Articles

Published in the New York Times Op-Ed

My dad can’t tweet because he’s dead. He died in 1982, when telephones were about the only way to have a conversation with someone who was not in the same place you were.

My dad was an uproar man. Uproar was his specialty. He loved calling one daughter with news of another, often inaccurate, trying to stir up trouble and envy. When he was close to death and could barely recognize his own hands, he could remember my telephone number and continued to call any hour of the day or night. There was no caller ID then. I didn’t have the option of knowing who it was and not answering.

“Hello,” I would say.

“Your sister won the Pulitzer,” he would say. And hang up.

As I said, he never got it right.

Definitely not naked from the back ... and 12 more

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Published in Oprah magazine

Published in the New York Times Op-Ed

Recently my dog, Honey, was taking a walk in the neighborhood with her dog walker, Lauren, when she was clipped by a car. Honey bolted, yanking the leash out of Lauren’s hand — apparently dogs get a huge surge of adrenaline after being hit by cars.

Several people chased after her and after the car, which slowed for a moment and then sped off down Seventh Avenue. A total stranger named David Zeh photographed the license plate. Then he flagged a cab and got Honey, Lauren and Ayana (another dog walker, who managed to capture Honey, a small white Havanese) to the Fifth Avenue Veterinary Specialists — a 24-hour emergency hospital with an amazing trauma team. The second night, she was able to lift her head. She is now home on bed rest recovering with several cracked ribs and leg wounds.