A Trip to New York

It was a get-away weekend for me.  After a February filled with way too much snow, work presentations and follow-up paperwork, nighttime chauffeur duties, and other miscellaneous irksome requests coming from far too many quarters, I felt like running away and simply not telling anyone where I was heading.  Of course I did not do that, but I managed to schedule a partial day of soul re-charging "me" time.  And has been my habit since those oh-so-long-ago teen years, I reconnected with my favorite revitalization spot, New York City. 

 

For me, a trip to New York has always promised something special. As a young girl it meant a trip to the circus with Aunt Linda, or shopping for school clothes at Macy's.  New York also meant bus trips to Jones Beach for outdoor musicals, school field trips to museums, the Bronx Zoo, or Central Park. I remember walking from Grand Central, past the Ed Sullivan Theater, to Lincoln Center, to see Swan Lake at the ballet with Aunt Alice.  As a teen, I finally latched onto Broadway, the TKTS booth in Times Square, standing-room only tickets, seeing two shows in a day, and stage door autographs. My first real Broadway show was Pippin, and I've been hooked ever since.  And even now, my favorite birthday celebration is Ladies Weekend with cousin Debra, where I train in on a Friday, spend the night, and meet up with cousins and good friends who Deb introduced me to over the years to take in a matinee, have dinner and drinks, and finally head home to real life on a Sunday afternoon.  

I grew up with New York as a major part of my life.  I remember when it was filthy: when the theater district was a seedy warren of peep show houses, porn shops, pimps and prostitutes. I remember being afraid to walk down  8^th Avenue toward Port Authority.  I remember when homeless people used to invade the wooden benches in the waiting room of Grand Central, and you could not use the pay phones because of the smell and the stench.  

But I also saw New York's revitalization and the "Disney-fication" of the areas in and around  42^nd Street and Times Square. 

September 11^th devastated me, I watched the news horrified at what had happened to that beautiful city.  It took me 2 years to go back.  I saw the tribute wall in Grand Central and I cried.  I went to Ground Zero and cried again.  It was as if the terrorists had stolen a part of me.

Yet, it's amazing how much I take New York for granted.  I'm still surprised by people taking pictures of the clock or the ceiling in Grand Central, or even taking pictures of the Chrysler Building or Empire State Building.  I have even been known to avoid Times Square on a Sunday, complaining about all the 'tourists' in the way, milling around, blocking my way and generally slowing me down from getting to where I want to go.  I have to step out of my own point of view and remember that to other people in the world, a trip to New York is as exotic for them, as it would be for me if I was suddenly blessed with a trip to London or Paris. Sure, it's loud, it's crowded, it's chaotic, it's noisy, but its New York, and let's face it, 'It's the one place on earth that I want to be..." 

And as that particular Andrew Lloyd Webber song goes, "The one thing it lacks is me." I had always dreamed of living there, but that certainly did not seem to work out.  My dream never included marriage, four children, divorce, financial worries or any of the other countless life changes that have prevented me from pursuing that dream.  They say it's never too late...but that would involve changes to my lifestyle and psyche that relate more to a psychiatrist's couch than to this blog.  Although that kind of change would be something to blog about.  I'll think it over.

In the meantime, I have to content myself with my little get-aways. Yesterday, Diane and I met Debra, stood in line at the TKTS booth (after I found the app for my iPhone, yay!), got tickets, had brunch at Thalia's, including a mimosa, which for anyone who knows my non-drinking habits, is a real treat, and enjoyed a great show.

I will write that review later.  Of course, after the show, the question was, "What shall we see now?" but good sense, and lack of money prevailed, and we headed home, back to real life.  That train trip home always feels just a little sad.  It didn't help that even my quiet train ride home reverie was broken with a text asking "are you home and could you bring me food?," and knowing that even after finally getting home, I'd just have to get up and drive again around 10:00.  

I really miss being that person lounging in the restaurant, toasting the end of winter with an alcoholic beverage, laughing, relaxing, pushing all thoughts of 'how much is this going to cost me' back to the deeper recesses of my mind, while having a good time.  The train trip home means back to job, responsibility, and winter gray, but my soul yearns for neon lights and good times. To quote an old Marx Brothers movie, "I want to sing, I want to dance, I want to hot cha, cha, cha..."

Oh well. There's always next time:  Ladies night is scheduled for May 3^rd.  So at least I have something to look forward to!

New York musings leave me thinking about songs about New York:  Here's my list:

• "Overture/Take That Look Off Your Face/So Much To Do in New York" from Andrew Lloyd Webber's Song and Dance

• "N.Y.C." from Annie

• "I'll Take Manhattan" by Rogers and Hart (as sung by Mickey Rooney)

• "New York, New York" by Kander & Ebb, as sung by Liza Minnelli

• "New York State of Mind" by Billy Joel

• "Walk on the Wild Side" by Lou Reed

• "On Broadway" by George Benson

• "Empire State of Mind" by JAY Z/Alicia Keyes

• "New York City" by John Lennon

What are some of your favorite NYC songs?