Congratulations to all of the honorees at the Gotham 2022 Holiday Party.I was riveted by Vince Chirico’s words. Vince received the coveted Red Bandanna Award for his efforts through Opportunities for a Better Tomorrow.Vince recounted how he would have been in his office at the World Trade Center on September 11th but for his wife’s insistence that …
Gotham is amazing. Perhaps I had taken Gotham for granted for a while. That was shaken last Monday as I attended Gotham’s Encores meeting and joined in welcoming Ellin Yaskey back to Gotham.Ellin has been inactive since moving from the United States to Israel over ten years ago.Ellin joined our virtual meeting from her apartment in Tel Aviv -- one …
Since I blog on Thursdays, I have the honor of continuing the annual tradition of wishing the Gotham family a very Happy Thanksgiving. May we surround yourselves - in person and in spirit - with those we love.... and give thanks ......
One day , many, years ago, when I first started practicing law, the younger attorneys in the firm met in a conference room to hear words of wisdom from the founder of the firm.He told us that the most important thing to remember in the practice of law was to always respond to a client within one day after a client called.Those were the days — befor …
The election is over. I was so looking forward to November 9th. Not necessarily because I was looking forward to the results of the vote, but because I couldn’t wait for the tv ads, mailings, emails and text messages to end.I found the emails and text messages to be particularly annoying. And, like a bad whatever, I couldn’t get rid of them. Unsubs …
As I sat in Carnegie Hall waiting for the Steve Reich concert to begin, I considered the insightful comments of fellow Gothamite Janet Sullivan at Monday’s Encores meeting about the complex impact of music.As the music began, I allowed a different perspective on listening to the music to take hold. I was mindful of allowing the music in — not just …
The headlines are startling, although not unexpected. Among students in grades 3 through 8 on Long Island less than 40% passed Math and less than 50% passed English in recent standardized tests. Although I’m not a fan of standardized testing, the results are undeniable.The effects of the pandemic are many. We have suffered personally - directly and …
I don’t consider myself to be superstitious, yet there is one phenomenon that I’ve noticed that gives me pause.The jinx happens when a sports announcer says something speculative - - a comment about the number of innings without a hit against a pitcher or a hitting streak for a batter.Before last Sunday’s Giants-Ravens game, they did a brief segmen …
Every so often I see a message that I feel compelled to share.We were visiting the Hot Shop (a place where glass is blown and otherwise formed) at the Tyler School of Glass at Temple University. Although everyone - students and professors- appears to be having fun, it is a serious place. Working glass, especially hot blown glass, requires well-chor …
I met him only once. We spent about an hour together. We were both in transition in our professional lives. We talked about our respective careers up until that point and where planning or fate might take us.He probably doesn’t remember our meeting. I doubt that I would have either….. had he not been appointed a judge to the United States District …
We always hear about polls. And with Election Day looming, we will be hearing about polls more and more. The polls will warn us, try to motivate us and, ultimately tell us how and why the vote went the way it did.Every day or so I receive an email, text message, or phone call asking me a polling question or to participate in a poll. So far I haven’ …
Based upon a true story.At a doctors appointment, you are escorted in by a rushed medical assistant who is tasked with the preliminaries before you are seen by the doctor. There is a sense of anxiety in the air. You are anxious - after all, you are at a doctor’s office. And the assistant is adding to the anxiety. A sense of pressure. A tone.Just un …
Teams. As I was watching the U.S. Tennis Open, I heard several of the players refer, and thank, their “Team”, as the camera scanned over to a spectator box with several people in it. Perhaps it is the new rule in tennis that allows coaching during a match. I’ve noticed increasing references to “teams” - in the business world and elsewhere. Maybe i …
The other day, I wore a suit and tie to the office. Unusual, certainly given the more-casual office dress code over the last few years. The reason for the tie was that I had a virtual hearing in the afternoon and a jacket and tie was expected and appropriate.One of my colleagues who I passed in the hall and would be on the hearing with me mentioned …
Referrals are such an important part of networking. Recently, we have been very involved in both receiving and giving referrals. We have learned that referrals can be complicated.An interesting and complicating aspect of referrals surfaced and it raises questions that should be considered when both giving and receiving referrals.What do you do when …
