pathways #6

Central Park - 2.20.10
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a little something a friend has taught me

my brother big lug dated a girl from our rival high school when i was a junior and he was a senior. at first i wasn't sure how i felt about her because as has been previously mentioned by me in this blog, i was quite a brat when it came to people trying to break the inner circle of my family unit. the funny thing about the situation is that christa and i became great friends after my brother and she broke up.

christa and i went to magic mountain in LA together (along with joani g), worked together for the summer, took a little trip to flagstaff for the weekend where christa brought a soccer ball...still not sure why, had countless trips to cold stone creamery & the movie theater, and just enjoyed being great friends in the valley of the sun.

after college, christa and i lost contact. she got married and started her family and i started my long term relationship with new york city. thankfully facebook and blogs saved the day. she found me and it has been so fantastic to reconnect!

christa is a true warrior of faith and i'm very thankful for her living reminder that we are each so blessed with gifts and talents that it is our responsibility to share. if you need a witty and inspirational read, please check out her blog Christa's Crusade.

a little something gifted from the WB

i'm getting closer and closer to my 10 year college graduation anniversary. there are a few things that are quintessentially pinky as a BYU college student. some of those things are television shows from the WB.

every sunday night my roomies in #9 middle cambridge and i would enjoy the goodness that is dawson's creek & felicity. we would heat a pizza purchased at the great grocer, food4less. sit down in our living room. eat the pizza. watch the travails of joey & dawson or joey & pacey for the first hour and then felicity & ben or felicity & noel for the second. it was female bonding at its best; minus the painting each others' toenails.

i'm currently reliving those happy moments felt as a college student because each morning i watch television on DVD as i get ready for work. i've already completed watching season 3 of dawson's and am curently enjoying season 1 of felicity. my plan is to complete the entire felicity series by the end of the month. (a shoutout to Doc who graciously gifted me with season 2 & 3 for Christmas!) it has made me very happy to think about those days with my roomies. life seemed so much simpler some how.

for those who are wondering...i was and always will be a joey & pacey and felicity & noel supporter.

a little something about Bob my blu-ray

yes, i name my electronics. Ed is my HDTV and Will is my Wii. right now i'm enraptured with Bob, my blu-ray player. boss man asked me recently if there is a difference between a DVD playing versus a blu-ray movie. the only answer to that question is YES!

tonight Gooch and i popped in the recently acquired 2005 version of Pride and Prejudice on blu-ray. there was a definite difference in the quality of picture, music and the beauty that is Mr. Darcy on the big screen.

so tonight i say congrats to Drew Brees and the New Orleans Saints as well as profess my great admiration to Bob my blu-ray player. dear mr. brees - thank you for a great super bowl and to Bob my blu-ray player - thank you for bringing the beauty of high definition movie magic into my home.

pathways #5

the rambles in Central Park
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a little something learned in disney world

i'm not as young as i once was. i get tired sooner rather than later when on my feet for a length of time. i can't say "no" to amusement park food that consists of hamburgers, ice cream, churros, french fries, and bagels with bananas. a strategy must be implemented for effective usage of the fast pass. i can't put a limited on the number of times i ride Space Mountain. souvenir items bought on Main Street are expensive. i know my limits...namely Mission:Space, Soarin' and Circle 360 Vision movies at Epcot. there is such a thing as too many cheerleaders and Brazilian high school students in one location. the ride at Norway was lame, lame, and more lame. Aerosmith is very kind to their fans by giving us a ride in the limo through Southern California. i am in love with the childlike wonder i felt while at disney world.

getting to orlando was an ordeal but once there we had a fantastic time. we went to all four parks as well as a little outlet shopping. my favorite rides were Space Mountain @ Magic Kingdom, Test Track @ Epcot, Expedition Everest @ Animal Kingdom and Rock 'N Roller Coaster @ Hollywood Studios. our gangsta car was named Iago and allowed us to play some stellar tunes. eating at Chevy's was a grotesque experience while Macaroni Grill was highly enjoyable.

the most amazing thing was the fact that netter and i spent a total of 17 1/2 hours in the parks in one day. we started at hollywood studios when it opened at 9:00am. we left hollywood studios at about 4:00pm and had decided to head straight back to Magic Kingdom so that we could ride some of our favorites again. it was going to be great because we were entitled to an additional 3 hours in the park after it closed. the funny thing is that we thought the park closed at 8pm so we would have until 11pm. but no...while on the parking lot tram we were informed that the park closed at 11pm so we were entitled to stay in the park until 2 AM! woo hoo!! netter and i embraced the opportunity and stayed in the park until 1:30am. our car was literally the last car in the last row of the parking lot. i haven't been that tired in a long time but it was TOTALLY worth it.

