Since today is the last day of the month, this blog will appear on the Gotham website blogpage for one single day and then first thing Monday morning, October 1st, will get lost in the recycle bin of past months' blogs. I would guess less people read blogs or sign onto the Gotham website on Sundays than they would during a business day. So this blog, being posted for just one day, probably won't... More >>

Last Thursday's cocktail party was a lot of fun. The alcohol flowed and the food was plentiful. Fred sang and showcased the "World Premiere" of the Gotham Anthem (not in that order), Nancy displayed her singing talent and we think Susan Sajin-Fitzharris and Cayce did as well.

I saw many people I haven't seen in awhile, some great friends and some new aquaintances. A lot of business cards were e... More >>

Two weeks ago my 11 month old grand son, Shawn Atom, had his first sleep-over at our house and, of course, it was great. One thing though, he came without anything on his feet and we have a cold linoleum kitchen floor which he likes to play on with all the clanking kitchen utensils. I remarked on the cold floor to Joanne and she agreed we needed to do something to protect his feet and suggested ... More >>

The baseball that has the dubious distinction of being the 756th of its brethren to be hit out of a ballpark by Barry Bonds is heading for the Baseball Hall of Fame. But before it gets there, it is being marked with an asterisk.
The lucky fan who caught the ball that symbolizes Bonds's breaking of the lifetime home run record previously held by Hank Aaron was paid $752,467 for the ball. The... More >>

Butterscotch the cat (better know as Buddy) has been our daughter, Jenny's cat since Jenny was three and dressed the cat in tee shirts and slept with her nightly. No one else in the family liked Buddy as she was a one woman (child) cat and has been somewhat neurotic since the time she entangled herself in a plastic Waldbaum’s bag when she was a kitten. As these things play out in many fam... More >>

My son started playing flag football this weekend. He was very excited to get onto the field although he had never played before. Turns out, he was in very good company. Nearly half the team had ever done more than throw the ball. A little nervous, with their yellow tails trailing along, the mostly 1st and 2nd graders all dutifully followed their coaches out to the field.

Their coaches encourag... More >>

An aging, eccentric neighbor once said to me, “When your kids go to public school, they’re not yours anymore.” I know that is not entirely accurate, but on many levels, she is right.

My 7 year-old stepped off the bus on Friday afternoon and immediately told me about an incident that occurred during lunchtime at school. She said that a student took a bite of her pizza and fell off of h... More >>

Off with the neckties. By the end of the summer, after too many miserable days standing in my own sweat puddle waiting for a subway, I am ready to burn them.

You girls have it easy. In the summer you can wear little short sleeve dresses and open shoes. Even to work. Look what we have to put up with. Count the layers of clothing around a man's neck when he wears a suit. The folded-over shi... More >>

If you haven't noticed, we have a poll about us, the bloggers. It's been up for a couple of weeks and it was meant to gauge who's blog is liked the most. However it appears to have turned into a bit more than that.

I've heard, through the grapevine, that the results have been padded. Could it be true? Well let's take a look at the facts.

We originally set it up the polls so someone can vo... More >>

Last week, on a slow day, I asked my older son and law partner (how great is that?) David to go to lunch at the Friars Club and he agreed saying we'd go at 12:30 and lunch at 1:00. I made nothing of the two times and when we arrived I proceeded to the Dining Room. He stopped me and informed that we were going up to the Card Room to play cards. Now, you have to understand that although I've bee... More >>

My blog last week was about what we do for our children. I wasn't planning to do a follow-up but on Tuesday, I was at the meeting of the LI Women's Group. Before we went around the table, Nancy asked that people comment about "the money that they have best spent" (somehow it sounds better verbally than it looks in writing).
What I found to be amazing is that almost everyone identified mon... More >>

I can whistle, sort of. Strangely and weakly through gaps in my teeth, but, mainly I use a pursed mouth whistle to call my cats to come inside. I think they respond, but with cats you don’t really know. Anyway, I am not a good whistler and I certainly never mastered the piercing ballpark type whistle with fingers in mouth that is effectively used to hail cabs in old movies.
I like good whis... More >>

This year, I learned something new.

Every year, my family travels to Tinkers Pond in Crossways Park with our temple friends and rabbi on the first day of Rosh Hashanah. We stand around the pond for a few minutes watching the ducks as they watch us. They are anxiously waiting to be fed by their returning friends perched on the edge of the water holding various types of leftover breads. We ar... More >>

You may recall the banter, or should I say disagreement, that Fred (my father-in-law) and I had over my decision to run the 10K portion of the Long Island Marathon at my own, relaxed, UNCOMPETIVE pace. It is an understatement to say that Fred was annoyed.

In May, after registering for the Cow Harbor 10K race (which took place this past Saturday), I decided to try training (not hard, but at my ... More >>

One Yom Kippur, when I was a young boy, maybe nine or ten years old, my family went with friends to an orthodox shul. I don't know why we did. We were not orthodox. For me the experience was intimidating and I felt lost in the service.

