family

sue & sarah in the big apple: part II

architecture in helsinki: heart it races

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a’ight, let’s just get into it!

after stepping off the ferry, mom and i headed over to greenwich village to get our bohemian on. during the walk, we stopped at the strand, which features miles of used books.

don’t you just want to jump in? DIVE INTO READING!

in my mind, this slogan is plastered on one of those celeb book posters with greg louganis and his fave book about dolphins. librarians love those things. and so do nerds. (pssst i own the buffy one!!!).

we strolled by NYU (remember our lunch there, amber? ha ha ha awkward times) and walked by washington square park.

there weren’t really a lot of bohemian-looking people, but there WAS this random dude who was dancing and singing to soul music from his boom box. i hereby officially honor his desire to start random dance parties, as it is a goal that i, too, hold dear to my heart.

the CLIMAX of the day (for me, anyway) was a visit to “rice to riches,” a store that only sells rice pudding. seriously.

LOOK AT THIS PLACE.

yes, i am attempting to hug the wall of the building.

LOOK AT ALL OF THE FLAVORS!

LOOK HOW WELL THEY KNOW THEIR CLIENTELE!

no greater truth has ever been written.

it’s a good thing they have a glass protecting the rice pudding, cos i totally left breath fog marks on it. and maybe a little drool. just maybe.

and yes, i do think i took more pictures here than at the statue of liberty. i guess i just find more inspiration in rice pudding than in an american icon. surprise!

also, i LOVED their signage.

hey pussies, you don’t want rice pudding?!! well guess what? you’re going to EAT IT ANYWAY, cos THAT’S ALL YOU GET HERE, BABYCAKES! we know what’s good for you, and it’s RICE PUDDING, SUCKA! STUFF IT IN YR FACE!

mom and i had a tough time choosing between all of the flavors (read: we felt the need to sample, uh, several kinds in order to make an informed decision), but we finally settled on cherry mascarpone. and OMG it was DIVIIIIIIINE. i definitely heard angels singing when i took my first bite. PLUS the pudding comes in these cute colored plastic bowls with a matching flattened spoon-type utensil. i kept my spoon thingie, obvs. i forsee myself clutching it during hard times, sort of like one of those squeezy stress balls or a rosary.

here’s mom, getting into the spirit of my food pictures (“mom, make a face like you’re sad that you’re done.” “but i’m full.” “i know, but make a sad face!! seriously! it will look cute on my blog!” “ok, dear”).

unlike my warrior mother, i was totally defeated by my pudding.

that is a serious ass kicking.

[btw, THANK YOU JESSICA for alerting me to the presence of this sweet, sweet oasis. my life will never the be same]

stuffed with tasty business, we went back to our hotel to get ready for our night on broadway with… kevin spacey!!!!!! that’s right, we had tickets for his show, a moon for the misbegotten.

I KNOW, RIGHT?!!!!!!!!!!!

here’s the theater:

mom and i felt so posh and excited about seeing a Real Film Star (in the 40s classic sense of the word) on stage… and we were only a few rows away!

here’s the super cool set:

way to make a shanty look artistic.

the play was, of course, amazing. the story is wonderful, the script well-crafted, and the actors were all extremely compelling. the minute spacey walked onto the stage, you could *feel* his presence. he *radiates* in the spotlight. plus, my mom and i LOVED seeing colm meaney (trekkie alert!!! holy crap!!!) in person; he played the deceptively ill-tempered irish father with incredible charm and excellent comic timing.

the performance was intense and funny and absolutely riveting. thank you, broadway pants!

we emerged from the theater into the chaos of times square. mom was suitably overwhelmed.

i really did feel like i was in blade runner. but without the threat of death.

we passed by the theater featuring the broadway remake of xanadu, and i’m sorry, but I TOTALLY WANT TO SEE IT. the poster alone proves that the producers *obviously* have a sense of humor:

seriously.

i was hungry after the show, so i convinced mom to stop at john’s pizza, which is near times square. unfortunately, i wasn’t sure of the exact location, which is a big problem when you’re surrounded by a bazillion neon lights. so, i called kiersten! and, like a sturdy compass, she guided me to the restaurant. thank you, map pants! you are my v. own golden compass (ah, YA humor!).

i feel the need to point out that we entered john’s pizza around 10:30 PM. MY MOM AND I HAD DINNER AT 10:30 pm! THIS HAS NEVER HAPPENED BEFORE IN THE HISTORY OF THE PITRE FAMILY. it must mean we are true new yorkers.

this is how new yorkers eat their pizza. trust me, i know.

the next morning, mom and i decided to take on central park! i was incredibly excited, cos i love love love central park. again, it’s that whole public space thing… what’s better than seeing tons of people outside, pursuing leisure together? throw in cute children and food for a picnic, and you’ve got My Perfect Day.

of course, if you’ve gonna have a picnic in the park, you HAVE to get yr food from zabar’s. and you *can’t* go to zabar’s without going next door to H&H for a bagel!!! it’s simply illegal not to!

this is a great example of true advertising, for it really is unlike any other bagel in the world. MMMMMMMMMMMMMPPPHHH.

mom LOVED zabar’s, and really, who doesn’t? it’s full of gourmet food and a second floor of kitchen stuff AND they filmed a scene for you’ve got mail there. what’s not to love?

we finally left with a bag of food and entered… central park!!!! hooray!

we soon found the belvedere castle, which provides a lovely view of the turtle pond. but let me ask you, where is mr. belvedere?!!!!!! don’t tell me he’s still a butler, cos he’s too old to be taking crap from those annoying kids.

above the door, there’s a dragon that made me shriek, “THIS IS TOTALLY LIKE SOMETHING FROM HARRY POTTER!” my mom whole-heartedly agreed. you can tell we’re related, you know?

we climbed to the top to marvel over the lovely view:

then i made a random tourist take our picture, cos we might need one more for the xmas card.

after we rambled through the ramble (heyyyy), we found a lovely spot for our picnic:

gah, looking at this pictures makes me wish i could photoshop myself back there immediately.

look at our yummy food!!!

this is like one of those posters they have in cheap-o restaurants, like a basket of apples with the word “apple” under it or a big fat gyro or something.

mom and i watched people row boats on the lake (which reminded me of rowing with amber in versailles and getting stuck and thinking we might have to swim to shore and therefore lose our boat deposit) and listened to the lady next to us talk on her cell phone for half an hour. it was great.

i showed mom some other central park landmarks, like the bethesda fountain:

and the imagine circle in strawberry fields:

“hey guys, i love john lennon and i really want to pay tribute to his revolutionary spirit and enduring musical legacy… and i’ve found the perfect way to do it!!! something that will capture his v. essence! something that will encapsulate my undying love for his soul! a pink alien baby thing! yessss!”

after a few hours of absorbing the scenery and leisure-seekers, we returned to the city streets. there’s truly something magical about central park… like a secret garden that everyone knows about. but some tiny part of it is still yr own piece of land.

[tomorrow, i'll wrap it up!]

LINKS

please watch this extremely awkward clip of a cnn reporter interviewing the new spelling bee champion. this is the best thing i’ve seen on the internet in AGES. also, i’m never letting my kid enter a spelling bee.

date rape isn’t funny, but date rape in harry potter? HILARIOUS.

obviously, scientists have grown tired of their boring experiments with duds like bacteria and plants.

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