Getting Lucky

I’d like to bring back the word “lucky.” Not casino lucky. When you flip a coin, the chances are 50/50 every time. Standing next to the craps table last December, I knew no one would really go “on a streak.” Especially not me. It’s just random, random, random, and your brain loves to see patterns. […]

Combustibles

“I didn’t know Mardi Gras was a religious holiday,” the kid said. “Well, it kind of is.” We were making Valentines. I was setting monkey stickers on a red paper heart and writing, “From Aunt Liz.” I had a spot of glitter on my cheek, and I said, “Eh, I’ll just leave it there. Mardi […]

Decline and Fall

When I was three, I went to Alcatraz. I was just visiting. They had our tour group walk into a cell, and they shut the door. I think they locked it. I think it was the darkest place I’ve ever been. I spent the next five years worrying about going to jail, although even in […]

Spirits

The mansion now seems as normal as the 1970s split level where I grew up. Which is nuts. That’s why I had to give all those tours, I guess. I started to worry I was like those New Yorkers who go through Grand Central’s great hall and don’t look up. If you can’t maintain your […]