Category: Uncategorized

Norfolk, VA. Born there, while father was in Navy. Left when I was three-months-old.
Rockville Center, Long Island. No memory of it.
Levitown, Long Island. The epitome of suburbia I’m told, but I have no memory of it.
Centerport, Long Island. Loved it here, was unhappy when we moved. We lived across the street from what is now a protected nature preserve. Lots of woods and swamps and streams.
Huntington, Long Island. This is basically where I grew up.
Syossett, Long Island. Lived here after parents divorced.
Jensen Beach, Florida. Went to school at the Florida Institute of Technology to study oceanography.
Athens, OH. Transferred to Ohio University to study photography.
Waltham, MA. Transferred to Tufts University and the Museum School. Also to study photography and fine arts.
Cambridge, MA. Waltham was depressing, so I moved to Cambridge. Loved Cambridge. But my dream has always been, since I was a little girl, to live in …
Manhattan. Look at the picture! That’s my home.

Last night there was a party at Grand Central for an exhibit based on the book Celluloid Skyline: New York and the Movies, that was written by a friend, James Sanders. The exhibit is co-sponsored by Turner Classic Movies and Time Warner Cable. Turner Classic Movies is also doing a month long New York movies film festival on TV. The host, Robert Osbourne was at the party and he said a few words. That was fun.

That’s actually a huge backdrop in the background of this shot. None of my shots came out really great, alas. (That’s Howard looking at the camera.)

Another friend there said that James called him and said, “This is my dream.” And I thought about that. Imagine you love New York and movies (and who doesn’t??) and you spend years writing this book about New York movies, and one day a big hall in the always stunning Grand Central Station is taken over to celebrate your book and what your book celebrates, and the TV is also celebrating it at the same time, and there’s this wonderful exhibit of films, and stills, and backdrops, it all comes together, and you made this happen.

It’s a nice dream, I thought.

These are my friends Cori and Jimmy and they took me to a movie (Knocked Up) and dinner (the fabulous place that we all love and can never remember the name of) for my birthday! We passed by the peace sign on the way so I checked the back for the artist’s name this time but no go.

Thank you, Cori and Jimmy!! That was so nice of you guys. OH, and because Jimmy complained to the management about our horrible movie service (they started the wrong movie, 28 Weeks Later, which I’m going to see next Friday so I had to close my eyes and cover my ears and no air conditioning) we got free movie tickets, so I am going to get to see another movie on Jimmy and Cori!

Oh god. Today is my birthday. I am offically freaking OLD. No, oldER than freaking old, because I was freaking old last year. Thank god I’m CUTE.

So today, movies all day I think. Although, I kinda want to lay around and read non-book related stuff. I’m reading Cormac McCarthy’s The Road and it’s stupendous. It is also, embarrassingly, an Oprah pick, but that’s not why I am reading it!! It has a post-apocalyptic setting and as anyone can tell you, I love a post-apocalyptic setting. I’d given Cormac McCarthy a try way back, with All The Pretty Horses, but I couldn’t get into it. This I can.

What to do, what to do. Oh! I should go open my e-birthday card. My sister-in-law Karen has been sending me cards everyday for the past few days. Very sweet and funny. Thank you, Karen and family! HAHAHA. Today was kittens singing me happy birthday!!! Ha! Perfect. Have Satan’s fur puppets Finney and Buddy noted my birthday in any way?? They have not.

I think today I will see 28 Weeks Later, and then this afternoon I am meeting Jim and Cori to see Knocked Up. Only two more days of boring, obsessive birthday posts!

Okay, my birthday weekend has started for real — Jackie brought these for me at lunch! They are a little melted because I carried them around with me afterwards while I shopped, but they are in the refridgerator now, and they will taste delicious! Thank you, Jackie. (They are from the Cupcake Cafe, my favorite place for treats, as Jackie knows. Very thoughful.)

We were taking Brett and Erin out to lunch to celebrate their recent engagement. Congratulations Brett and Erin!! Look at Erin — is my friend Brett lucky or WHAT?? (Okay, he’s great too, they’re both lucky.)

Here’s to true love and cupcakes!