An old friend of mine was recently arrested. His offense was ridiculous and the best the local authorities could do was accusing him of a thinly veiled 5th degree misdemeanor. However, in this day and age, his exclusive address combined with his professional success made him an easy lightning rod, and the media had a field day at his expense. After reading some of the articles about what had happened to him—and even worse, the venomous anonymous comments that people were leaving about him online—I picked up the phone and reached out to him. The funny thing is, I didn’t even wrestle with the …

At a recent school function, I ran into one of those seldom-seen mothers. She was wearing a suit, a Metro-North schedule was peeking out of her briefcase and her hair was perfect. She looked at me and whispered that she’d like to be here more, but her work schedule was hectic—oh, and she hated the other mothers. I actually understood what she was saying. I know that the stay-at-home moms can really make working mothers feel insignificant and out of place, even sometimes bullying them to an extent. I know that Westchester is filled with women who “until recently” used to do something grand, or…

I had a long talk the other day with a woman who had just moved with her family to New York. Her husband had been relocated here for his job. After considerable thought, the family chose to live in Westchester. The main reason for their decision was the fact that so many of the towns have schools with great reputations. But since the beginning of the academic year, she has only found disappointment.  Her main source of displeasure wasn’t the teachers or class sizes, but rather the way that the other students acted during the day. Her children had been in a private school abroad, and the main …

Before retailers caught on about Black Friday (and now Black Thursday evening), Thanksgiving Day was a time set aside for family gatherings. Although different people may observe the holiday in their own ways, it usually focuses on things that you and your loved ones are thankful for. You get to reflect over copious amounts of food, and then if you can get up from the table, you waddle your freshly-stuffed body over to the couch to watch some football. Professional football has evolved into a sport of giants, with almost half of the players now tipping the scales at over 300 pounds -- and …