i guess the little something that disney world taught me was that there is no age limit to good clean fun with mickey mouse and his friends. can't wait for disney world 2.0 in march with claire and MC!

love the dumbo ride (for you joani g!)

fireworks every night...yes please!

this is what you look like after 17 1/2 hours in amusement parks (while wearing flip flops)

Iago as the last car on the last row of the Magic Kingdom parking lot

a little something to explain my blogging absence

i've been insanely busy at work the last 6 weeks. that's why i've been remiss in my blogging. to those who have exercised immense patience regarding the pictures and recap of my disney world vacation...i plead for just a little more time. this weekend i shall provide all that has been requested...and maybe more...

stay tuned.

a little something to mark my 350th post

i'm going to Disney World! no really, i'm heading to Disney World on Thursday. yeah for 350th post! wonder what will happen when i hit 500 posts.

a little something from the lingos

i went to the Lingos once and was pretty disappointed so never returned. gooch went this year and saw the video below. last night she shared it with me. i thought it was hilarious and very well done. congrats to those who participated...two thumbs up!

Twilight Years from Tom on Vimeo.

a little something in my christmas card

Moments that “shined” in 2009

Best family get together since Hawaii: attending my nephew Nintendo’s baptism in Terre Haute, Indiana

Best additions to my electronics collection: tie between my new MacBook computer, first digital SLR camera, blu-ray player and the Wii with Rock Band (apparently 2009 was the year of new electronics J)

Best reason for sibling to visit: Flex helped me move to my new apartment…no more stairs!

Best New York moments: viewing the city with my brother Big Lug at Top of the Rock, free admission to Museum of Modern Art during summer Fridays, and cheap karaoke in K-Town

Best vacations: Last minute trip to Prague in March, Plymouth Rock on July 4^th, seeing friends from home in Mesa, Arizona and fall foliage viewing in rural Connecticut and Massachusetts

Best experience serving in Primary: attending baptisms and participating in the Primary Program

Best photographic pose: jumping in front of beautiful landmarks (see below)

Best songs in iPod rotation: You Find A Way (Graham Colton), All I Want (Ahn Trio), Someday (Plain White T’s), Halfway Gone (Lifehouse), Radio Song (Days Difference), S.O.S. Let the Music Play (Jordin Sparks), Just Say Yes (Snow Patrol), and everything by the cast of Glee

Best television shows: Glee, Grey’s Anatomy, Lost, White Collar, The Good Wife, SYTYCD & Top Chef

Best new hobby: taking photographs of family and Central Park

Best reason to have a flight cancelled: a four hour layover in Amsterdam where fry sauce comes in a bottle

Best concerts/Broadway shows: Jimmy Eat World’s Clarity 10^th Anniversary @ Terminal 5, Plain White T’s @ Irving Plaza, Ragtime, Kelly Clarkson @ Roseland Ballroom, Hamlet (starring Jude Law), Twelfth Night - Shakespeare in the Park, Snow Patrol @ Beacon Theater

Best hours spent in a movie theater: An Education, The Blind Side, Angels & Demons, Star Trek & The Proposal

Best reason for a movie ticket return policy: Fame

pathways #4

after large snow storm on december 19th

a little something from my iTunes play count

there is so much that your iTunes play count can tell about you. i'm constantly curious to see what songs are at the top of the list and which ones i was previously "obsessed" with aren't even on the top page.

right now, graham colton's "you find a way" is kicking everyone else's trash but snow patrol is quickly gaining in playing time with their "just say yes." i'll keep you up-to-date on this ongoing battle for my iTunes library supremacy.

the interesting thing about my current play count is that about 3/4th of the music i have from 'n sync has never been played on my new computer. for those that knew me in my youth, you might have remembered that i was somewhat of a fan of the boy band that sold 2.4 million copies of No Strings Attached in its first week of release. (in full confession mode...i bought 2 copies the day it was released...one for my car and one for my home.) i had what you might say was a "healthy young adult" obsession with justin, lance, chris, joey and of utmost importance to me, jc.

so tonight i have decided to turn my bedroom into an 'n sync party by playing each track that currently has never been played on my new computer. it is an added bonus because tonight is the first night that i hooked up my computer desk speakers. i'm sure my neighbors are grateful that tonight i'm taking them back 10 years to the reign of the boy bands.

tragically i have no digital photographic evidence of my healthy obsession. darn it.... ;)

a little something i taught my nephew

for some reason i found great pleasure in teaching my quite young nephew things that might verge on the inappropriate. the last time i was in utah i taught him about "smack the booty." in my defense i did tell him he couldn't smack anyone else's booty...only his own and only with minimal arm strength.

this christmas i wanted to complete the "booty" lessons by teaching him how to "shake his booty". he was an apt pupil. i decided to record the event with my camera because he was just too cute about it. (and it is one of the few times that a male will do exactly what i tell him to do)



i did purchase for his christmas present the giant dog he is holding while the smacking and shaking is occurring. not sure if that redeems me in the eyes of his parents though...

a little something to say happy holidays

Merry Christmas! I hope all have a joyful holiday celebration and truly remember why and what we celebrate.

