Changes on the Plaza

it has begun...the holiday season preparations are starting at Rockefeller Center. the outdoor cafe is no more. the rink is scheduled to open on October 11th which is about a week and a half away. if only i felt confident in my ankle to take a spin myself during a lunch hour.

i guess i need to start now to mentally prepare for the deluge of holiday tourists to my workplace. as long as they stay out of my way we can all be friends.

A Public Service Announcement

my fellow New Yorkers,

i know we are all super stoked to bring back the fall/winter wardrobe after wearing the same spring/summer ensembles but i would like to remind each of you that we will have a good SIX months to enjoy our turtlenecks, jackets, boots, tights, pashminas, gloves, etc. remember how you feel when April rolls around and the weather forces us to remain in skin covering clothing.

i beg and plead with you to take these last few weeks of mid-70s weather to keep the boots, pashminas and sweaters in the mothballs. spend this week and next enjoying the sunshine and last remaining days where you can show off the fabulous pedicure while wearing sandals and sculpted arms in short-sleeve shirts.

all too soon you will be dying to put the sweaters, boots and coats back into the dark dungeon.

all the best,
pinky mcg

Musical Memory

today is a wet, dreary day in the city. it is definitely autumn. soon the leaves will be sparkling with colors.

i always have music playing while i'm working. earlier today the current weather and a song playing from my computer that took me immediately back to a moment in time. i remember clearly and distinctly what i was doing, who i was with, where i was...all because of a song.

has that ever happened to you?

to try and trigger a musical memory, i'm sharing the song that transported me back to that moment. who knows, maybe we have the same musical memory song.

Allure Feat. 112 "All Cried Out"

All about the Pigskin

all who know me are aware that I truly enjoy football. i think the love started as a youth because it was a way to break through the 'boys club' mentality of my father and brothers. that love of the pigskin hasn't diminished with adulthood. it is fun to follow the byu cougars on their quest. it is just as rewarding to hear about accolades being poured upon retired players from my youth.

steve young will have his no. 8 jersey retired by the san francisco 49ers on October 5th. it is well deserved and made that much cooler that steve is LDS and an MVP quarterback that i watched as a young woman. congrats!

steve and i share a special bond because during the NFC Championship game in 1995 i took my father's car from the church parking lot (where i was supposed to be in sunday school) and drove home to catch some of the game. my brother Big Lug was "sick" (i use the term loosely) that day so i knew the game would be on and he wouldn't tell on me. i got home during the 1st quarter and was able to see three TD passes by steve to various receivers including the great Jerry Rice.

i was so excited that the 9ers were beating the crap out of dallas that i didn't head back to church until the last second before my dad would realize that i had taken the car. so i ran into the garage and ignited the engine and shifted into reverse and POW!! i hit the closed garage door. i was so excited by the stellar play of steve and his posse that i neglected to verify that the garage door was opened so now the car was stuck in the garage and i knew for sure that my dad would realize i took the car without asking and skipped church.

i got back to the building and found my dad to tell him first the good news about the game score and then let him know what i had done. it was fitting that i chose a spiritual setting to tell him about probably one of the worse things i did as a youth.

sometimes my dad still brings up the fact that i owe him for fixing the garage door. maybe i can send the bill to my buddy steve because it was his level of football excellence that caused the garage door to go boom.

Dance Mania

I love dancing. I love to watch dancing. I love to learn dancing. And now I love to watch dancing while working out on the elliptical machine at my gym.

To help the time flow faster while on the elliptical I have found that watching something on the television is the best method. My gym goes one step beyond the individual television on each machine and has installed individual DVD players as well. Me being the electronically savvy woman that I am realized that even better than just watching plain old television or movies would be to watch dancing!

On my DVR I have the episodes from Season 4's So You Think You Can Dance. I burned the routines that I enjoyed the most on 2 DVDs and now watch those while working out. It is the best of both worlds. I get to watch something that I love while listening to great music and burning off all those calories at the same time. Who could ask for anything more?

I'm sure I'm known at my gym as the dance watching woman. I have been asked three separate times by my machine neighbors for the channel I'm watching. They are crestfallen when I tell them it is a DVD that I made. This makes me wonder if I could charge people to make SYTYCD DVDs for gym use. Hmmmm...

Joani and the Moocher just went to the SYTYCD tour last night. Merry Christmas to you both! I'm sure they had a great time and enjoyed the routines by the talented dancers. I and my dance crazed posse will be heading to New Jersey for the tour in November. Better believe I will post pictures and video; but if you can't wait to see the set list then check out this great SYTYCD site.

The Quest continues...

...as BYU Football is on a Quest to bust through the BCS, I am on a quest to find the best milkshake in NYC. Saturday was my first journey into the wilds of milk, ice cream and mix-in goodness.

Netter and I headed out into the city to the Milkshake Company on 47th and 1st Avenue. I was much surprised to find a small shack on the grounds of a lovely promenade. It reminded me of a lunch spent in the Tuilieries with Doc and Netter enjoying the Parisian landscape and joie de vivre. I must admit I had high expectations of the shake simply because it came from the "Company." You can imagine my surprise when the "Company" only boasted about 7 flavors and small sizes. I chose the Cookies 'n Cream while Netter opted for the Mint Chip. The shake was good but definitely missed the mark on obtaining that elusive status as New York City's best milkshake according to moi.

Netter's bafflement by the huge straw...the shake wasn't that thick that the straw needed to be a half inch in diameter

The shack strongly reminded me of this one in the Tuilieres where I had an excellent Croque Monsieur. Oh sweet, sweet Paris!

Happy 6th Anniversary to me!

Today is my 6th Anniversary with New York City. I moved to this fantastic location expecting to stay for a year maximum...now 6 years have passed, and passed quickly. I have been in a reflecting and self-analyzation mode recently because of 9/11, the financial crisis, upcoming General Conference and beginning of Autumn. All of this has coinsided with my New York Anniversary.

