Coming from New York, I have incorporated a laissez faire attitude toward celebrities --- when New Yorkers see a celebrity on the street, they don’t (or are not supposed to) make a big deal of it. But I was in Seattle. As I parked in front of the hotel, I noticed Kiefer Sutherland (aka Jack Bauer of “24”) standing in front.
We acknowledged each other and he smiled as I came around and unl... More >>

Someone near and dear to me just got a bad haircut. His hair is sticking out at slightly uneven lengths all over his head. He rarely looks in the mirror, yet he is wandering around the house saying, “Horrible, horrible, my hair looks horrible.” The old barber, who was terrific and charged thirteen dollars, suddenly up and moved to Virginia. The new barber, is nearby, has the pole and the ch... More >>

I recently wrote about prejudice I faced as a single parent in an encounter involving my older daughter, Calli. After reading that blog, my younger daughter, Sydney, asked me to write about her. With the issue of prejudice still fresh in my head the topic of such a blog came to me easily. Sydney has Attention Deficit Hyper-Active Disorder (“ADHD”) and, as a result, Sydney has faced more ignora... More >>

“What’s Jackson’s Bar Mitzvah date?” A mom at the ball field asked me over the weekend, as he stood poised to throw a pitch.
“Um, well, he’s not having a Bar Mitzvah.” I respond, uncomfortably and awkwardly.
After a short pause, I decide to continue, “I’m not Jewish.”
“Oh, I’m sorry. I just thought. Well... I shouldn’t have assumed.” She responded, uncomfortably... More >>

After a long winter, Spring decided to stop teasing us and finally show up. In fact it felt more like summer yesterday. During a day full of activity I managed to get in a few mintues of sitting quietly outside and feeling the warmth of the sun. I laid there in silence, perfectly still, in a complete state of relaxation, where nothing seemed to be moving except for the clouds above and my chest ... More >>

Ever have a moment that transported you back in time?

Last week ago, in the Bronx on Fordham Rd of all places, the smells of life on the street triggered some memories. I felt like I was 10 again visiting my Grandma and Grandpa. There was Grandma giving me a kiss with her scratchy face wearing a house coat in the middle of making chopped liver in a wooden bowl. The sound of the single blade ch... More >>

As in the past, I save pithy, poignant, points to present in a blog and here we go:

1) Lunacy is first cousin to originality. (me)

2) How you do anything is how you do everything. (Claude Johnson)

3) How old would you be if you didn't know how old you was? (Satchel Paige)

4) Chances I might never have again. (Craig Bruck)

5) The only way out is in. (Junot Diaz)

6) I do... More >>

I had to take a break from packing to write this blog. I’m packing for a long-weekend trip to Seattle to visit my daughter, Mea. It made me think about all the places we have been to visiting our children. Let’s see if I can remember them all.
There were the college trips: Albany, Binghamton, Middletown (Connecticut), Chicago (or, more precisely, Evanston, Illinois), Great Barringto... More >>

I am overwhelmed by the beauty of a spring that felt like it might never get here. With all the angst of the preceding year, this spring’s flowers are that much more beautiful. Today, I spied yellow forsythia brightening all the roads and highways, hundreds and hundreds of daffodils in full bloom, pink apple blossoms beginning to open on the tree in front of my window, gorgeous, wide branches ... More >>

Welcome to Earth Week 2009, intended to encourage and celebrate our individual and collective environmental conscience.

I know what Gotham is doing to commemorate this important occasion. On Thursday (April 23), Gotham Green is hosting our first Gotham Green Awards luncheon where three businesses will be honored for their commitment to the environment. I hope you have all put this important da... More >>

Clues to the title will be found in this blog...

I never thought I would like this book. It spans approximately 500 pages and turned out to be worth my time. The writing is clear and moves the story along swiftly, like many of its main characters. There is drama, intrigue, excitement and love. Could be just about any book, right?

No. Continue.

Edward, a beautiful vampire, expounds ... More >>

There were a few things to be learned this week. One was from the video of the woman contestant at the British version of American Idol that was all over the internet and YouTube. She was the older not so attractive woman who everyone suspected would perform as poorly as her hairdo looked. What a surprise she was, teaching us that things go deeper than how they seem on the surface and how wro... More >>

The sun is shining, I don't need to wear a coat, the grass is growing, flowers are starting to bloom...yes it's golfing season again. Oh yeah it's also spring:)

So write a comment on my blog and get out there. Dig you hands in some dirt, grab that trusty seven iron and start to excise the demons from last year. Feels good doesn't it? There's nothing like hitting a golf ball really well. It's on... More >>

Animal: Mr. Kitzel, my dearly departed cat
Booze: French champagne
Car: My 1962 Corvette (in 1962)
Dog: Otis, my son's jet black smooth dispositioned mixed breed
Exercise: Swimming (with a snorkel)
Food: Sushi and sashimi
Game: Softball (Bombers)
Honey: Joanne
Ice cream: Rao's home made vanilla
Jewelry: none
Kvell: For my grand kids
Lunch: Brown bag turkey on rye with two ap... More >>

It was late, dark and had just started to rain. Flo and I were on our way home, driving on a not heavily traveled road. At first, I didn’t see her. Then she raised her arm as if to make me stop as she crossed the street. I let her cross and as I passed her she raised her arm again. Perhaps something was wrong. I stopped the car.
As she walked over, I noticed the big backpack and ba... More >>

Are you popular? Some people are born with the ability to attract others.
It starts when they’re little. Everyone wants them on the team.
Everyone wants to sit next to them, have a play date. Being nice doesn’t always mean you’ll be popular - sometimes mean kids are very popular.

