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So another Christmas has come and gone. Some of the nieces who are away at college were home and other nieces/nephews who live nearby were all in festive moods of their own. It seems every year time whips by. There is a station on cable television, "sounds of the season" that plays Christmas music the entire month of July--Christmas in July. And I could swear I was just enjoying that music with summer weather outside. And now, it's December 26.....about 10 degrees out. I worked a lot of hours this season.....not exactly what I intended to do when I took... Continue reading

So I had many technical difficulties on my blog and many technical difficulties in my life with all the devices going haywire at one time or another. Plus I was working os many hours that my free time wasn't so free. I have noticed lately that people really live their lives according to bumper stickers. What I mean is, there isn't much original thought but rather the repetition of "sayings", "mantres", "quotes"---bumper stickers. Real thoughtful insight on topics seems to be rare. One of my favorite quotes is, and I can apply this to my professional experiences as of late,... Continue reading

Here are some of the things that I am liking right now and using right now and wearing right now. It's still all about the ears! Yep. Threader earrings, chain earrings......so many choices, so many price points. You don't have to spend a fortune to get the look. And while they are rather "trendy" styles, a few years down the road, you can make simple design changes that will take the earrings to new heights. The last pair are called "Fly by Night" and they are by Stephen Webster.....I don't think there is a single piece of his jewelry I... Continue reading

So I took some time off from blogging.....for a few reasons: 1. People are really negative about stuff lately and even the best scripted postings seem to get people's underwear in a twist 2. I began writing a book....not so much to be published but so I can leave it behind and maybe one day my nieces and great nieces will be interested in knowing a little bit about my life since apparently they are currently otherwise engaged and have little interest. LOL 3. My professional life got really really busy and blogging seemed like a chore instead of a... Continue reading

Those are lyrics from Michael Jackson's song: Black or White. I heard the song the other day and it made me think about the NAACP President who felt the need to lie about her race. It's not "her truth" as she claims, it's a lie. L.I.E. A lie. An untruth. A flat out purposeful deceit. That's "her truth" whether she takes responsibility for it or not. The question isn't whether it matters if she is black or white, it's why she lied about it. The core of that lie and the reasons she was able to get away with that... Continue reading

I hope all young boys and girls see this. So true. So true. As an aunt to 5 nieces and a nephew (and all their friends) I try to tell them similar things all the time. Continue reading

Well, another niece was graduated from high school today. In fact, this is the youngest niece so it's the last high school graduation for me. (insert tissue and sniffles). Hats off to the graduating class. Toss your caps high and far! Sorry for the blurry photo but until I get the "clearance" from the niece, I have to blur it for now. LOL Her father teared up today when he told us a story.....the other day she said to him, "dad, this is the last lunch you are going to pack for me". Continue reading

So there is a commercial for Red Robin on television that is so funny. I mean come on all you GAWKs, we've all been here haven't we? And you never, ever want anything bad to happen while the nieces and nephews are "on your watch". Right? I brought my 3 year old niece to the mall with me. I had to purchase something at the register and told her to "stay right here". Once the sales associate handed me my package, I looked down and she was gone!!!! My heart dropped and the color drained from my face and I... Continue reading

Some universities and colleges nab really big names to give commencement speeches. It wasn't really that way when I was graduated from college. So my question to you is, if you could select one person to give the commencement address at your school, who would it be? Continue reading

To all the teens out there that I know and love and don't know but love too: You grow up wasting so many moments and thinking you've got all the time in the world. Time is finite. Your future starts right now, this moment is your future. So stop swimming in the fray of unhappiness. Grab hold of things that raise you up. That lift you beyond any boundaries of goodness and positivity. Love yourself enough to choose to be happy and: Don't let anyone dull your sparkle. Ever. Continue reading

Oh wow. Never thought it would happen but I just read that next season will be American Idol's 15th and final season----eeeevvvveeeerrrr. Say it isn't so---pleeeeeeaaaaaasssssseeeee. I've loved this show since season 1 when no one knew what I was talking about. I was hooked by the very first show and brought along a lot of friends to watch too. It was Seacrest and Dunkleman and Clay and Reuben and I single handedly made Clay Aiken a household name by voting for him a couple hundred times---several hundred times----that season. American Idol has had some rocky moments these last couple... Continue reading

So there is this weird phenomenon going on these days that I really need to vent about. It actually all started back when I was married. Since we were older and it was difficult to get our older grandparents etc. to travel to some destination place and because my entire adult life was in NYC, I wouldn't think of asking all my NY friends to travel to Ohio so my husband and I decided to have a small wedding---parents, grandparents, siblings, nieces/nephews. That's it. 32 in total. But I still was married---probably the biggest day in my 39 1/2 year... Continue reading

