80. Michael “Mischa” Windross, Journalist

*Wanted to write about burning issues, not burned food*

Mickey is a man with very strongly held viewpoints. He sees the world as divided between either the avaricious and dishonest and the virtuous and honest. This often conflicts directly with how he sees his role as a journalist: as a discoverer and teller of truth. Fact and strongly held viewpoints do not always mix. He deals with that conflict in a variety of ways, many of which he admits are pretty funny. He is given to long screeds delivered to friends who have heard it all before and get a laugh by egging Mickey on. Another is writing long opinion pieces in a blog that he writes under the pseudonym “Mischa Winer.” And finally, he writes occasional food articles and restaurant reviews, pastimes that led Mickey in very surprising directions, the first to a bestseller, the second to a cult following on the internet. Mickey started writing the food articles as a joke. He would take a well-known recipe and attempt to reproduce it at home in his apartment’s cramped kitchen. Quiche Lorraine is one of the first. The results were rarely good – especially in the first couple of attempts – leading him to write about “Kitchen Catastrophes,” why things went so wrong, and how to fix them. After doing this for a year or two, he bundled a bunch of these adventures together and sent them off to a book editor who when nuts, worked out a book deal, and was astounded at the result. Mickey always wanted a bestseller, but one about some burning issue of the day, not about burned food. But suddenly, there was Mickey doing book tours and television interviews. His tiny kitchen became a shrine for weekend cooks until Mickey’s wife had enough and insisted they move to a bigger, better place. The restaurant reviews were almost as successful. Mickey focused on the pretensions of “big deal” restaurants and made fun of them. At first, the restaurants screamed calling Mickey all sorts of names. But they noticed that when Mickey did a number on them, business got even better. So, they started buying advertising on his podcast, giving Mickey a significant income stream. The trouble in all this is Mickey is becoming just the sort of person that he would do screeds about. Self-satisfied, avaricious, and not always as honest as he would like. In a word, it is hampering his ability to be the kind of journalist he had hoped to be. That makes him angry. And so, he does screeds about that, providing great entertainment for all his close friends. Still, he has to admit, it isn’t such a bad life. He has a bigger and fancier kitchen now. He cooks more too, pastries and breads as well as main dishes. And so, the kitchen calamities keep coming, one after another. He’s now compiling some of them into a new book. And he still does an occasional restaurant review although not with the same verve as before. He’s gotten to know some of the restaurant owners and chefs he once mocked with such sanctimonious glee. And some are now good friends. So now, Mickey is looking for new targets. He’s thought about politicians but decided they are too easy a target and there are too many political writers anyway. But lately he’s been visiting high-end art galleries and having fun.

79. Daisy McMaster, Gallerista

Daisy has a smooth-as-glass façade. She works hard at it. She spends hours on her appearance. Has her hair cut and styled at a chic boutique. Wears designer clothes. Works out and eats an almost starvation, mostly vegetarian diet; meditates religiously; and is very careful about her personal hygiene. She turns up at the hottest clubs, is always in attendance at every major social event. She is also highly organized and very good at her job which is talking knowledgably about contemporary art and selling very expensive artwork to very rich collectors. Don’t let Daisy’s air of sophistication, her apparent self-assurance, or her social skills fool you. And very definitely don’t let her very busy social life lead you to the wrong conclusion. At 28, she has, until two months ago, lived at home with her divorced mother. While she will greet you with apparent pleasure, give you a sparkly big smile and a hug, it is all a ruse. She is terrified of strangers and, in particular, of men she finds attractive. And, for that matter, she is terrified of women she finds attractive as well. She wishes it were somehow different. As she reluctantly admits after glass or three of Chardonnay or Pinot Grigio, her “real” life feels empty. She does not have and, in truth, never has had anything more than a superficial relationship with anyone. And it has to be said, she makes sure it stays that way. Her dates are invariably gay, charming and fun but social props. Or they are self-absorbed hustlers – men who she quite rightly observes are only interested in one thing: “Scoring Miss Daisy.” Or much older men, usually family friends. When she is with girlfriends, she complains bitterly about not finding “the right guy” or about how all men are such pigs. She got that last line from her mother who, after fleeing a marriage to a well-connected but alcoholic man, let herself go for years, cloistering herself and Daisy in a dark house, licking her wounds and filling Daisy with warnings about getting too close to others. So, leaving home for college was a shock, sometimes plain scary, for Daisy. That’s when she developed her smooth-as-glass façade. Always charming and warm, but distant. Her way to take part in the world but to avoid any real involvement in it. And up until recently it worked pretty well. That is until her mother turned everything upside down by getting over her anger and bitterness, fixing herself up, getting out of the house, taking art lessons, and meeting Charlie. He’s fifteen years younger than Daisy’s mother, A polite, thoughtful, and helpful man. A fair tennis player. A moderately successful realtor. Not bad looking either. When Daisy’s mother told her what was up, Daisy went a little nut. It didn’t help that when Daisy’s initial reaction was speechless shock, her mother laughed. “What’s the big deal, Daisy? I’m still young and Charlie is hot.” The next day Daisy said to herself, “Time to move out and get a place of my own.” When she told her mother about her decision, her mother said, “About time.” Charlie, being a realtor and helpful by inclination, found her a great place. She’s worked hard to decorate it in a style that reflects how she wants to be seen. When she isn’t off to some social event, Daisy comes home, makes a few calls to clients in other time zones, reads professional art periodicals, and sits on her post-modern couch waiting for something to happen, what she cannot imagine.

