I always have room to improve, don’t we all? I spent the last decade working on that and wondering about what makes me tick. It is not easy work. I can now embrace myself in ways that I did not expect.

As an entrepreneur, I am always thinking about how to zig and zag as we grow, change, and try to succeed. I can fix it. I can take that risk. I can, I can, I can. Over the years, I have worked with many entrepreneurs from the investment side, and I see too many who can’t let go. I get it.

At my age, perhaps wisdom, reality, and having proved myself to myself make it easier to let go in different ways.

Fred and I are at that point in our lives where our kids are getting married and having children of their own. Major milestones for sure. We are all moving on to the next chapter together, although in different ways. We are now the oldest in the room, and watching our kids navigate their lives. It is an insane joy.

I have been thinking a lot about how life-changing the next few years will be, and what that looks like. I want to be present in business and our kids’ lives, and that balance is hard, but at the end of the day, I have always been about family first. We might be the parents, but our role as grandparents will be guided by our kids.

Summer is around the corner, and I am sure I will be spending a lot of time thinking about all of this.

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What happened to the meatpacking area? 

In the day, the meatpacking area was what it was called: a meatpacking area. Just as there was a fish market on Fulton Street that now exists in the Bronx, the meatpackers ruled the streets in the enclave known as the meatpacking district.  Where did the meat packers go?

There was a cool grit years ago that could feel scary depending on the block in the meatpacking area.  Sure, people got mugged, but rarely does anyone get killed. Just give up the goods, and you will be fine.  Scared but ok. Back in the day, the stores were cool, cutting-edge, and community-oriented.

The man who owned all this real estate and had a vision was William Gottlieb. He drove around in a beat-up Woody wagon with a broken glass taped up for the side window. He bought over 150 buildings and never sold. Some would say it was his commitment to preservation, although I am not so sure. His first move to upgrade the meatpacking area was Pastis. But then he died.  

Now in the meatpacking area is a Sephora, Restoration Hardware, and mediocre restaurants, except, of course, Pastis.  It’s the only gem among the boring big-box luxury stores. All of these stores cater to whom? Certainly not the people who live in the neighborhood, but perhaps the tourists or destination visitors. Unfortunately, real estate has become too expensive, and only large global luxury stores can afford the costs. It’s depressing.

When stock declines for these global brands, they generally close underperforming stores. We have seen that countless times in NYC. How long will this last? When is this wave of indulgence over?

Here’s what I noticed the other night. Lots of empty stores. Could this be a sign? Aren’t we all on edge waiting for the shoe to drop? Will the government allow the real estate people to leave places empty (bad for neighborhoods) or force them to figure out (with their banks) how to lower the rent to market?

It is time for the city government to rein in the real estate community’s power in this town. The cost of everything is insane, from rent to restaurants. Is it just me, looking around on the edge of my seat, wondering when this Great Gatsby era is going to implode? Or is everyone else wondering the same thing?

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What is the cannabis industry going to look like in five years? Let’s hope that the federal government has the wherewithal to federally legalize the plant. When that happens, then what?

Based on everything I am reading, it is not only our country that has been slowly leaning into this new industry. Brazil is leaning in, and I can’t imagine what chaos that will bring. The Brazilian government’s laws are a world unto themselves. Watch the Edge of Democracy; it sums it all up.

Then, of course, we have other areas of South America changing to legalization. Canada embraced the plant long before any other country; Europe is on the verge, and Asia will take some time. Will the US be able to buy products from other countries and distribute them in our dispensaries, as we do with wine and liquor?

Federal legalization will most certainly toss every state that has already legalized the sale of the plant into a tailspin. Doesn’t the federal government overrule state laws? What kind of nonsense are the conservative and misguided liberals going to stick in the bill? Each elected official will want to save their state and, of course, save their donors’ money, funneling it into their pockets to stay in office. Will it just be a cave to lobbyists?

There is plenty wrong with the cannabis industry, but we do not have the cash that other industries have, so our involvement and discussions with the elected officials are mostly coming from the MSO (multi-state operators). They are far from profitable, but they are fighting for change to get there. The rest of us are sitting on the sidelines.

