There are two possible reactions to this story of a SoHo-dwelling family: sympathy or Schadenfreude.

The parents -- freelance writer mom, artist dad -- went through the time drain and expense of applications and testing, etc., to get their gifted little daughter into the best school possible in Manhattan. When she landed a coveted spot at the Little Red School House, a private school, they handed over the $2,500 deposit and another $7,500 tuition starter payment, high-fived and began dreaming of Harvard.

But wait! Four months later, they learned their little smarty pants had also been accepted to three gifted and talented public (read: free!) schools in the city. No dummies themselves, they decided to bag the savings. The knew they'd lose their Little Red deposit, and sort of suspected they wouldn't get back that initial tuition payment. What they (and obviously others -- it's a story in the New York Times!) were stunned to find out ... the family was also on the hook for $20,000 in tuition!

Damn! A contract's a contract though, right? They paid it (but not without tears). And really, that 20K is just a fraction of what they'll wind up paying the Ivy League. Hope the public school thing works out.

So which was it? Sympathy or Schadenfreude? I'll confess to a little of both.

Photo: NYTimes.com