“Be Curious. Not Angry.” – Joseph Lee Deming
This stretch between Thanksgiving and New Year’s is imagined to be twinkle lights and cozy flights, but in reality it’s calendars buckling under holiday parties, fundraisers, family group chats, and, if we’re lucky, a tiny bit of time for ourselves… Political personalities are traveling, cooking for entire extended families, some are squeezing in one last committee meeting before the year flips. Underneath it all, we ask ourselves: how do we move through a season of “giving” in a way that actually grows us, not just exhausts us?
A Huntington resident recently wrote an op-ed for Huntington Now asking what the antidote to polarization might be, and landed on a very simple instruction: before you argue with someone’s politics, ask about their life. That line — be curious, not angry — has been rattling around in my head as I move from rooms about Holocaust memorials to Madison Avenue philanthropy, from Harvard nightlife panels to turkey drives and toy collections. It’s easy this time of year to see only the title on the invite or the headlines on TV; harder, but more interesting, to remember that every “elected official” or “power broker” also has a family text thread, a travel plan gone sideways, or a quiet thing they’re carrying into the room with them…
That’s really what this newsletter is trying to hold onto. Under every title – Council Member, Borough President, Comptroller, Nightlife Director – there’s a person who grew up somewhere, loves someone, worries about something, and is figuring out the holidays the same as the rest of us. So as we walk through this week’s Scoops – the screenings and receptions, the memorials and other moments – I invite you to read with that mantra in the back of your mind: get to know the person behind the title first. The politics, and the season, make a lot more sense from there…
Like education through cinema: The city’s mental health conversation played out in a different venue when the film “Rosemead” — which opened in theaters this week — got a special screening and post-film dialogue. New York State Inspector General Lucy Lang shared the stage with Lucy Liu, New York City Council Member Linda Lee, and New York City Council Member Shekar Krishnan for a conversation about destigmatizing mental health crises, pushing the audience to think about how we respond, as neighbors and as institutions, to people in visible distress. Later in the week, Council Member Linda Lee was in another kind of deliberative space at Queens Community Board 8’s monthly meeting, discussing community concerns and Fresh Meadows Vision, and explicitly thanking board members for their advocacy and feedback – the hyperlocal side of the same public care conversation.
Or education through statues, memorials and museums: In Albany this week, Assemblymember Gabriella Romero and Senator Patricia Fahy scored a major win when Governor Kathy Hochul signed their bill establishing the first-ever New York State Holocaust Memorial at Empire State Plaza. OGS will oversee the memorial’s design, programming, and location – ensuring the Plaza becomes both a solemn place of remembrance and an educational space warning against antisemitism, racism, and all forms of intolerance…In the room was Howard Pollack of JCRC, OGS Commissioner Jeanette Moy, Assemblymember John McDonald III, and representatives from the Capital District Jewish Holocaust Memorial, Dan Dembling and Dr. Michael Lozman who emphasized the impact of a permanent, state-sponsored memorial that educates New Yorkers about the consequences of unchecked prejudice…
Down in Queens, the same theme of “Never Again” is getting literal bricks and mortar. At Queens Borough Hall, the city announced the Queens Holocaust Memorial, the first major Holocaust memorial in the borough, initially proposed by the Queens Jewish Community Council and now backed by $3 million from the city and the Borough President’s office. DCAS Commissioner Louis Molina, First Deputy Mayor Randy Mastro, Queens Borough President Donovan Richards, leaders from the Queens Jewish Community Council, and Assemblymember Sam Berger gathered to set this in motion…
And of course, education through teaching: UFT’s “Stronger Together” Legislative Reception brought the public education family together in Manhattan. Council Member-elect Virginia Maloney was among those spotted with familiar faces from the education and political worlds as UFT leadership and allied lawmakers paused to acknowledge what teachers and school staff have carried for the next generation — and to quietly align on priorities heading into the next legislative cycle. It’s the soft-power version of agenda-setting: no roll calls, but lots of hallway commitments…
Assemblyman Harvey Epstein is officially sworn into the New York City Council representing District 2, and Attorney General Tish James administered the oath. In attendance, Council Member Julie Menin and new colleagues Ty Hankerson, Shanel Thomas-Henry, and Shirley Aldebol….
I asked my Instagram audience on Giving Tuesday whether they’d rather donate money or time – and the vote was surprisingly split! I personally would rather show up and volunteer my time, so I can feel a part of something, rather than give money and not see it come to life. Depending on where you choose to spend time, philanthropy looks different. On Madison Avenue, philanthropy came wrapped in good shoes. Sara Armet, retail real estate entrepreneur and founder of MANTIS New York, is leading the way for “next gen retail,” using strategic leasing, experiential moments, and communications to connect landlords with brands, and brands with consumers – all with the mission to drive foot traffic and brand awareness in stores.
