As the daily Java columnist and blogger, I consider myself everyone's ticket into the parties they can't afford, get invited to or just want to hear about from the comfort of their homes, while offering an "up close and personal" look at local and national celebrities, even when they say "no media."

And as far as my A La Carte column each Thursday, please let me tell you what's new when it comes to dining out, special food events and what the new culinary trends are in the area.

Besides my columns at courant.com and my blog, courant.com/javablog, I can be heard daily on WDRC-FM at 6:45 and 8:45 a.m. on the Jerry Kristafer Show, and on Fridays at 8:20 a.m. on The Brad Davis Show on WDRC-AM. I also appear on the Fox CT morning news show on Thursdays at 8 a.m. and speak to non-profit and community groups when invited.

I welcome invitations, input, tips, suggestions and comments and hope you will be in touch! I am nothing without you!!!!

I have been an award-winning reporter with the Courant since 1971, covering town news, education, business, breaking news, politics and for the past four years, the Java and A La Carte columnist, covering restaurants, celebrities and parties, with dashes of politics, radio, tv and sports thrown in.

I graduated from Hartford College for Women and Central Connecticut State University, have been an adjunct professor at Central Connecticut State University and University of Hartford,and was a middle school English-As-A-Second Language tutor for many years.

My work is my life (no really!), and other than more time with my family(several children and grandchildren,) my never-ending quest is for the perfect, comfortable pair of high heels.

Gardening and traveling, and organizing and cleaning (as only a possessed Virgo would do.)

Salvation Army Celebrates “Beyond the Bells” 5/24/2013
Think of the Salvation Army and you often think of its signature bells, the ones that enthusiastically clang each holiday season as the selfless organization raises money to help others. And on Thursday, those bells played a key role at the Greater Hartford Salvation Army’s annual awards luncheon. Titled “Beyond the Bells,” the event [...]        

Hartford’s Kendra Johnson Stars On New OWN Show 5/24/2013
You might want to tune in to the Oprah Winfrey Network (OWN) Wednesday evening. Those in the Hartford/Bloomfield/South Windsor area will surely see a familiar face. Hartford native, actress Kendra C. Johnson will star  in the new writer/director/actor Tyler Perry TV comedy, “Love Thy Neighbor” which premieres at 9 p.m. (EST) Best known for her [...]        

Let “Unofficial” Summer Begin Hartford! 5/23/2013
We all know real summer doesn’t really begin until June, but for many of us, Memorial Day weekend is the unofficial launch of the most wonderful time of the year for the winter-weary. And so we welcome this three-day holiday weekend, a time for picnics and parades and sunshine and a renewed spirit, a time to [...]        

South Glastonbury Woman Headed To Miss USA Contest 5/21/2013
It’s Miss USA pageant time again and representing Connecticut this year is South Glastonbury resident Erin Brady. The 25-year-old didn’t get into the pageant business until last year but has done well, coming in first-runner up in last year’s state competition and this year, winning the contest that means she goes onto the nationals [...]        

What Is CT’s “Fan Favorite” “Town?” 5/21/2013
Looking for “the” place to go this summer as you cruise around the state? Head to Niantic! The coastline community was named  the first  ”Fan Favorite” at  the Connecticut Conference on Tourism  Industry Forum Tuesday at the Connecticut Convention Center.   “We have it all,” said  a beaming Niantic/East Lyme first selectman Paul Formica. “Tourism is [...]