Articles
The One With Arnold Palmer
When I was twelve, the food court in the local shopping mall was a magical place. My friends and I would get dropped off by a well-meaning parent, who couldn't wait to have a few minutes alone to shop in peace. Armed with our allowance, we scoped out the dozen or so...
The One With the Garden
He who has a garden and a library wants for nothing. ~Cicero I do not have a garden, yet I have watched more than my share of gardening television shows and had lengthy conversations with my neighbor, who is a landscape architect, about how much to water gerberas. I...
The One With the Dosas
It's time for another installment of Tourist in My Town. Today I'm taking you to Washington Square Park, located in the heart of the NYU campus in Greenwich Village. Last week I went to the park for a very specific reason. But I'll get to that in a moment. (Spoiler...
The One With the Clarinet
A man shuffled through my subway car. "Hi. My name is Sonny Payne. I'm homeless and I'm hungry," he repeated like a mantra as he tried to dodge the standing-room-only crowd. "If you don't have it, I can understand because I don't have it. But if you have a dime, a...
The One With Napoleon
Some time ago, Reggie and I were hanging out with Little Kitty on our stoop (Reggie loves the kitties) when around the corner came an affable golden retriever with her tail swishing like a windshield wiper. When she saw Reggie and Little Kitty, she came bounding over...
The One With A Cappella
It's been said that not all who wander are lost. And then there was that thing about roads diverging in a wood. Despite the romanticized hubbub about the benefits of being lost, I'm not buying it. I like to know where I'm going and how long it's going to take to get...
The One With the Old Stone House
Today is Independence Day in the U.S. and I'm taking you on a special Tourist in My Town trip to a little place a few blocks from my apartment in Brooklyn. The first and largest conflict of the war is about to begin, and this stone house is going to play a crucial...
The One With the Bicycle
“In the beginner’s mind there are many possibilities, but in the expert’s there are few.” – Zen Master Shunryo Suzuki Reggie and I are taking a late afternoon walk. It's on the steamy side. The sun is at that particular angle where you cannot escape it. Shady...
The One With the Mermaids
On the summer solstice each year, Coney Island transforms itself from a crazy, depraved, whimsical amusement park into a crazy, depraved, whimsical amusement park crawling with scantily-clad party-goers. That's right, dear readers. It's time for the Mermaid Parade!...
The One With the Electrodes
Going to Book Expo America (BEA) without a plan is like going to a Jimmy Choo sample sale. You might get a pair of $400 shoes for 20 bucks, or you might get a stiletto to the throat when you're taken down by a Carrie Bradshaw look-alike. I discovered this the hard...
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