Today is a soggy day in New York. Normally, I'll just curl up in bed and read a book until my droopy eyes lull me to Ceci-land. That is, if my gentle snorting doesn't jolt me. Instead I decided to trek to the city and claim the free tickets to a concert at Carnegie Hall, another generous invitation from the Mannes College of Music. I can not disappoint my friends, I offered them the tickets and with my forceful emphasis on the free part, they already accepted my invite! I can't afford to lose face here.
I received the post card notice yesterday and knowing how the lines can stretch blocks (I mean long NY streetblocks) away from the box office, my thought was, let me go there right away and maybe I'll be the only soul in line; with this clammy weather, you'd have to pay someone to stand in the rain for a freebie. But then I'll say have one's head examined if they're willing to pay $120 for 6 tickets to just give away to good friends. Not in this hard times, not even for myself.
So I got on the train without getting poked in the eyes by umbrella-toting commuters and after navigating the crowd that's getting off from the bus which came by 10 minutes late. Great - I got a seat on an almost empty car because this was past the rush hour stampede.
Yipee, you think? Hold that cheer! Peace and quiet that lasted only 2 minutes until the next stop. What happened? A guy sat next to me, ruggedly dressed in typical NY getup, and then he started talking and cursing loud. Not good, what's his problem?
Pretending not to be scared. I turned on my internal radar. Readings revealed no Bluetooth velcro-ed to his ear, no iPod earplugs or headset and since cell phones get no signals underground, that's out - oh crap (pardon my French) , he is talking to himself! This jerk must be a sick-o! Now my heart started racing faster than the speed of this R train, I jumped out at the next stop and with a Cosmo Kramer-esque move, I took the next safe(?) seat in the front car. Relieved that he didn't follow me, I rode on merrily. Readers beware, sightings of this sort are normal in NY subways, so always get your antennas polished just in case. Harmless he maybe, but why take a chance?
And the umbrella theme, you asked? Translated: The Umbrellas of New York. Relax, I'll get there -- - eventually.
Second in line, got my tickets and out of the box office in no time. Home, James? Not yet, first let's see what my camera can steal shots of. Soggy and windy so what else could be more fitting - umbrellas aka parasols, bumbershoot, parapluies (The Umbrellas of Cherbourg). Being at the right place at the right time, that's exactly what happened here. Fantastic! I got lucky this time.
Look closely (you got it - click on the picture) and you'll see Lehman Brother's logo in the green umbrella on the left. Waiting in the rain not knowing what this man's fate is, after LB went belly-up, seems to be the s
ubject here.
Next - a couple from out-of-town cozy up under a New York umbrella while watching the waterfall by Prometheus Ring. No amount of rain can dampen the spirits of these two; the tour must go on! Picture is a bit blurry, no, not from my shaky hands but from the wind - 'think it's time for a digital SLR, guys? (Hint: Christmas in Dec.)
Lastly, the infamous upturned umbrella that always ends up in litter baskets in every streetcorner in New York. If you gather all the broken umbrellas everytime it rains here, there will be enough for Christo to hang on a line and wrap around Central Park again. Or, ship them to the Philippines and you'll keep lots of happy f
aces dry (after they fix the umbrellas and that's a no-brainer where I came from).
Life should be so simple; if something's broken, fix it and it can be useful again sometimes coming out as good as new. I wish we could do the same thing with the economic crisis. Not so easy. Let's see what happens at the debate tonight, now they got me listening.
PS : Apologies to Catherine Deneuve for my having bastardized the title of the movie she starred in - Le Parapluies de Cherbourg (The Umbrellas of Cherbourg), blazing cinematography and a great love story. Check it out in your local library, it's free!