Yesterday was Mother's Day. As a GAWK, you know that I am a "Good Aunt Without Kids" of my own. But as we all know, it really does take a village to raise children these days. I have several nieces and a couple nephews and my husband and I are very involved in their lives because we have been invited in by their parents to be actively around and help out whenever and however we can. I wouldn't change a single moment of these years with these young people. It's been hard, challenging, frustrating but also so much fun and... Continue reading

Okay, I do enjoy watching The Pioneer Woman on the Food Network. I really do. But lately all she keeps talking about and blogging about is how sad and sad and sad she is that her daughter, the first-born, is going away to college. I get it. It's a tough, dangerous world out there and your little 18 or 19 year old baby is off on their own to navigate what is right and what is wrong. Hopefully your child, by the time they reach 18, has a solid understanding of what it means to be a responsible human being... Continue reading

For years I carried this tear sheet in my wallet---I tore it out of a Vogue magazine when I was about 26 as THEE dress I wanted to wear when I got married! Here it is: Some 13 years later when I actually was married, I didn't wear anything like this. I was older and I just couldn't fathom spending thousands upon thousands of dollars on a wedding dress. By that time I was far too practical and there were so many other things I would rather spend the money on. I didn't have one of those moments when your... Continue reading

That is a line from one of my all time favorite books. It was the book that launched my lifelong love of reading and collecting books. I was in first grade and after lunch each day the class would gather on the floor and the teacher would read a few pages until the end. I love Charlotte's Web. It took me a long time to find the perfect first edition of the book. It never occurred to me that the value of the book would increase and increase and increase over these past few decades. That is not why I... Continue reading

It was her tag line wasn't it? Some people didn't appreciate her humor; others did. She was a survivor for sure--picking herself up time after time and reinventing herself for the sake of her daughter and herself. She was successful by all accounts and she is gone now. I took this photo at one of the Foundation's fundraising event. I had the opportunity to work with Joan Rivers when I worked for Paloma Picasso. Paloma and Joan worked tirelessly for the Foundation for Suicide Prevention and because I worked for Paloma, that meant I too worked tirelessly for the Foundation... Continue reading

I didn't actually go back to college over Easter but one of my nieces was home for a couple days for Easter break and she had two big papers due and of course rallied "the Aunts" to help her. And considering she is attending my alma mater, it really was like going back to college for a couple of days. One of the papers was for English class and it reminded me of how much I loved my writing classes in college--all of them....business writing, communications, journalism, English, 18th Century Literature in French, etc. etc. And while I was prepared... Continue reading

I know mom's who have said to me: "You have to introduce alcohol to your kids before they go away to college so they don't get to college and binge drink". Um. As Dr. Phil would ask: "How's that working for you?" see this important article on the topic. http://www.abc.net.au/news/2014-09-08/teens-given-alcohol-by-parents-drink-more-study/5726532 Continue reading

If you follow my blog you know I worked for Paloma Picasso for many years. She is the daughter of Pablo Picasso (yes that Pablo Picasso) and Francois Gilot. It is in the news that his masterwork, entitled "Les femmes d'Alger (Version "O")" goes up for auction at Christie's in May. The auction house estimates it will go for $140 million but Picasso's most famous paintings are in high demand and such auctions usually sell for a much higher price than the estimate. When I worked for Paloma Picasso, she of course owned many of her father's works and it... Continue reading

It always snows in March. I know. But somehow, after this rough winter, I thought maybe, just maybe we would have an early Spring. But as I write this, there are rather large snowflakes falling to the ground. I write a blog for a jewelry designer and was on deadline today. I wasn't feeling it this month (I write the blog every month) and unlike this blog, I have to be very very careful about the descriptions of pieces of jewelry because if you are buying a $15,000 piece of jewelry, lets say, you want to know what you are... Continue reading

I'm sure most of you saw my post "50 Shades of Red" that I posted a couple weeks ago. Here is an excellent article by Miriam Grossman MD on the topic. Gee, for someone who never birthed a daughter, I guess I wasn't too far off, huh? :) http://www.miriamgrossmanmd.com/an-open-letter-to-young-people-about-fifty-shades-of-grey Continue reading

Not only is "Home Sweet Home" one of Carrie Underwood's hit songs, it's also the theme of today's post because she will be taking a baby boy "home sweet home". Carrie Underwood and her husband Mike Fisher had a baby boy a couple days ago. Here is the sweet photo they posted on Instagram of baby Isaiah Michael Fisher. . She has class. She really handles herself and her professional career with class, dignity and good intentions. I have to believe a lot of that comes from the way she was brought up. I've observed over the years that most... Continue reading

You know, I overheard a group of women talking over their lunch about how awful Hollywood is for putting out the movie 50 Shades of Grey on Valentine's Day and promoting it like it was some kind of romantic movie when in fact, let's face it, it's porn. And not even that it's porn but it's abusive and degrading to women. But what I wanted to ask these mothers having lunch and ripping Hollywood to shreds is, "are you going to allow your daughters to see the movie"? And so I did and one of them said, "Well my daughter... Continue reading