78. Herman Dillington, Regional Planner

“This has got to be one of the worst jobs in the world.” That’s what Roger, Herman’s cousin concluded after Herman described what he did for a living. “It’s just a lot of crazy people and spending time and effort trying to do stuff that ain’t never going to happen.” To which Herman kind of smiled with half-closed eyes and whispered, “Yup.” Herman reacted that way to a lot of things. It was easier that way. Herman is a big guy, one of those people who doesn’t say much and who seem to be somewhere else a lot of the time. Anyway, that conversation was five years ago. Herman hasn’t seen Roger since because their talk happened about a week before it all went off the rails. Back then, Herman was Director of a 50-person regional planning department for a large midwestern state. His department dealt with issues like the location of a new shopping center, the impact of diverting a small creek on a wetland area. Or evaluating the effect of a new public works project on traffic flow. He got the job through political connections. And it suited him. He never got rattled when people got all hot and bothered, screaming and yelling, threatening law suits, or worse during planning meetings or public hearings. And within his department, he was a respected leader. Things could get stressful but the job was secure enough and if it didn’t pay all that well, there were a lot of benefits. He had a nice home, a wife, and two kids. In his community, he was somebody. But the thing about Herman is that while he might seem to be somewhere else when you talk with him, he really is in a way. That’s because, deep down, he sees himself as a complete fraud, his whole career built on good luck and deception. Others in his department had advanced degrees in economics, design, sociology and urban planning. There’s even a Ph.D. in anthropology. They deserved to be there. A Physical Education major in college, Herman never took a course in regional planning or anything related to it. He didn’t graduate either. Flunked out. Herman got his job through his childhood friendship with his state’s governor and on his ability to get on with people. His previous jobs were in sales. As he saw it, he was nothing but a faker and glad-hander. A pretender. And he went through every day fully expecting to be exposed and chased out of the building. So, when some irregularities in his expense accounts and a few ill-considered acceptances of gifts – including a paid vacation for his family – came to light, he figured his best bet was to resign before he became an embarrassment. Which he did. And which led him into a deep depression. He couldn’t see his way forward. He couldn’t see himself going back to selling stuff. And he expected that his career in regional planning was over. He was terrified. Even suicidal. But a few weeks after he resigned, he got a phone call. It was from a large, highly respected architectural and urban planning consulting firm. They needed a front man, someone who knew how to attract and manage clients. They had their eye on him for years. They knew all about him and his background. It took a big chunk of his adult life, but, right then and there, Herman was beginning to understand that if he were a fraud, at least he was good at it.

