S: Is for social graces

A couple of weeks ago I was standing at a bus stop in front of a restaurant near my house and a Black Jaguar pulled into the bus lane, got on his cell phone, had the waitress come out, take his order and he proceeded to wait, until his order was ready. If that weren't enough he then handed her a credit card and she then had to go inside and bring it out for him to sign and he left. They're were seven other people waiting for the bus with me. Because of his self entitlement all seven of us missed our bus and had to wait as the bus who had no where to land, passed by. Being the big mouth that I am I went over to him and asked how could he be so rude. His response was I can, I'm rich and I just got away with it.

A day later on 5th Avenue in front of high end jewelry store another black expensive car did the same thing. Parked it's sleek body without regard to anyone else. A black hip hop artist got out and went shopping and left the car. The bus came a little annoyed and honked but like I said no one was there. It was rush hour and the bus had a hard time getting out of his lane into the oncoming traffic lane and 20 minuets later arrived 25 feet to the array of waiting commuters. By this time the hip hop artist came out. The bus driver who was pissed confronted him as the irate artist screamed don't you know who I am. I make more money in a day than you make in a year. He got in his car, almost caused an accident as he pulled without concern into the on-coming traffic.

The tree is up. The stagehands went back to work and the city is like a big parking lot. Coming back from an event I was on 6th when this black Chevrolet suburban rudely without care for the line that had formed, parked his entitled large expanse in the bus stop as he was talking on his cell. New Jersey license plate # WFW 29K. I add this # because the police were there in the parking lot of what was a street and I went over to them and asked why if a car is parked legally do they harass them with random ticket searches when here in front of their faces was an outright example of breaking the law. I mean the ticket is three times the size. The policeman's answer: "that's traffic's job". A total of six police cars witness this affront to the New Yorkers who watched this with disgust. Finally a police car did question the owner. He handed them money and they left as I watched a crime happen. I went to the car and he was completely pompous and when he left he flipped off those of us watching and missing our bus.

I plan on turning this man and his license # into the authorities to see what will happen. I will keep you abreast of this. It's Christmas and New York has had a population explosion. We need to remember this is the season of Peace on Earth and Good Will Towards Men and act accordingly and that is a F.A.C.T.

T: Is for thrilling new products.

This morning I went to the launching of CVS's new skin care line called 24.7 at their flagship store. This new 24-hour pharmacy on 42nd Street is impressive. The question isn't what's in there but more of what's not. The brands they carry make this a true one stop shopping experience and I was so envious that it was not taking the place of the Duane Reed down the street from me. Lines like Aveda, the london based make-up company Boots, Goldwell, Remmel and L'oreal are all under the same roof as Izze (which is hard to find), great gifts, gourmet food, well you get the idea. It was like a shopping a mall nicely compacted into a drug store. My friend who's a make-up artist joined me and we sat there in awe.

The new line 24.7 includes Targeted Wrinkle Treatment, Firming Anti-Aging Eye Serum, Smoothing Anti-Aging Moisturizer, Daily Purifying Facial Scrub, and Instant Plump Volumizing Lip Shine. Watch out Venom, this product contains no pain and you wear it all day long. Forget collagen this is much quicker, cheeper and it turns you lips a natural enhanced shade. Affordably priced between $19.99 to $39.99, this line fills a much needed niche that does the job, but doesn't max out your credit card. Targeted wrinkle cream leaves your skin with a youthful appearance. It freezes the lines in your face and reduces the lines and wrinkles. I also recommend this if you have scars. It minimized the one I have and presto it was smaller and less evasive and that my friends is a F.A.C.T.

C: Is for comforts of tea or how to end up in Nirvana

For days I have been talking about wanting to get semi permeant make-up. Three summers ago in Provincetown my friend Christina did it for me and I was in seventh heaven. There is nothing like waking up looking youthful refreshed and just plain good. Across my desk came an invitation for a new spa. The White Tea Spa is located at 104 West 14th Street 2nd Floor. When you first get to the door you think what have I gotten myself into and then you reach the 2nd floor. A Friendly and welcoming staff member ushers you into the inner sanctum, dimly lit with glowing candles. Relaxing music is faintly noticeable as wiffs of lavender gently nestle you into a calming bliss. Although the place is small, it is comfortable and for those who are sensitive to a healers energy you know you have hit the mother load. It's almost as if the stress of the moment, the hour, the day releases it's hold and nurtures you safely to a caring womb and you sigh in relief. White Tea is known for its healing properties as it is loaded with antioxidents. The menu is quite extensive. Facials, massages, package deals and you guessed it semi-permeant make-up. When I walked in the door co-owner Anandy Hazoury offered me a tour and the handywork of the talented Verika Seddik. Verika, trained by her mentor Fabrice Condemni, is truly and artist. As I mentioned I had been through semi-permeant make-up before so I knew some of the procedures. First of all it is done with a needle. I have a terrible fear of needles but I also have a total longing to be the best that I can be, which always wins over. Verika was gentle, soothing and healing as she calmly explained everything. Someone once said we have nothing to fear but fear itself. Not only was it a joy to look good but it was refreshing to be the canvas to such a wonderful artist. I can not wait to go back for more. I researched Sandra Mendez the other owner and the result was client after client claimed her massages were incredible and the best they'd ever had. I can tell you from meeting her she is a healer with an aura of light. For that matter the whole spa is like a vortex of energy ready to calm a much stressed planet. The staff sets out an English tea ceremony everyday, complete with fabulous green and white tea. It is said that tea nourishes the soul and The White Tea Spa certainly nourished mine and that is a F.A.C.T.

