The Washington Post

Opinion

Watching the Los Angeles wildfires, I thought about the apartment I’d once lost — and the lessons I had to learn about red tape, rebuilding and forgiveness…

The New York Times

Here’s an end-of-2024 quiz: What did you do on April 21? What did you eat for dinner on Oct. 2? Can you name a top headline from Aug. 15?

If you’ve got nothing, I feel you…

The New York Times

If you’re reading this, and I attended your wedding, I’d like to apologize for my behavior.

You probably didn’t notice, what with the bouquet tossing, the garter belt removing and the photo session in a flower-festooned gazebo. Don’t worry, it’s not like I made out with the best man (even if I wanted to)…

Literary Hub

I blame my mother. While walking home on her last day of high school in 1966, she fastened the padlock from her locker to a random guardrail. For years, it dangled there, most likely unnoticed, until I came along…

The New York Times

Everyone has a ghost story, or at least that’s how it has always seemed to me. My mother’s best friend used to tell a doozy about a soldier she met when she was a bookkeeper in the Air Force. He claimed to be a ghost, then proved it by walking into the middle of a moonlit airfield and disappearing before her eyes….

The New York Times

Plenty of restaurants draw a crowd, not because of their cuisine but because of their star-studded clientele. At trendy Bang in the Surry Hills neighborhood of Sydney, a message atop the menu announces that the place is a “favourite of celebrities.” But that does not mean diners are in for great people-watching at the risk of a lackluster meal.

The New York Times

A restaurant with a foosball table doesn’t exactly conjure visions of inventive Provençal cuisine served in a picture-book setting. But Aux Ateliers Chez Franck et Flo, nestled in a former ceramics shop on the outskirts of historic Maussane-les-Alpilles, has been drawing locals and tourists for myriad reasons, from foosball to formidable food.

The Strand Magazine

“What are you going to be for Halloween?”My eight-year-old niece called to ask me that question this morning, and it made me remember the way I used to interrogate people on the same topic every October when I was a kid.

The New York Times

Nick, the novel’s 20-something narrator, is a musician turned industry drone who lives with his girlfriend, Hannah, in Queens. It’s only three years into their relationship, yet they’re stuck in a rut…

The New York Times

CLYDE, my stylist, told me to spread my legs and look straight into the camera. I tried, but the photographer still seemed frustrated. ''Wider!'' Clyde instructed, then placed his hands on my knees and forced them east and west. ''Remember, it's all about your mind-set. You have to stare into the lens and give a look that lets them know what you've got…''

Newsday

Mention Sydney, Australia, and the mind conjures images of the city's opera house, glistening harbors and stunning bridges. On a first trip there recently, I managed to take in those worthwhile sites in a matter of days. With time to spare, I began exploring more in-depth excursions in and around the area…

Newsday

When I arrive at Casa Antucura Wine Hotel, nestled deep in the Uco Valley of Argentina's Mendoza province, the hotel manager greets me by saying, "We want this place to feel like your home…"