I was brought up with the work ethic that success requires dedication and hard work. The concept of “luck” was for winning the lottery (although even there, you have to buy a ticket). With that in mind, I have worked hard and succeeded at just about every job and career I’ve chosen. When I haven’t succeeded, I’ve been able to look back and see where more effort would have produced a different outcome.

Every time I go on my Facebook page there’s a new notification waiting for me; will I give a life to a friend or relative playing Candy Crush? There is also usually a notification that a friend has surpassed a certain level in the game.  

Bob has been one of my best friends since we met during our first year of college in 1972.  When I moved to Chicago after we graduated, where he is from, we became even closer.  We married within a year of each other, took vacations together, moved to the same suburb, and our first borns are less than a year apart. Then in 1982 I moved back to New York.

Recently I've acquired a job working for Verizon Wireless/Cellular Sales. "Oh you work for Verizon?!" Everybody asks: yes and no. Verizon has a direct and indirect job market: the direct refers to all of Verizon's corporate stores, whereas the indirect refers to all of the authorized premium retailers. Cellular Sales is currently the top premium retailer for Verizon.  

I took last Friday off and went to lunch with Joanne. Rather than going to our regular haunts we tried to be creative and she suggested that we have lunch on the top floor of Lord & Taylor in Manhasset on the "miracle mile".  

It's August 1st! The summer and the year seem to be flying by. There was something special about blogging on the first day of the month (and not-so-special about blogging on the last day of the month) but that was when we had the old website and blogs were "up" for the month. With the new website, today's blog is on view on the homepage and that's it. (You can scroll through the blogs with the arrows in the blog box.)

Alex Rodriguez was always disliked, even often called 'Lightning Rod' for not being able to avoid trouble.  But the level of hatred is reaching nuclear proportions...and it's just getting started.   Let me assure everyone that I am neither defending A-Rod, nor producing any confusion as to his guilt or need for punishment,  This is simply a mocking of how baseball is trying to tap into our piling-on society to attempt to slickly cleanse itself of its sins.