In 2011, on this day June 24, New York passes a law to allow same-sex marriage, becoming the largest state that allows gay and lesbian couples to marry. In 1953, on this day, Jacqueline Bouvier and Senator John F. Kennedy announced their engagement. In 1509, Henry VIII was crowned King of England. He certainly knew the advantages of a good marr …
This is graduation week in so many places and I am reminiscent of this time last year when we celebrated two in our house at the same time. I can’t say that my childhood memories are always easy to reach anymore but some remain crystal clear and included among them each of my own graduations going back to elementary school. I remember the dress …
It’s that time of the year again, summer blockbuster time. Don mentioned it last week when he wrote about seeing “Jurassic World.” It’s that time when the huge movies are released. They are meant to totally captivate you and bring you into their world. And for two hours you’re transplanted to somewhere else and your sense of what’s going on in your …
Thank you "Hard Hitting" Don Bernstein for relinquishing your prime time Sunday spot, but the following just bubbled up and would not wiait until Friday. I have heard that Mother's and Father's Days are "Hallmark Holidays", but in fact they were initiated at the start of the 20th Century for good non commercial reasons. Of course, Mother's Day came …
Is a vacation about a place or is it really a state of mind? Today marks the end of a week's vacation (well almost...it was 6 days). My first in about 7 years. I'm fortunate to have gone away at all considering the last couple of months and I'm very grateful to those individuals who have made this possible (you know who you are:) To "get away" …
I spied the above photo recently on Facebook. It rang true. What could be better than a picture of an Oracle dispensing his hard earned wisdom: I'm suspicious of people who don't like dogs, but I trust a dog when it doesn't like a person. I am a reformed dog hater. My reformation occurred upon the advent two years ago of our wonderful Schnoodle Cha …
Flo's mom passed away last week. I liked Sue, and I think she liked me about as much as she liked anyone who wasn't directly related to her by blood. Sometimes it was hard to tell, because Sue suffered from Alzheimer's for most of the years that I knew her. Sue was a private person. Her family was IT -- the beginning and the end. If you were le …
Last Saturday, I saw a really good movie about Brian Wilson. His story is rather miraculous. Full of triumph, inspiration and humour. Most importantly, the power of one person to make a difference and I don't mean the extremely talented Mr. Wilson, though he is rather amazing. Great cast, acting, direction. And basically truth. No spoilers here. W …
With graduation season upon us, I wanted to comment on a phenomenon that is getting some press. It seems that some schools are having trouble deciding upon a single valedictorian so instead, the entire set of top students gets to hold the coveted title. I have a real problem with that. Don’t get me wrong – I fully recognize the hard work that …
Have you noticed this trend? Whenever we’re out in a restaurant with our kids, we cannot eat the food until they have taken pictures of it. The food cannot be touched by anyone other than them until the food is properly staged and the picture is taken. Once the photo is taken, it is then checked before we can dig in. If the photo is not “Insta wort …
Last night we went to see Jurassic World. Eve was a sport in going to see a movie she had little interest in and she kept asking me when it would be over. The best part of the movie was actually one of the coming attractions. But what would you expect? I will not tell you the story line. If you can't guess it though you probably have been livin …
Do you brace yourself before stepping into a doctor's office? I do. Just about everytime I see a doctor now there's some kind of bad news. I've developed a kind of "what now?" attitude. It's my defense mechanism, preparing for whatever is going to happen. This week, however, I received a piece of good news...finally! Thinking about it, I have a r …
I thrive on the email. I love it! I find it so instantaneous and available that I just can't resist it. In that respect I'm fortunate that my friends are responsive and equally hooked. I can't imagine how I/we ever existed before email and I'm sure that Gotham, which is paperless, would be nonexistent without the advent of email at our onset 18 …
Let's talk about eating and dining. First, I must admit that I am one who eats to live rather than one who lives to eat. That being said, I appreciate a fine meal although perhaps not with the same gusto that I witness in others. Back to eating and dining. For me, dining is when there is nothing else to do but enjoy the food and the company. I …
Following in the clever Mitch Tobol's footsteps, I found this interesting news story. In Britain, he is known as a cantankerous ex-navy officer and for being the queen's husband, but in remote villages in the tropical Pacific archipelago of Vanuatu, Prince Philip is much more. Several hundred scattered residents on Tanna island pray to the Britis …
