The small package was left on my desk. There was a package in a package and on the outside of the inner package was a note. “Ben - Like you, I always keep a pen in my pocket. And, I also loved my Space pen. I don’t have any more of those but thought these might be a nice substitute. Enjoy and be well. Neal” Fellow Gothamite Neal Berman had read my …
Recently, I attended my (97 years young) Grammy’s memorial service in Illinois. COVID had us waiting to be together as a family, but finally we were able to be together to celebrate her life. Grandma Grace and her beloved had 8 children. Those eight, became 41. With spouses, 75 people rolled in to celebrate her life. It was sad to lose granny. She …
We have always chuckled at my husband’s special talent. Seriously, he can – and usually does – talk to anyone. It doesn’t matter where he is, what line he is standing in, where he might be going. If he stands next to someone long enough, there is a conversation to get started. A few weeks ago we were in Costco. He commented on this guy’s tee s …
Are you a car person? Admittedly, I am not. To me, my car’s function is to get me to and from where I need to be. Since that sometime means driving through inclement weather, I generally drive a SUV or cross-over. For the past six years I have leased a GMC Terrain. I loved my Terrain but, for some reason, when the second lease recently ran out I …
Motivated in part by a campaign I enjoy (don’t tell the client) advising in New York City’s Municipal Primary elections, I posted a Gotham promo Friday that opened with the same musical Happy Father’s Day message, I enjoy make a tradition posting when I open my commentary every Father’s Day: a video of current Poco bassist and vocalist Jack Sundrud …
Traffic is increasing and we as drivers as well as the roads are struggling to cope. Some say it's because people do not want to take public transportation while a recent report stated that the influx of traffic is directly related to our increase in buying online. Yes. Take a look around (safely) while your driving and you'll notice a tremendous …
Last night Gotham held its first Virtual Gotham Battle of the Bands (BOTB) competition sponsored by Jason Greenberg and The Phoenix Adjusters Group, Inc. and the Winners were: Tara O’Grady-First Prize($2000 and Show Case at Cafe Wha?), Parkway South-Second Prize ($1000) and Sound Judgment-Third Prize ($500). It was the first Virtual BOTB and ho …
For many, many years I had a black Fischer space pen. The black matt was chipped - a respectable sign of its being well utilized over so many years.Last February, I lost it.I replaced it a few weeks later. New black matt finish.Last weekend, we were sitting outside in West Stockbridge, Massachusetts having an iced coffee. I heard the clink of the p …
Yet another shift in our evolving society with the sunsetting pandemic. Recently, I've had numerous conversations with professional colleagues about business and the state of affairs. Consistantly reported, is this zeal for face to face encounters. With the resurgence of in-person meetings, most are redefining productivity. The 'new normal" is in d …
I’m afraid I might be single handedly supporting the rejuvenation of the New York economy. It occurred to me recently that I have been out shopping more over the last three weeks than in the last 15 months combined. Restaurants, clothing, gifts, you name it. Although I’m still not comfortable in a mall, I have been able to get comfortable i …
I am turning 60 this summer, as are many of my longtime friends. Given that we are still in a pandemic, we are all finding creative ways to celebrate. For my husband’s 60th birthday, this past October, I had friends and family from near and far submit a short video, and pictures if they had, to wish him a happy birthday. My daughter put it all t …
Some people tell this commentator that I Live for the Music. I concede I missed live music. Last night with our friends Eric and Jar we checked out a band called Rock Steady outdoors at Lamotta’s in Port Washington. It’s drummer, Andy Lavin, is a member of this tribe that hosts this commentary. And this coming Thursday, at 6:00 p.m., everyone can e …
I know there's an election when I start seeing ads trying to get you to vote for a specific candidate. Right now, they are at a fever pitch because we have one starting today. (The primary Election day is Tuesday, June 22, 2021 but there's an early voting period which is June 12, 2021 — June 20, 2021.) No surprise I'm fascintated by the strategie …
Last night the North of 25A Book Group hosted a Zoom discussion with Pulitzer Prize winning author Dave Barry. Our group had read his wonderful, humorous and poignant 2019 book, Lessons From Lucy. Lucy is his dog :) Having been turned around/converted about dogs 8 years ago by the advent of my beloved Charcoal, the book resonated especial …
We were on Zoom waiting for the other members of New York Health and Longevity to join the meeting. I asked fellow Gothamite Janet Sullivan how she was doing.She answered that she was okay but with the reservation that she was doing as well as could be expected given the stress that we have all been under for over a year. (My apologies to Janet for …
