Suprise Me

Driving with Susy  Susy’s family lived on our block,  just a few houses away,  and our parents were close friends.  In my mind’s eye I can still see our mothers sitting together in our kitchen,  me watching in fascination as Susy’s mom twisted the string around her teabag to get the last drop of flavor.… Read More

This week we are asked to write about our forebears’ refugee/immigrant experience. I wrote what I know about how my maternal grandparents came to this country several years ago and will link to that story at the end of this essay. I wanted to tell a more urgent story, given that this story will go… Read More

In the 1950s and 1960s, there was no television reception on Long Beach Island. Instead, we went out after dinner for lemon ice (made with real lemons and cane sugar), and played a round of miniature golf. Read More

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We asked just two questions. The first was whether they supported or opposed the ERA. The second ... Read More

I met her “Becky Thatcher-style”; she was painting the white post fence that separated our properties and I introduced myself. We quickly learned that we were both involved in the art world, she as Director/Curator of the Brattleboro Art Museum, I as a board member of the Rose Art Museum at Brandeis University. She gave… Read More

A Family Heirloom, treasured, but never used. Read More

It was 1974, and after two years of working at the US Department of Transportation, I was ready to quit my job and go to law school. I had applied to several schools on the East Coast, as well as UC Berkeley and two other California schools that I didn’t know much about. Those last… Read More

Like any kid, I banged back and forth among various “what do I want to be when I grow up?” fantasies. Read More

Lost Child For many summers when our son was young we rented a beach house in the Hamptons.   (See Skinny Dipping and The Great Hampton Babysitter Heist) One summer day when he was three or four we were on the beach when the kid went missing,   We may have thought the other one had eyes… Read More