Destination Birthday - Day 1

Today was the day...the start of the destination birthday with the family.  It was travel to LA Day for all of us.  Out of the six people traveling I would say that my excursion to the west coast was both the worst and the best.

Arrived at JFK airport at around 5:40am for my 7:00am flight.  Ate my apple, confirmed my exit row seat, was saddened to see my name at the top of the list of the upgrade standbys, boarded the plane and waited patiently for the push back and subsequent take off.  The plane had other ideas.  Mechanical problems now caused us all to deplane and wait in the terminal to see if Delta had the necessary part to fix our problem or they were going to give us a new plane.

Personally I'm okay with making sure ALL parts of the plane are functioning before taking off.  A little delay isn't a huge big deal.  I was meeting my mom at LAX but she was cool with waiting until I landed.  What's a measly two hours of time in the grand scheme of things. 

We boarded the new plane at the new gate just fine after waiting an hour and a half.  Sat back down in my exit row seat and was preparing to enjoy my little chick lit book when I see the flight attendant bearing down on my row.  She looks at me to ask my last name...I confirmed I was who she was looking for...she then tells me that I was cleared for an upgrade so please take the last empty seat in business class.  I tried not to do cart wheels along the aisle as I headed to FIRST CLASS!  This is only the second time I have flown in first and what a difference.  The leg room and seat size alone was fantastic.  My little sojourn to Florida to gain Elite status was all worth it when I sat down in my first class seat for the trek across the country.

The story gets even better when I realize who is sitting in front of me.  It was Missy Elliot.  Granted I don't own any of her songs but she is just cool and completely musically gifted.  She is also smaller and friendlier than I imagined.

My time with California friends Mrs. PhD, Deeds, Squishy and B-Unit was all I could ask for.  The trip to the "Original" Cheesecake Factory in Beverly Hills was just icing on the perverbial cake.  Yes, I did order my favorite dessert there - Strawberry Shortcake.

Now if only a Delta rep didn't call me to tell me my flight tomorrow is delayed by three hours...oh well...have to try to be flexible and go with the flow.  At least Joani and I will get to sleep in longer than the kids flying on American Airlines.

Anticipation

I have two short days to get everything done at work, home and for church before heading out to my destination birthday in Hawaii.  My goal is to try and enjoy the anticipation prior to the trip; especially since I have been planning this little sojourn for about a year.  Before I know it the trip will be over and it will be on to the next vacation in London during Thanksgiving.

Thank goodness for my ability to find the next trip to plan.  Hopefully Greece/Turkey will be next year!

Movie Review #1 - The Hulk

My brother Pookie mentioned that I see so many movies that it would only make sense to do a Movie Review portion on the blog. I realized, he's absolutely right! I see many, many movies because it is one of the cheapest forms of entertainment in New York. AMC Theaters chain enacted $6 Saturdays on all movies that begin before noon. I have seen a plethora of movies on $6 Saturdays. Thank you AMC!

My first review will be for Marvel Comic's THE HULK. "SEE IT"

I'm a fan of superhero movies with one notable exception being Spiderman. Netter and I went to check this out and I thought it was terrific. The action sequences were clearly CGI but you could suspend reality. Edward Norton did a really good job being the tortured soul who didn't ask for this "gift". I liked Liv Tyler and William Hurt also but was somewhat annoyed with Tim Roth who played Blonsky. He just looked like a rat. It was fun and definitely left me wanting more...which was its full intention. I smell another franchise.

The best thing about this movie was the New York audience who doesn't have a problem with cheering, clapping or yelling at exciting parts of the movie. I love the experience just as much as the movies themselves.

#200!

This is my 200th post from when I started this little hobby in August of 2005. In that time I have been to numerous European cities, seen lots of Broadway plays, welcomed 2 nephews, moved into my own apartment, said farewell to several friends leaving the city, and thoroughly enjoyed sharing my thoughts and life updates.

I hope it hasn't been a tedious exercise reading about me and my adventures in the city that never sleeps.

Here's to 200 more posts and visiting more European cities, viewing more Broadway plays, welcoming another niece and nephew/niece, moving into an elevator building, stop saying farewell to friends because no one else is allowed to leave the city and continuing to use the internet and blogger to keep in contact with fabulous family and friends.

Daddy's Dad

Just want to wish a Happy Father's Day to some of the greatest dads I know...my brothers.

Top Ten Prediction

Some might say this is a little late since one couple has already been kicked from the competition but "better late than never" in my opinion...I'm going to throw out my prediction for the Top Ten on Season 4 of So You Think You Can Dance...

Twitch
Kherington
Joshua
Comfort
Will
Chelsea
Thayne
Katee
Mark
Chelsie

Do you agree or disagree with me?

