December 8 – Classy British luxury goods emporium Asprey held a party to mark the opening of its 20,000 square foot, Norman Foster-designed Fifth Avenue flagship. Famous and rich folks sipping champagne and eyeing the merchandise included Uma Thurman, Natasha Richardson, Sigourney Weaver, Diane von Furstenberg, Vera Wang, Michael Kors, Tommy Hilfiger, Anna Wintour and socialites galore. Sarah Ferguson, the Duchess of York, wore a gigantic Asprey diamond necklace. 18-year-old British actress Keira Knightley (Bend it Like Beckham, Pirates of the Caribbean, Love Actually) is the new spokesperson for Asprey, and is Entertainment Weekly’s #1-ranked breakout movie star for 2003.

We went from posh to politics, hitting the last of the day's several fundraisers for Democratic presidential hopeful Howard Dean. Performers tweaking hot buttons were Rob Reiner, Sandra Bernhardt, John Leguizamo (“My mother told me she wanted to have an abortion, but she was too late. I was in college already.”), lesbian comic Judy Gold (“My partner Sharon and I have been together for 18 years. If she was critically ill in the hospital, I probably wouldn’t even visit her.”), plus rock bands and Broadway stars. Howard Dean came late, and had to be up early the next morning, when he received Al Gore’s endorsement.