I'm in Chicago visiting colleges today with my son which is very enjoyable. However getting here was quite another story. Southwest has deal, $39 each way to Chi-town out of Islip airport so...why not.

First, getting to the airport on Thursday afternoon was a bit harrowing driving through the pouring rain OR rather a blinding wall of water. Jericho Turnpike all the way to 454 is not a fast ride... More >>

Any one who knows me knows I can not keep a secret (well maybe if you put extreme pressure on me and extract a solemn promise). And why should I? Just as "Rules are made to be broken", secrets lust to be told. Why else is there delicious gossip and who out there does not thrive on gossip? When I was in college there was a famous gossip columnist named Jimmy Fiddler and my nickname was (and sti... More >>

It’s summer and vacation time. Vacation means packing and packing is one of the necessary evils in life. If you go away on vacation you have to endure packing for the trip. Somehow, packing for a business trip is not as problematic as packing for vacation. I guess you don’t have to make as many choices in selecting what to take when packing for a business trip
“Hate” is a strong word�... More >>

Lately I have been obsessed with my hair. After getting a great haircut from a woman named Angela, I happily went back for a trim two months ago. Had I known at the time that her father had just died, I might have reconsidered. As it was I came out with an oddly long mullet type do. I wasn’t happy. Two months later and I am just starting to return to what I think of as normal, and now I nee... More >>

Our own Ben Geizhals recently chastised some of his fellow bloggers for “shamelessly begging” for comments. Instead, Ben blogs from the heart to share something on his mind. Likely guilty of the “shameless begging” approach to blogging (although not to the same degree as some of my fellow bloggers), this week I am taking Ben’s approach. Rather than writing for comments, I am writing t... More >>

Atlantic Beach

Yesterday, a friend invited me and my kids to spend the day at their beach club. It was the perfect beach day: sunny, warm and breezy.

The members of the beach club rent a cabana in which to store their summertime amenities: towels, chairs, snacks, beach toys, etc. So, each time you visit the beach, you don’t have to drag along all of that stuff (nor do you have to waste... More >>

I have some not so good news, I am sorry to say. The summer solstice, the longest day of the year, has come and gone already. The days are getting shorter. Winter is coming.

I know that this will make you groan and want to throw something at me. My son Josh will complain that I am spreading "negative energy." He is right; I won't mention anything about it. You didn't hear it from me.

... More >>

It's been awhile since I've taken a trip for pleasure. A friends birthday was the reason. On my way to the get together in PA I was driving through the Poconos and my ears started to pop. Oh yea, I live on an island. A basically flat piece of land surrounded by water where the tallest things are manmade. (it's a landfill on Long Island) But in PA they've got mountains, hills, valleys and all kinds... More >>

I dream a lot at night and have the ability to remember a lot of my dreams. Almost all of them are not pleasant. Some are recurring such as not being prepared for a test, being called on in law school, not having enough credits to graduate, being on the line before Dr. Mengele and on and on.

Some of my dreams are interactive like when I dream I am taking a penalty kick and proceed to kick my ... More >>

The Spring Cocktail Party, held last evening, was another great Gotham event. For me, a spirit of sincere friendships permeated the second floor at the Friar’s Club. It was just good to see everyone and put faces to the names and email addresses that I see daily on Fredslist and the Gotham website.
It was clear to me that Gotham is so much more than the individual groups that are the fron... More >>

Warning: this blog is about a distasteful subject and bad manners.

I was in Dunkin’ Donuts on Sunday morning looking for a last minute hostess gift to bring to a friend’s house for Father’s Day brunch. I was already feeling uneasy when I walked in, planning to buy a dozen high fat, low fiber, high sugar delicacies, hoping no one at the party would ridicule me for being nutritionally inco... More >>

With television that is. I look forward to a good television show. Most nights by 10:00, I am ready to curl up in front of the television for an hour of entertainment.

At this moment in time though, my television choices have run out. The Sopranos have ended, Brothers and Sisters, ER and Greys Anatomy are repeats, if you can find them at all.

I need your help. What is your favorite telev... More >>

Two weeks ago I bought an attractive vinyl tote bag for everyday use. The following weekend we went out to dinner with another couple. The woman (a relatively new friend of mine – the friendship initiated by our sons who have become good friends) complimented my new bag. I was very appreciative. She continued by telling me that it was featured in the Styles section of the Times a few months ... More >>

I miss my father. There is a lot to miss about him.

Today I will think about how he always made me laugh, from as early as I can remember, like when I was a little boy sitting in the bathroom looking up and watching my father shave. He would rinse the razor under the faucet every few seconds, and then flick it towards me pretending not to see that I was getting all wet. I would gig... More >>

In keeping with the spirit of Father's Day weekend, I must admit being a Dad is the best occupation I could ever have. Not only to experience the unbelievable joy and bond that one feels hugging your little child, but as they grow, going through the trials and tribulations that they experience. The bad as well as the good. It's a wonderous, nail biting, joyful, excrutiating, emotional, gut wrenchi... More >>

Two days from now will be Father's Day and it made me think. As I wrote in a recent blog (Looking Over My Shoulder, 4/13/07), 11 years after his passing I am just starting to miss my dad. You might choose to reread that blog for background by clicking on "Browse By Author"-Fred Klein and scroll down to 4/13.

