Surprise

My friends and family surprised me with a bridal shower. Thank goodness I put on some makeup before I left the house this morning. They totally got me. I had suspicions that it was going to be today but they still managed to surprise me. And boy did I cry. I'm not one of those people who hides their emotions. I can't. Everything emotion is right there on the surface. I cried several times over the course of the day.

It was weird, walking into that silent room with everyone waiting to surprise me.

To be the focal point of a room full of people that want nothing but the best for you is overwhelming and I wish you all an experience like the one I had today.

Thirteen

I just watched a movie called Thirteen about a thirteen year old girl who because she wants to be popular lets another thirteen year old girl ruin her life. After becoming friends with the most popular girl in the school, she starts stealing, doing drugs and giving blowjobs. In doing so, she loses her old friends, her status as top student in the class and her innocence. I remember when this movie originally came out, it received a lot of press because the screenplay was written by a young woman, possibly a teenager, based on her own life.

I understand how hard it is to be thirteen and unpopular. I felt so dorky at that age and I looked dorky too. My body was starting to fill out in weird ways. I didn't think anybody liked me and that's not too far from the truth. I did have a few friends but nothing like the more popular kids. I was friends with the only Iranian girl in my first year of junior high which was quite a big deal in 1980. We were very close and enjoyed making tapes of make believe news shows, interviews and comedy sketches and making fun of her older brother (who was considered the hottest boy in town). I was also friends with a boy on my block and we enjoyed making tapes of newshows, interview programs and comedy sketches and making fun of our younger brothers.

I was embarrassed by my family, by my clothing, by my pale skin and weird hair that I couldn't do anything with but I was INNOCENT. I didn't know that there was such a thing as recreational drugs. I basically listened to classical music all the time because I was studying music and that's usually what my mother had on the radio, so I didn't know anything about rock and roll. I only knew the mechanics of sex and it was what people did after they got married. But I didn't think about it. The possibility that I would be having sex at anytime in my future life wasn't even a thought.

As dorky and weird as I felt I was I still would rather have been that innocent thirteen year old than the one portrayed in that movie.

In response

Jon sarcastically writes in response to my previous post:

What really chaps my ass are those unconstitutional searches they force on me whenever I have to board an airliner!This issue must be addressed. And you're not even allowed to joke about carrying a bomb at an airport. What happened to
freedom of speech?

in response to that comment Vidiot writes:

Air travel is a much more restrictive environment than the New York subway. There are also more alternatives to air travel than there are to riding the subway. But one of the biggest problems with the random subway bag searches is that it won't solve anything, and may actually make things less safe. They're "security theater", not security.See, I want people on my train to not be complacent, to think "oh, they searched that one swarthy guy's bag, I'm safe." I want people to keep an eye out for suspicious packages and bags left behind.If we're to have searches, they should be predicated on constellations of suspicious behavior. That was, after all, what caught Ahmed Rassam. Not a random search or simple racial profiling.These searches are idiotic. If a terrorist is asked if his bag may be searched, he'll do one of two things: a.) detonate his bomb at the search station, killing whoever is in line; or b.) leave, go to another station blocks away, and enter the system there. (Or, the terrorists could refrain from putting their bombs in backpacks or bags; they could put them in hollowed-out books, or coats, or belts, or womens' purses (which have been specifically excluded from these searches.))

Why not dedicate police resources to the NYPD's Intelligence Division? (See last week's New Yorker article by William Finnegan...sadly not online.) Murder on the subway is a crime. Let's treat it like a crime. Investigate those who are plotting it, gather evidence, and put them in jail for a long, long time.I have nothing to hide, yet I firmly believe in the Bill of Rights and the Fourth Amendment. Which is why I will courteously and respectfully decline to consent to a search. Particularly a warrantless search absent probable cause, which violates the Fourth Amendment.

Stand Up For Your Rights

I found this sticker defacing a mailbox on my way to work this morning.



I don't want to upset anybody by disagreeing with this organization BUT what about my right to travel the subways without fear of being blown to bits? Does ACLU have an alternative suggestion for keeping subway riders safe from the same kind of terrer recently experienced by London commuters? Yeah. That's what I thought.

People. These aren't normal times. There are evil citizens of this world who want to do nothing but upset those of us who are struggling to find our own happiness.

If you've got nothing to hide, you've got nothing to worry about in terms of an impromptu search. Also, it's not like these searches are without warning. It's been on the news, every subway station has a sign posted and the MTA makes regular announcements over the P.A. system every ten minutes in any station that I've been in.

So get your panties out of a bind.

If a cop wants to search your bag, let him.

if a cop asks you to stop for goodness sake, JUST STOP.

Photography Born of Boredom

I felt so lucky when I walked into the 28th St. station and the W train was pulling in.


The train was running slowly but it was still running and then the W train was inexplicably delayed at the 57th Street station. For those of you who don't know, you get out at this station if you want to go to Carnegie Hall and you're on the N, W, or R trains. Having just finished reading The Halfblood Prince, I didn't have a book with me. (I like to wait a day after finishing a book before I start a new one.) But I did have my camera which I used to pass the time. First I shot a picture of myself looking bored out of my mind.


Then I shot a thrilling picture of the tip of my sneaker.


But that was getting boring also. I tried something more exciting, something I don't do under normal circumstances and that was to photograph people unaware that they were being photographed. I think I got some nice shots.
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These two woman were having a respectfully quiet conversation. I say respectfully because a lot of times in a crowded train you are forced to hear very loud and very personal conversations that no one else should hear.



