12 Things We Told Our NYC Girls to Prepare for Frankenstorm

We have two daughters living on Manhattan, right in the path of Frankenstorm. After years of living in the Caribbean we have some valuable tips to give them. Though being over-prepared may make them feel stupid, it can also save their lives.

Please share these with your urban loved ones in the path of the Hurricane Sandy.

1. Fill up your bathtubCONTINUE READING >> 


We have two daughters living on Manhattan, right in the path of Frankenstorm. After years of living in the Caribbean we have some valuable tips to give them. Though being over-prepared may make them feel stupid, it can also save their lives.

Please share these with your urban loved ones in the path of the Hurricane Sandy.

1. Fill up your bathtubCONTINUE READING >> 


Following the Freedom March in Alabama

It was a difficult few days for us as we were forced to confront thoughts and feelings that we would have much rather avoided. We addressed issues that many of us Americans would like to think have been completely resolved. But it seems to us that turning a blind eye is not the solution.

The lesson we learned is that the light of day is best, because as much as this is fairly recent history, we were taken aback by how little we knew about the details. In Birmingham, the details are on display – front and center – and in Montgomery… CONTINUE READING >>

It was a difficult few days for us as we were forced to confront thoughts and feelings that we would have much rather avoided. We addressed issues that many of us Americans would like to think have been completely resolved. But it seems to us that turning a blind eye is not the solution.

The lesson we learned is that the light of day is best, because as much as this is fairly recent history, we were taken aback by how little we knew about the details. In Birmingham, the details are on display – front and center – and in Montgomery… CONTINUE READING >>

Freedom Walk, Birmingham, Alabama


The Walk is lined with several statues, including four that we found had particular impact, by sculptor James Drake. Drake’s works put us right in the middle of the situations he depicts… CONTINUE READING >>


The Walk is lined with several statues, including four that we found had particular impact, by sculptor James Drake. Drake’s works put us right in the middle of the situations he depicts… CONTINUE READING >>

Bouillabaise in France! It’s an event!


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Unbelievable deliciousness! Veronica accidentally (?) eats an eyeball (?)! While the city of Marseille traditionally lays claim to being the birthplace of … CONTINUE READING >>


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Unbelievable deliciousness! Veronica accidentally (?) eats an eyeball (?)! While the city of Marseille traditionally lays claim to being the birthplace of … CONTINUE READING >>

What in the World of Warcraft is This Guy Thinking?

One of our readers sent me an email that really touched me:

I am not completely an empty nester unfortunately. My 20 year old son was not able to return to college this fall because of the lack of loans and grants available to him. So now he is doing nothing except for playing the computer game WoW (World of Warcraft) most of his waking hours. He did just purchase a small business that will make him a small living, but I pray he goes back to college. He is very bright and it would be such a waste if he didn’t. –Hannah

Hannah, my heart… CONTINUE READING >>

One of our readers sent me an email that really touched me:

I am not completely an empty nester unfortunately. My 20 year old son was not able to return to college this fall because of the lack of loans and grants available to him. So now he is doing nothing except for playing the computer game WoW (World of Warcraft) most of his waking hours. He did just purchase a small business that will make him a small living, but I pray he goes back to college. He is very bright and it would be such a waste if he didn’t. –Hannah

Hannah, my heart… CONTINUE READING >>

Six Places That Will Scare the Snot Out of You

A church decorated with bones, a turn-of-the-century torture chamber, ghost lights in the-middle-of-nowhere Texas, a Voodoo Queen’s grave and a REALLY haunted hotel are among the scariest things we’ve seen out on the road. Click in if you dare… CONTINUE READING >>
A church decorated with bones, a turn-of-the-century torture chamber, ghost lights in the-middle-of-nowhere Texas, a Voodoo Queen’s grave and a REALLY haunted hotel are among the scariest things we’ve seen out on the road. Click in if you dare… CONTINUE READING >>

Attack of the 1000 Dollar Mammogram

Ten people. TEN.

This is how many people I dealt with while getting my annual mammogram. How did something so personal turn into an assembly line? As if getting my boobs pancaked and my skin yanked so tight that I felt it all the way up to my ears isn’t bad enough. I get to be treated like a cow in a roundup.

Before I go off on a complete diatribe, I want to be fair. I’m ALWAYS a wreck at mammogram time. My mother died of breast cancer. The final ten years of her life were hell as the cancer spread to her lymph nodes, her spine and her brain. I learned to administer shots. I watched as her brain fluid was removed from a shunt in her… CONTINUE READING >>

Ten people. TEN.

This is how many people I dealt with while getting my annual mammogram. How did something so personal turn into an assembly line? As if getting my boobs pancaked and my skin yanked so tight that I felt it all the way up to my ears isn’t bad enough. I get to be treated like a cow in a roundup.

Before I go off on a complete diatribe, I want to be fair. I’m ALWAYS a wreck at mammogram time. My mother died of breast cancer. The final ten years of her life were hell as the cancer spread to her lymph nodes, her spine and her brain. I learned to administer shots. I watched as her brain fluid was removed from a shunt in her… CONTINUE READING >>