The Giving Tuesday sip-and-shop at Serena Uziyel in support of the Madison Avenue BID was that thesis in real time, attracting Mona Aboelnaga Kanaan of FIT, Aylin Gucalp of CBRE, Somers Kilian of The Frick Collection, Elysa Goldman of Extell, Chanie Milworn of Booth Street, Jaclyn Ragolia of New Tradition, combined with Adrien Lesser, Monica Elias and Gina Newman of Style Across the Aisle, Isabella Hummel of Magnifique Couleur, and Matt Bauer of the Madison Avenue BID – a cross-section of who shapes what gets built, leased, and noticed. The pop-up wasn’t just a fundraiser; it was a glimpse of the map Sara Armet is drawing for what retail is becoming next…
Who would have thought New York’s nightlife is being discussed 200 miles north? Ariel Palitz, former and founding director of the New York City Office of Nightlife, was at Harvard University’s Bloomberg Center for Cities, where she joined her successor, Jeff Garcia, for a panel on ‘nightlife governance’ moderated by Dr. Andreina Seijas, founder and principal of Night Tank, and also included Corean Reynolds, the Boston Nightlife Director, Mathieu Grondin, the Nightlife Commissioner of Ottawa…
Further south in New Orleans, the Annual Mayors Summit convened by the Combat Antisemitism Movement pulled together roughly 200 mayors, including Mayor Eric Adams, for a national huddle on combating hate. Artist Elizabeth Sutton was honored as the 2025 National Contest Winner for her advocacy against antisemitism during Jewish American Heritage Month, crossing paths with Almog Jan, a rescued Israeli hostage; Lal Shareef, known for Muslim–Jewish bridge-building; Yehuda Kaploun, the new U.S. Special Envoy to Combat Antisemitism; and Sacha Roytman, CEO of Combat Antisemitism Movement. She framed the recognition as a call to use her art, voice, and platform to fight hate “louder and prouder than ever” — a reminder that New York’s political leadership and cultural voices are plugged into a much larger national and international conversation on antisemitism and public safety…
Wednesday night at Pershing Square felt like the most “everyone in the room” moment of the season: Jeff Rodus’s retirement from CUNY, somehow packed to the gills even while the Met Council Gala at the Mandarin Oriental, an event for New York State Comptroller Tom DiNapoli, and a Keith Powers for Assembly kickoff at The Laurels were all happening at the same time.
There, Workforce Housing Group’s John Crotty (with his hot Bronx-made sauce), YMCA’s Sharon Levy, DHC’s Arthur Goldstein, Fred Cerullo, President & CEO of the Grand Central Partnership, Katie Honan of The City, Public Advocate Jumaane Williams, Andrew Kimball, President & CEO of NYCEDC (casually noting the East River project is on hold pending funding — and the need for private partners), State Senator Leroy Comrie, Robert Rodriguez, President & CEO of DASNY, and Council Member Crystal Hudson.
From CUNY came Sascha Owen and Maite Junco, plus Council Members Eric Dinowitz and Farah Louis doing their now-signature two-step through the crowd; Frank Ricci and Scott Crowley of Fontas Advisors, with Scott in the wool version of his famous SOMOS linen hat; Rafael Espinal, President of the Freelancers Union out of Brooklyn’s Industry City; Mark Weprin, proving his memory really is a steel trap; and Gale Brewer, telling a very Gale Brewer story about cooking Thanksgiving dinner for 20.
Threaded in were Halie Meyers from Governor Kathy Hochul’s office; consultant John Paul Lupo, Counsel to the NYC Council, Jason Otaño, Gateway Development Commission’s Nivardo Lopez, and Judy Rapfogel, Co-Founder and Principal of GrandRap Strategies. At one point, Fred Cerullo, Katie Honan, and Jumaane Williams were huddled around a phone — the kind of tight triangle that sparks ten theories — and later, in the most New York epilogue, Fred Cerullo was outside helping former Council Member Karen Koslowitz into a taxi.
Across town that same night, the Met Council annual benefit was its own anchor, with Council Members Julie Menin,Oswald Feliz, Mercedes Narcisse and Pesach Osina, and a mix of community, law enforcement, and nonprofit partners gathering to support one of the city’s central anti-poverty engines. Met Council’s work – affordable housing, kosher and halal meals, and other lifesaving services – is grounded in a simple message: see everyone as family, no matter who they are.
