Gotham meetings are like a box of chocolates... you never know what you're going to get. But it is ALWAYS going to be interesting.

  I have a particular taste in wine. Most who know anything about wine at all, (mostly) politely chuckle when I order.    

On Friday morning I started, what will be, a  long custody trial. As most lawyers will tell you, trial work can be emotionally and physically exhausting as well as mentally challenging. You really have to be “on” 100% of the time throughout the entire proceeding. Custody trials, by their nature, can be emotionally draining not only on the litigants but on the attorneys as well. And this particular trial is especially difficult.  

Next Sunday, one day following the First 100 days of the current administration, Gotham hosts its annual Battle of the Bands. Discussions about politics tend towards controversy and division. Music tends to bring people of different persuasions together.

In honor of Earth day today, I thought I might share some interesting facts:   • First celebrated in 1970, Earth Day is now is observed in over 190 countries.   • In 1969, peace activist John McConnell proposed a day to honor the Earth and the concept of peace, to be celebrated on March 21, 1970, the first day of spring in the northern hemisphere.  

I have learned why I have become addicted to my iPhone and Social Media.   For background, please read my Friday With Fred blog of two weeks ago: I'm Addicted. It seems that when one garners a Facebook "Like" or comment it stimulates the body to produce the chemical dopamine and when that happens, as the great James Brown exclaimed, "I Feel Good!"

At Tuesday's meeting of the Long Island Women's Group, the guest speaker, Joshua Lafazan, told us how, as a high school student, he started an anti drunk driving program that provided safe and free rides to students to avoid driving while intoxicated or being a passenger. Three hundred and fifty rides were provided in 2016.

Recently its been coming up more and more, the importance of using your words carefully and intentionally. In my life, I've been pretty careless with words. I was raised in a clever, articulate, SARCASTIC household - mix in a little alcohol (maybe not a little) and you get desensitized to how things feel to others.