I'm grateful for the birth of the babe in a manger and will continue to try to keep Him in the center of my life.

May this season touch your heart with happiness because He loves us and is always ready to bless us.

a little something from Glee (spoilers)

i am firmly in love with the show Glee. am going into slight withdrawal with the knowledge it won't be back until april. why fox, why!?!?!

the fall finale episode "sectionals" was fantastic. of course the best moments were the club winning, sue sylvester going down, and the musical numbers. but all of those paled in comparison to the ending of the show. thank you for not leaving us hanging ryan murphy!

from those who know me and my previous "obsessions", Glee is now in the top 3. oh yeah!

found this video and it just makes me smile:

a little something caused by the mall

went to the mall last night. my attendance at the domed shopping complex is rather rare nowadays. being at garden state plaza in jersey did trigger a cherished childhood memory though. that was about all it provided last night...oh wait, i did eat a Wendy's jr. bacon cheeseburger.

my family had some very specific traditions for the holiday season. one of my absolute favorites was gift buying. a friday night would be selected when the whole family would get to go to a sit-down restaurant (a special moment = no drive-thru dinners) then head to that magical land known as Sunvalley Mall in Concord, California.

once at the mall my parents would give us enough cash to buy a $5 present for each of our siblings. one parent would take me and a brother while the other parent took the other brothers. we would shop for the ones not with us and then switch so that we could pick up a gift for the sibling who was originally with us. sometimes big lug and i would pool our $5 together to get a gift for punkin or flex. i think it was just an excuse for me to find the gift, wrap it and big lug to get a cut of the gratitude action.

i vividly remember buying big lug model airplanes, punkin some legos and flex got books (i think). i bought my very first watch at the sunvalley mall's macy's day after christmas special. it was a swatch and almost pure white. i LOVED that watch.

last night garden state plaza was a poor substitute for the magic of those treasured childhood Christmas memories of spending time together as a family and thinking about giving gifts for my family.

i wish i could go back in time and enjoy those moments that much more...

a little something with balloons

this year i went to the Macy's Thanksgiving Day parade. the reason i chose 2009 for my attendance was simply the warm temperatures. i don't do well in cold and this year our forecast was for a lovely mid 50 degree temperature.

netter, netter's sis and i got up early and headed to the west side to join the crowds at 73rd and central park west. thankfully i'm tall so was able to see quite clearly from our spot about 15 people deep. i must say that i became almost giddy when i knew santa clause was coming down the street.

my goal is to try to check off all of the things that the rest of the world considers "essential new york". the thanksgiving day parade is definitely high on that list.

it was a lot of fun and made me grateful for comfortable shoes and knee injections from my orthopedist.

Up, up and away!

Santa finally came! It was so exciting!

I love leaves!

a little something due to popular demand

your comments have complete influence over me...here are some pictures of my apartment with the wrapped art on the walls. :) merry christmas!

a little something that reminds me of childhood

i decorated my humble abode over the weekend. my joani would always make our home look and smell like Christmas. in her honor i took down the art on my living room walls and wrapped them in wrapping paper and bows. then i put them back up in their place on my wall. whenever i glance over from the couch and see the wrapped "art" it reminds me of how much my mommy loves Christmas and how excited i am to be with her and the rest of the utah clan this year.

a little something for our foreign friends

i work in rockefeller center. there are lots of tourists in rockefeller center.

yesterday while chatting with my friend kayte in the concourse level (i.e. the shopping/eating area of rock center) we were approached by a lovely couple. they kept asking us a question that neither kayte nor i could grasp. finally it dawned on us that they needed a bathroom.

sidenote - i have always made it a point to try to learn how to ask for a restroom in the native language of the country i'm visiting. its come in handy. trust me.

after we sent them to the "toilets" i compared the tourist arenas in new york to those in foreign lands i visited. i realized that the united states is not very foreign traveler friendly. we don't provide our friends from other lands with menus that are translated in their language and signs are not posted with multiple languages to help them to important places, like bathrooms.

whenever i'm in europe almost everyone in the tourism industry speaks english. i believe new york city has the most individuals able to throw down a conversation in spanish, french, german, polish, portugese, cantonese, russian, hebrew, etc; which is why i don't get why the new york city government doesn't do more to help our foreign friends feel a little more comfortable in the vastness that is the big apple. maybe the public leaders from paris, berlin, moscow, madrid, etc. can give them some pointers.