In case you heard me on air during the Arthur Aidala Power Hour on AM970, here’s the story of the evening. Broadcasting from his law office – a space that looks exactly like the phrase “plenty of legal action” sounds. I was the one on the mic, but in the office orbit were I Got A Guy’s Vinny LeVien; Joanie Pelzer, who helps produce the show and has ties back to my former world at Gotham Government Relations and Nicholas & Lence; and attorney Imran Ansari — not to be confused with National Grid’s Imran Ansari, whom I’d spot later that night on Long Island… After the show, I grabbed a quick drink at Tracks in Grand Central, where Matt Harnisch of DHC passed through on his way via LIRR to the Queens Dems Holiday Party; I stayed put to meet Halie Meyers from Governor Hochul’s office, then caught a later train eastbound to Kyle Stober’s ABLI Holiday Party – which has its own literal and metaphorical power grid.
Kyle Strober holding court with Nassau County Comptroller Elaine Phillips (faux fur coat in hand before heading to a Soo Bahk Do Moo Duk Kwan class), Assemblyman Mike Durso, coming from the Town of Oyster Bay and Toys for Tots event at John J. Burns Park in Massapequa; Assemblyman Keith Brown, Islip Town Supervisor Angie Carpenter, Kevin Brady from LIBOR, Jaime Franchi of the Long Island Contractors Association (LICA), organizers extraordinaire Lauren Corcoran Doolin, Resi Cooper and Tracy Edwards, Imran Ansari resurfacing on this side of the river, Town of North Hempstead Supervisor Jennifer DeSena (reportedly the last to leave), and former Deputy Suffolk County Executive Lisa Black, handing out fresh XL Adidas socks from the front seat of her car – easily the most practical holiday swag of the season. Ryan Silva of the New York State Economic Development Council was there too, mentioning that the Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree came from his upstate hometown, as if that’s a normal fun fact to slide between passed hors d’oeuvres. And because Long Island nights don’t end when the program does, the after-after scene featured Jerome Bost spotted at Rare 650, while I mentally mapped the days ahead: more radio, more receptions, and more rooms where legal pads, faux fur, hot sauce, holiday cooking tips, and stalled capital projects all wind up in the same conversation!
SKYE LIGHTS: On movement.
There was a time when I was the person who worked out at least four days a week, no question. When I had an office job at Nicholas & Lence – my last real office job, pre–Mike Bloomberg campaign, back in 2019 – I had a personal trainer and a routine: 7 a.m. at New York Sports Club across from my Midtown office, then straight to my desk. When the pandemic hit and gyms closed, I did what a lot of us did: ran and walked outside, did yoga and cardio dance and HIIT on YouTube. Over the years I’ve tried almost everything – F45 in Carle Place (I joined after learning the franchise owner was one of my dad’s orthodontic patients), Barry’s Bootcamp, even an aerial silks class – but I never committed to a gym, a package, or a schedule, mostly because I don’t really have a schedule.
Recently, I decided that had to change – not in a New Year’s resolution way, but in a “my brain and body deserve a baseline” way. So I started going to Body By Brooke, a class on the Upper East Side taught by Brooke Marinovich from Suri Kasirer’s team. Let’s be honest: it’s a workout class, not a political event, but there’s at least a light thread back to the universe we live in! This week I did it twice – Wednesday at 6:00 a.m. and again Saturday at 9:30 a.m. – and it genuinely set me up for better days. The class is unlike anything I’ve ever taken: you move every single muscle and fiber in your body, and even your face muscles get involved because Brooke is smiling the entire time, which somehow psychologically forces you to smile too. There’s almost no counting, no timing, no obsessing over reps, just following the leader, smiling, kicking, lunging, lifting, almost dancing your way through these wild combinations of movements you’d never see articulated, because they’re flowy.
On Saturday, I brought my girlfriend Danielle Librizzi, a makeup artist who, like me, doesn’t have a nine-to-five or a fixed office. She loved it as much as I did, and that’s what got me thinking: if you’re someone whose life feels “all over the place,” maybe you need a workout that meets you there: repetition without rigidity, structure without spreadsheets, something dynamic enough to hold your attention but forgiving enough not to judge your calendar. Beginning the day like that is truly mood-altering. So the bottom line, especially in a season where we’re all measuring ourselves against a hundred invisible standards: don’t beat yourself up for not having the “perfect” workout routine. Just find the thing that makes sense for your body and your life — even if it doesn’t make sense to anyone else.