I am a city girl.  Born and bred in Brooklyn, I feel most at home in cities whether in this country or abroad.  But as of late I have been realizing that there are a handful of places in my home state of New York that have I strong feelings for. Sleepy Hollow is definitely one of them especially during this time of year.  A couple of years ago I started visiting realizing how many beautiful, historic, and unique attractions there were here. All of that while maintaining that small town feel.  Two years ago I took part in my first Sleepy Hollow Halloween activity; a nighttime tour of Sleepy Hollow Cemetery . Though I have yet to read the tale with a similar name, I was hooked.  This year I have returned to complete another Halloween activity that I had been hearing so much about: The Great Jack O’Lantern Blaze.  Also known on Instagram as #pumpkinblaze I struggle to explain how magnificent and magical this experience was....

I live a chronic migraine life.  It effects every aspect and day of my life; sometimes in big ways, sometimes in small. I go for Botox injections (forty-one shots) every three months as a way to prevent my illness from taking over my life.  In order for a proper diagnosis (initially) and due to the toxicity that is the health “care” business in this country, I have had MORE than my fair share of MRIs.  MRI stands for Magnetic Resonance Imaging. If you haven’t been lucky enough to have one of these scans count your blessings. While it is non-invasive and does not physically hurt, for me these scans are torture.  It takes about forty-five minutes to an hour depending on what part of your body you are there for. You lay on a narrow table that slides you into the machine. Though you are not fully encapsulated your head is surrounded by a large arch. The machine is very close to your face, much closer than any tanning bed I ever used back in the...

I had just had the greatest thin crust pizza of all time. And it was made by Irish people, originally at least. I know your mind is blown, right?!!  Mine too. Actually so was my tongue ever since I visited the Port Chester location of Colony Grill. Colony Grill grabbed my attention with three words: “hot oil pie”. I have never heard of such a thing so my interest was of course piqued.  The other interesting tidbit was that they first opened in 1935. That is a whopping eighty-four years ago!  If there is anything I love as much as pizza, it is certainly history. The original location was in Stamford, Connecticut and is still in existence today. First opened by Irish immigrants, the pizza this bar would be come known for is essentially a combination of the ethnicities found in America at that time.  After returning home from World War II, two former employees Eugene Bohannon and Jimmy McLaughlin purchased th...

Way back in March I took a repeat visit to Hyde Park, New York. I first spent the day there back in late 2015 when I went to see the birthplace and residence of FDR, a personal hero of mine. He was born in the main house known as Springwood , and eventually built the first presidential library on the grounds. His wife (and cousin Eleanor) also had a personal property nearby.  But what I didn’t realize until that day was that another place I had longed dreamed of visiting was literally down the road; the Vanderbilt Mansion. Had I had any more time that day I would have visited. But as usual I was booked. My only regret was that it took years for me to return to this area.  Now the first thing you need to know before you visit, is how to search for further info (even easier just click any of the links below). If you type into Google any combination of the words “Vanderbilt”, “historic”, or “New York” you are going to get a slew of sites that are no...