Thursday, January 27, 2011

It's All In The Pronunciation


The fifth grade class gave a presentation to the school about the U.S. government, specifically the Constitution and the Articles of Confederation.  One student excitedly reported to the school that there are three branches of the government.  He leaned into the microphone as he carefully read his note card.

It went something like this… we have the “LEG-islative” branch, the “JUDD-i-cal” branch, and the “EXECUTE-tive” branch. 

I don’t know about anyone else, but the last one, the EXECUTE-tive branch, sounds a little intimidating.

Saturday, January 22, 2011

Third Time

I walked into Trader Joe's grocery store this morning, and I ran into Tina Fey.  Again!  This is the third time that our paths have miraculously crossed.

I casually run into a mega superstar more than any other person in the city.  Is it fate?  Are cosmic forces trying to bring us together? Am I destined to be her sidekick (or she mine)?

Or, as I asked once before, is Tina Fey stalking me?

Thursday, January 20, 2011

I Go Walking

One more picture from our weekend away. It's hard to believe that we were only 2.5 hours outside the city in the photo below. See, it's true. We have everything in (or around) New York City - mountains, beaches, oceans, rivers...

Monday, January 17, 2011

Hunterfest


My girlfriend and her fiancĂ© invited Ben and I and another couple to spend the weekend with them at her family’s home near Hunter Mountain in upstate New York.  We gleefully accepted the invitation, which promised days of relaxation, fun times with friends, skiing, snowshoeing, and a break from city life.  We’d be crazy to turn that down.

Here are a few pictures from the weekend.













Thursday, January 13, 2011

Need More time

I promise to post soon.  Just give me a few days...

Thursday, January 6, 2011

Safe Zone

I walked past something terribly frightening on the sidewalk on the East Side yesterday.  I stopped mid-stride as feelings of panic flooded my body.  There's only one thing in New York City that could cause such an immediate reaction... bedbugs.

I approached a pile of trash that included a mattress covered in plastic with the words "NYC Bedbugs" scrawled across the front in black sharpie.  I froze.  Then, I freaked out as I imagined little bedbugs leaping from the plastic wrap onto my coat.  I imagined them scurrying across the concrete and up my legs.  I imagined baby bedbugs parachuting down from the scaffolding and landing in my hair.  I imagined an entire colony of bedbugs celebrating the fall of their new victim.

I turned to run back, but knew I had to press forward (a real trooper).  I frantically tiptoed across the pavement in an attempt to decrease my surface area in a potentially contaminated space.  I sighed with relief when I made it to a self-declared "safe zone."  I finally looked up and, for the first time, saw a bystander and his dog watching me.

I started to feel slightly embarrassed until he half-smiled and nodded.  Oh, yeah.  He understood.


Tuesday, January 4, 2011

Return to the City

We luckily missed the blizzard that hit NYC over the holiday break. We returned Sunday night to mostly melted snow and a city on the rebound.  The snow is pretty much gone, but the trash that never got picked up is still around.  The picture below has not been an uncommon sight on the sidewalks of the five boroughs.  The city is working on it, though.  No worries.