Islands
of Quality
 Toyota. It continues to
be astonishing that Toyota can produce these very complex machines by the hundreds of
thousands and maintain such extraordinary levels of reliability. The mechanical asymptote
approaches perfection.
Electronic gadgets. Things with chips
and lights and buttons are almost uncannily reliable these days. Beware anything with
motors or other kinds of moving parts.
Pens. From bottom-of-the-line Bics on
up, they just keep on writing.
amazon.com. However you feel about the
effect that online bookselling is having on neighborhood bookstores, there’s not
denying the outstanding service provided by amazon. From a website that gives you more
than you expect (how did we ever live without all those helpful, entertaining reader
reviews?) to one-click purchases, to truly involved customer service, amazon is a huge
operation that acts like a mom-and-pop. Going yet another step farther that you expect,
every holiday season they ship free surprise gew-gaws to frequent customers (thermal mugs
and the like).
Metropolitan Opera. Week in, week out,
they keep antique works of complex music theater not just alive, but vibrantly alives, as
if they’d been created only yesterday.
The Yankees. Go figure.
Glenn Gould. Maybe it’s better he
died at age 50. Who knows what trouble Gould might’ve gotten into in a world of MP3,
Napster, and everything-but-the-kitchen-sync keyboards. Frozen in time, his recordings we
shall always have with us.
Dennis Brain. While we're on the
subject of dead musicians, let us not forget this British French horn player. His old
recording of the four Mozart horn concertos is available on CD. If there is music at the
Pearly Gates, this is probably what it sounds like.
Seneca Falls, NY. The entire village
is filled with historic markers relating to the first international women’s rights
meeting there in 1848. The politically exhausted and disillusioned, instead of taking up
Prozac, need only spend a couple of hours in the splendid museum erected by the National
Park Service to have their spirits revived, their hope renewed.
Emma Kirkby.
Big Bend National Park. Still so far from everywhere
that it is still unspoiled and un-overrun. See
our writer's report.
The New York Times. Yes, they have
their biases large and small (it is after all a human operation), but the overall daily
level of thinking, writing, and editing remains bracingly high.
Manhattan Transfer.
Whataburger. If you don’t have
one nearby, get one. They’re almost enough to give fast food a good name.
Leon Redbone.
The Astrodome. Now deserted, soon to
be a teardown. Visually, ergonomically, esthetically, and in terms of plain old fun, it
was not only the first domed stadium but is probably the best mass-sport venue in history.
The Kimball Museum. A flawless jewel.
Monteverdi. Better late than never.
It’s taken the world 400 years to begin to appreciate what he did.
Josquin Desprez. Ditto. Except
it’s taken 500 years.
Hildegard von Bingen. Ditto. Except
it’s taken 800 years.
The Natchez Trace. If you don't know
about this road, one of the great American driving experiences, read
our article.
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