From Flushing to Westbury: When Home Makes the Wrong List
Every once in a while, something pops up on social media that makes you stop scrolling.
I recently watched this Facebook Reel:
https://www.facebook.com/reel/861451983514866
As I watched it, one thing immediately caught my attention—and not in a good way.
The first city mentioned in the reel was Westbury, New York.
That one hit a little differently.
I was born in Flushing, Queens, but I grew up in Westbury. That wasn't just a place on a map—it was home.
I attended the Westbury Public Schools.
I worked on Post Avenue.
I delivered newspapers through the neighborhoods.
I spent countless hours walking those streets, making friends, growing up, and creating memories that still stick with me today.
No town is perfect. Every community has challenges, and every place changes over time. But when the very first thing people hear about a town is something negative, it's disappointing for those of us who remember so many good moments there.
When I think of Westbury, I don't immediately think about headlines.
I think about riding my bike.
I think about neighbors.
I think about school.
I think about my first jobs.
I think about learning responsibility by delivering newspapers, long before GPS and smartphones existed.
Those experiences helped shape who I am today.
Maybe that's why this reel struck a nerve. It's a reminder that a city is much more than whatever story happens to be trending online at the moment.
To everyone who grew up in Westbury, I'd love to hear what you remember most. What was your favorite place? What do you miss? What memories still make you smile?
Take a look at the reel and let me know your thoughts:
The Odyssey: Is the Hype Actually Deserved?
Christopher Nolan took on one of the greatest stories ever told. A legendary cast, breathtaking visuals, incredible sound, and an epic three-hour journey later... did The Odyssey live up to the buzz?
I also made the two-hour drive to experience it on the world's tallest IMAX screen, and let's say the theater deserves a review of its own.
Did Nolan deliver another masterpiece? Was the IMAX experience worth the road trip? And did I really have to plan a bathroom break around a 32-ounce Coke Zero strategically?
You'll have to watch to find out.
🎬 Head over to NielFlamm.com/videos/moviereviews to watch my full review of The Odyssey, along with reviews of other movies, theaters, and plenty of the internet garbage you've come to expect.
If you watch the review, I'd love to hear your thoughts. Leave a comment and let me know whether you agree... or think I've completely lost it.
The Mel Robbins, at Maximum Volume
I love old people.
Let me take that back. I love old people who don’t give an F’ about anyone around them.
All right—maybe I don’t.
What prompted this post? I’m sitting in the waiting room at Carolina Eyecare Physicians, eating my Costco pretzel bagel—see my other blog post—when a lady older than me walks in with her phone at maximum volume. I mean, as loud as that thing can possibly go.
She’s walking through the office watching—or listening to—a Mel Robbins podcast.
I love the Mel Robbins. Yes, the Mel Robbins.
The episode wasn’t about relationship problems, as I first thought. It was about a decline in mental capacity—which I, along with everyone else in the waiting room, could hear clearly.
Did I mention she was sitting 20 feet away from me?
I don’t know what’s going on in her life, but thanks to maximum volume, the entire waiting room was now part of the podcast.
Eye Appointments and Costco Pretzel Bagels
I’m at Carolina Eyecare today—not for me, but for my dad. I drove him, and I didn’t just bring the Neo along with me. I also slipped a Costco pretzel bagel into my backpack.
Now, before all the New Yorkers judge me—and I get it, because I would too—these pretzel bagels are fantastic and such a good value! I think a bag of six was only $4.99.
They taste surprisingly close to the ones from New York street carts. They aren’t salted on the surface, but there’s just the right amount of salt baked into the dough. They’ve been flying off the shelves at my local Costco in MTP, and I can understand why.
Would I prefer the outside to be a little crispier? Absolutely. But I can’t have it all.
The Lotto Dudes Hit the Jackpot... Of Absolutely Nothing 😂🎰
Well...
Nobody won the $663 million Powerball jackpot.
Which means the jackpot has now climbed to $707 million for the next drawing.
That's the good news.
The bad news?
Neither did the Lotto Dudes.
Our fraternity pool bought 50 Powerball tickets with a $100 buy-in.
The result?
🥁🥁🥁
$0.00
Not a dollar.
Not a free ticket.
Not enough to buy a stale stick of gum.
Nothing.
Our return on investment was surprisingly easy to calculate.
-$100.
Or...
-100% ROI.
I believe that's what financial experts call "less than ideal."
The amazing part?
I'm already organizing the next pool.
I've sent the message to the guys:
$10 buy-in.
Same process.
Same optimism.
Same statistically questionable decision-making.
Why?
Because someone has to win.
We just proved it with the Mega Millions jackpot. Somebody walked away with hundreds of millions of dollars.
No rule says it can't be a bunch of fraternity guys arguing over who forgot to Zelle their ten bucks.
I've also decided to hedge my bets.
In addition to the fraternity pool, I'm buying my own ticket.
That's right.
I'm diversifying my lottery portfolio.
Some people hedge with stocks.
Some hedge with bonds.
I hedge with... more lottery tickets.
Financial advisors everywhere are reading this and quietly removing my phone number from their contacts.
Will this strategy work?
Probably not.
Will it make checking the numbers more exciting?
Absolutely.
If nothing else, I'll have plenty of material for the next blog post explaining how I expertly turned another hundred dollars into a life lesson.
Until then...
Good luck to everyone playing.
Maybe the $707 million Powerball jackpot will finally belong to one of the Lotto Dudes.
A guy can dream.
Join the adventure on NielFlamm.com/blog.