California Dreaming

My wife and I were packing the car and getting ready to leave our rented house off Hollywood Boulevard when a storm of howling profanity suddenly filled the air.  Turning my head towards the noise, I spotted a disheveled man barreling straight towards us.  Black, in...

Girls Can Do Anything

When my wife got home from work yesterday the look on her face said it all. “Tough day with the baby?” I said. “She was a terror all day,” Annie said. “She fought over everything little thing and she screamed all the way home.” I winced. When trapped inside a...

Sidework Scams, Tip Shaving and No Overtime

Over the years, I’ve written extensively about the various machinations restaurant owners employ to pilfer wages and tips from their waitstaff. Whether it’s mom and pop operations or big chain restaurants, many owners seem unable to resist the temptation to steal from...

All the News That’s Fit to Print

My daughter is three, broke and unemployed. Time for her to pull her weight. “You now have a job,” I told my daughter one fine Sunday morning. “Job?’ she said, bewildered. “Go get Daddy’s newspaper. It’s at the end of the driveway.” Natalie’s face lit up in a...