Yearly Archives: 2025

……………..When ever I’m not sure of what to post….I look through my old pictures for inspiration……..Some of my most cherished memories are those of the times I spent with Andrea Pfister and Jean Pierre Dupre at their villa in Praiano, Italy…….Andrea, or Andy as Jean Pierre called him, was an incredibly talented, brilliant shoe designer, with stores in Paris and Milan, and Jean Pierre or JP as we all called him, was his business partner and Andrea’s life partner. They had been together for over 50 years!……I collaborated with Andrea on the Anne Klein Couture Shoe Collection for over 15 years!….At my wedding in Las Vegas, which was Andy’s idea, they were our witnesses!……Twice a year, summer and fall, I would make the trip to Praiano, on the Amalfi coast, right next to the famous Positano, to work with Andrea designing the shoes. I would usually go a week before the rest of the AK team arrived, which actually consisted of two people, Phyllis Footer and Arthur Swartz….It would be a week of relaxing by the pool before the work began….laying in the sun, and drinking cold white wine…..eating wonderful meals….and laughing and laughing and laughing….Many times during my summer visits Jac would either come with me or meet me there depending on my schedule……It was the best of times!!!!!….To say their villa was spectacular would be an understatement!!! It was 250 steps down from the main road to there house….and it was the last house on the cliffs…with nothing below but rocks and water!….It was extremely private….We didn’t make that trip up too often….only if we went out to dinner at their friends hotels or a local trattoria. Andy and JP were best friends with the owners of the Sant Pietro and Le Sirenuse Hotels….two of the most famous hotels on the entire Amalfi coast, and both located in Positano…10 to 15 minutes away….depending on the traffic!…..We always had at least one dinner at each of the hotels….Some evenings the care taker of their villa, Jean Carlo, would have a PIZZA NIGHT!!!…..He would cook many different pizzas in Andy’s large outdoor pizza oven located in the back of the villa…..They were OUTRAGEOUS!….but most of the time we just laid out by the pool and swam, and ate and drank….often JP cooked the most scrumptious meals……Every year, at the end of the summer season, Andy and JP used to give a HUGE party for 100 to 200 people! They were infamous!…Often celebrities, and movie stars who were friends of theirs or friends of the hotel owners would “stop by” for a drink and the incredible view…..When the work did start on the second week when Phyllis arrived…..the three of us, Andy, Phyllis and I would go to Andy’s studio on the second floor of the villa and work. It was a long, large all white room with four large arched windows facing the Mediterranean Sea. There was a very long white work table where we sat and a few white directors chairs scattered about…Andrea always had beautiful music playing,…….It was an idyllic place to work…..except…. there wasn’t any air conditioning ANYWHERE in the entire villa, and the office could get VERY HOT….we used to work in just our bathing suits!…..Needless to say we took very long lunches, and went back to work at 3-3:30 until we had to get ready for dinner which was usually about 9 or 9:30…..In the mean time Jac and JP would be by the pool, or take themselves off on excursions….JP would call the driver and Jac and JP would climb the stairs to the main road, meet the car and off they would go. I think these were some of the most fun times Jac had during her visits….She adored JP!……Andrea and JP eventually had to sell the villa….it changed hands, but today it is a LUXURY RENTAL…..called….”VILLA LILLY”…….You can google it….”VILLA LILLY, PRAIANO, ITALY”…..and take a video tour of the entire place….Surprisingly very little has changed. The villa and the ancient tower, which Andrea converted into a bedroom on the second floor and a bathroom on the first…is exactly the same….Jac and I used to stay in the tower….the two photos at the upper left. It was very private and away from the main house….When I was alone I stayed in the main house….The pool area and the main outside terrace where we had our meals is exactly the same….even the furniture….Andrea’s large office has been divided into 2 rooms from what I can tell…1 bedroom and a game room with a pool table….The kitchen area has been opened up to include a dining table. The main “white” living room, which had 4 French doors leading to the terrace, looks pretty much the same even though the furniture is different. They kept the same mood and feeling with the white slip covered couches and chairs….The bath rooms are the same….They added one, but the one I loved and used was on the same level as the pool….It is completely covered in fancy geometric black and white tiles, and the sunken tub/shower with the huge glass arched window over looking the Mediterranean…..was in a word….WOW!…….I know Andy and JP would be happy to see very very little has changed.. Most of the details, and all of the improvements they made over the years to the house and property are exactly the same…..down to blue ceramic and tile benches, and the hearts carved out in the staircase……..When ever I am feeling nostalgic….and missing “the boys”……we were “The Three Musketeers”……………I google Villa Lilly and it all comes back to me in living color….Andrea’s sister Barbara….took both of their ashes when they passed away within a year of each other, and poured them into the sea…..right in front of the villa…I know they are happy……..If you enjoy looking at beautiful places and homes….give it a look……………you will be transported to a wonderous place most of us only dream of!…..I was lucky enough to spend lots of spectacular times there…..and live the dream.

