To all my friends and family, I hope you had a great Thanksgiving. T-day is such a great time to be with friends, family and a turkey! My best wishes to all.
As for me, I am in New York. I know, this violates my normal practice of writing about my travels while on the road but I will be home Saturday.
Click here if you cannot see the photos.
I arrived on Monday afternoon and my daughter, Erika, and I connected in the rain. We had a simple dinner at a place called the Shake Shack which serves fantastic hamburgers. On Tuesday, I had lunch with my cousin Tony who lives in the lower East side. We met at the Gramercy Park Hotel and ate at the Maialino Restaurant. We spent four hours telling stories and catching up on our lives and it was a most pleasant time. Tony and I share a common set of grandparents on my mother's side and his father's side. OK, for the quick reader, my Mom and his Dad were brother and sister. I think I have written about my Uncle Coleman, the surgeon, previously. Yup, his is my Uncle and Tony's father.
After leaving Tony, I got off the subway near Erika's office (Chrysler building) only to find out her office moved a month or so ago 13 blocks north. A nice walk normally, but it was raining cat and dogs (California definition). Erika corrected me that it was merely a shower and not officially rain. Yucko.
We had a nice dinner in her neighborhood and then a nightcap in a local bar called The Gael. And, the bartender was from Ireland. Even more fun was that one of Erika's coworkers had spent a few minutes on Ancestry.com and looked up the Lamey genealogy for her. Me, my Dad, my grandfather William, my great grandfather John (the immigrant to Minnesota in 1849-50) and his father, John, who never left Ireland. He confirmed the Lamey-Leamy spelling change as well. It was so fun to see that all in one quick glance. The bartender wanted to know where in Ireland we (they) were from. County Clare, KnockJames.
Wednesday, Erika left work early (2-ish) so we got together shortly thereafter and the showers stopped. We headed over to the Macy's parade balloon preparation area and with tens of thousands of other New Yorkers viewed the balloons tied to the ground. We did this last year and it really is a fun thing to do to get into the holiday spirit.
After the balloons, we had reservations at Tony's restaurant, Whym on the East Side near Columbus Circle. It was a fantastic meal and the service was spectacular! Of course, they all knew we were relatives of the General Manager, Anthony, so we think, perchance, we got the royal treatment. I know at bill time we were royalty, Thank You Tony!
As an aside, Tony is my cousin on my Mom's side. His work name is Michael Anthony commonly called Anthony. It took me a minute to figure that out!
Thursday broke with a beautiful sunny day and it remains clear today as well. Tony suggested we not hassle with the trip to the Statue of Liberty but rather take the free Staten Island Ferry which sails very close to the statue and the price is right! Besides, we got a bit of a late start (Imagine, Erika had a touch of work to do on Thanksgiving morning--chip off the old block, eh?) so the round trip on the Ferry made sense as we had dinner reservations at Aurora SoHo at 3PM. Aurora had a special Thanksgiving menu and it was absolutely wonderful! A truly enjoyable meal.
We then walked to Ground Zero only to find 1) you need to acquire a pass in advance to get into the Memorial and 2) the area around the Memorial was swamped with the Occupiers and those who were observing the Occupiers--police and press, mostly. Oh, well. It is the land of the free.
We jumped in a cab and headed back to our respective places for a post Turkey nap for me and E did a bit of work. Chip off the old block? Nope, a huge chunk!
As for the Broadway debut--finally for the patient reader--we had tickets to see Priscilla, Queen of the Desert. It is an Australian based story line and a Musical created after the success (tongue in cheek) of the 1994 movie, "The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert." It is an absolute kick of a Musical with great songs, a fun story line and some great Aussie actor/singers.
At Intermission, they set up handrails along the stairs that went from the stage to the audience. I told Erika that meant the performers would be coming down into the audience. As the second act opened it was a country western skit and the dancers came down the stair and up the aisle.
Well, our tickets were in row G (7 rows back) and on the aisle. I was really into the music and watching the closest performer. She then grabbed my hand and lead me up to the stage! Broadway Debut!
Well, I cannot tell you exactly what I did. She simply said, "I'll lead, you follow!" There was a dosey doe, a polka, a hold hands circle and then a group bow. I am sure it was only a couple of minutes but I sure felt like a lot more. It was an absolute kick. Erika said she wanted to take a picture but she knew the theater rules prohibited it.
After the play, we stood deciding what to do next on the sidewalk on the corner near the theater. People actually acknowledged me as a performer! Erika and I were both giggling about that! I offered signatures but no one took. Oh well, it will live in our memories forever AND, its a Thanksgiving highlight!
And, last night I could not sleep so I watched the movie on my iPad via Netflix. The Musical was better, I think.
Today we will see the Matinee of "The Book of Mormon", a latest multiple Tony winner. Tonight we'll hit Rockerfeller Center and enjoy the lights, the people and the ice skaters.
My flight leaves at an inhuman hour but it means I will be home before noon tomorrow.
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