Little Kids Make Me Laugh!!!

I was talking to my friend Liz last night... We go way back to my first job after college at Allied Stores Corp. Liz is like a sister and so in that her two gorgeous delightful kids are my niece and nephew. Kids never cease to amaze me in how they think and the words that come out of their mouths. Their thought processes even at the youngest ages are sometimes unbelievable..... So here's the story.... Liz told her six year old son that she didn't want him to watch Sponge Bob Square Pants during the week after school anymore. He could watch it on the weekend only. Shortly after telling him this Liz noticed her TV had the DVR (like TIVO) on and it was recording something. She asked her husband if he was recording a show and he said no. She goes to the DVR guide and sees the shows being recorded are Sponge bob Square Pants for the entire week at both the 2:30 and 7:00. Liz is shocked.... Then she approaches her "little guy" and asks him if he was recording Sponge Bob Square pants. He says yes and says Mom you told me I could watch it only on the weekend so I was planning to watch all the shows on the weekend. When Liz told me the story I cracked up. First I thought wow how slick. Then I saw his point and laughed even more when I knew this came from a 6 year old. He was just acting like anyone else who would record there favorite shows and watch them when they were able. In his case over the weekend. Then to make matters even funnier he remembered that he heard his dad say the weekend starts on Friday afternoon. He then asked his aunt who agreed. So he decided he could start watching his show on Friday after school. His mom, my friend Liz decided he shouldn't be watching it all so she told him she needed to think about it and for now he wouldn't be able to watch the show at all. He was a real trooper and is watching patiently for her to give him an answer. She suggested buying some Sponge Bob books and games. When they went to book store to buy the books he looked through them and said Mommy the words in the book are worse than the show so can I watch the show??? Of course she was speechless and is still debating...

Have fun! I always do!

RISA

Chabad's Children of Chernobyl Fantasy Auction and Dinner

I am honored to be a Dinner Chair for Children of Chernobyl "Children at Heart" Fantasy Auction and Dinner being held on November 19th at Pier Sixty. The beneficiaries of this wonderful evening are the very lucky children who are rescued from the Chernobyl affected areas in the Ukraine and Belarus. This problem exists today and is even more pervasive for the people living there with the contamination. Please visit the ccoc.net for more information. The evening which last year raised almost 2 million dollars and enabled many many children to be brought to Israel to live in the warm surroundings of Kfar Chabad. I had the pleasure of visiting with many of these kids last year when I visited Israel in January. These wonderful children are given the opportunity for a new life outside of all the contamination. I was met by their warm smiling faces a true testament to the wonderful care they are getting. I encourage you to checkout www.cah.net to see the fabulous items up for auction...

Have fun! I always do!

RISA

Frozen Grapes

While in Florida on vacation and sitting by the pool... the waiters passed around small cups of frozen grapes... so delicious and refreshing... Either red or green... Wash thoroughly... Pick from the vine and place in a ziploc freezer bag... Wait about 2 hours and you will have a refreshing healthy snack.... Enjoy!!!

Have fun! I always do!

Risa

Pinkberry

Well my friend Vikki introduced me to Pinkberry over the summer... It was only from a far since the line at the Second Avenue and 82nd Street outpost winded around the corner... Hmmm and we were so in the mood... So what is Pinkberry? A small shop that sells 2 flavors of frozen yogurt... and that's about it... Will it be Original or Green Tea? Several weeks later I was back in the city and made it my business to stop at Pinkberry. I had to see what all the fuss was about. I ordered a medium Original (very similar to the Plain Yogurt at Bloomingdale's 40 Carats and Lord Taylor and Frogurt Plain) loaded with diced fresh pineapple, diced fresh strawberries and sliced almonds.... Scrumptious, decadent, refreshing... A dream!! Try it for sure!!!!

www.pinkberry.com

TOKU - A New Restaurant at The Americana Manhasset

I have enjoyed both dinner and lunch at TOKU, the new Asian restaurant in The Americana at Manhasset. Both meals were delicious. The long awaited opening of this new establishment run by the Poll brothers of Bryant and Cooper and Cippolini fame is everything one would expect from this dynamic group. The decor is magnificent. Minimal and elegant in true Japanese flair. The menu offers many choices. A laundry list of both hot and cold appetizers, very creative salads, exceptional main choices and sushi. Both times we were too full for dessert but the menu looked very enticing. Some of my favorites are: Asian Caesar Salad which is finely chopped with cashews nuts, wonton chips, parmigiano reggiano all mixed with a ginger aioli.... Spicy Tuna with Wonton Crisps, Rock Shrimp with a Creamy Dressing, Black Sesame Crusted Tuna served rare was truly decadent. The prices are reasonable and the portion sizes are big. Dinner for 2 without drinks is around $100. Enjoy!!!!

Have fun! I always do!

RISA

SAKS NYC New Shoes Not Worthy

I was in the city today and made my way up to Sak's highly acclaimed new shoe department on the 9th floor. You know the one that has its own zip code HAHA. In my honest opinion totally unworthy!!! I have loved and followed all the best and most exciting shoes since I was a young kid working for my dad in East Harlem selling mostly low end shoes that would be equivalent to Payless today. With all the hoopla I expected to be slowly entranced as I ascended to the 9th floor. I heard all the press about the individual boutiques etc etc. The only area of the floor that resembled an individual boutique was Roger Vivier. The other areas were all just divisions of the selling floor. The areas didn't resemble "boutiques" at all. Certainly nothing like when Bergdorfs had the individual "Chanel" and "Manolo Blahnik" boutiques.

The selection of shoes and designers was also nothing remarkable. I didn't see anything truly unique. Nothing that would outrank Bergdorfs, Jeffreys or Barneys. The mainstream upscale Saks customer will probably be very happy with the assortment but for the real shoe aficionados always looking for something new and fresh disappointment with reign.

Have Fun! I Always Do!

RISA