I’ve always loved dogs, but allergies in the household kept me from having one. After a painful divorce 18 years ago, I decided to buy a little non-shedding poodle/terrier. On the way home from the pet store I tried out a raft of names…
Read MoreI have a deeply rooted love affair with fall. Even as a little girl, I sensed something magical about the season. Jumping into raked piles of leaves in our yard was a favorite activity. On Halloween, my best friend and I trick-or-treated door to door…
Read MoreThe mornings are cooler and that hint of fall is in the air! Yellow school buses are making the rounds, kids are back in school, and the excitement of a new bookbag, crayons, and various school supplies reminds us that a fresh start is exactly what we need…
Read MoreYears ago, I met a rather formidable older French woman who told me, in the course of our conversation, that she had offered all her grandchildren a trip away of their own choice, when they reached age 13. She had five or six grandchildren….
Read MoreSeveral years ago, back when I was contemplating a change in careers, I did an exercise where I described my “ideal day.” My description basically reads as follows: I spend my mornings writing, followed by some other, related creative…
Read MoreBefore television was widely available, few people understood the Deaf, often referring to them as “deaf and dumb” regardless of whether they spoke. In fact, the Margate School for the Deaf and Dumb was eventually renamed to remove the word “dumb….
Read MoreWhat do you do when you inherit a mess? Where do you start? How do you move forward? Part of one woman’s solution, Heather Parker, was to become an estate planning attorney to help others avoid the same mess she experienced in her family…
Read MoreDo you want to live to be 98? My mother lived that long. She enjoyed almost all but her last year. Do you think you’d still enjoy life into your 90s? I just took a very brief MetLife Insurance Company online test, and based on that…
Read MoreIf you divorced in your 50s or 60s, you’re familiar with that feeling. Some of us know it all too well, both during divorce and afterwards. It rears its head when one of your grown children, after spending the weekend with your ex…
Read MoreWhile many may recognize that drafting a will is an essential part of their estate plan, most don’t realize that it is an instrument for communicating your intentions. Although it functions as a statement of your estate wishes, it won’t help your children…
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