My staycation

Elephant parade

How do they get the elephants to the circus in the middle of the big city? They walk them right through town late at night so that no one sees.

(Except for the thousands of us waiting with cameras, that is.)

Virgin no more

I never thought I would be so sad to see the closing of a major corporate establishment, but the death of the Times Square Virgin Megastore is truly a significant loss. Not only was it my favorite place to go in the area, it was also the largest music and entertainment store in the world. Fitting for Times Square.

Now that the Virgin Megastore in Union Square is closing too, there will be no major music retailers left in all of New York City. Will this help the many struggling independents left in the area? Or is the passing of Virgin a sign of more to come?

DC in NYC

The picture on the right is of a fire hydrant I found in a Brooklyn alley. It kinda reminds me of the United States Capitol Building.

Here's an idea for some guerilla art:
1. Spray paint a hydrant white.
2. Put a little plastic figurine on top.
3. Bring a little DC to NYC.

Today I got a new umbrella

In the fall of 2000, my mother purchased a small black Totes© umbrella for me in San Diego, California. That umbrella accompanied me through the streets of Mexico City, the hills of Pachuca, Hidalgo, the corridors of Brigham Young University, and the avenues of New York City.

In the spring of 2009, a man at the entrance of Argosy Book Store on 59th Street in Manhattan picked up that same black umbrella--now worn and breaking. He looked at it with puzzled eyes. And, mistaking it for his, walked away with it--leaving behind his own small black Totes© umbrella.

How I spent my vacation days

The lines drawn here represent every footstep I took during my time off. Each day is a different color. From afar I think they look like the Nazca lines in Peru. Or maybe constellations or something.

Supposedly when you don't travel anywhere for your vacation it's called a staycation. But as you can see, I didn't really do much staying around at all.

Pictures coming soon.

Run, Walk, Explore, Run

Changefest '09

The Daily Show With Jon StewartM - Th 11p / 10c

Changefest '09 - Obama's Inaugural Speech

Barack Obama Interview
John McCain Interview

Sarah Palin Video
Funny Election Video

Extemporaneous Eve

Last night I decided to conduct an experiment. How close could I get to seeing the ball drop in Times Square if I left home at 11pm. The answer: not very close.

Here is a map of my three-mile investigation. I popped out from underground at 40th St. I could actually see the ball from behind at this spot, but not the celebration. So, I headed uptown. Block after block was already barricaded by police. It wasn't until 58th St. that they actually let us in. From there getting back down was next to impossible. By the time the ball dropped I was still stuck at 53rd. Fortunately, they had nice big screens to show us the action from afar. Once 2009 began, I continued heading downtown wherever the police and barricades would let me.

It wasn't until 12:30 that I actually got to Times Square proper. Though most of the people had gone, I did get to witness the gorgeous confetti twisters blow about. It was good enough for me.

For some great photos of what I saw, click here.