Last Wednesday night marked the beginning of Passover, when we always host the first seder for our extended family. Al’s first cousins always host the second seder. This is a family tradition that dates back to Al’s mother and her youngest sister, who alternated hosting the two festive meals every year, when we join Jews […]

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Nearly every night for the past 11 days, I have been reveling in the Milan Cortina Winter Olympics. Watching these amazing athletes’ extraordinary feats has been the best antidote to horrible headlines and stress. It has also helped me get through my bout with the flu and the lagging fatigue and residual, annoying cough. I […]

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For all of the bad things that happened during the COVID pandemic, the one good thing that happened for me was reconnecting with old friends over Zoom. Five years ago, when we were hunkered down, I looked up friends from my teens and twenties and caught up online. Some of us have continued those conversations, […]

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On Sunday, Al and I went to one of our favorite places, Block Island, an hour’s ferry ride off the Rhode Island coast. We used to vacation there when our daughters were young. Unlike just about anywhere else I can think of, the island remains a time capsule. Many of the same weathered buildings line […]

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I’m back home since last Tuesday night, back on East Coast time, and nearly caught up on sleep, after an intensive 12-day journey with Al to Germany. As is my way, I packed a lot into our itinerary, based in part on more research for Novel 2, which is set in Weimar Germany, and in […]

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Bad actors are everywhere these days. Last week, I finally was able, with some tech support, to reinstall my computer virus scanner, run a sweep, and reassure myself that I did not download a virus a few weeks ago when I accidentally opened one of those fake alert screens that scream at you that you […]

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Monday dawned bright and bitter, with a sparkling five inches of snow weighing down evergreen boughs. As I write, I’m wrapped in my warmest long sweater coat, grateful to be inside, even as I enjoy the view. My appetite is back after last week’s close encounter with a norovirus, for which I am also grateful. […]

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The election is over. It is not the result I had hoped for. For now, I am just trying to keep my head on straight and focus on what’s in front of me. And so, I took a walk Sunday afternoon, in the sharp, unflinching November light that reveals each detail of bark and lichen […]

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Stress is contagious this Election Day. If you google “how to avoid election anxiety,” you’ll find a plethora of articles with titles like “Last-minute tips for coping with election stress and anxiety” or “Don’t let election anxiety get you down” or even “I’m a Therapist: Here’s How I’m Coping With Election Anxiety.” Most of the […]

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