I begin this week’s column with a philosophical question: If snow causes schools to be closed while the Internet is functional, it is still a snow day? I pondered this last week when the phone rang at 5:45 a.m., never a good sign as it usually signals something unpleasant is currently happening. So I hesitated to…
I am a fervent March Madness viewer but am dreading this year’s NCAA basketball tournament for I fear the spectacle will be stained with controversy. I’m making my prediction based on the fact that the first two months of this year saw major scandals courtesy of the sporting world. January dawned with Lance Armstrong admitting…
She sat at the bar, calmly texting while nursing a glass of merlot. I tepidly approached the empty stool next to her. “Excuse me,” I said, my gaze traveling from her eyes downward. “Not interested pal,” she replied curtly. “May I just touch it for a moment? Better yet, can I hold it?” “I have…
I sat at the crowded bar, a full glass of cabernet sauvignon in front of me. The proprietor acted as if I were his only customer. I subtly glanced at the patrons around me, trying to mimic them by sticking my nose far into the glass and inhaling deeply. I pinched the glass stem and…
Several years ago, I went to Tokyo where I got a taste of the Japanese subway system. I say “taste” because my lips were literally pressed to a stranger’s, so congested were the cars. No matter the time of day, the ride went like this: The train lumbered to a stop where hundreds waited to board…
The San Francisco TV reporter was young, perky and brunette. Her interview subject was her polar opposite: male, late 60s and balding, with skin that looked as if it had traveled south for the winter and wasn’t coming back. He was also naked. I came across this rather, um, awkward exchange while channel surfing in…
Here we are just a few weeks into a new year and the flu epidemic has hit our country unusually hard. So hard, in fact, that Boston health officials now greet visitors at the airport and immediately hand them a return ticket and a stern warning to “Go away. Everybody here is sick.” While I remain healthy…
I have been driving for just over two hours and have yet to see another vehicle. Cellphone reception is nonexistent and I am silently praying that I chose the most dependable rental car on the lot. Horrible thoughts flash through my mind: “Who will find me if I break down?” “What if it’s the Kathy…
As the holiday gift-buying clock winds down and all you cybershoppers sit smugly at your computers, bragging to anybody who will listen how easy it was to shop online, allow me to taint your eggnog. You have no idea how much time you wasted — time you could have saved had you only jumped into…
I chopped down the tree. I scaled the ladder, balancing precariously on one foot so those innermost, hard to reach branches would sparkle with light. I endured the physical ardors of hauling boxes of decorations from the basement, knowing full well that my creaky back has less than a month to recover before I perform…
