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The New, New Suburban Yuppie Kiddie Party

I was staying at my sister Julie's in her new home in New Jersey, just a half-hour train ride from New York City. It was a Sunday, and my niece, Bella, had been invited to a birthday party of a neighbor's down the street.

"Let's get in the car, Bella," Julie said.

"Why does she need to get in the car?" I asked. "Isn't the party at the neighbor's?"

"Birthday parties are never at people's homes," Julie said. "They are usually at a venue. This one is at a pottery making shop. They'll do an activity for 45 minutes, have cake and water, and go home. We'll be there an hour and a half, two hours tops."

"What about presents?"

"You still bring them, but they are put in the corner and opened later."

I would appreciate this with a bridal or baby shower--avoiding the laborious gift-opening ritual. But something disturbed me about this updated version of the kiddie party--there was nothing kid-like about it. While kids may not like to sit through a present-opening, I believe I learned a lot about giving and saying thank you from birthday parties. Kids seem to be learning a new skill now: time management. Efficiency. How to engage others socially then run. With the next generation, could we lose the ability to be spontaneous and to just hang out?

The most depressing new term ever: Working-Class Millionaire

I was out to dinner Saturday night with some friends who were discussing how subjective money is in the Bay Area and New York: What seems like "good money" in some parts of the country is unworkable in the City. Then this morning I read an article in The Times that backed this theme: One person's nest egg is another person's chump change. Apparently a million bucks just isn't such a big whoop anymore. At least not in Silicon Valley.