Has Bob Herbert Heard About This?
Z-100’s Jingle Ball, the sort of McCotillion that sweeps into Madison Square Garden tomorrow night, filling it with teenagers, the poor fools who birthed them, and the Hummers that brought them, is not only a garish display of wealth and questionable taste in music. It is also a cautionary tale — one that shows just how love for her children can drive a respectable mother to hitting street corners for a score. Writes the Times:
Indeed, the acquisition of tickets is often treated as a mission, one that requires parents or relatives to pay prices befitting World Series seats. Last year, Ms. Levin’s sister, Elizabeth Fischer, paid about $1,800 for four Jingle Ball tickets, a Hanukkah present for Ms. Levin’s children, Hannah, then 14, and Jeremy, then 11.
First, Ms. Fischer asked American Express if the concierge service available to its platinum-card holders could find tickets for her. No dice. Then she attempted to acquire them through a corporate contact (yet another Jingle Ball ritual, practiced in many well-connected Midtown and Wall Street offices). Strike two. Finally, she said, she broke down and bought them on craigslist.
“I felt like it was this covert operation” Ms. Fischer said. “I had $2,000 in my pocket and was meeting this guy on a street corner.”
Thank God the guy showed up. We have the feeling this woman was one step away from tricking Hannah out to close the deal.
They Are So Going to Jingle Ball This Year [NYT]
intel
New York Moms Have Got It Going On
“Hotness is not about looking good,” said a diminutive goateed man named Jeff Greenfield. “It’s about taking care of business. Moms are overwhelmed.” Greenfield spoke with the authority; he is the executive producer of the inaugural Hottest Mom in America contest, which was holding its New York tryout Saturday in a warren of studios on Eighth Avenue. At 8 a.m., there had been a throng of 1,000 women — or perhaps 2,000; the line stretched down and around the block, according to Greenfield — hoping to have their shot at Hottest (Which Does Not Mean Most Attractive, Really) Mom. By 2 p.m., it was down to 30 contenders, and from there, the field will be culled to five finalists, who this week will compete to be named the New York winner.
