LAURIE S.

Laurie has a huge social circle here, and this summer a national magazine commissioned her to write about all the hip new bars in Manhattan. She thinks it's a great way to take out friends and dates.

Laurie also has two sisters who live in Manhattan: 25-year-old Sylvie is exuberant, outgoing, she works in an uptown bar and is training to be a psychologist. Laurie's other sister, Karyn, is 30 and married. The three of them are very close and often meet for nights out on the town.

"I am very sensitive to bullshit," Laurie says. "And if I think people aren't telling the truth, or trying to tell me a story, or even if they're just trying to be funny by exaggerating something, I'll call them on it right away. I tend to form strong and quick opinions about people, and I tend not to edit myself."