This woman was reading Harry Potter. I think she may have figured out I took her picture 2 minutes later.


This guy had the right idea by taking a short snooze.


This next picture was very exciting to take. He was sitting so close to me and he was reading so intensely that he didn't even notice what I was doing. My heart quickened just I snapped off this shot.


It took about an hour for me to get home.

Willie Aames

did you ever wonder what happened to Willie Aames from Eight is Enough and Charles in Charge? i wasn't exactly wondering. he wasn't even an idea of a memory from my childhood. on the treadmill, at the gym, on the tv monitor in front of me, i saw a picture of fat man wrapped in a towel slamming a door in the lens of the camera. i couldn't believe the voiceover when it said "Willie Aames loses it on Celebrity Fit Club II".The formerly good looking star of my favorite show from childhood and probably no more than a couple of year older than me, looked uncomfortably not-so-fit. He is years away from that picture of the boy on the right.

I guess, It happens to the best of us and even the mediocre of us, which is why I've been working hard at the gym.

I wondered what happened to him that he had to go on a show like this.

If A Tree Falls In The Woods . . .

. . .does it still make a noise if you're not there to hear it falling?

Yes. I think so. Yes. Indeed. Of course. When you are walking into the woods, do the sounds of birds chirping and creeks girgling and leaves rustling just start spontaneously as you walk up to them. No. Of course not. In order for you to hear something it must be making noise whether you are there or not.

Just because you are not there to hear it, does not mean the tree doesn't make a noise when it falls.

What do you think?

Wednesday

Today is Wednesday, Wednesday, Wednesday
It will be a fun day, fun day
All day long
===================
Good morning campers.
===================
Dear man who had to squeeze in to that tiny space next to the uncomfortably hot and large young woman on the train,

I am very upset with you. There was barely enough room for the five people already sitting on that bench. You certainly didn't look comfortable squeezed in between that poor, heavy girl and that stupid-sittingwithhislegswideopen-JOCK. You only had four stops to go. Why didn't you just stand?

Instead of discomforting just yourself by standing, you ruined the morning commute of three people including yourself.

Why? Why did you do that?

The Road To Hell is Paved w/Good Intentions

A camp in Miami got into some trouble by naming their talent show The Ghetto Talent Show which includes a Watermelon Eating Contest.

Dog Days of Summer

It's July and it's hot out. I'm not surprised. Why are you?

Every summer in New York City is miserable.

This weather is not necessarily a sign of global warming.

Nor is it a sign that Satan is on the final approach.

It's just summer in New York City.

Get over it!

Monday: The Other Beast

Going back to work after a great weekend is better than not being employed at all. As much as I dislike a working Monday, I much prefer it to all of those Mondays where I was unemployed a couple of year ago.

I haven't met anyone enjoys working on Mondays. If you are one of those rare few that likes working on Mondays please write me at genxmisanthrope@aol.com and tell me your story. I'll post your explanation next Monday.

The Beast

Today, Sarah, Wes and I braved to ride the Beast. It's a half hour tour owned by Circle Line that speeds you along the Hudson River from mid-town to the Statue of Liberty and Back. It was fun. Our captain was MAD DOG - pictured below with his head on the body of a dalmation for no explicable reason. I don't find dalmations that beastly. Our tour guide was some other random guy with a headset that we couldn't hear because we were sitting in the back on the motor. From time to time, if he felt we weren't getting sprayed enough by the East River - we were going about 50 mph - he would spray us with one of several weapons ranging from water balloons to a bevy of super soakers to your garden variety garden hose.



Here we are pulling out of the harbor.



Here are some shots of the city from the water.




The Empire State Building


A view of the financial district before the new Freedom Tower is built.

Accidental Closeup

Beauties and The Beast

Statue of Liberty

The Beast stopped for a few minutes so we could take pictures of the green lady. Here are Sarah and me posing individually.

Sibling Non-rivalry

My lazy Saturday was pleasantly interrupted by a visit from my brother, his wife and their son. I love my nephew. He's darling. At 18 months he has already developed a charming and disarming personality. I love children. I worked at the Children's Center at my college part time. I was a teacher for a couple of years. I'm looking foward to having one or two of my own in the near future. While every child is unique they share common behaviors. For example, toddlers can not have their picture taken on their level without coming up to the camera and touching the lens. My nephew is no exception. Here are my attempts at photographing him at his level.

Funny

Watch this video. Just do it. Trust me.

Valerie and The Half-Blood Prince

This morning I picked up my Harry Potter book at the post office. Last week, as you may recall, I missed the early morning delivery and then later when I went to the PO, it was still on the truck. I wondered why the mailman didn't just leave the plain brown box that they normally leave by our front door when we get something from Amazon. You know, I did ask when I went to get it last week. The post office said they didn't want to risk someone stealing the book from our doorstep. But again, why would someone steal a plain brown box?

I got my answer when I picked this up today.

Amazon might just as well have printed STEAL ME on the box. My goodness. What if you were sending this is a surprise to someone? They wouldn't be surprised. They would know as soon as they saw the box that BOOK 6 was in their hands. Granted, the packaging is nice but I really resent having to have waited all week to finally get my hands on the sixth book of this beloved series.

I've started and I am about to retreat into YEAR 6 at Hogwart's but before I do, I wanted to leave you with this link to some negative anti-US propaganda from North Korea. Be warned there is bad language and somewhat violent imagery.

Where Do You Belong?

I'm a Ravenclaw!

Tom Cruise Is Nuts

Yeah. You need to check this out. I love the contribution of humor this person is making to a world worried about suicide bombers on the morning commute.