“One of the greatest institutions of the civilized world is the family dining room table”. – Teddy Roosevelt Jr. As you will soon find out I adore the Roosevelt’s, all of the Roosevelt’s to be exact. This quote from Teddy Jr. exemplifies the reasons why. Although they had a sense of duty and patriotism they never lost sight of their families. For them family was the most important thing. I believe it’s a central reason why they were so successful and why we don’t have many politicians nowadays who come close to polishing their shoes. Thanksgiving is a time where sitting around a table of family is precisely what the doctor ordered. It is the time to catch up while creating new memories to cherish. It is the time for stopping in our busy lives to acknowledge who is important to us and why. If we don’t know why then perhaps they shouldn’t be in our lives? Certainly some food for thought. It has been around many of my family’s holida...

What do you get the woman that has everything, including me? It turns out the answer would be found right in front of my face. As the bright light from my computer blinded me one morning I somehow ended up with the perfect way to celebrate my mother’s birthday. The answer was to partake in the infamous, historic Sunday Brunch at Peacock Alley Restaurant in the magnificent Waldorf Astoria right here in New York City. I don’t know how it didn’t occur to me to do it sooner. My mother’s birthday is a national holiday in my house. I am serious ask anybody. She always insists on having a birthday week and I can remember years not long ago when she had a birthday that seemed to go on for months. There are always surprise guests, incredibly thoughtful gifts from her children, her favorite blue roses from my dad, and pretty much anything else you can think of. I think the only thing that could top those amazing gifts...

There is certainly something special about Barney Frank. The former member of the House of Representatives served his home state of Massachusetts well for nearly forty years. He is known for being outspoken to a fault, which of course is part of his charm. It’s my favorite thing about him despite his other many wonderful qualities.  I have been a huge fan of Barney Frank for many, many years. The last few years he has been a presence on Bill Maher’s “Real Time” and I have enjoyed each minute of that more than the one before it. I suspect Bill agrees with me on this matter. His style might be a little rough around the edges but he was certainly a mover and a shaker. I like his style never afraid to say what he meant. Better yet he made promises and kept them much of the time forsaking have a personal life to make public policy to make the world a better place. Or as he would say, to at least stop other people from making it worse. A self-...

I love me some Bill Maher. Every week after watching his show “Real Time with Bill Maher” I have to say it again silently to myself. His jokes, perspective on current events, and passion about our country makes him stand out in a world populated with late night shows. Ironically, I religiously watch his show to keep up with politics, meet some of the brightest and smartest influential people all while laughing as I learn. In some ways I think he would have made an awesome professor, probably a very naughty professor, but a fascinating one none the less. Besides hosting this weekly show, Bill Maher travels practically every weekend performing his legendary standup routine.   He even goes to places most people fly over at least according to him. There are liberals who love him everywhere and I suspect maybe some Republicans too. Thankfully I live in one of the greatest cities of all time so I can get an opportunity to see him perform at least once a y...