Thursday, January 5, 2012

Gone 'til November

To my blog fans – I apologize for my lack of writing.  It’s amazing how time flies when you’re having fun or atleast managing the chaos that is our lives sometimes.  Welcome to January 2012. 

We’ve been a busy family since November…


Thanksgiving took Mark, Mercer and I back east to NJ.  While Mercer spent some time with the family, Mark and I met our friend Mel (from Dallas) in NYC and as tourists, we were determined on living as New Yorkers.  And in retrospect, I think we did a helluva job biting into the Big Apple.  We scoured the town for bagels and found them at Zucker’s.  We took the subway everywhere and loved descending into the cellar of one part of city only to pop up in a totally different locale with a totally different vibe.  We went on a Food Tour of the West Village, sampling cheeses from Murray’s, cannolis from Rocco’s, rice balls from Faicco's (my favorite), pizza from Joe’s and cookies from Milk & Cookies.  Mel introduced us to his old friend, Jiggers, who shares with us an appreciation of drinking before noon, and we brunched with he and his beautiful wife on a warm November Sunday morning; sipping the drinks of our choice, hearing all the tales he had to tell and people watching until our hearts were content.  We ate at Carnegie Deli and actually sat with the owner, with Mark grinning from ear to ear as he devoured his entire meal, part of mine and cheesecake for dessert.  We kissed the sky at the top of the Empire State Building and were christened with rain at the Top of the Rock.  We walked in the footsteps of our forefathers as we visited Lady Liberty and Ellis Island.  We ventured into Queens for a little Salt & Fat with Mark’s brother Neal and were blown away by that foodie experience.  We even met a Rockette and while watching the Christmas Show at Radio City (and after 2 margaritas and a glass of champagne) I even contemplated enrolling in Rockette Training Camp (stop laughing).

New York City is a muse for fantasy.  Mark and I walked the Brooklyn Bridge, hand in hand, dreaming about how I’d work at the Food Network in Chelsea and take the subway from “our place”  in Brooklyn every day.  Mercer could grow up an urban kid, with the NYC streets under his black and white Converse.  Of course the record scratched on the background music of that daydream when we saw how much a placed actually costs in Brooklyn.  So, in compromise, we promised each other that, should we ever move back East, we’ll make it a point to visit NYC more often.

I left NYC with a bittersweet feeling; a feeling that I had seen so much, yet so very little.  But I think that’s her allure, the city that never sleeps always teasing you to come back.  Luckily, I took a ton of pictures to memorialize our great affair...
Mark's Mecca

The sandwich before

All Done!

Hogs and Heffers - Door to the potty

Mark & I - Hogs and Heffers

Melvis & Jiggers - Hogs & Heffers
Brothers at Neal's new studio in Queens

How pizza should always be...Joe's Pizza - NYC

C is for Cookie

Dinner at Bubby's - Tribecca

Drea joined us for the Rockette show

Mark & I - Top of the Rock - in a rainstorm

Dre & I - Top of the Rock - Rainstorm

Melvis & I - Under Lady Liberty

In an alternate universe, Mercer had a pretty awesome time with the family.  He didn’t even miss us (we are so lucky that he’s not clingy, it would break my heart)!  He was spoiled, fawned-over and loved-on for an entire week.  When I look back on what they accomplished with him in a seven days, I get tired just from reading it!  Here’s a short list of all the things that I was “told” he did.  Like the saying goes, “what happens at Pop Pop’s stays there”…so I’m sure they did some cool stuff that wasn’t even reported.  Big thanks to Auntie Drea for taking the whole week off to spend with her nephew.  Judging by the 1 million pictures that she took, I know she, Pop Pop, Grandmom, Uncle Cookie, Fairy Godmother, Gram and everyone else had a great time.
Here's a sampling in pictures...

Fresh Cut – Faux Hawk at the 33 Barber Shop
The result pictured below


18-month Portrait with Pat

 This is a 3-photo sampling a pretty amazing shoot.  Pat is so very talented that I'm still trying to decide which pictures to print and frame!

Discovery Museum
Ball pit!!!!!!!

Fish in a TV - this blew his mind like Inception

Future Pilot?

Future NBA star - Slam dunking with help from Pop Pop

Future Newscaster?  Mercer entertains a call from the control room.

 
Dinner with the Fam
Pop Pop's Lasagna

McDonalds!
Just like his Mom with the BBQ sauce - the boy loves to DIP

The Park
Mercer & Uncle Cookie on the Slide!
The Library
Future Librarian in Training?
As we left the east coast, I realized that each of us got spoiled in our own special way on this trip.  Mercer got the undivided attention of the Village for 7 days.  Mark got the indulge in a sandwich at a restaurant that he dreamed of eating in for years.  I got to walk the streets of New York as if I owned the place with my husband and one of my best friends.  Each one of us loved it.  And, isn't this what vacation is all about?  Removing yourself from your daily ho-hums and inserting yourself into something fresh, new and different in an attempt to feed the soul?  Mission Accomplished!

And now..a picture of me with my arm in a turkey.  Fun.
My shirt (a gift from Melvis) says, "Burritos are like sleeping bags for meat". 

1 comment:

  1. Great post (and awesome blog, btw). Sounds like an amazing trip (and Mercer is wonderful to photograph)!!

    ReplyDelete