Why am I just starting to miss him? He was a "Damon Runyon" ("Guys and Dolls") chara... More >>

“Nachas” is a Yiddish word for pride or joy. But it’s really more than that. I heard it most often used in the context of “My kids give me great Nachas”. It’s that special pride that you get from people in whom you have special interest and involvement…maybe even investment…like children.
On Monday, I “shepped” (another Yiddish word – “got”, “enjoyed”, “was the ... More >>

I feel great when I hear live music, feel the beat, see the performers and experience a concert in person. As I remember, the first concert I heard “live” was in the early 60’s when the D.J. Murray the K brought Frankie Vallie and the Four Seasons to the Paramount Theater in Brooklyn. That was exciting! Somehow I missed out on seeing the Beatles, but by 1967 when I entered college, every to... More >>

In classic Gotham fashion, 40 Gothamites and friends were privileged to meet and hear Esther Geizhals tell her life story yesterday. For sure, it included her days as a young girl in Poland before and during the war; her years in the ghetto where the effects of hunger were evident all around; the images of watching her mother and brother being sent to a line different from hers upon arrival at Aus... More >>

What happened? If you did not see last night’s SERIES finale, then stop reading right now! But I can assure you, there isn’t much to give away. We, the audience, were left guessing.

It seems that the viewers at home are responsible for making up our own minds as to what happens to Tony after Meadow FINALLY storms into the diner. That really bugs me. The writers/producers/whoever did ... More >>

My blog, due yesterday, was delayed. My home computer crashed, but more important I was beat. I had just come back from my 20 mile Out of The Darkness walk to raise money for the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention. (www.theovernight.org)

The walk started at 8:30 pm Saturday night at the South Street Seaport. There were 1,700 walkers who together raised over $2.3 million to help figh... More >>

My father works for me three days a week as a controller of sorts so I get to see him on a regular basis. He's in his late 70's, answers the phone and handles some adiministration functions as well. For some who call and don't know, the comments are usually, "Who is that nice man that answers the phone? Is he related to you?" After I tell them I always get the "I knew it!" answer.

What they do... More >>

A lot of what I say in this blog is self evident, but still bears saying. We are 8 stalwart Gotham bloggers who blog for three reasons: 1) To contribute to the novelty and content of the Gotham web site, 2) to exercise a welcome opportunity to express one's self and be creative, and last, but far from least 3) to accrue much sought after and appreciated feedback in the form of "Comments". Feedbac... More >>

It’s June 7th and I’m wondering… what happened to Spring? Aside from taking a winter coat from the front hall closet to the cleaners, there was no spring cleaning and only one or two days to leave the windows open. I was wearing a coat one day and in shirtsleeves the next.

It seems that there is no longer any Spring. Maybe it’s global warming but every year the weird weathe... More >>

Last week I took a chance and borrowed a DVD I’d never heard of from the library. It was a German movie, with English subtitles, called, “Goodbye Lenin.” The back cover blurbs sounded promising – Berlin wall era East Berlin woman lapses into coma and emerges in a weakened state after the wall has been torn down. The woman’s son and daughter, interpreting the doctor’s advice to keep ... More >>

Last Thursday, I had dinner with two good friends. One had just turned 40 and we were celebrating. After all, the opportunity to celebrate occasions does not come around enough. In life, those happy opportunities are out there to be grabbed.

The venue was Sagamore Steakhouse in Syosset, the perfect place for three professional women, a few drinks, good food and good conversation among frien... More >>

On Memorial Day last week I was contemplating my blog photo. It was a sunny, warm day; we were enjoying a barbeque and watching the kids swim in the pool. I thought about my blog and the accompanying photo – taken in November, 2006, in which I am wearing a thick, heavy, green, velvet jacket.

With the sun shining bright and temperatures and moods elevating to springtime and early summer he... More >>

My car lease ends in August. It's time to go car shopping, which I thought would be fun, but it is causing some anxiety. I have an Acura MDX. I love that I can fit so many people in it, and how easy it is to throw skis on top or put on my bike rack. It is a pack and go vehicle, and drives like a beauty.

But I don't like the new MDX as much. And I am thinking, maybe I don't need an SUV. S... More >>

Tomorrow I will be having brunch in NYC then going to Princeton for my brother-in-law's third wedding. My wish is for this one to work for him and, by all accounts, it looks like it will. She's a really nice person and, as luck would have it, they are both ministers (of different churches of course).

The question is, what kind of gift do you give for a third marriage? A box of Lucky Charms?... More >>

I want to start by declaring that I HATE GOLF. Why do I hate golf? Let me count the ways: I have a chronic back problem and the twisting of my tortured swing is like a reverse chiropractic adjustment, I am used to having athletic success and except for putting I'm a disaster, my golf shoes are too tight and my dogs are barking at the turn, I am used to cursing when I do not do well on the playi... More >>