10 more days!

A short week and a half until I am standing looking at this...

Secret...

I have a secret. On a habitual basis whatever I choose to wear to church on Sunday is what I wear to work on Monday. Sometimes it is just too hard to come up with a new ensemble each and every day. My closet is not that expansive with options.

Let the Dancing Begin...

...finally the Top 20 on So You Think You Can Dance has been determined and tonight they are paired and start dancing! Hooray!

It has been a long drought without the routines of Alex DaSilva, Tyce DiOrio, Shane Sparks, Mandy Moore and of course, Mia Michaels.

Thankfully Netter & Dancing Queen will join me as we enjoy the dancing on Ed this evening. Everyone tune in and vote!

Connecticut Weekend w/o a hospital trip

I returned to the "scene of the crime" this past weekend to spend some quality time with Claire. Our original plan was she would come to the city but the nasty weather and Puerto Rican Day Parade craziness made us re-evaluate so I hopped on the Metro North 10:17am train Saturday morning.

Our weekends in Connecticut seem to follow a standard pattern. We go to Target, the mall, see a movie and eat out at restaurants. There is also generally some kind of candy consumption. This past weekend was no different. We enjoyed all of the above with a couple of modifications...we saw TWO movies and incorporated new restaurants into our routine.

It was great to see Claire and even better when she sat me down, covered me with a cape and colored and cut my hair; then let me pay her with food. The best part was I was able to spend the entire weekend without an emergency trip to the hospital. Yeah for no broken bones! I look forward to our next weekend hanging out together whether it be in CT or the NYC.

Lightning Strikes

There is a huge storm rolling into the city right now.  I have been in many storms in my life that make me nervous because of the lit up lightning sky and rocking thunder...this storm is different for some reason.  It is almost beautiful how the sky is lit up by the sparks of light.  The thunder isn't scary but almost melodic.  

The best thing about this storm is that it is going to hit hard yet fast.  Finally the humidity will be removed and I can enjoy a walk outside without sweating profusely.

Subway Avoidance

This morning I had another example of why I will try everything in my power to avoid the subway morning commute.

Let me set the stage...it is hot in NYC; very, very, very hot and humid. The subway platform is one of the worst places to be during a 3 H day (hot, humid & hazy). This type of weather generally puts people in a bad mood. So here goes my morning story...

Unfortunately I was running late so opted to take the subway instead of the trusty bus. The first train was absolutely packed so waited for the next train. I was able to get on the next train and position myself in the "alleyway" in front of a nice older lady. My car location was at the front of the train and I was at the mid-north part of the car.

Things were going standard for a packed subway commute. We pulled out of 59th street and were on our way to my getting off point of 51st street when all of the sudden we hear this woman squeal (not quite a scream) "stop" and jump on the seat down towards the south end of my car. I exited the train from the middle and suddenly these two middle aged men were moving towards the exit just pummeling each other. I've seen fights before but nothing so close to me and none where I could hear the cracking of knuckles on someone else's face. It took everything I could do to get away as quickly as possible but the stupid fighter in the green polo shirt kept getting closer and closer to me. Finally I did some pushing of my own and got out of the station as quickly as my stiff little ankle climbing multiple stairs could get me.

My best guess is that the fight stemmed from the fact that there was no room on the subway car and it was so blasted hot, humid and hazy. These factors should not have led to grown men hitting each other and endangering those around them.

Another adventure on the subway.

Happy Birthday!

A shout out to my friend Canadian - Happy Birthday! I hope you have a spectacular celebration on this anniversary of your welcome to the world.

We'll always have the M. Smith Hall memories from our freshman year at BYU. I wish we could see each other more often but thank goodness for Facebook!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY!

Doggy Momma

This past weekend I had the pleasure of doggy sitting for my co-worker Chrys. She and her family travel to Europe in the summer so I volunteered to watch their pooch, Max. We thought a "trial run" would be in order before I had Max for 2 weeks in July.

Max and I met on Saturday and spent the weekend going to and back from Central Park, snuggling on my sofa and overall just enjoying the beautiful weather found in New York. It was fun except for the small accidents and whining. Poor little Max was probably traumatized by the city and all of its dogs and smells.

Overall it was fun to play with Max but it taught me that I am not ready for the responsibility of being a dog owner. The stairs in my building alone were enough to make me not purchase a pooch. (Although the benefits of exercise would be welcome) I will just have to wait until I can afford a lovely apartment in an elevator building.

Thanks Chrys for the loaner doggy to figure out if I could take the plunge with a dog of my own. I'll have to settle for seeing 2-3 times a year the prettiest doggy ever that lives with Joani, Moocher and Grandpappy...my Macy.