When Annette Blum recognized Michael Pearson on Bumble in 2016, she reacted in a way that only a tech company employee would: He must be there to test the user experience, she thought, as he was in a relationship. But when she learned otherwise, she wrote on the app, “My freshman year self is really…
On Halloween night, under a blue moon, Vivienne Vermuth and Jason Perkins, both dressed in black, were married after a dating life that Mr. Perkins describes as more layered than an onion. “There were the romantic days; the sexy days; the laugh till you snort days; and some days that felt like the third act…
This is the time of year when seniors face a barrage of messages about their Medicare coverage — everything from insurance companies’ direct mail blitzes and television ads to the federal government’s emails and mailings. All of it focuses on the fall open enrollment season, the annual opportunity to change coverage. From Oct. 15 until…
Send questions about the office, money, careers and work-life balance to workfriend@nytimes.com. Include your name and location, or a request to remain anonymous. Letters may be edited. This Woman’s Work I found a job I love after 15 years. I’ve been lucky enough to be on a relatively diverse, gender-balanced team. Despite this balance, the…
Drs. Sarah Y. Siu and David X. Yang were on what they call their “negative-fifth date” when they first broached the subject of marriage. It was 2018, and the two had been friends for nearly a decade. They were having dinner and began reminiscing about an awkward moment that they had shared early in their…
As Alzheimer’s disease lowers its veil over my father, one of the few ways to penetrate through his fog is music. Luckily, he prepared for that decades ago by encouraging my love of singing. As a child, I was classically trained as an opera singer. My career took me in the direction of words rather…
When my 15-year-old son was given a diagnosis of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder at age 7, I was told that it was a lifelong chronic condition. So I felt a little bit hopeful when a study published last winter in the Journal of Developmental and Behavioral Pediatrics said that “an estimated 30 percent to 60…
Name: Mallory Merk Age: 20 Hometown: Born in Shreveport, La., she grew up in Harlem (where her mother lived) and Trenton, N.J. (where her father lived). Now lives: A two-bedroom apartment in Venice Beach, Calif., with her best friend. Claim to fame: Ms. Merk is a fashion model and singer-songwriter whose guitar-soaked melodies and candid…
AUCKLAND, New Zealand — Leo Mulipola found a lifeline in a load of fish heads. Mr. Mulipola, 49, has struggled to find even an entry-level job at a gas station during the coronavirus pandemic and is now unemployed. So, with a household of six to feed, he jumped at the chance to pick up donated…
Across much of Europe, even as coronavirus cases rise anew, governments are keeping classrooms open while forcing restaurants and bars to shut their doors. But in some American cities, officials have opted to keep students home even as dining rooms bustle with customers. Facing a second wave of the virus, New York City stands on…