To Be A Man, A Boy Must

Write Every Day; Never Give Up; It's Supposed To Be Difficult; Try To Find Some Pleasure And Reward In The Act Of Writing, Because You Can't Look For Praise From Editors, Readers, Or Critics. In Other Words, Tips That Are Much Easier To Give Than To Take.

Your Best Is Whatever You Can Do Comfortably Without Having A Breakdown.

Of Course Many Bars In Manhasset, Like Bars Everywhere, Were Nasty Places, Full Of Pickled People Marinating In Regret.

In Manhasset You Were Either Yankees Or Mets, Rich Or Poor, Sober Or Drunk...you Were 'gaelic' Or 'garlic," As One Schoolmate Told Me, And I Couldn't Admit, To Him Or Myself, That I Had Both Irish And Italian Ancestors.

Long Before It Legally Served Me, The Bar Saved Me. It Restored My Faith When I Was A Boy, Tended Me As A Teenager, And When I Was A Young Man The Bar Embraced Me.