I've come to realize that I was always meant to be in a long term relationship with New York. When I was a pre-teen and teenager my dad would travel to New York for work and I would be so jealous because I wanted to go so badly. It was almost like the Land of Oz, all glittery and full of magic. Now 6 years later I don't think the city has lost its luster in my life at all. If anything there are daily occurences that make me fall in love with this city over and over again.

My life has been wonderful in New York. It is full of great friends, a fantastic job, as well as opportunities to indulge in art, theater, travel, food, sporting events and concerts. It is hard to be so far away from my family and my lifestyle is quite expensive in this decadent city but these are sacrifices that must be endured to be here...where I know I'm supposed to be.

So to answer your question Grandpappy...I still haven't "gotten it out of my system yet."

Milkshake Quest

I have been on a quest for quite some time to find a good milkshake here in NYC. My favorite place called Roll-n-Roasters on 11th and 3rd closed down due to unstable structure and since then I have tried valiantly along with my side kick Netter to find a decent milkshake. Our quest thus far has only produced sub-par results.

Thankfully, Pocket Change came to the rescue with this week's NY Best. I now have three more locations to try and determine the best milkshake in the East. Let me know if you are interested in participating in this journey.

Here are the candidates:

IL LABRATORIO DEL GELATO

95 Orchard Street

Their Dark Chocolate Milkshake was recommended as the richest shake because of their dark decadent ice cream. This great gelateria also provides ice cream to other locales on the list of best milkshakes. I'm a sucker for anything that can transport me back to Florence and the mountains of gelato I consumed.

NEW YORK MILKSHAKE COMPANY
342 East 47th Street

How have I not found this place before? Anyplace where milkshake is in the title is a good thing in my opinion. They win the prize for thickest milkshake. Oh come to momma!

STAND
24 East 12th Street

This location is literally about a block away from my previous favorite milkshakers. Goes to show that good food is all around. They receive the gold star for their Toasted Marshmallow milkshake as the Comfort Shake of NYC. Not sure I'll try that one if an Oreo or other chocolate mix-in option presents itself.

If any former residents or visitors to New York City have any recommendations for good milkshakes, please feel free to share. I am willing to travel throughout the borough of Manhattan to find that perfect blend of ice cream and milk.

Wish me luck!

Wishlist #2

My vanity is by far my hair. I'm totally obsessed with my hair. It is silky, strong, long and luscious. So it only makes sense that I want the absolute best for my tresses. Hence, wishlist item #2...

Beauty Water Shower Purification System™

"The exclusive, patented two-stage Beauty Water Shower Purification System uses one of the highest-grade filters to change ordinary shower water into pure, pH-balanced water that is free of hair-stripping, skin-damaging chemicals and metals. It's like showering in natural spring water."

I so want to shower as if I am in a natural spring in the woods. If only it had a fresh pine scent cartridge also.

Sweet BYU Blue

The Cougars played against the UCLA Bruins for the third time in a little over a year. They lost the first game, needed a blocked field goal to win the second game and completely dominated the third game which was played on Saturday.

I haven't seen so much offense in a really long time. The final score of 59-0 was a thing of beauty. Congrats BYU! Keep the nation's longest running win streak alive versus Wyoming on Saturday!

The Wishlist starts...#1

My nephew Blakers just drew names of the siblings to determine who buys for who for the Christmas season. This year, Big Lug and Liver have the privilege of buying for me. In order to help my two favorite Indiana peeps in their shopping quest, I have decided to begin a "wishlist" for things that I would like to take up valuable space in my apartment.

Wishlist Item #1

It's a pedometer that you can transfer data to a computer to track your progress. You also do an accurate stride measurement for improved results. Would love to know how much I walk on a standard day in the city.

Carnival of Tennis Joy & Gladness

The 2008 US Open is over with Roger Federer once again claiming the title and Serena Williams returning to her 2002 championship form. I think the US Open is one of my favorite live sporting events ever! Joani you're coming next year!

I went three times this year which honestly just isn't enough. I was accompanied by CA Lady on Saturday August 30th to see the Williams sister dispose of their opponents as well as butt picking tennis genius Rafael Nadal and the Bryan Brothers destroy their foes on the other side of the net. It was so great to sit in the hot sun and cheer for some excellent tennis.

Thursday night I headed back to Flushing with Dancing Queen and Jill. We saw the Andy Roddick v. Novak Djokavic match under the lights. I couldn't believe how rude the New York fans were that night. It was constant yelling and shouting during Novak's serve and even during points. Djokavic beat Andy and made the mistake of saying some disparaging things about Andy. The crowd quickly turned on him and boo'd as loudly as I had ever heard. One thing to remember is not to piss off New York fans because they can be brutal. But I do think that the fans showed serious unsportsmanship during the match.

This year I bought tickets for the Men's Final which takes place on a Sunday morning. The weather even cooperated for my benefit by raining out the Men's semi-final to force the Men's Final to be played late on Monday afternoon. Jill, Em and I climbed the 100 steps to the top of the stadium to watch Federer beat Andy Murray for the title. It was a gorgeous day and a great way to end the 2008 US Open. If only I had been able to buy that key chain I wanted. Oh well, there's always next year.

Facebook Connections

I signed up on Facebook purely to look at a photo album my sis-in-law had posted. I had no real intention of actually using the social networking site to try and find long lost childhood, teenage, high school or college friends. Thankfully I got past my desire to remain aloof and now have found some great people that influenced my life.

It is truly fun to see what high school friends have been up to, how many children have been born to friends, where people are living, and where they have traveled.

Thank you Facebook for giving me a way to find and reconnect with my friends.