Next to me was a boy sitting alone, maybe thirteen or fourteen years old. He was praying feverishly, the words like a blur, tumbling out of his mouth, and h... More >>

Is anyone surprised that Bellicek was taping the Jets play signals? He was also (allegedly) tapped into the frequency that the Jets were using to communicate with Pennington.

I sat and watched the Jet game last Sunday and was remarking how it appeared the Patriots new exactly what the Jets were going to do on more than once occassion. Sure, the players still have to play but isn't this an unfa... More >>

Do you Jay Walk? I know I do as I rush around the City. To Jay Walk is defined as "to cross a street carelessly or in a dangerous or illegal direction so as to be endangered by traffic". In my case it is not done carelessly, the danger comes with the territory and since when is it illegal?

I remember in the 70's they actually gave tickets for jay walking, but when is the last time anyone ... More >>

Let me wish everyone a very happy and healthy New Year.

We were in the Berkshires for a family Bar Mitzvah over this past weekend. While walking, I passed my cousin’s car and noticed a bumper sticker stuck to the side door. Strange that it was pasted on the door, not the bumper. I realized that it was probably put there by his son, or at his son’s, whose Bar Mitzvah we were all cel... More >>

On this day, September 12th, the day after the anniversary of September 11th, and, coincidentally, the beginning of the Jewish New Year, I can’t think of anything I’d rather write about than one of my favorite books. So, in honor of the above, and in hope of better times ahead, here are some of my favorite lines from Richard Carlson’s, “Don’t Sweat the Small Stuff…..” It may be po... More >>

My blog topic today was not hard to find. It is impossible not to write about the events of 6 years ago. I do not enjoy reliving the memories of that day but feel it is almost a civic duty to do so. A few memories that have stuck with me.

· People were crying in small pockets around Penn Station and all the way to my office. I couldn't figure out what the glue was to this thread b... More >>

I wish I could write something as funny as Don’s toilet blog. My upbringing, sensitivity and modesty prevent me from writing about bathroom habits. You should see me at a Friars Roast (I am practically under the table).

What I am writing about is some behind-the-scenes Gotham Blogger-chatter that has been tossed around during the past week. The bottom line for me is whether the Blog Audien... More >>

Last week I learned more things about Larry Craig than I wanted to know. His toilet habits, for instance. According to Senator Craig's statement to the police, he is a wide man and has to spread his legs rather far apart when he is sitting in the bathroom. Well, as he unfortunately learned, that could be a big problem, especially if an undercover policeman is sitting in the next stall.

Appar... More >>

Last weekend we drove my daughter back to Boston for her senior year in college. It was a long trip with the worst traffic I've seen. What should have taken 4 hours took 6.5. After moving her in, setting her up with groceries, books and stuff, my son and I sat outside her apartment wondering if this was the last time we were going to do this. What we did figure out was that if there is a next time... More >>

I start this blog with the admission that my favorite Buddy Holly song is "Rave On" and in that spirit this is a continuing complaint, ie, I rave on about the Gotham blog system failure that occurs at the end of a month. As background, I wrote a really neat observational blog concerning one of my favorite flicks last Friday, which just happened to be the last day of the month. If you missed it (... More >>

I should have known that it would take two trips to the hardware store…. it usually does.

The water was constantly running in the toilet and, after trying to adjust the valve on the float, I realized that it was time to replace the float and valve. Although it was the Labor Day holiday, I was certain that the local hardware store would be open. I bought a replacement for the defective part, c... More >>

The Flying Man appeared on the beach last summer, like the memory of a dream. I first saw him in the parking lot, where he stood strapping a motor and frame to his back. When he reached the beach, he unfolded his wings and attached a twenty foot span to his shoulders. He went running down the shore, and, like Icarus, the Flying Man soared into the sky, above the ocean, leaving us watching in aw... More >>

Wild Cat, Wild Mouse, Storm Runner, Comet, Great Bear. What do all of these names have in common? They are all namesakes for crazy, scary coaster rides.

I am not a fan. As a Brooklyn kid, the Cyclone was never far away but while my friends took a quick ride to Coney Island for some thrill seeking, I always declined. In my later years as a single, I relented and tried Lightning Loops at Grea... More >>

Labor Day is a national holiday, a day off from work for most people. There are at least two ironic things about this “holiday” for me.

One, since I went into LABOR in 1998, there is no such thing as a day off for Labor Day, or any other holiday for that matter. And two, my blogday is Monday on which many, many of the nation’s holidays fall. So you see, I am not only “working” on... More >>

With this weekend, summer unofficially ends. It sure went fast. And each year it feels as though summer passses even more quickly.

I remember the days long ago, as a school year ended in June, that we talked about "next year," meaning September. It almost seemed that the summer was indeed a year in itself. Not anymore. Now, especially with no kids to send off to camp, it is just another tw... More >>

Writing this blog for the first of September reminded my of my Grandmother. She, on the first of every month, would say rabbits, rabbits, rabbits. No one knows why. Maybe it was to promote long life, or maybe she just enjoyed a good rabbit stew. Whatever the reason, it was her superstition. Almost everybody seems to have at least one. I know my son has a couple before he runs. He's changed them a ... More >>