The last time Saturn and Jupiter, the largest planets in our solar system, orbited as closely as they will on Dec. 21 and were visible in the sky, the year was 1226. Almost 800 years later, on Monday, these titanic orbs will once again appear in the heavens just one-tenth of a degree apart —…
On Wednesday, two health workers in Alaska experienced reactions as well. One was too mild to be deemed anaphylaxis. But the other, which occurred in a middle-aged woman with no history of allergies, was serious enough to warrant hospitalization, even after she got a shot of epinephrine. “What is happening does seem really unusual to…
There’s a lot I’ll miss about my usual holiday shindigs this December. There’ll be no sipping eggnog in red lipstick and spangles, no parking myself in front of platters of Camembert and Stilton, not even any sleeves of Ritz crackers with that unidentifiable orange cheese spread I look forward to year after year. But while…
One of the most memorable dishes on our table was chicken cafreal, or galinha cafreal. Believed to be rooted in Mozambique, chicken cafreal was brought by the Portuguese to Goa, where it underwent a transformation and eventually became the dish we know now. The chicken is first marinated for a short time in a cilantro…
Executives at the Brazilian steakhouse chain Fogo de Chão thought they had seen the worst of it. Earlier in the year, when seemingly each hour brought news of another city or state abruptly shutting down because of the pandemic, executives switched from email to the messaging system WhatsApp to communicate in real time with the…
They are fraught conversations, some ending with a forlorn “that’s OK” or a vague promise to gather in the new year. Others conclude in frustration, or even in tears. Weeks after Thanksgiving celebrations were upended by the coronavirus pandemic, the winter holidays have ushered in another round of emotionally charged exchanges among families who want…
Carrie Sun and Christopher Cerrone met on April 20, 2018 in Manhattan after a classical music concert held at St. Peter’s Church. She had just quit her job at a hedge fund and was planning to leave New York. Her movers were coming in 21 days. Even so, they had drinks after the concert and…
The Zoom party can certainly disappoint, especially when we’re all frayed after months of isolation. For Thanksgiving, Erica Dumas, a publicist in Wood-Ridge, N.J., tried to replicate a large holiday gathering with her extended family. Seven households participated. Ms. Dumas, her mother and her sister came up with the dishes, sharing the menu with the…
When Hal Aronson walked Dr. Laura Stachel back to the hospital after their first meeting in March 1999, neither wanted to say goodbye. They weren’t at all each other’s type, yet their chemistry was instant. They hugged. The two had connected on Match.com, then met for coffee at 8 a.m. during the hour break between…
Normally, the crowds get heavy in the days before Christmas, where the wait can be an hour and a half long, with cars backed up for miles, a phenomenon that baffles Mr. Gay, an engineer. “Why would anybody do that? I’d turn around in a heartbeat,” said Mr. Gay, who uses his home’s popularity to…