So here we go again: another man with a midlife crisis who happens to be a public figure. Read more of this entry »

Over the weekend, I had a story in the paper about Bobby Calilli, a Yorktown Heights banker who’s turning 50 in a few weeks. Read more of this entry »

I had the full sandwich experience this weekend: Spent three days on Long Island helping my mother, who had hand surgery Friday, while trying to manage the teenage situation at home remotely. That was the hard part.

“Everything’s fine,’’ said my son, who actually did the dishes and fed the dog, but at other times was missing in action, his cell phone dead and the home phone ringing endlessly.

Of course it didn’t help that my husband was on another of his international trips, the frequency of which has caused friends to suspect he’s in the Mossad. (He’s not. I mean, I don’t think he is. I would know, right?)

My teenage son wasn’t entirely alone in the house. His sister was home from college, so there was some supervision and a nighttime presence. But it’s not the same as my being there to make sure no mischief goes on.

Do I sound like a tyrant? I’m not. Just felt a little torn between trying to make sure everybody was okay on both ends of the sandwich.

But I’m very happy to report my mother is an excellent patient and was feeling so good two days after surgery that she was back to her speedy Mario Andretti maneuvers, just like old times. We even made it to Macy’s.

Tonight I plan on concentrating on the most neglected part of the whole sandwich: the house that I live in. I’ll let you know how that goes…

For those of you who waited in line at Stew Leonard’s yesterday to meet Curtis Stone… Read more of this entry »

What do you think of married people with children going away on solo trips? Read more of this entry »

I can’t resist those reality shows about women of a certain age.

True, the one about the “cougar” who was dating boys in their twenties turned out to be ridiculous, but when it comes to modeling shows like “She’s Got the Look,’’ which premiered last night on TV Land, I find myself glued to the television.

I already know who my favorite contestant is: Dolores, a  72-year-old former model who’s got the most confidence and charisma of the whole bunch.

Click here to learn more about her.

Wouldn’t it be great if her age ends up being irrelevant and she wins the competition?

By the way, I’ll be out of the office next week and unable to post entries to the blog. But feel free to visit and contribute comments. See you June 22!

As you get older, do you find you’re less patient with people who behave badly?

Last weekend, my mother showed me the notes she’d taken during an “interview” with her father, my grandfather, who was one of the few people in his family to have outwitted the Nazis. He died in 1989 when he was 93.

My mother is also a Holocaust survivor. When I visited her, she showed me a DNA kit that she’d ordered from the DNA Shoah Project , which is building a data base of genetic material from Holocaust survivors and their immediate descendants.

As it says on the Web site, the project is being done “in hopes of reuniting families disrupted by the Shoah (“Holocaust” in Hebrew). The Project aims to match displaced relatives, provide Shoah orphans and lost children with information about their biological families and, eventually, assist in the forensic identification of Holocaust-era remains.”

I helped my mother collect the DNA sample (from her cheek) and she answered a questionnaire that included information about the missing relatives she’s hoping to find. Her sister was 16 when she disappeared in Poland during the war, and she was never heard from again.

Anyway, this looks to be a promising project. Pass it along if you know anyone who’d be interested in this.

And yes, next time I plan to interview my mother and take careful notes. Have you talked to your parents about your family history?

In case you missed it, in today’s New York Times, there’s a story on two popular face-lifts that are advertised on television and in magazines: the Lifestyle Lift and the QuickLift.

Here’s the story.

Just curious: If it were free, would you be willing to have surgery on your face? Or are you happy to age naturally?

No matter how I try to avoid taking sides in the Jon and Kate Gosselin crisis that’s playing out on TLC’s “Jon & Kate Plus 8,’‘ it’s pretty hard to have no opinion at all.

I watched the show before their marriage started disintegrating, and I always wondered why there was never a mention of Kate’s parents. Now, as every tabloid has jumped on the story, one of the nasty bits of gossip that has emerged has to do with Kate’s alleged rejection of her father’s gift of baby cribs, apparently because they didn’t match.

As I said, I don’t want to take sides in this story, though it’s pretty sad to see eight little kids living their lives in public and dodging paparazzi even at a family birthday party. The Gosselins have said they’re continuing the show to save up money for their kids’ college education. I get that. I can’t imagine paying for college for eight kids. Two is hard enough.

But I’m sure most of you have an opinion about the continued airing of the show. Do you think it’s right or should TLC pull the plug? Read more of this entry »