Category: Blog

My father was actually a member of the “Lucky Bastard Club” for surviving as a crew member of a B-17 bomber in World War 2. This is him: Which makes me the daughter of a “Lucky Bastard.” Which makes me a “Lucky Bastard” too. Not because I survived bombing missions over Germany. Nope. I’m a Continue reading

When I was about three years old, my mom enrolled me in dance class.  At ballet, I was graceless. At tap, I was rhythm challenged. But at acrobatics, I excelled. It wasn’t long until I was doing handstands, somersaults, back bends and cartwheels all over the place. By age eight, I had a routine down Continue reading

Iris, I live in Tampa, Florida two blocks from Tampa Bay in a house surrounded by century old oak trees. On Friday night, September 8, things were looking very ominous for Tampa. Hurricane Irma was fast approaching with a vengeance — the one hundred year perfect storm. The Hillsborough River, which empties into the bay Continue reading

THE BUY Riding a bike. “No big deal, right?” After all, how much more was there to learn after giving up training wheels at the tender age of six? “No big deal, right?” I surmised, when curled up on the couch one stormy night, eagerly searching the Internet for bikes appropriate for those of us Continue reading

Who doesn’t send off children anywhere without a pit in their stomachs? Whether it’s college, summer camp, or kindergarten? Is it really going to happen? Have we done all we could to prepare them for leaving the nest? Are they well equipped and knowledgeable about the challenges they will encounter? These concerns are legit. Now Continue reading

My initial look at Freeport, Bahamas was of a concrete lot filled with overflowing stalls of island crafts as I peered out of my cabin window that first morning. Just minutes later my feet hit the pavement and I am swept up in the excitement of haggling for the goods scattered about. Spotting a woman Continue reading

I never wanted to be mainstream, ordinary and normal.  Unfortunately, my cooking skills don’t reflect this desire to stand-out. Cooking. Grilling. Baking. All are feats that I have marginal ability in performing. Nevertheless, on a 4th of July many years ago, I decided to do what every all-American mother does for her son’s birthday: bake Continue reading

My dad, Pike Levine, has been gone for five years, so he was not around to celebrate Father’s Day. His family was thinking of him nonetheless. His great grandson, Levi Pike Pastor, was born on June 13 and at his bris eight days later, his family gathered around to welcome him into the tribe. And at Continue reading

My first best friend lived next door and was eight months older than me. In our first grade class, she overpowered me to the point that a very wise teacher recommended that we be split-up in second grade so I could develop my own personality. (As pictured above, she was in front and I was in Continue reading

I never knew why she picked me as a friend in junior high school in the early 1960’s. All I cared about was make-up, clothes, boys, dates, weight and hairstyles. She cared nothing for these concerns. While I read Seventeenth Summer and Marjorie Morningstar about young love, she was reading Miracle at Carville about leprosy. For years, we remained close friends Continue reading