Welcome Back

Back in NYC.

Subway snapshot:

1. Woman with a curler on the crown of her head; cell phone on a lanyard around her neck. Obviously bringing sexy back.

2. Almost got smacked in the face by a teenager chasing after her friends at Penn Station

3. Young woman wearing a Liverpool football scarf. She looked very hip. Was she just British or is this a new trend? Inquiring minds want to know.

I heart NY:-o

Merry Christmas

from Leland and family:-)

Happy Birthday Ipod

While taking the train home last night, I realized that Christmas also marks the birthday of my Ipod.

Tomorrow Ipod will be 7 years old. And the battery is still going strong!

Holiday Greeting or...

... a subway groping? EEwwwwwww!

I hop on the 6 train at 51st street. The train was crowded but people stand packed together on the subway on a daily basis. Unfortunately, this time I had to stand next to Pervy McPervertson. He touched my bum!!!!! The first time I thought it was an accident, "did what I think happen really just happen?" When it happened a second time his hand got a good swat! That's right sir, keep your hands where I can see them! I also thought his stance was a bit too familiar as well.

Luckily I was only going one stop so I could enjoy a bit of Christmas cheer at the Bryant Park Christmas Market.

Guess that's another New York experience to add to the list.

Mistletoe

Seen at Astor Place, with arrows saying mistletoe in case anyone was confused...you could get a chai at the MUD truck and then a kiss! Hmmm...;-)

Oh Christmas Tree

The Clark Street tree is only slightly smaller than the one
on Rockefeller Plaza:-)





As I type I am waiting for the snow to start falling. It's 6am and I am up. Why? Because I expect a longer commute? No! Because I still get so jazzed about snow storms that I woke up early:-)

Happy Friday!

Black Watch

"You have to see it," "It's amazing," all of my colleagues kept telling me.

Yeah, yeah, yeah, but in my mind I wasn't sure if I wanted to see a play about Iraq.

Boy was I wrong! Black Watch isn't just a play about Iraq. It's a fantastic performance with singing, dancing, marching, humor, sadness and beautiful music, about the passion of the Scottish Black Watch regiment. Yes, the Black Watch served in Iraq, but the play is about so much more.

Performed at St. Ann's Warehouse in DUMBO, the audience is sat in seats on the long sides of a rectangular theatre. The actors use the space in between in its entirety. Men marching from end to end, blasts going off on the right side, singing on the left side, it's amazing.

The simplistic synopsis is that the Black Watch regiment served in Iraq starting in 2003. The regiment was deployed further north than the British controlled area in the south to help in the American controlled area. Three men died in a suicide bombing. The play flashes between the time in Iraq and a pub in Scotland where a researcher was seeking to interview the soldiers to learn more about their experience. The performance moves seamlessly between the two time periods.

Yes, the language is strong (there was one word that was used more time in 85 minutes than I've ever heard used collectively in my whole life.) But you get over the language quickly and enjoy the magnificent performance.

The National Theatre of Scotland's run of the play will end on Sunday. For anyone in the area, it's a must see!

Tunneling through Brooklyn

I went for a run this afternoon (Katie's trying to convince me to run in a New Years Eve night race through Central Park so I need to get my rear in gear) and came across quite a strange sight. As I approached Atlantic Ave on Court Street I noticed an open manhole in the middle of the street, 10 or so people in the process of climbing into the hole and at least 20 people lined up on the sidewalk waiting to do the same thing.

What on earth??

This is the city where performance art includes masses of people taking off their pants and riding around on the subway. So strange is relative but it still caught me off guard.

A quick google search reveals what it was. Every month the Brooklyn Historic Railroad Association gives a tour of the Atlantic Ave. Tunnel, which it says is the world's oldest subway tunnel.

I TOTALLY WANT TO DO THAT!! Anyone want to join me??

Check out the MD blog to read more about one of the tours this summer and watch a video of part of it-- cool stuff!

New Hope

Oh my goodness, my mom and dad went to a (smelly) biker bar. Developing...

High School the Reunion

I quite reluctantly attended my 10 year high school reunion over the weekend. I missed my five year reunion because I was out of town and because I figured people wouldn't have changed that much just 5 years out of high school. But I figured the 10 year was probably something to attend...even if the end of the night conclusion was that I would never attend another reunion ever again.

So how was it? Surprisingly awesome!

Held at the Field House in downtown Philly, the class officers had rented a private room for a couple hours, with the idea that the party could continue in the main bar after our party was over if people were interested. In a great turn of events, more than 200 people attended, which meant that we could pay for a couple more hours of open bar/private party room.

Biggest surprise? A dear friend who I hadn't seen since before I left for Germany showed up all the way from South Carolina. It was great to see him! Katy and I agree he wins the award for furthest travelled just to attend the reunion.

Strangest moment? A classmate talking about her husband...AND TWO KIDS. Wow! I still don't have my own pet.

Funniest moment? Cheryl, who was working the room, came tooling by, hit me on the shoulder, said "look at you, out past 9pm," and kept on mingling. Yes, I can be remotely cool on occasion:-P

One classmate made a very accurate observation-- the girls from my class didn't seem to change much (with the exception of one mean girl who time hasn't been so kind to.) But the guys had really changed-- more grown up (sometimes grown out), older looking, etc...

Most of all, I guess I enjoyed that people who weren't BFs in high school seemed to genuinely enjoy catching up with one another. Who would have guessed that?!

I left when the room started smelling sweaty like prom...but will look forward to our 20 year reunion...which is now less than 10 years away...wow!!