Friday, February 27, 2009

TIMES SQUARE

There are some hilarious things about this city. Times Square tends to be a place for tourists and usually I don't spend much time where Broadway meets advertising and electricity in a sea of wonderful people from all over the world. But today I was with two friends visiting from Seattle and I was reminded again why people come to visit this particular part of the city. It is full of bizarre and wonderful sights and sounds. Waiting in line for tickets gives you a chance to study the visitors, camera-clad and full of wonder (and fatigue?), and I was delighted with what I saw. Hands in mittens holding hands in mittens as young lovers leaned in close. Aspiring actors passing out flyers and dancers stretching unknowingly on street corners while waiting for the light to change.

Times Square gets its name from the "New York Times" building that was erected just after the turn of the 20th century. I believe this is also the origin of the famous New Year's Eve celebration-- the newspaper threw a huge New Year's party and the tradition has continued every year for over a century now! Pretty impressive.




We ate lunch in Grand Central Station, which is a marvelous place, but also full of sadness. We sat next to a homeless man who slowly sipped an orange soda and struggled to pull up the sleeve his coat while some nasty tourists nearby chuckled uncomfortably.



He seemed especially lonely at that moment as dozens of people looked on as he struggled with his coat. If I was a better person would I have stood to help him? Or would I have shamed him? Insert a long sigh here.

Monday, February 23, 2009

CAUTION?

Anyone else have the February blues? I am so tired of Winter. I bundled up and hurried out of work today to try to get a few minutes of fresh air, but of course the wind was blowing and three layers of clothing didn't cut it. I made it three blocks and then had to turn around and come home.

I am dying for Spring. Trying to be as chipper as possible, but just not feeling it at the moment.

Here is a lesson I want to learn in the coming weeks: I need to loosen my grip on life a bit. As my yoga instructor suggests, I really need to lead with my heart and less with my head. This seems like a very good idea. But it is tough to teach an old dog new tricks. Especially when the arctic freeze is chilling my bones! :-)

Here's wishing you a day full of adventure and glimpses of Spring!

Tuesday, February 17, 2009

A long weekend

Did you know you can buy a time machine online?! I accidentally came across a website advertising one when I typed a web address incorrectly. The internet is weird. But it also is quite the gem. You can share your world with people ALL over the world and that is what I will do in this blog posting. This is a summary of my long, wonderful weekend thru pictures:



















Visitors are the perfect excuse to explore and play!

































And there are very few cities as cool as New York for exploring.



















It was cold and windy, but we had lots of blue sky. I felt like NYC was on its best behavior for Udo, my friend visiting from Germany. Between the cupcakes, Valentine's chocolates, cappuccinos, and my favorite tea shop, there were plenty of sweets to keep us going.

We went to Grimaldi's pizza under the Brooklyn Bridge, went to Speed the Plow (broadway show about Hollywood-- go figure), and ate lots of good food.

I love this city.