back in it

NYC was a lot of fun, though my travel companions suffered through one snafu after another. I flew up on Thursday afternoon, with a one hour delay. My roommate and the flight attendant were to join me on Friday. FA got to the airport Friday AM to discover his badge had expired, and could not work or fly that day. Roommate could still fly, but no longer had accommodations in NYC... which is where being well connected in the city is very helpful. My friend I was staying with works at a new hotel on the Lower East Side, and wrangled him a last minute friends and family rate, which was much cheaper and nicer than anything he could have ever gotten otherwise. The trip was saved, and roommate made it up without too many hitches.

I landed and made my way to N's apartment. After relaxing for an hour or so, I booked it down to Times Square to pick up tickets for 13, a new show made up entirely of 13 year old kids... seriously. Entire cast, and the entire band (except one). An interesting approach, and a creative risk that doesn't pay back in full, but makes for a fun night.

Second day, saw [title of show], which was cute and very funny... if a little in-jokey. How in-jokey? Here's Where I Belong got namechecked. I was one of three people who caught the reference and laughed. (HWIB is the only musical my actor grandfather ever did on Broadway... a massive flop that closed after one performance.)

That night, roommate arrived, and N and I took him out for beverages on the town. I got to introduce him to a few friends and take him around to a couple of my old and new haunts. A lot of people who didn't really understand why or how I fit in NYC so well get it when they're actually there with me, and roommate was no exception. Quoth roommate: "This is the most I've seen you out and about in a year!"

Saturday we wandered about the city a bit, showing him the sights as much as possible within the confines of his mission: Shopping on 5th Avenue. We shopped, I pointed, and it made for a good day. We crossed Central Park by way of Strawberry Fields on our way to Lincoln Center, where I once worked, and my dear friend G had cocktails ready and waiting for us. Then, back to the hotel to get roommate loaded into a cab and back out to the airport. And me back to the Bronx to get changed and head down to... ech... Staten Island ... for a concert version of On The Town.

I've never been a huge fan of the big jazz hands, ham-fisted presentational style of a lot of older musicals. My friend who directed this tried his best to avoid that as much as possible, but the material itself seems to write a lot of it in. It was a pleasant night with some really good performances.

Sunday was my day to fly out after brunch with G. Well, I thought it was. I got to the airport to discover the flight prior to mine had been delayed three times... to the point it was departing AFTER mine, which hadn't been delayed at all. I saw the cards lying on the table and started making other plans. Sure enough, my flight delayed too late for me to be able to get home from the airport... and then the first flight was ultimately cancelled, and all its passengers ultimately rebooked for my flight instead. I was bumped before I ever got on the plane, since I was flying standby. I called the airline and rebooked for the following morning. Trucked it back out to the Bronx, where I watched some TV, ruminated on the annoyance of a largely wasted day in NYC, and fell asleep. I flew out the next morning, and landed without a hitch.

Today, my friend pops into ATL for a visit from Memphis. I have about six hours worth of cleaning to do and only three hours in which to do it. Doh!