………………..When ever I’m in the mood for CHICKEN I make my “MARINATED CHICKEN” dish. Of course the chicken has to marinate for 24 hours so I can’t be in a rush for it…..but…..I make enough for leftovers and even lunch. I love cold chicken! I usually get a package of thighs which is 4 pieces, a package of drumsticks, 6 pieces and wings which has a lot of pieces. I’ll bake half of it one night, and the other half the second night. For sides I’ll either do mixed vegetables or a simple green salad with my mustard/olive oil/white balsamic vinegar dressing…..It always comes out perfect and delicious!

………………………….Robert Tirman…..”Bobby”……..and Mary Donnelly were my two best friends growing up, and forever more……..We all met at Elmont Memorial Junior and Senior High School when we were 13 years old….9th grade…..Mary and Bobby already knew each other from elementary school that they both attended. They lived a few blocks away from each other, but I lived on the other side of town…..so I went to a different elementary school….”Dutch Broadway Elementary School”…….Bobby and I became best friends immediately……Mary and I were in the same art classes. We had a mutual respect for each others talents, and through our art we became friends. I had a major crush on Mary instantly! After a while we started dating, and dated through out our junior and senior years…….The bottom pictures were taken of us for our senior prom…..Bobby went with a girl named Phyllis, and of course I took Mary……………You don’t call someone your “best friend” lightly……Bobby and I were “thick as thieves” as they say, and we did almost everything together….We studied together, we were on the same sports teams, and we double dated…..we went everywhere, and talked about EVERYTHING together!!….When we weren’t together we were on the phone…..It was land lines in those days! There was no such thing as “cell phones”!…..When Mary came into the picture my time with Bobby wasn’t as often, but he understood….That’s what best friends do…….There was NOTHING we couldn’t or didn’t talk about! I knew EVERYTHING about Bobby and he knew everything about me……and that’s the way it was though out our entire lives……Of course when we graduated we all took different paths……Mary went to NYU on an art scholarship……Bobby went to the University of Wisconsin, and I went to Parsons School of Design…..We were all lucky enough to get into the schools we all wanted to go to…….Distance and time kept us apart physically, but we never strayed or drifted too far from each other…….We definitely went our separate ways, but somehow always came back together……We lived in different states and at one point different countries, but we always made time to hook up somewhere….somehow……I even visited Bobby in Sweden when he was going to school there. It was my first trip to Europe. I had just graduated from Parsons and he still had another year in Sweden…..He was on a spring break, and we spent time in Sweden, which I fell in love with…..The MOST BEAUTIFUL people I had ever seen! We went on to Denmark and had a blast. When Bobby finally graduated, and came home we went to RIO for CARNIVAL!!!! One of the best times of my life! One of Bobby’s classmates was from Rio so we had a great time. He took us to EVERY party….I can’t remember us ever sleeping….maybe on the beach!…LOL….Bobby and I shared summer houses together for years….even when Jac and I shared a house with Bobby, and other friends……Mary, married twice. The first was a disaster, and they divorced after two years. She called me all the time in tears….I tried to console her, but she had to make the hard decisions on her own. She eventually moved to California, met a great guy, Ralph Chandler, married and had two beautiful daughters…..Mary and I talked on the phone all the time, and she would tell me everything. When ever she made a pilgrimage to NYC we would meet up for the day. We did all the things we always loved to do together….go to museums, shop and eat!……When ever we had a high school reunion, large photo above, we would always go together……”The Three Musketeers”…..We pretty much knew everything there was to know about each other….Mary and Bobby knew Jac well and they loved her, and Jac loved them, which made our friendship so much easier….Jac would teasingly say to me….”you should have married Mary”…Growing old isn’t easy, and with age comes physical problems. Mary had diabetes from childhood, which took its’ toll, and eventually was the underlying cause of her passing…..Bobby developed dementia, and with that many other physical problems. In the end he didn’t know who I was…..It was heart breaking……I spoke to Mary from her hospital bed only a few hours before she too passed……Again…..I was heartbroken…..Death is so final! They died within a year of each other…..my two best friends who I loved second to Jac…..The worst thing about getting old, for me, isn’t that I can’t do what I did at twenty, thirty, forty, fifty or even sixty…..The worst thing is the loved ones I have lost along the way……I miss they so deeply….I miss talking to them….I miss seeing them…….I miss just knowing they are alive and somewhere on this planet…….I just miss them…..It’s a horrible position to be in…….the last one standing…….They will always be a big part of me….always a part of my heart……..my BEST FRIENDS FOREVER!

………………..I just happened to glance out of my second floor office window….and there they were….three deer just lounging about….making themselves at home….just enjoying the peace and solitude of a safe place…….my separate peace!