Is everyone in the business now just too early to the game? Not one state has gotten it right, and I do hope federal legalization is coming, but that opens up a whole other can of worms and guardrails.

What comes next?

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The Public Housing Community Fund (PHCF) is proud to announce a $3.3 million grant from the Leona M. and Harry B. Helmsley Charitable Trust to expand the Green Space Connections program across four additional New York City Housing Authority (NYCHA) campuses. This new investment builds on the success of the program’s first phase and reinforces a shared commitment to transforming underutilized spaces into vibrant, resident-driven community assets. Through NYCHA’s award-winning Connected Communities program, residents are co-designers, helping shape the future of their own neighborhoods while advancing health, safety, and climate resilience.This next phase builds on our growing portfolio of resident-centered open space transformations across NYCHA. From the revitalization of Harborview Terrace’s open spaces (under construction, pictured below), including new fitness zones, playgrounds, and gathering areas, to the creation of innovative projects like a sensory garden and playground at Morrisania Air Rights Houses in The Bronx and a new splash pad at Pomonok Houses in Queens, these efforts demonstrate what is possible when design is rooted in lived experience. At Morris Houses, the “Common Corner” (pictured above) transformed an overlooked area into a welcoming hub for connection and activity.Green Space Connections itself has already delivered meaningful results. At Patterson Houses, residents now enjoy upgraded playgrounds, adult accessible fitness equipment, and enhanced basketball courts, while Castle Hill Houses introduced NYCHA’s first resident-selected dog park alongside BBQ and seating areas. At Marlboro and Roosevelt Houses, construction is advancing toward new landscaped plazas, expanded lawn access, and improved play spaces. At the same time, PHCF continues to invest beyond green spaces, supporting community centers, Innovation Labs, and public art through the From Roots to Arts program, including installations at Bushwick Houses, Astoria Houses, and King Towers, as well as the restoration of the historic Exodus and Dance frieze and NYCHA’s first heritage walk featuring Migration (pictured to the left).Together, these investments represent a comprehensive approach to community development and one that connects open space, arts, technology, and programming to improve quality of life, safety, and health. By centering residents at every step of the process, PHCF, NYCHA, and its partners are helping build healthier, safer, and more resilient communities across public housing campuses, ensuring they are not only places to live but also places to thrive.

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I have been privileged and old enough to have watched industry cycles. Think of all of the ISPs back in the day, Mindspring, MSN, AOL, Yahoo, Earthlink, Excite, and of course, Google. It took time, but eventually, there is no doubt that Google is the clear winner.

Putting my investor hat on, it is rare to see a new business created when no one else in the world is doing it. I have been thinking about this since I saw Mark Pincus’s rant about how nothing is new. I have known Mark since he was 22 years old, and he is the same now as he was then, just wiser.

Each genre of new businesses built over the past thirty years has followed different business arcs. I like to think about climbing a mountain. It takes time to get to the first mesa, where everyone unpacks, takes a look around, and tries to figure out how to take everything that has been learned, repack (reshuffle), and hike up to the next mesa. On the next mesa, there might not be as many competitors; you might run out of money, and one company could be leading the charge. It doesn’t matter the industry, this is the nature of growth.

When I look at the landscape of the cannabis business in NYS, it is time to tighten up the industry. Not that the OCM is listening to me, but unless they force parts of NY that have chosen not to allow dispensaries there, most of Long Island, they should not give out any new licenses.

The numbers show that few will break even, not pay themselves salaries, while others are selling cannabis from a one-man shop, and some are profitable. Given the amount of money invested in these businesses and the oversight required, it will take years for certain shops to become profitable or pay back the capital they invested.

There needs to be a check in the market. Let’s push the industry to clarify its direction so we can become more powerful rather than spread out. Everyone in the industry is waiting for the bottom to fall out as stores begin to sell or close. We need to get to another mesa.

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I have been making the rounds through the world of politics, and it is not pretty. It comes down to money and lobbyists to get anything done. Each part of the system differs based on laws, rules, and regulations, but not on common sense. Common sense would be the antithesis of how the foundation of the cannabis industry was built.