77. Abe Lieberman, Kosher Butcher

“The stuff I have to put up with, you wouldn’t believe.” Abe always says that when anyone asks him how things are going. But he has to admit that things aren’t all that bad. Business is better than ever. The store is in the middle of a community of Orthodox Jews and there is only one other kosher butcher shop nearby. And it’s run by an old friend. They don’t really compete. As they see it, their job is to work together, to make sure that everyone gets what they need. And his clientele is growing, not just because there seems to be more and more observant Jews in his area but because non-observant Jews and even people from other faiths like the quality that Abe delivers. Of course, there are a lot of rules to follow. And the rabbis that Abe hires to certify his merchandise have – each in his own way – been more than a little annoying. There are also a few customers Abe could do without. As Abe says, “The stuff I have to put up with, you wouldn’t believe.” And that includes his personal life. He just wishes it could be a bit pleasanter. His wife left him five years ago. One day, he found a note: “I don’t like you, never have. And you smell funny.” She just moved out and disappeared. No forwarding address. Apparently, she planned the whole thing well in advance. Abe was in a daze for months. “Smell funny? What the hell. She knew I was a butcher when she married me.” It wasn’t as though he didn’t have opportunities with other women if he wanted. But, after the “smell funny” comment, he wasn’t taking any chances. And anyway, his wife left without divorcing him so it’s not as if he could marry again so easily. And about anything else, Abe has strong views. “Fooling around. Not for me.” Dealing with the kids is no picnic either. Neither son had wanted to go into business with him. Or to be part of the community they grew up in. One, Alvin, got interested in science when he was in junior high school. Abe hoped he would go into dentistry. But not Alvin. A physicist! He went away to college, graduated cum laude, got advanced degrees, and then took a job in a very fancy laboratory. He met and married a woman – not Jewish – while on a fellowship in Ireland. A nice lady, Abe says, but says he can’t understand anything she says. The other boy is in television, does the news for a network in New York. He married another TV person, a gal from Iowa of all places. Also not Jewish. Her name is Paige. Very tall. Very skinny. Abe always asks, “What kind of name is Paige?” It’s his idea of a joke. Abe doesn’t make a fuss about his grandkids not being brought up Jewish. What’s the point? And he doesn’t make too much of a fuss that both of his boys and their wives seem more than a little embarrassed by him. When the topic comes up, all he’ll say is, “Too bad! I am who I am.” A long time ago, he decided there’s no point worrying about what you can’t do anything about. At the end of a long day in the store, Abe usually gets home, flops down in a chair, takes off his shoes, and has a Scotch and a slice or two of salami. Then, he’ll watch his son do the news on television while eating dinner. And, before bed, he always takes a long shower. So he won’t smell funny.

76. Marjorie “Mags” Svensen

In more ways that she could realize, she is her father’s son. As a girl, even in her teenage years, she loved being with him. They played tennis. They camped in the roughest conditions. Later, she went her father’s alma mater. And then, into her father’s profession, chemical engineering. Along the way, he always encouraged her to do one better than he did. She never let him down. After getting a master’s in chemical engineering, Mags took a job with an international chemical company and quickly moved up the ranks, not only nailing a couple of patents but also showing unusual leadership and sales skills. Even when it came to a husband, she excelled in her father’s eyes. Ronnie is tall, good-looking, good company, and a great doubles partner. But even better, he is very smart. Who could ask for anything more? Before meeting Mags, Ronnie took a law degree and became a partner in a very prestigious law firm. His clients have included some of the most socially prominent people in the country and – in more than a few instances – the corporations that account for their wealth. And that has been a bit of a problem. In that circle, Mags is supposed to be a “proper wife,” a complement to and an ornament for her husband, an expert at charming small talk, a good mother, and an even better hostess. She is not supposed to have muscles, is definitely not supposed to drink beer with the boys, or to laugh too loudly. Or swear. Or tell amazingly filthy jokes. Or, even worse, to flirt. Mags gets enormous amusement from her flirting. She loves how it drives the women in her husband’s client circle insane. And how it drives their husbands even crazier as they realize that Mag’s flirting is just her way of making fun of them. It used to be far worse but, after Ronnie asked her to cut it out, Mags took on a more “corporate” demeanor and “behaved like a lady.” She even stopped making snide comments about conservative politics. But just lately, things have taken a bit of a different turn. First, her mother died and her father went into a deep depression. Then, Ronnie’s father broke his hip. Next, Mags got a big promotion. It meant that as an EVP she is being groomed to be President and CEO of her company. And finally, Ronnie announced that he hated his job, couldn’t stand his clients, and wanted to start a woodworking company. To which, Marjorie said, “You mean we can finally stop the bullshit with those awful clients of yours and have a real life?” Ronnie’s answer was, “Yes, yes, and yes.” They put a bottle of Champagne in the refrigerator and had a little party, all by themselves. She knows it will not be easy. As a lawyer, Ronnie made a ton of money; woodworking is not quite as lucrative. So, their income will come down a bit. She knows that her new job will mean a lot of time on the road. And she expects that their two boy-crazy, prep-school daughters will a bit upset about some of the changes ahead. But those camping trips with her father – sleeping in a tent in the middle of Maine winters – prepared Mags for anything. Maybe those two little overly-delicate girls needed a bit of that sort of experience themselves.

