Hey, quick question: Do you slap your forehead and mutter, "Oh, God," every time you see an entry I've written that begins with "So I was walking down the street this morning and etc."? I ask because, in response to yesterday's deliverance of absolution, a correspondent volunteered to begin an Alex Balk Cabfare Fundraising Drive "so you don't have to see anymore sad shit on the street and we don't have to hear about it." Fair enough, I suppose; I understand how painful and wrenching it must be to read these accounts because I live them, and the burdens I bear are more painful and wrenching than any of you could ever understand. READ MORE

Back in February my next door neighbor died. She lived alone, and the police discovered her body when a worried co-worker called because she hadn't turned up for a few days. It was a valuable lesson in the transitory nature of life and how vulnerable single New Yorkers, particularly those getting on in years, are to being forgotten. It was also a valuable lesson in how slowly the New York State probate system works when someone dies without an immediate survivor; it's now June and the police still haven't unsealed the apartment. As you can imagine, the warm weather has brought with it some incredible smells! READ MORE

While reading the nearly 9000-word account of the death of the Rocky Mountain News in the Denver magazine 5280, I came across the following literary device used to describe the newspapers situation. This, like many things, surely requires a handy (and possibly faux) German name! READ MORE

In which we revisit the front page ad that recently adorned the Los Angeles Times.