Counting My Blessings

When it comes to celebrating the holiday season, one of my favorite traditions is taking the time to reflect on what I have to be thankful for. This year, my gratitude attitude comes from a long list of blessings both old and new.

I’m thankful for dear friends who share in my triumphs and comfort during my trials – blessing me with their compassion and understanding, and reminding me time and again that there is no greater gift than true and abiding friendship.

I’m thankful for my family, most especially my beloved and very much missed parents, whose legacy of love and strength continues to inspire me in living life with the zest that was so much a part of who they were.

I’m thankful to be part of the blogosphere, a rich, vibrant community that has connected me with many fabulous, smart women whom I’m fortunate to call peers.

I’m thankful for new beginnings and the willingness of the human heart to take its umpteenth chance on romance when someone wonderful enters the picture.

Finally, I’m thankful for my beloved hometown, for the continuing excitement of living in the world’s greatest city – a joy articulated so perfectly by Jay-Z and Alicia Keys in “Empire State of Mind:”

In New York, concrete jungle where dreams are made of
There's nothing you can't do, now you're in New York
These streets will make you feel brand new
Big lights will inspire you
Let's hear it for New York
New York, New York

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

Inside The Fashion Week Tents: Take Two

Thursday night, thanks to my good friend and fellow PR maven Cyndee, I paid a second visit to the tents of Fashion Week at NYC’s Bryant Park.

After sneaking me into the chic W Hotels lounge, Cyndee headed off to work the swanky crowd on behalf of her clients. I sipped on a screwdriver while doing some people watching.

The View From W: Me in the chic hotel chain’s lounge

In the small world department, I ran into Erin, the twin sister of a former colleague who’s now working in Starwood Hotels’ corporate PR office. We talked about the downside for our industry of President Obama’s stimulus package -- discouraging executives from traveling -- and the need for people to travel and to spend, even if they don’t splurge, in times like these.

Around 8pm, Starwood security politely asked everyone to exit in order to make way for the celeb guests arriving for designer Zac Posen’s show.

I spotted Fox News anchor Juliet Huddy and Cheetah Girls singer Adrienne Bailon.

Cheetah Girls singer Adrienne Bailon posing for the photogs at NYC’s Fashion Week

Alicia Keys looked stunning in sleeveless black mini, flashing a million dollar smile as she breezed past. Like Alicia, super skinny Nicole Ritchie was surrounded by a phalanx of bodyguards.

Nicole Ritchie checked her Blackberry before leaving the Bryant Park tents

While I was taking it all in, I ended up chatting with aspiring fashionista and photographer Kyna Lantz.

Kyna and her delightful friend Lewis regaled me with tales from the shows they attended.

Kyna was all atwitter when she spotted Fern Mallis, one the planning masterminds responsible for launching Fashion Week in New York. I was relieved to see that this style powerhouse looked healthy and fit -- a departure from most of the skinny fashionistas roaming the tents clad in black and thigh-high boots.

On our way out, we couldn’t resist posing for pictures in front of the big Barbie display celebrating her 50th anniversary. About 500 dolls were lined up in the entry hall inside huge letters spelling out Barbie's name.

A Fashion Icon Turns 50: Me in front of the display celebrating Barbie’s 50th

I’m already looking forward to NYC’s next Fashion Week in the fall. Who knows? Maybe by then I’ll have someone special to gatecrash with.

Girls Night Out At O'Flanagan's

Last Saturday, I caught up with my cousin and soul sister Alexandra for an eventful girls night out -- one that offered an enticing glimpse at what the new year might bring.

Over a few glasses of sangria and sublime Mexican food at Cilantro on NYC’s Upper East Side, Alexa and I had (as always) plenty to talk about. Along with the potential pitfalls of reconciling with an ex, we covered the challenges of juggling work and school (Alexa’s pursuing a degree in music education) and the joys of recovering from a physical setback -- i.e., my foot surgery back in October.

Best Friends: Me and my cousin Alexandra having fun at O'Flanagan's

My cousin hadn’t seen me since the weekend of my surgery, so she was happy to see I'm back on both feet again. That, along with her recently completing finals, gave us plenty to celebrate when we moved onto O’Flanagan’s, one of the best pubs in my neighborhood.

In addition to a friendly and attentive bar staff and down to earth, unpretentious crowd, O’Flanagan’s offers great live entertainment. While Alexandra and I were at the bar, she struck up a conversation with one of the vocalists for the night’s cover band, East Coast.

East Coast: An awesome cover band with talented and friendly musicians

East Coast had everyone on the dance floor with their rollicking renditions of hits from the last 40 years. As we shook our groove things to Rihanna's “Please Don’t Stop The Music,” I couldn’t stop smiling -- savoring the delight of dancing for the first time in months.

During a break to catch my breath, a guy leaned over and asked me if I was single. When I said yes, he asked--

“How is that possible?”

“Actually,” I said bemusedly, “That’s a good question.”

I also had the chance to flex my flirting muscles while watching a couple of guys play pool in O’Flanagan’s back room. One of them, an adorable forty-something named Dave, quickly invited me to join the game and proceeded to engage me in a round of TV trivia.

Before the night was over, Alexandra -- a talented singer -- joined East Coast in belting out Alicia Keys’ “No One.” I, meanwhile, offered my more limited vocal talents in supporting the band’s rendition of Billy Joel’s “You May Be Right.”

As we headed home around 3am, I couldn’t help thinking that the night marked a fresh start for me. I’m ready to, literally, hit the ground running now that it’s a new year, and get back into the dating scene. And I will definitely be dropping by O’Flanagan’s again soon. After all, my pool skills could use a little practice.