You are currently viewing the stories for “October 2010.”
This was the first year we had joined the Westchester Youth Soccer League, and the urban parents on our daughters’ travel team were business executives, academics, social workers, and creative directors—just like they were. Some of us had left our parents’ Westchester or Long Island suburbs to raise our children in the “inner” city of Greenwich Village. We’d heard stereotypes [...]
Be afraid, they tell us. Be very afraid. I read the Timeses, the Newses, the AM New Yorks. I watch the Ernie Anostoses, listen to the Brian Lehrers, check out the NY1s, peruse the Gothamists, and call the 311s, only to end up hearing the same message, the ongoing drumbeat pounding in my brain in 12-8 time. THE-BED-BUGS-ARE-COM-ING! THE-BED-BUGS-ARE-COM-ING! I [...]
“Je m’a…,” I’d stuttered to Aristede Mezondes, the serious young man in a grey wool overcoat, standing before me with ramrod posture. “Je m’appelle Dr. Ofri.” There. I’d gotten it out. The language of Descartes, Voltaire, and Balzac had clearly vacated my cortex. Despite those years of French classes and one brief visit to Paris, “Je m’appelle” was the best [...]
As I am walking out of yoga class, an acquaintance asks, “How’s Rio ?” She is referring to the two pound poodle puppy I had mentioned I would be getting. At this point, I’ve had Rio a few days. “He’s great,” I say, “But it’s way more overwhelming than I thought it would be.” Her face instantly screws up in [...]
For the past several minutes, I've been watching Ellen DeGeneres drive a cab around Columbus Circle behind a camera crew. The cab is old fashioned, with a big square grill and black-and-white checkerboard sides. Businessmen rushing by don't notice her or don’t care if they do, and I stand with a few foreign tourists ready with their cameras. They know [...]
