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The guys and I renewed our summer baseball ritual from the 80's and 90's, only this time instead of watching the Reds play in Cincinnati, we followed them to Yankee Stadium, my first trip to the Big Apple.The crowds took some adjustment, as did the reek of sewage, high humidity, teeth-jarring subway trains, and cramped airport (Laguardia was like a rabbit farm on the way out of town, as cancelled flights caused people to pile up in the terminal with fewer exiting than arriving.) But let no one tell you that folks out east are rude - I encountered some awesome folks during the trip (the girl from Australia, the bartender from Ireland...) Seriously, except for the jerk bartender in "Charley O's" bar (avoid that Sunday afternoon shift at the bar on Broadway), everyone was great.
The memory I will most take away from this trip is Brad's jumping on the wrong subway train for south Manhattan, the door closing, and him being rushed away while the rest of us stood there and watched. We connected later, but watching him be helplessly carried away was a chuckle. Since our phones were working only sporadically underground, I sent my first text message ever, in desperation to find our lost friend. It said, "beers @ eamonns, murray @ church - come find us." We watched four innings on the big screen before he arrived.
Of course traveling means eating non-stop. We covered "Mickey Mantle's" along Central Park, Moxie's Deli for a multiple-pound Pastrami, the "Brooklyn Diner" for awesome thin crust pizza, and a great little Irish pub or two, our favorite being "Eamonn's" in central Manhattan.
I also saw my first Broadway play, "November", starring Nathan Lane. Very talented man, and great entertainment for anyone, but especially if you love a little twist on your politics (is there such as thing as 'untwisted politics?') Best quote from the play: "There are no solutions. Only rearranging of problems." I recommend it, although it's closing in July. Best part of Broadway? The blonde aussie I met in the ticket line who gave me her reviews of all the shows she'd seen in a week.
Finally, I did a little 'tourist' round of visiting the Ground Zero site and memorial, and walking down to the park to see Lady Liberty from a distance. We also played catch in Central Park one afternoon.
I came home with a $3 T-Shirt from a street peddler, and a lot of great memories (and only about 15 hours of sleep in 3 days.)
Click here for photos from the trip.
- Jason
Nick is getting into rhymes and games now. Mama taught him 'Patty Cake' and 'Ring around the Rosy'. For the first one, he can 'mark it with a B' by drawing a B in his hand. For the second, he flops on the floor like John Barry at the word 'around' (an NBA player known for flopping fouls, for the pointless-sports-trivia-challenged folks.) He's also learning rhythm, when we sing in the car, and taps his hands to the beat. Brandi plays her boombox frequently, so his favorite tunes to sing along are from Sara Evans. His singing still sounds a little like the 'Chinese Top 40', but as far as just talking, his current vocabulary contains Ball, Up, Bird, Mama, Daddy, Chocolate, and Juice. (This must be how the writers for Star Trek came up with all those langaues.) Want to hear his opinion on things? Check out the video at right where he's jumping on the bed and talking up a storm.
All those toddler TV shows I thought were so cute 6 months ago, I now find myself mocking behind Nick's back. "Just save the damn squirrel, already!" I shout, as the Wonder Pets fart around singing and carrying on, taking a half hour to perform the daring rescue in their flying red Frisbee. Mama has her hands full containing us both. All those people who create outlandish warped videos on YouTube, making a mockery of innocent children's shows? I now understand these people - they are crazy parents desperately trying to get the theme from 'Barney' out of their heads.
Most of us don't remember the cro-magnon urges from our youth, but we are quickly reminded by seeing our children come across something that rivals the greatest things of all creation - like Spicy Chili Doritos - and watching them shove their mouths full until they choke. The 'too much of a good thing' lesson comes early in life. Favorite new food this month is a grilled cheese sandwich.
The pictures this month feature some shots of his 'happy Chinaman' smile, which isn't so much his squinting in joy as it is the 'scorch the retinas from your skull' flashbulb on our old camera. It makes for cute pictures, so we use it on occasion. (If his eyesight starts fading in his twenties, I'm gonna feel guilty about this moment.) Mama bought him a toddler pool for outdoors on hot days. She was so eager to introduce him to the pool, we rushed him into it the first weekend for pictures. He wanted no part of the pool, or at least not while there was a broom to push around. He played with the broom for an hour - naked, of course - and barely wet his bottom in the pool.
Brandi made us some homemade Halushka (or sometimes known as Polish Palushki) from her grandmother's recipe. Nick and I both enjoyed those, and she hit the recipe right-on the first time she made it. Good stuff!
He's been snuggling up to us for awhile now, but is finally giving all-out hugs just this month. There is nothing better in life (not even Buffalo & Ranch Doritos, although Nick might disagree.)
Click here for pictures from Nick's 18th Month.
- JasonPS: You'll find one stray picture in the link this month - of Joanae's little boy. Collin Greenawalt, welcome to life.
The guys and I renewed our summer baseball ritual from the 80's and 90's, only this time instead of watching the Reds play in Cincinnati, we followed them to Yankee Stadium, my first trip to the Big Apple.The crowds took some adjustment, as did the reek of sewage, high humidity, teeth-jarring subway trains, and cramped airport (Laguardia was like a rabbit farm on the way out of town, as cancelled flights caused people to pile up in the terminal with fewer exiting than arriving.) But let no one tell you that folks out east are rude - I encountered some awesome folks during the trip (the girl from Australia, the bartender from Ireland...) Seriously, except for the jerk bartender in "Charley O's" bar (avoid that Sunday afternoon shift at the bar on Broadway), everyone was great.
