New York Stories: End of an era.

Last week I went to visit my sister, who, after a quarter century in New York or its immediate environs, is soon planning to move away.  She’s having a hard time getting used to the idea, but so am I!  When I was young, I always thought I’d be the one to move to NY someday.  I was the one who had a subscription to The New Yorker at age 16, after all, and who was going to live in a garret and write the Great American Novel.  Or something.  But, no, she beat me to it, and after my first couple of visits, I was pretty sure city life was not for me.  But it sure is fun to play at it sometimes, and for the past quarter century, I’ve had a conveniently located and free home base for my NY visits, and I’ve taken full advantage of it.  So, thanks, sis!

Anyway, on the way home from this trip I started thinking about some of my previous trips there and figured I’d blog about some of them.  First, this most recent one–

This time, as so many of the others, I was combining work with pleasure–2 days at an academic conference with lots more time hanging out with my sister, her husband, and her 3-year and 4-week-old sons just outside the city–actually in a highrise overlooking Manhattan.  After the usual couple of days madly scrambling to finish my paper, I took the train in for the conference, presented, had drinks in a swanky hotel bar with some fabulous women I met there, and then was on my own. 

Someone mentioned that MOMA is free on Friday nights, and I was only a block away, so I took myself out to dinner at the excellent museum cafe and then wandered around a bit until I stumbled upon this amazing exhibit: Design and the Elastic Mind.  All about the intersections of design, nature, new technologies, and society.  Well worth checking out if you’re there before May 12, and even the online exhibition is pretty cool.  I was sad Mr. Sunshine was not there because this was the sort of art exhibit even he’d like, tech-nrrd that he is. 

Other highlights–giant playground at Liberty State Park in NJ with my nephew, a lovely dinner by myself in the Koreatown district, and just some strolling around taking in the sights.  Not a particularly eventful trip, but oh there have been some….

TO BE CONTINUED

She memed me…

Tagged by euphrosyne for this meme.

1. I can’t believe I’ve never been to Europe.  Or have any idea when I ever will.

2. Every time I think about the Prince of Darkness I still cringe.  And Euphrosyne cringes for me.  :-)

3. I wish I’d learned to fly when I had the chance. I grew up flying in my dad’s Cessna and always meant to learn when I got old enough, but then I hit adolescence and had more frivolous things to do.  Now I’m probably too much of a scaredy cat, and don’t have access to a free plane.

4. I have never felt so out of place as living in Orem, Utah.

5. Trashy audiobooks are my guiltiest pleasure.   They’re trashy!  And you don’t even have to use your eyes!  And you can knit/drive/do housework/wait in line at the post office/play mindless computer solitaire games (my other guilty pleasure) simultaneously!  Nothing like multitasking your guilty pleasures…

6. I hope my mom knows how grateful I am for the constant support and endless free babysitting.

7. In my darkest hours, I secretly blame myself for my dysfunction. In my brighter moments, I blame everybody and everything else.  :-D

8.  Motherhood changed my life forever.  I know it sounds cliched, but there really is nothing else like it.

I tag  Shana.  I think everybody else I know already got tagged!