Popularity is an inherited trait. Popular parents, those with a lot of friends and social success, usual... More >>

A small child is in an airport with his mother when he turns around and suddenly realizes that he has lost her and is stunningly alone in a sea of grownups. For what seems like an eternity, we watch the child devolve from awareness to sheer and utter panic.

This description is not of a “real life” situation (supposedly) but rather a powerful advertisement in an ongoing campaign to convinc... More >>

It all started with a "bug out" bookmark by HHDB; the bookmark was a sketch of a barn and a lighthouse with swirling clouds around the lighthouse. It was very unique and poignant.

Then I received a beautifully framed picture of a light house from a very close friend. I have to admit that my thoughts on lighthouses in general were not much, however----when I thought about the significance of a ... More >>

I recieved an Evite a few weeks ago from some people planning a camp reunion in June. I went to a sleep-away camp in the Poconos for ten years. My parents sent me for my first year, a full eight weeks, when I was six years old. The Evite came addressed to "Donnie Bernstein." I read it and wondered, who is that?

When I was little my mother called me as Donny, though now she denies it. Somet... More >>

Got the whole fam in the car, cruising to Buffalo. I decided to follow my Garmin and take route 20A through upstate New York. The breadbasket of our state where farmland stretches out amongst the hills. We pass cattle, sheep and horses enjoying the afternoon. Barns zip by in different colors and states of repair.

All of a sudden, off in the distance, about 20 to 25 large graceful structures ap... More >>

No, this is not a blog about some egg head nonstreetwise person, as you might expect to come out of me.

Have you ever been at the airport waiting to board a flight and you hear them announce something about an over booked situation (as if they were encountering unexpected wind turbulence in flight and not because they were the craven cause)?

It starts innocently enough, just asking for "vo... More >>

As I write this, it is a few days before Passover. As you read this, the first Seder (celebratory meal of Passover) will have been last night. In accordance with family tradition and perceived culinary capabilities and expertise, I will be making the Haroset (the food which symbolizes the mortar used by the Hebrews) and the Marror (the bitter herbs symbolizing the bitterness of the slavery in Egyp... More >>

Passover begins this evening; Easter is on Sunday. Holidays define and punctuate our lives, filled with food, family and friends. When I was a little girl, I loved the tumult of Passover. My mother was one of six children and each of her siblings had a spouse and two or three children of their own. Our extended family gathered in my Aunt Ida’s basement in Brooklyn where we laughed and ate and... More >>

Did you ever notice how the weather can affect your mood?

As I was looking out the window today at driving rain [at time of writing it is still Monday], it occurred to me that I was longing for a nap. No particular reason other than the tone and darkness of the day. A good snowstorm doesn’t do that to me, but rain does. [Supporting observation: commuters are noticeably happier and even fr... More >>

Over the weekend, my 10 year-old attended two separate tryouts for a “Spring Select” hockey team in Mount Vernon. Kids from all over were welcomed to pay a fee and skate for a coveted spot on the tournament-bound team.

By Sunday, at the end of the second day of tryouts, I was helping my son get out of his equipment -- to expedite the process. I was the only adult in the locker room with a... More >>

I discovered email in January 1997. My kids were telling me about something new called America On Line and email, which I knew nothing about. You have to have a screen name, they said. I didn't know what that was but went and got myself one (choosing a name associated with Jerry Garcia of The Grateful Dead), and have been hooked to email like everyone else ever since.

Back in those days AO... More >>

Many of us look at the complexities of life and choose not to see the simpler side. We seem to focus on negative thoughts or trying to achieve happiness as an end game. Some people have blinders on because they believe their joy is not in the present but somewhere down the road. I get caught up in this many times. The stress of the day, the thousands of things I need to do in a short time all cons... More >>

What is a "whipping Boy" and why have we never heard of a "Whipping Girl"?

Brewer's Dictionary of Phrase & Fable ( a great repository of derivations gifted to me by Julie and David Klein) gives the following definition for "Whipping Boy": A boy educated with a prince and whipped when the latter deserved chastisement".

I have observed modern incarnations of this medieval practice, ie, verbal... More >>

We were on line at the bagel store and Flo noticed one of the women a few spots ahead of us. She had a particularly sour countenance. The suspicion of her unpleasantness that morning was confirmed when she ordered. She was abrasive and rude to the clerk who was assisting her with her order.
There must have been five other people on the line, but this woman stood out. The others seemed ve... More >>

It was the second night of Passover, 2004, or thereabouts. Fred had invited David and I to partake of dinner with him and Joanne. Not a Seder, but at Rao’s. Despite it being the second night of the holiday, we had no other plans, and we rarely turn down the deliciousness of an invitation to Rao’s. So, off we went, although we were a little uncomfortable, in that having dinner out on a holi... More >>