75. Norris Pedrino, Venture Capitalist

Norris is not a nice man, at least when it comes to business. The general consensus is that he is a six-cylinder rat and liar. He is also widely regarded as very bright and very successful. Norris readily admits to being a rat and a liar as well as being very bright and successful. And he credits all those traits to his absolute ruthlessness when it comes to taking over businesses that may or may not be doing well, stripping them of their value, and junking the rest. He claims that it is business and calls people who ask him to do the “decent thing” to be idiots. He recently led a consortium to take over a major food company and to break it into several pieces which were subsequently sold, eliminating thousands of well-paying jobs held by hard-working, loyal employees. He tossed them all out without warning in a company meeting in a rented theater during which he got red in the face while screaming at a mortified audience, after which he went out and had a celebratory steak dinner with the people on his investment team. He started the meal by holding his drink in the air and bellowing, “Screw them all!” A fitting end to this episode, according to more than a few people, might have been a chunk of steak stuck in Norris’s windpipe, leading to his suffocation. But that didn’t happen. He subsequently sued ex-employees attempting to get severance or making claims of employment contracts. He also tried to deny unemployment insurance payments to anyone who had applied. As has been noted, Norris is not a nice man. So, why is Norris such a nasty individual? Did he have a terrible childhood? No on that one. Norris was brought up by loving and indulgent parents in a wealthy home in a very wealthy town. He went to the best private schools from pre-kindergarten through high school, always got good grades, and graduated near the top of his class with two varsity letters. He attended one of the country’s most prestigious universities where he regularly made dean’s list and was socially popular. After that, he got a graduate degree in business at a top-notch business school. Maybe he has a terrible home life? No again. He is married to an intelligent, caring, and socially adept woman who is generally considered to be a “dynamite babe.” And he is anything but nasty at home, a loving husband and a loving father who can’t do enough for his two daughters. So, what else might account for Norris’s nastiness? Maybe a couple of things. During grade six, He was raped by his school’s squash coach. He never spoke about it to anyone. But that coach could never explain why someone would sneak up behind him and knock him unconscious with a squash racquet. And then there was the business about Norris being falsely accused of making racial slurs. Norris is a lot of things but not a racist. Norris was sure this deliberate smear on his character had to do with his own family name. He couldn’t figure out what to do about the falsehood except deny it. He was not believed and endured the punishment that he was given without complaint. He just toughed it out. But decided, then and there, he wasn’t going to take crap anymore from anyone. So far, he has succeeded in giving out more crap than he has had to take. But deep down, somewhere in the back of his mind, he knows he has made many enemies and they are all intent on vengeance.

74. Arnold “Ardy” Schwartz, Florist

“Ardy” is doing a job he loves. His mother was a gardener, and as a toddler, he would follow her around as she “deadheaded” flowering plants, weeded, and watered. There were bushes to trim and fallen leaves to rake. By the time he was in kindergarten, he had his own little plot of flowering plants, salad greens, and herbs. When he got to junior high school, he was teased for preferring plants to people. A science teacher took an interest in him and that helped a bit. But right through junior high and until he was a senior in high school, Ardy remained an unpopular loner. When he wasn’t in his garden or doing schoolwork, he spent a lot of time in his room drawing detailed pictures of flowers. In his senior year in high school, three things happened that changed everything. The school art teacher saw Ardy’s drawings and encouraged him. Ardy took biology and loved it. And Ardy met Rachel. His ability to draw flowers and his clear interest in plant biology got him a scholarship to his state’s university, a school with a strong program in agriculture. He learned social skills from Rachel who was nuts about him. They went to the senior prom together and, just before he left for college, they made love. Ardy was away from home the entire time he was at college. When classes were not in session, he worked in the college greenhouses, tending plants and managing research projects. He and Rachel wrote to one another for a while and he promised to come back to see her. But somehow that never happened. Eventually, they drifted apart and, after a year or so, lost contact. That is, until he finished college, came home, and got a job as a botanist. He also did floral arrangements part time. He was delivering one of those arrangement when he and Rachel ran into one another. Ardy hadn’t dated at all when he was away at college. It was more a lack of interest than anything else. Plants need a lot of attention. But Rachel was still crazy about him and, after a whirlwind romance, she got him to marry her. It was not such a good idea. About five years in, Rachel concluded Ardy was more involved with flowering plants than with her and divorced him. Ardy was more bemused by the divorce than anything else. He didn’t seem lonely or bothered afterward, just went about his work as usual as if nothing much had happened. Roughly two years later, when he had a chance to buy a florist’s shop, he took it. He’s done well. His flowers are considered special and more than worth the high prices they command. He also has contracts with hotels, wedding venues, and restaurants. And he has a large greenhouse which is a kind of high-end garden center for exotic flowers. His delivery truck is painted to look like a flower basket. Beyond his two assistants, he doesn’t have many acquaintances. Doesn’t date. Never takes a day off. Lives in a small apartment over the store. He seems happiest in his greenhouse, sitting alone, and reading a book on horticulture. Or when he is at his drafting board, drawing flowers. He puts the artwork in his shop. To his surprise, several drawings have sold. The few folks who know him on more than a business basis call him “a man at peace with himself and his plants.” When a customer who knew Ardy from high school mentioned that she had seen Rachel, Ardy didn’t seem to recall who Rachel was.