It’s a new beginning today.   Yes my Jets start their season this afternoon with many of us holding rather high expectations, especially for the offense. I certainly plan to tune in this afternoon. But today’s blog covers another re-boot of sorts.   This beginning involves a homecoming of sorts.  A return to New York. Several years ago our daughter, Marisa, and friend Nicole took off for L.A.  It was a nice road trip and pictures, emails and texts were shared throughout.  The...

A new coffee shop opened in my town around the corner from my house. Frankly it surprised me given that Starbucks is right down the road.   The store sells specialty coffee from around the word as well as artisan chocolate. The owner, Terry, is really into it. When asked, he'll explain where the different coffee comes from and what it will taste like. I enjoy the coffee and especially the friendly repertoire.   For reasons I can't explain, I decided to help him by providing s...

The words Labor Day conjure up images of end of Summer enjoyment on a sandy beach.  However, on this Labor Day, as is our contrarian wont (see previous blog re our recent visit to the Guggenheim) we went away from the beach and into the city for a day in lower Manhattan at the Whitney Museum of American Art. We zoomed into the city in record time (the sign on the Expressway said 17 minutes to the QMT as we passed under it in Nassau) and easily found a street parking spot. We...

This weekend we will be celebrating my mother’s ninetieth birthday at a small gathering of family and her friends. As the day approaches, I contemplate what few words I might say in her honor and I realize that the words of others would add immeasurably to the predictable words of a biased son. Many of you in the Gotham family have met Esther. She has spoken to Gotham several times and joined us at our holiday party on at least one occasion. From your feedback, it is ...

  Up and down the east coast and could go on for days. Having lived through Sandy in 2012, warnings and watches get my attention in a way they didn’t before. It’s not that I was ever cavalier about being in the path of bad weather, but it’s different now. And frankly, compared to so many others, I was one of the lucky ones in 2012. We have family and friends up and down the east coast. I’m sure you do too. I have already reached out to everyone I know to offer them a s...

  Welcome to September Gotham. As many of you know, I’m a lifelong Weight Watcher. I attend meetings and I follow them on social media. This morning I read something interesting on their Instagram account, a challenge to avoid eating fast food throughout the month of September.     When I first read the challenge, I thought it would be easy for me, as I do not consider myself a fast food eater. Then, when I read the “fine print”, the difficulty level for me increased as it ...

You may know I chair the board of director of Services Now for Adults Person, Inc. (“SNAP”) which also includes two fellow Gothamites – Mindy Stern and Renee Richter on its board. SNAP provides direct services to enhance the quality of life of older adults. Operating senior centers serving northeast and southeast Queens, SNAP also delivers meals on wheels, case management and transportation. Its caregivers program serves about half of the borough of Queens.   We are building...

Have you ever done something nice for someone you didn't know? Like holding the door open. Allowing someone to get in front of you at Starbucks (that may be the hard for some of you:) Or even letting someone in your lane ahead of you while you're driving (that's hard for me!)   Small acts of kindness can go a long way. It also can signal what type of person you are being kind to. Like when you hold the door open and the person walking through it doesn't acknowledge what you'v...

I am a life long Baseball fan.  Did you know fan is short for fanatic?Well fanatic is what I am about this year’s Yankee team (and Aaron Judge, but that’s for another blog)!  They have suffered unprecedented injuries to countless key players and yet the “Next Man Up” has carried them to First Place in the American League and one of the best records in Baseball.  It is unprecedented and they have inspired me to dub them the No Name Monsters!Anyway, last weekend they played nig...

Do you use straws? Do you like them? Do you care what they are made of? I ask these questions because I have been encountering a growing opposition to straws. We have actually converted to reusable hard plastic straws. The "last straw" was when I recently saw a restaurant’s admonition that “we only serve straws upon request”. But, somehow, it all makes sense to me. ...

Today is a big golf day for me. Big client, big course. My colleague, Meghan Shue, as seen on CNBC will be with us. Any words of wisdom? Wish me luck!...

  It was quiet as a breeze last Tuesday. For over 10 years I have been writing a blog on Monday night and posting it for Tuesday’s publication. You know, I’m Tuesday’s Gotham blogger. But last Monday was a little bit crazy. We had just returned from moving my oldest into her new apartment in Ann Arbor and we were getting ready to move my youngest back to college. Monday night blog writing literally just escaped me. I know some of you noticed and that some worried whe...

  For many years I have donated money to The Council of Jewish Women’s Back to Store. Succinctly stated, The Back to School Store is an annual two day event where children of families in financial need are given the opportunity to “shop” for everything they need to go back to school; socks, underwear, a pair of pants, a shirt, sneakers, a winter coat, hat, tooth brush, and a backpack. All the items  given to the children are donated or paid for with the money that is raised. ...

I started my day with Black Coffee. If you read last week’s blog (or viewed my last post to Gotham’s RockRap Music listserve), you already know why.   One word (or title or name).  Squeeze.   We took in one of my fave bands last night at The Rooftop at Pier 17 at the South Street Seaport. I viewed some set lists for shows the band led by Glenn Tilbrook (lead guitar and vocals) and Chris Difford (guitar and vocals). Each one varied so one could only guess what song(s) might ge...

The Amazon forest, which produces about 20% of earth's oxygen, and is often referred to as "the planet's lungs" is ablaze.  There's been an 80% increase in deforestation so far this year compared to last year. Scientists have recorded more than 74,000 fires in Brazil this year. That's nearly double 2018's total of about 40,000 fires. In total, the blazes have created a layer of smoke estimated to be 1.2 million square miles wide. You can even see it from space.   On Monday, ...