Shortly after I saw Harry, I met "Doug", a gentleman that runs a small firm catering to hedge funds. I immediately thought of Harry and I put the two of them together. It went well because Doug gave Harry a trial run, and Harry did very well. During his first couple of phone calls about some old accounts, he found a big order and it increased from then on.

Now after only 4 months on the job, Harry is one of Doug’s top producers. Thus, it was no surprise to see Harry beaming when we met for dinner. He’s making money, good money and having a blast. I was elated. Then Harry announced that dinner would be his treat, in fact he said, “Ron Pollack I am going to treat you every time you come to NYC!I was already happy because we were eating at one of the great steakhouses in the City.

,“Every day we’ve been hearing stories of doom and gloom like the end of Wall Street, the end of hedge funds, the end of the world as we know it,toward the end of the evening, I asked Harry this question. While events have proven disorienting, I'd be interested in hearing your opinions, given the success that you have enjoyed.Ron, there are a lot of people hurting right now and I truly feel for them, but I am living proof that if you’re good at what you do, have the willingness to work hard and apply yourself and are realistic in your expectations, you can make it and even flourish in times like these,His answer was refreshing and went something like this, he said. I’m not getting paid what I used to but I have nothing to complain about. People like us are fighters, we’re survivors and there’s business to be done. There will always be business to be done for those who find a way to be productive.Here's to my friend Harry! Keep showing us how it’s done. Ron Pollack, signing off for now.

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We began the Sundance trip feeling as if we were complete strangers on the scene, despite the fact that we have owned a home in Park City since last spring, yet in some way the event became more familiar and even comfortable after some time had passed.

Getting used to the traffic patterns, hopping on a cab for a ride through the mysterious back streets and alleys of Park City, falling into a few private parties, through "someone who knew someone" who was actually invited; these things almost made it feel as if we were old hands at the scene by the end of our trip,being in the same “breathing zone” as the directors and actors on the stage during the Q&As after each film, not to mention sitting in the same theaters during screenings, being treated very warmly by the ever-friendly staff of the Patron’s Circle Office.

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This January, I went to see my first Sundance Film Festival in Park City, a trip without our kids we'd been looking forward to for a while.

Traffic controllers advised us that the town would be a snarling mess, and the traffic flow control impossible. Fortunately, due to the failing markets and the new president taking office, this just wasn't the case.

There is a strong correlation between Hollywood personalities normally attending Sundance and Hollywood personalities who got invited or felt compelled to attend our recent history-making Presidential Inauguration,apparently.

It was helpful that this was a "quiet" year at Sundance, as it assisted me in learning the ropes, such as how to navigate through the process of obtaining tickets. I think over the course of two weeks at Sundance, I learned 80% of what I need to know in order to achieve the following goals for our next Sundance Festival.:

1) See the films we want to see, including the ones that have “The Buzz”.
2) Every time get good seats.
3) To get extra tickets on short notice,be able.
4) Leave time between movies so you have enough time to eat.
5) Use less money and time taking care of these goals than I did this last year.

What you experience at The Sundance, totally depends on what you expected it to be. I do not enjoy waiting in line but sometimes I have to in order to keep my wife happy. My key was to become the member of the "Patron Circle." Gaining priority access to the films without standing in line was the real motivation for making our donation to the Sundance Institute,yes, I love to support the arts. For some people, standing in line is almost as exciting as the movie itself, knowing that they're going to see the film they most wanted to see.

We loved some of the movies, of course!

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In 2002, Ron Pollack and his family became part-time residents of Vail, Colorado. Ron became involved with the Vail Valley Foundation, a non-profit organization whose purpose is to enhance and sustain the quality of life in the Vail Valley of Colorado.

While in Vail, Ron acted as Chairman for two fund raisers for the New York Rescue Workers Detoxification Project. In partnership with the Vail Valley Foundation, he sponsored a performance of the “The Guys,” at the Vilar Center for the Arts in Beaver Creek. This acclaimed play focus on a fire chief struggling to prepare eulogies for all his men who were lost at the WTC. For the second, he worked with the Bravo Vail Valley Music Festival on an event held in conjunction with a performance by the New York Philharmonic at the Gerald R. Ford Amphitheater. Both fundraisers were successful and resulted in a number of additional rescue workers being sponsored to go through the detoxification program.

The Vail-sponsored firefighter stated after completing his detoxification program “I have regained an energy level that I haven’t had for years! My memory is back and I sleep 8 hours every night without waking up every 2 hours. I am pain free and no longer have my “WTC cough”. I am no longer angry and short tempered. For me, the program was a HUGE success! I can’t thank Ron, the Vail Valley Foundation and the staff of the project enough for this incredible gift, MY HEALTH!”

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