This week's column is about dear friends. Dear friends who are doing great things, reinventing themselves, or reminding us that we should never, ever take our relationships for granted.
Wendy the (former) Snapple Lady launches a new product.
Wendy Kaufman is one of those people who, without an iota of effort, makes people fall in love with her wherever she goes. A dear friend, with a compelling life story, Wendy and I met at a charity event several
years ago, and I fell madly in love. We remained friends and through the last couple of years have bonded even further. I left Lite-FM, she left Snapple and we both have had many conversations about
the art and the challenges of reinvention. Well, Wendy has many projects in the fire, but the one that is right here and right now is her spokesperson work for a new handy kitchen tool called the
EZ Cracker, which is an egg cracker that "cracks shells, separates egg whites and strips shells from hard boiled eggs in seconds." Not only is this one of those things that you say, "how did I ever live without it?" but it fulfills a need for us to see Wendy back on television, doing what she does best, just being Wendy!
I ordered one of these, and I hope you will too. In fact, it's a great gift for your family members and friends!
Check out this web site and video for the EZ Cracker:
You go Wendy!
Wine-ing with Grae's Grae Verlin, creates a fundraiser for Haiti in the form of a wine tasting.
Another dear friend, Grae Verlin, who is a wine expert, event planner, and party girl extraordinaire, not to mention a charitable woman with a big, big heart, is combining her love and knowledge of wine with an event to raise money to help the Haitian relief effort. If you love wine, enjoy meeting new, fabulous people and want to help the cause, please make it a point to get to Grae's wine tasting fundraiser this Friday at the W Hotel on 49th and Lexington. And if you miss this one, be sure to contact Grae to get on her email list, so you can learn of her future events. They are worth every cent!
This Friday the theme is: West Coast Wines vs East Coast Wines
Where: W New York Hotel 49th and Lexington Ave, New York, NY
When: Friday, January 29th, 2010 @ 8pm-10:30pm
Cost: $60.00 per person
100% of all profits will be donated to the Charity: Convoy of Hope
For information, phone: (908) 580 - WINE or email:
info@wine-ingwithgrae.com to purchase tickets.
You'll receive: Champagne at arrival.
Wine stations, over 50 different varieties of wine.
Light fare and tasty treats.
A light fare: sponsored by Campo Restaurant
Cupcakes sponsored by The Cupcake Shop
Chocolates sponsored by Green & Black's Organic.
Assorted Cheeses and noshes
You can also help by going online and participating in a silent auction for some great wine, champagne and restaurant items!
Good luck to Grae and her team!
Positive thoughts, warmest wishes and prayers for Phoebe Snow
I leave the last part of my column to pay tribute to yet another dear friend from the world of music. Phoebe Snow, one of the most
beloved vocalists of our time, suffered a stroke a week ago and is being treated in an area hospital. I was shocked by the news when I was informed, and I am still stunned. But it does serve to remind us of life's fragility, to understand that any one of us is susceptible to medical traumas, accidents, tragedies at any time, and that
life, as we know it, can change in a second.
Due to our schedules, Phoebe and I didn't get to see each other as much as we would have liked, but when we did, we were known to close down many a restaurant because of our long, long late night talks, often punctuated with peals of belly laughs. I know that Phoebe is a fighter. She was devastated by the death of her daughter just a few years ago, and was still grieving her passing. But Phoebe gathered the strength to continue to sing, make music and tour and bring joy to hundreds of people at each venue.
I am very hopeful that Phoebe will recover and that in time she will perform. She is a spiritual person and a Buddhist who believes in the power of chanting, so maybe, just maybe, if we all join together in positive thought and prayer and yes, even chanting, we'll be able to see her on stage and hear that glorious voice once again.
Get well, Phoebe. Most of all, I need to hear you laugh.
Nam-myoho-renge-kyo
Valerie
Valerie's Gallery
Valerie Smaldone
Media Personality, Actress, Producer, Writer
Valerie Smaldone, a 5 time Billboard Magazine Award winner, is perhaps best known for her unprecedented success holding the #1 position in the New York radio market as the midday host of New York’s 106.7 FM. She ended her on air run with the station at the end of 2007. In addition, she was the co-creator, writer, producer and host of 'Spotlight On,' a nationally syndicated program that featured in-depth interviews with top recording artists such as Paul McCartney, Elton John, Sting and Celine Dion, to name a few.
Presently, Valerie can be heard on NBC Network News promos and specialty shows and as the announcer for The Boomer Esiason Show on MSG. She writes a weekly nightlife column for TheThreeTomatoes.com, writes a theater column for Examiner.com, and has an interview program on the Italian American Network. She is an interviewer and feature reporter on Broadway for TonyAwards.com and hosts and produces celebrity portrait unveilings for Broadway stars at famed theater district eatery, Tony’s.
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