Friday

Long time no post, I know. I apologize, but it's been a busy week in the land of Grace. Friday night through Tuesday morning was filled with fun and exciting adventures all over New York City. I played tour guide to my sister and her fiance, as the last post states, and we saw 25% of the things to see in NYC. You need a month to see everything, unfortunately. Possibly longer.

Work was no fun this week either. Petty arguments amongst the staff making teaching the children a difficult task. I've decided if this teaching thing doesn't work out, I'll never look to being a referee as a full time occupation.

At any rate, below you'll find some pictures from the NYC whirlwind tour. Enjoy!

AJ, Ashley, and Amy (Grace) riding on the subway.



Bronx Zoo tiger. It must be feeding time!



I love polar bears almost as much as tigers. This one was "chillin!" Literally.



This little monkey friend was in deep contemplation of the meaning of life, I think.



Love birds next to a rather disturbing statue. It's giving me the evil eye.



Top of the Empire State Building, looking down on lower Manhattan.

Out with the old. I've been cleaning up the mess left over from the last six years. It's interesting how I feel a bit lighter each time I throw away an item related to one of those rare passing moments where he attempted to prove his worth. Rare. At any rate, it's good to be free.

The week went by rather quickly, which was my plan. Monday I spent 45 minutes at the post office filling out passport forms, just because it's a good thing to have. No traveling plans as of yet.

Tuesday's concert was entertaining. It was a bit difficult to concentrate on the orchestra at times because of the hoard of people chatting on The Great Lawn. I kid you not, there must have been 10,000 people in attendance. Dvorak never disappoints though, and the New World Symphony was incredible.

Wednesday saw me at the dentist, and I'm still trying to get used to having these new fillings in my mouth. It feels almost as though I'm chewing with someone else's teeth. The great part about this dentist is that he fixed my tiny little cavities with no novocaine. I can honestly say that he didn't hurt me. I did, however, give the poor man a heart attack when the drill made an insanely loud noise in my mouth which jarred his hand, causing me to reach up and pull his hand away from my face. I spent the last five minutes with my hands balled up into fists with the dentist wondering whether or not I was going to punch him. He escaped unscathed, as did I.

Thursday it was time to get a haircut. I don't cut my hair all that often, but there's a difference between long and unkempt. Maria at Macy's did the job well; so well in fact, she received a $5 tip for an $18 cut. You do the math. The hair drier she used was one of those newfangled contraptions that uses heat from an oven with an attached comb to make your hair completely straight. I want one, thank you.

And here we are at Friday. My sister just called to say they've boarded the airplane and will be on their way to NYC shortly. Her first visit to NYC, and my first job as tour guide to immediate family. None of them have ever come to visit me before, and I am so excited. I hope I can manage to put her on the plane Tuesday morning without wanting to jump on it with her and go home. My stay here is limited.. for I tire of the city life quickly. But I must put things here in order before I depart.

Wednesday

How do you know when you've played enough guitar for one night?? When you reach muscle failure and no longer have the strength to push down the strings. Here's a fun little toy I discovered tonight. $200 Dr. Beat? I think not. Online Metronome.

I went to the dentist today for a checkup. This is normal activity for most people, but for someone who is afraid of the dentist it's no small feat. All reports are good, thankfully. The doctor did everything he could to ease me from panic mode, which included telling me all about his career, as well as cracking jokes about himself. The man has a great sense of humor. When I mentioned I pass out after getting shots, he said "well I better not take off this mask then.. you see this ugly face you'll really have something to pass out about." For the record, he's not model material, but he's not hard on the eyes either.

Last but not least, I found a friend to attend that concert with next Tuesday. Benn (another Stetson University alumni who moved to NYC) will be at the concert so we're going to meet up in Central Park. Good concert, good company, good times to be had by all, we hope.

Tuesday

So! In an attempt to keep busy, I have ventured onto the New York Philharmonic's website in search of concerts. Much to my pleasure, I have discovered they are giving summer concerts, and this year the music isn't awful!

This means that on the 19th, a week from today, I will be sitting in Central Park enjoying a night under the stars with Dvorák. (Yeah I know there aren't any stars visible from NYC, but let me have my dream, eh?) The program consists of the following:

Dvorák: Carnival Overture
Dvorák: Cello Concerto
Dvorák: Symphony No. 9, "From the New World"

This may not be exciting news to any of you, but it thrills me (I rather enjoy the first and last of that list, and I've not heard the middle selection to my knowledge, so I could very well love that one too). There are supposed to be fireworks after the concert, and the whole thing is costing me $0. That's right. The concert is free.

Yes, it's a little unnerving to be out that late in Central Park by myself, but the precinct is right next to the train station which is right near The Great Lawn (where the concert is being held), so there shouldn't be any problems, I hope.

And who says you can't get something for nothing in this day and age?

Monday

My sister and her fiancee are coming to visit weekend after next! I'm very excited about the adventures we have planned. It's their first time in NYC, so there will be a lot of tourist business to attend to, but here's what we have so far: a trip to the giant Toys R Us (more legos!), a stroll through China town/Little Italy, to the top of the Empire State Building, climbing the stairs of the Statue of Liberty (354 to be exact, which is 22 stories), Times Square at night, the Promenade at night, the Bronx Zoo. I'm beginning to wonder if we can accomplish all of that in three days time. Only one way to find out though!

Thursday

As pledged, I have decided to follow in Zann's footsteps and make a love/hate alphabet. The rules are as follows: two lists (love and hate), one word for each letter. On your mark, get set, go!

Love:
Apples
Baseball
Classical music
D
estiny
E
mbraces
F
amily
G
uitars
H
arps
I
nteresting conversations
J
acuzzis
K
itchens
L
ions
M
usic
N
ights under the stars
Orchestras
Polar bears
Q
uests
R
avel's "La valse"
S
hooting stars
T
eaching
U
nplugged
V
acations
W
altzes
Y
ellow ribbons
Z
oos

Hate:
Aggressive confrontation
B
oy bands
C
lutter
D
irt on my feet
E
gg salad
F
lying insects
G
rease
H
air spray
I
nconsiderate people
J
elly fish
not Knowing
L
oose teeth
M
ice
N
oise pollution
O
pen-ended questions
P
ain
Q
uick sand (Artec!)
R
ats
S
eafood
T
heory (music)
U
nnecessary explanations
doctor's Visits
W
iverns
Y
elling
Z
inc ( I think I'm allergic)

I am indifferent about X all together, so there.

Saturday

Wrapping up two weeks worth of Independence Day lessons, I had the children sing a song I taught them for the camera. Children are natural performers, often doing things you don't even ask them to do in the first place (front row, your left).

Final result: 95% of the children know that they live in the state of New York, and that New York is in the United States of America. I must admit that they don't always pronounce "United States of America" correctly, but hey, you get the point. They also know the colors of the flag, and that Independence Day is when we celebrate America's birthday. Four-year-olds are sponges. The other 5% managed to retain bits and pieces. I'm no miracle worker, my apologies.

At any rate, here's the link. See for yourself.

You're a grand old flag!