Every week, it’s a different issue to deal with. Today, the OCM launches new rules and regulations for Cannabis Showcase Event Applications. This should be exciting, but like everything in this industry, it’s another level of frustration, forcing all of us to figure out how to make it worthy. These are the four top items to think about before even applying.

• Municipal approval is required before the Office can review an application.
• Events must take place at eligible locations, such as pop-ups or public markets.
• Applications must be submitted at least 45 days prior to the event start date.
• Approved events are temporary and location-specific.

Nobody is going to make real money at pop-ups or public markets (aka farmers’ markets). Taking 45 days to review an application is ridiculous. Has anyone in government ever thought about building an agent to get this done in 24 hours?

There is still no direction for indoor consumption, and what does that mean? Smoke, gummies, or drinks, or all three? In 2021, these are some of the laws that were created.

Prohibition: A cannabis retail licensee cannot sell alcoholic beverages, nor have a permit to sell alcohol, at the same location where cannabis products are sold.
Consumption Lounges: As of 2026, on-site consumption lounges are open, but they are not permitted to sell or allow the consumption of alcohol on the same premises.
Proposed Changes (2026): Legislation (S9220) was introduced in February 2026 that would allow existing licensed liquor and wine stores to obtain a permit to sell low-potency cannabis beverages (5mg THC or less).

Summer concerts throughout New York State are a perfect place to sell cannabis. Everyone is getting stoned as it is. But no, the heavy-handed alcohol industry made sure that would not happen, and considering there is no money in the cannabis industry and everyone is just holding on by the seat of their pants, the cost to change this is untenable. How do we get around that?

Why should licensed liquor stores be able to sell regulated THC drinks that can only be sold in dispensaries? Are they talking about hemp-based drinks that have been made illegal in the federal courts? Unclear, but I fear politicians will allow the alcohol industry to get what they want because they are well-funded with lobbyists.

The one thing the politicians might get behind is breaking up all the illegal distribution channels, particularly the underground ones that handle delivery. Why? It looks good for politicians to be forceful on this stuff in an election year.

The biggest caveat of all of this is that when cannabis becomes federally legal, all the NYS regulations go out the window, with a new set of guardrails, and lobbyists rule in Washington.

Has anyone considered that this industry is the next tax base as AI takes away jobs and taxes? Are there any politicians thinking ahead? Oops, that would take common sense.

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Age creeps up on all of us. These days, some of our friends are moving into the stage where their kids are getting married and having babies (like us). It is so joyous and exciting to watch the next generation move into the next phase of their lives.

I am listening to what many are doing, from mahjong to crocheting, gardening, golfing, and learning bridge. Could I do that? Could I get into the groove and take my life down several notches? I don’t have to run at the pace I run, although I do enjoy it. Yet I look in the mirror and think, gasp, you are getting older, and then, of course, the aches and pains. Will I start to feel like I am slowing down at one point? So many questions, and only time will give me answers because everyone is different.

As always, there is a balance. I am three years in on Gotham’s first store, 3 E 3rd (our Bowery store), which opened on May 11th, 2023. Every day, it seems like there is another challenge to get to where we need to be. I’m seeing progress as technology becomes more integrated into the biz, and the reality of what the state will look like in a few years is clearer. There seems to finally be a brighter light at the end of the tunnel.

Unfortunately, the future of the cannabis industry in NYS will end up being multiple stores in the state that can wait it out without putting a dime in their pocket or multi-state operators. The social mission NYS planned for won’t be realized. It could have, but it’s unlikely. The government should have hired companies like McKinsey, which provide a long-term view to help them think about how to get there when they set forth the rules and regulations. Instead, it has been an absolutely shit show for everyone involved.

Chairing the Public Housing Community Board is essentially another start-up as we figure out how best to serve NYCHA residents. How long will I do this? I sit on other boards, and how long will I do that?

I am thinking a lot about the retirement memo I seem to have missed. Some say don’t stop, but what does that mean? Trust me, I can hardly wait to be a Grandma, and perhaps take a quilting class. Next year, I might spend some more time reading the memo.

