It was a simple proposition that I generated from a variety of thoughts. Part of it came from the repeated Rutgers "scandals". Part of it came from conversations I've had with my sister who is both a teacher and a mother of a special needs child. Part of it was conceived throughout Memorial Day weekend as I watched episodes of MASH, a special o …
Driving around my neighborhood on Memorial Day, I made the following observation. My house was the only one displaying the American flag. A little disconcerting. Growing up, my father religiously put the flag out on our front porch in Brooklyn on Memorial Day, July Fourth and probably a few other holidays during the year. I don’t really remember …
I was asked to discuss at a meeting this week, how the South Shore was doing six months after Sandy. I talked about many of the businesses that still haven’t come back. I also spoke about all the homes that still haven’t or are just beginning to undergo construction. Without realizing that I would, I spent a lot of time discussing the color …
This topic is inspired by Fred's post on "Failure." It is the urge, or obsession, that everything has to be just right. Whenever I get my haircut, and my haircutter Audrey is the best, I return home and carefully examine it. I see that she missed one little hair, it is sticking out like a flagpole. I take out my scissors and snip away. Later, …
We all want the silver bullet when it comes to exercise and diet. This will add fuel to the fire...a recent article in the May-June issue of the American College of Sports Medicine’s Health & Fitness Journal says you only need about 7 minutes performing 12 specific exercises (image on left) using only a chair and a wall, no weights or machines. …
Failure is something which we all inevitably experience, one time or another, in our lifetime. That said, I feel that failure gets a bad rap. The common impression is that failure should be avoided and covered up at all costs. To the contrary, it is the fear of failure that is the negative. Thus, playing it safe is the common approach. However, as …
By the time this blog is posted and being read, we will, hopefully, be safe and sound in Prague. We are flying Lufthansa, the German airline. For many years as I grew up, Germany -- and it’s products -- were persona non grata for my family and generally prohibited. As a child, I learned to be sensitive to a product’s country of origin, and “Made …
There is a TV show on HBO called Girls that I have likened to watching a car accident. I understand that my taste might not be everyone's and I can accept that. What I'm curious about is how badly it makes it's female characters look. I have wondered if the same exact show were made by a man rather than Lena Dunham, whether women would be screa …
Prom season is upon us. Dresses -- matching tuxedos – flowers – dates -- pre-party – limos -- after-party -- and the list continues Growing up in Brooklyn, I did not experience any aspect of prom season for the simple reason that we did not have one. But living now on Long Island, the role of prom as a rite-of-passage comes through loud and clea …
This past weekend began a very exciting period for my husband and me. All four of our children are graduating this spring. My daughter and step daughter graduated college this past weekend. My other daughter and step son graduate high school in June. The overwhelming emotion my husband and I are feeling is pride. With respect to our older chil …
Thursday was a beautiful day so I took the day off and Eve and I drove up to Amenia for a 21 mile bike ride. The sun was blazing and the air was warm as we started along the Harlem Valley Rail trail past the farms and hills of Dutchess County. We came upon an open stretch of the path with a lovely large pond bounded by a hill on the far side and …
The Syrian Electronic Army (S.E.A.) successfully attacked the NY Times yesteday. This is the same "army" that hacked the Twitter account of the A.P. and drove the stock market down by Tweeting that there were explosions at the White House. We have a cyber army and so does Russia, England, Israel, Iran, Pakistan and of course China. Just about eve …
1) Nuts2) Oops3) Damn4) Hmm5) Crap6) Whew7) Yum8) Phew9) Rats10) Ugh11) Blech12) Yesss13) Wow14) Yuck15) Ahhh16) No17) Oooo18) Ow19) Ouch20) Eek21) Yow22) Fine23) Sure24) Mother25) Oh26) Bull27) Duh28) Whoa29) Oy30) Heh31) Whoops32) Feh33) Awww34) Ha35) Eh (Canadian)Your turn....
I have had an occasional interest, but no great and burning desire, to visit Poland to see the cities where my parents lived before the war. I am not sure why. Perhaps the images in my mind from the stories I have been told and pictures that I have seen is sufficient. Perhaps I realize that with the exception of the re-enactment in the movie " …
I read a recent article about how the family of former Pirates pitcher Fritz Ostermuller was upset about how their father was depicted in the movie about Jackie Robinson, "42". Historians now say that the movie represented more of a charicature, symbolic of all of the hatred and racism faced by Robinson, rather than an accurate portrayal. In is n …
