A Spoonful of Updates

I fail.  Not even my excitement of having a blog could keep me on track for updating all of you fine people.  But no worries, I have a long list of things I want to share, so you will not be disappointed.

Some new developments:

*As if seeing him on stage was not enough, I was lucky enough to run into Alan Rickman at the NYC Ballet as well!  And when I say "run into" I mean "stand five feet away from while debating whether I should speak to him or not, awkwardly walk towards him, and then feel his jacket brush against me as he walks away."  It was epic.

*Our film event a few weeks ago proved to be an exciting adventure for multiple reasons.  Not only did we encounter a strong wind tunnel in the train station stairway that would have given Hurricane Donna a run for her money, I got to show off my (pretend) hurdling skills while becoming a delinquent (along with my professor) as I jumped over the turnstile to run onto the train!  It was more exciting than that time I ate Subway at Mugger's Coffee House (Christine- that's for you!).  

But back to the point, we went to the Landmark Loews Jersey Theatre, a beautiful old movie theatre, to see The Big Sleep with Bogart and Bacall.  I love classic black and white films (or maybe I just like knowing my grandma loves them and that I get quality time with her when we watch them together?), and it was really neat to see a classic up on the big screen.

*I'm having a love affair with Central Park; I run off to it whenever I can to get away from my cramped room, and I constantly find myself daydreaming about the open lawns, winding trails, and charming bridges that I long to return to...  

*I. Hate. This. Heater.  The heater in my room was sent from the evil spirits of No Sleep Land.  It's one of those old radiator heaters that always has water rushing back and forth in the pipe.  And it has decided that its favorite nightly activity is to clank very, very loudly and once in a while shoot out water in a game called "how much of Katie's stuff can I drench?"  It's great fun.

From the Empire State Building

*My friend from home, Brittany, came to visit this past weekend and I finally got to do some tourist stuff I've been looking forward to!  We walked through Central Park and Times Square, got dinner in Little Italy, went to the top of the Empire State Building, and saw a Broadway show (my first!) - Mary Poppins.  It was just as magical as you can imagine and more.  Statues came to life, Bert walked on the ceiling of the theater, and Mary Poppins floated up with her umbrella to wave to us in the balcony at the end.  And we even got a surprise guest in the form of a little kid in the audience who loved to sing along to every performance of "Spoonful of Sugar."

 

*As I'm catching up on journal entries for events, I've realized I still need to let you know what I've been up to lately.  Let's see... we went to Dizzy's Jazz Club to listen to Randy Weston's "African Rhythms," a surprisingly perfect blend of jazz and African beats.  The moody atmosphere in the club was really fun, and the $15 per person minimum on food/drinks forced us to order an insane amount of appetizers and desserts that we all shared.  I walked through a great exhibit of Edward Hopper's paintings at The Whitney Museum.  I saw Don Pasquale at the Metropolitan Opera, heard the London Symphony Orchestra play Mahler's Seventh Symphony at Avery Fisher Hall, and saw very impressive puppetry and hand-shadow skills in Stravinsky's opera The Nightingale at the Brooklyn Academy of Music (BAM) Opera Hall.  I heard the amazing, patriotic songs of Kate Smith sung by the wonderfully talented soprano Stephanie Blythe - I tried to stop the tears from spilling over, but "When You Wish Upon a Star" and "White Cliffs of Dover" were too much to handle, in a good way.  We walked around art galleries in Chelsea one day with our art professor.  And just last week we spent the day at The Frick Collection, where I saw some great Turner pieces and made a guard scowl at me when I dropped my audio guide on the marble floor.

*And, oh yeah, I'm going to grad school!

Well, I think that's it for now.  Must get back to those pesky journals (actually, I really don't mind writing them - it's just that my perfectionism makes it a very long process) and maybe grab a few Oreos before bed.  hehe.