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This past week, I woke up to cannabis being rescheduled. Could it be? Did the powers that be finally do the right thing and release all of us from the burden of 280E? Did they start to move the needle towards federal legalization of the plant? Unfortunately, not so much.

Just like anything in this administration, follow the money. I give huge kudos to the large, mostly unprofitable, publicly traded multi-state cannabis operators (MSOs) who were there from the start with medical licenses. Together, they have spent billions trying to prop up an industry that will eventually work with ease. They lobbied and visited the White House often, but Todd Blanche, the acting (a perfect adjective for him) attorney general, signed the bill only for medical operators.

Many of these MSOs have medical licenses, but at this point, the majority of their business is consumer products, so I am unclear on how they separate themselves to avoid 280E when it doesn’t affect their entire operation. I wonder if the government even understands that. The industry is so layered and complicated. The new policy applies to only two types of marijuana products: FDA-approved and those that are regulated under a state medical marijuana license. It is confusing to the public and most of us in the industry.

Now, all the people left in the dust, such as the dispensaries, brands, and farms, which are the majority of the industry with the least amount of capital, have to wait until the DEA holds a hearing for rescheduling marijuana on June 29, for the rest of us hoping for the same outcome. All signs point to this happening, but they could also kick the can down the road. You do gotta love the anti-legalization group Smart Approaches to Marijuana, or SAM, condemning these actions. Who are these people?

I was asked for a quote about the disappointing (although a step in the right direction) outcome. Here is how I wrapped it up. Medical cannabis suppliers stand to benefit immediately from this decision, while recreational cannabis is left out of today’s rescheduling. This is yet another slap in the face to an industry projected to generate more than $38 billion in 2026. It reflects a continued federal disconnect—one that still leans on the false narratives established during the War on Drugs and the Richard Nixon administration to criminalize and disproportionately incarcerate Black and brown communities. Research and data have long made it clear: it is past time for cannabis to be rescheduled across the board and federally legalized, especially as nearly every state moves toward some form of legal cannabis access by the end of 2026.”

June can’t come soon enough.

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I watched this crazy documentary called Trust Me: I’m The Prophet. A mesmerizing and mind-blowing series. It is about Samuel Bateman, who arrives in Short Creek, Utah, with a group of young women, where a community of Fundamentalist Latter-day Saints lives. Their community’s past leader, Warren Jeffs, is in jail, and Bateman convinces everyone that Jeffs is talking through him and that he is the new prophet. Over time, every woman in the entire community becomes his wife, of all ages. The doc was shot over three years because cult expert Christine Marie and her videographer husband, Tolga Katas, embedded themselves in the community as a support system and began taping. The entire community is completely cut off from society, except, of course, the lord.

America’s high concentration of religious movements makes us the top in the world in cult creation. My first thought after finishing the 4-part series was “only in America”. Ends up I was right. Cults are real.

In cults, people stop making rational decisions on their own. Look at what is happening in America right now, particularly after last night’s shooting at the Correspondent Dinner. I wonder if any of those anti-gun law people in the room thought about all the children who have been killed in our country, and how scary that must have felt, because now they know. Whether it was staged or not, seeing women and men rush out of the room, or seeing Erika Kirk crying, before Trump called on the gun shooting as a reason to fund the ballroom for their safety. Seriously?

We have allowed too many (one is too many) children to be left with trauma from a school shooting. Parents who have lost their children. Schools have to go through security details every day, yet we should build a ballroom to protect those in the White House above all with our tax dollars. I have to believe that these people have a cult mentality, or maybe I need to, because it is just mind-boggling to me that these people in power are so awful. Their role is to protect us, not them.

At the end of the film, of course, some begin to see the light of day. A full break was game-changing for some of these women. We are starting to see some of the cult members of the MAGA party start to crack and find their own voices. Perhaps it is only because they see the ship starting to sink. Or they finally woke up to the fact that the emperor has no clothes, and couldn’t care less about any of them. Certainly unclear, but after watching that docu-series, I get the cult.

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