A: Is for Artists you meet at a play

Laura and I were about to see "The Chaos Theories" when I spotted a women in leather. She was very reminiscent of my mom and what she thought New Yorkers dressed like. Then I heard her mention California and UCLA and I started to laugh. I was right, California all the way. To make a long story short I ended up making friends with Lyn Kupferman and Rima Goodman. Where Lyn dressed like my mom, Rima was an artist like my mom. Well not exactly like her as my mom did collages and paper mache sculptures. Rima though a painter all her life didn't start showing till 1981. She had a lustrous career as a psychotherapist. Noted art historian John T Spike, Director of The Florence Biennale wrote about her a dreamy surrealism comparing her to Matisse. Her paintings have a lingering feeling of deja vu but we can't quite seem to remember. Spike stated that Rima Goodman is our best contemporary mythologist. Rima is unique as she is not influenced by the media. She doesn't watch TV, go to the movies or watch the news. She is not ruled by a manipulated society. She reads, goes to the Opera, Live Theatre, Concerts, Ballets and travels. She shows life as she lives it. Her humor and her child like innocents is evident in all her work. To see more log onto www.rimagoodman.com or this art website that allows you to see more of Rima's work www.hometownartgallery.com/Gallery/ArtistView.aspx?Artist=201a22e0-1069-45d4-b92b-ae6a0e545dd0&Gallery=81e03744-f597-40fa-b136-3f2f71e76448.

Sometimes we go places thinking that what we are doing is set in stone. If we step outside of ourselves and communicate we meet the most amazing people. Our lives become enriched. That my friends is what happened here and that is a F.A.C.T.

F: Is for films galore

Though I love movies I realized this year I had seen very few, or so I thought. Then I tried to count them and realized it was more than most people see but for me the number was still small. This weekend, I made up for every film I had wanted to see. HBO, Encore, Showtime and all the other pay for view channels were showing films for free and I completely indulged. Netflicks has made seeing movies easy but when I subscribed I found out that I was addicted and accomplished very little. The joy of watching this weekend was I got rest which I really needed and films I thought I wanted to see, I found out if I had paid for them, I would of been disappointed. An example of these is "X-Men the Last Stand" and "Eragon". I read Eragon and loved it. When I heard it was being made into a film I was so excited and then life happened and I missed it. Let me tell you I didn't miss seeing it on the big screen. It was a huge disappointment. Another film "The Holiday" I didn't want to see because of the actor Jack Black's pairing with Kate Winslet. I was wrong. What a great film. Romantic, well written and a definite chick flick and well, I'm a chick. M. Night. Shyamalan's sci-fi film "The Lady in the Water" was billed as a horror film and though the preview was interesting I'm not a big fan of that type of genre. It is amazingly light. Tender and sweet, like a comforting hand on the shoulder, it is a perceptive analysis of where the world is at today. A complete feel good movie for our time.
So you would think after all this I'd be sick of films however on Thanksgiving night I went with my friend to the movies. I wanted to see "Lions for Lambs" but it wasn't showing for another hour and a half. We decided to see "Beowulf" and then see the flick we wanted. Once "Beowulf" started our feelings were changed. This film is God awful. I couldn't wait to leave so we decided to try "Enchanted". Neither of us thought we wanted to see this. I had worked on it and I rarely go see the ones I am in and It just looked to cute. This weekend it earned over 50 million and I can tell you I know why. This movie is fun. The songs by musical legends Alan Menkin and Stephen Swartz are funny. If you are a New Yorker you are bound to love this this romp. The best parts are the chipmunk and the elderly men and women. Needless to say we never made it to the other film.

The point of this column is you never know what film will be good or bad. The hype is always misleading. I can not wait for "Sweeney Todd" and see if it even does justice to the Broadway show. I will never know though till I check it out and that's a F.A.C.T.