Tzu dreamed he was a butterfly and then awakened wondering which version of himself was "authentic".

There is nothing more authentic than real wood crafted by hand, so you can see that there are levels and degrees of authenticity, and maybe the real thing isn't what people are really looking for. Now the even newer buzz words are "synthetic authenticity." The real stuff is so hard to find that we are being sold on fake as second best. Oh well, I'm in New York. I get on a jet liner in the morning, and head home to authentic Arkansas and working with wood.