The two-hour Season 3 premiere of Downton Abbey was all about the threat of a changing 1920s world outside of the snow globe that is Downton. The unstoppable changes in the way people lived forced people to adapt or become extinct. Do I need a valet to dress me? Do we need an extra maid? Do we need this house??? There is also a clinging to prestige, making me wonder why it is that we still cling to a desire or aspiration to appear like people of privilege. What does it say about us? Why is it so important still?

The two-hour Season 3 premiere of Downton Abbey was all about the threat of a changing 1920s world outside of the snow globe that is Downton. The unstoppable changes in the way people lived forced people to adapt or become extinct. Do I need a valet to dress me? Do we need an extra maid? Do we need this house??? There is also a clinging to prestige, making me wonder why it is that we still cling to a desire or aspiration to appear like people of privilege. What does it say about us? Why is it so important still?

This episode comes with Fall, my favorite season in New York City. With this season on the city comes comfortable sidewalk dining, the ability to wear clothes I like and a new venture as Contributor-at-Large for the Brooklyn Cruiser blog (http://www.brooklyncruiser.com/blog). For my latest piece for Brooklyn Cruiser, I took a bike ride over the George Washington Bridge, one of the most spectacular viewpoints of my favorite city.

Featured Music:

"Street Life" by The Crusaders feat. Randy Crawford - Buy from iTunes

This episode comes with Fall, my favorite season in New York City. With this season on the city comes comfortable sidewalk dining, the ability to wear clothes I like and a new venture as Contributor-at-Large for the Brooklyn Cruiser blog (http://www.brooklyncruiser.com/blog). For my latest piece for Brooklyn Cruiser, I took a bike ride over the George Washington Bridge, one of the most spectacular viewpoints of my favorite city.

Featured Music:

"Street Life" by The Crusaders feat. Randy Crawford - Buy from iTunes

As a frugal consumer and creator of content that advocates living well and looking good without being a millionaire, I got called out by a follower on Instagram when I posted a picture of a new pair of Alden Chukka Boots. With a price tag of nearly $700, Alden Chukka boots aren't cheap, and my follower had a point... to a point.

In this episode, I make the argument for when a splurge is justified. It's all about value and what a particular item means to you. As my friend Glenn Gissler eloquently put it: value is quality over time.

Thanks for listening!

Music excerpt: "Harvest Moon" by Poolside

As a frugal consumer and creator of content that advocates living well and looking good without being a millionaire, I got called out by a follower on Instagram when I posted a picture of a new pair of Alden Chukka Boots. With a price tag of nearly $700, Alden Chukka boots aren't cheap, and my follower had a point... to a point.

In this episode, I make the argument for when a splurge is justified. It's all about value and what a particular item means to you. As my friend Glenn Gissler eloquently put it: value is quality over time.

Thanks for listening!

Music excerpt: "Harvest Moon" by Poolside

We're now living in a culture where jeans have become a premium item, and sneakers have become the norm. The result is a new breed of uber-casual adult man - the non-athlete wearing athletic footwear and over-specialized patterns of denim that - really not that long ago - would have been considered ladies jeans. This is where we are.

"Take Me Out" by Franz Ferdinand - iTunes | Amazon

"No You Girls" by Franz Ferdinand - iTunes | Amazon

We're now living in a culture where jeans have become a premium item, and sneakers have become the norm. The result is a new breed of uber-casual adult man - the non-athlete wearing athletic footwear and over-specialized patterns of denim that - really not that long ago - would have been considered ladies jeans. This is where we are.

"Take Me Out" by Franz Ferdinand - iTunes | Amazon

"No You Girls" by Franz Ferdinand - iTunes | Amazon

In our digital age, there is unprecedented expectation and pressure to be always "on." Armed with smartphones, we're expected to be available for text messages and emails at any time - even calls, if you're part of the dwindling population that still uses the phone… as a phone.

When I got my first iPhone years ago, I went through the expected honeymoon period with it. I loved all of this handheld accessibility. I still do; I'd be lost without it. My iPhone is a vital, convenient and fun tool for my personal and professional life.

But, in my experience, this unbridled connectivity has a hidden price.

In our digital age, there is unprecedented expectation and pressure to be always "on." Armed with smartphones, we're expected to be available for text messages and emails at any time - even calls, if you're part of the dwindling population that still uses the phone… as a phone.

When I got my first iPhone years ago, I went through the expected honeymoon period with it. I loved all of this handheld accessibility. I still do; I'd be lost without it. My iPhone is a vital, convenient and fun tool for my personal and professional life.

But, in my experience, this unbridled connectivity has a hidden price.