Author: ruhlwrite

Dino Orfanos starts out sitting in the big leather swivel chair behind the desk. He’s not there even three seconds when he asks whether it would be OK if he moves to the other side of the desk, the one where his students sign up for classes. Dino is the owner of the NY Martial Arts Academy. He may be the owner of the NY Martial Arts Academy, which has three locations and is constructing a fourth, but it just seems too formal, too official if he puts himself in the big-boss seat. “I’m…

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With one well-practiced pull, Fanny Cedeno rolls up the fortress-like metal gate at Astoria Express Transit. When her husband, Luis Gualotuna, walks in a minute later, she rushes up behind him and smoothes the rumpled collar of his grey sweater. Luis and Fanny own Astoria Express Transit. It is a familiar routine. Luis and Fanny have been married 35 years, and they have been working together for 25. They can’t see enough of each other. They met in their 20s in their native Ecuador when Luis…

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It’s what’s not in Judy Bushman‘s third-floor walkup that commands attention. Her tiny, tidy studio has a kitchen, bathroom and living room/dining room/bedroom combo, but it doesn’t have a dog. And that’s a shame because Judy loves the furry, four-footed creatures more than she loves some people. Make that most people. Judy started Woofs ‘n Purrs when she lost her job. “Dogs give you unconditional love,” she says. “They lick you for no reason…

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It is the light of the sun that brings Barbara Barrow to life. Intently, she watches the flakes fall from the sky. There are no rays today. It looks as though a baker is shaking powdered sugar over an ice-skating rink. Barbara started out seeking the stage. In this winter of winters, this warm-weather woman gathers her construction-site-scarred parka around her and sighs. “If there’s a patch of sun, my face will be in it,” she says wistfully. Barbara’s interest in light…

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Michelle Koutsoubelis tap dances in the shower. She can’t help it; the running water sets her feet on fire. Miss Michelle, the owner of Cathy’s Dance Studio. Right now, she’s sitting in a swivel chair — don’t worry, she won’t be in it for long — and her 4-inch stilettos run through a routine, flying across the floor before she can stop them. She’ s wearing her everyday shoes, so the tap, tap, tap sounds like the petite prancing of a miniature horse. “I…

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