People are complaining about being bored during the pandemic? My grandfather was isolated for a year during the flu pandemic and the only entertainment he had was a piece of chalk, although he quickly gained a number of friends who were demons trapped in chalk pentagrams.

He kept in touch with a few throughout his life. They largely went into the seltzer business so they were neighbors in Brooklyn.

Yes, the New York seltzer trade was almost entirely run by demons. I thought this was well-known.

They had wanted to muscle in on the illicit hooch trade but the Italians had already got there and had a distinct advantage, what with the crosses and exorcists and whatnot.

I remember my grandfather getting seltzer delivered well into his eighties. It was an old demon named Morty who had a bad back but still shlepped heavy bottles of the stuff around.

We saw him once outside work, at a Borsht Belt resort, making a killing at the Canasta table. Later Morty joined us for a drink, he and grandpa drinking plum brandy, me drinking ginger ale.

Turned out Morty had a side hustle managing a young comedian. Ladies and gentlemen, that comedian was Richard Belzer.

Anyway, that’s how come me and Richard Belzer are still in the same coven.