Bryant Park Skating

Monday, March 17, 2014

I’m wiping a tear right now. Bryant Park skating is over for the season. We had some fun there this year. First, there was this event. And a few weeks ago I headed back there with the kids in tow.

I have to be honest here: skating with kids is challenging. If you’ve got a kid who can skate, fantastic. If, however, you have the misfortune of teaching someone to skate, Godspeed.

Although I haven’t actually done any of these activities, my reading of 19^th Century literature suggests that cotton picking or perhaps coal mining are activities that would result in similar back pain.

There’s the obvious hunching, the lifting from odd angles, the propping, dragging and carrying. It’s enough to make you the star of your own Salonpas commercial.

But the kids really do love it, which makes it all worth it.

At first we had plans to skate at The Standard Hotel, which is walking distance from our apartment. But an employee hockey tournament was underway, so we needed to change venues. We pivoted, flagged a taxi, and headed north to Bryant Park.

Stepping out of the taxi, I was pleased to find out that Lauren’s water bottle had upended into my skate. Never mind that it was below freezing and were about to spend the morning at an outdoor rink. The skate would go on.

I got the kids ready first.

With my 100% non-sporty eyewear and beat up hockey skates, we were ready to rock & roll.

One of the great things about Bryant Park is that you can skate at the foot of some of New York City’s tallest skyscrapers.

After skating, Sam chased some indoor pigeons, not realizing that if he actually caught one with his skates on, we’d have blood on our hands.

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NYC

The High Line

Tuesday, March 4, 2014

When we first moved to Chelsea in 2005 there was talk about building a park in the sky – The High Line. It was a far-flung idea, and rumors suggested that the park would never happen. We crossed our fingers and waited.

The original High Line was an above-ground train track built in the early 1900s and used to shuttle milk, meat, produce and other provisions along the west side of Manhattan.

Abandoned since the 1980s and facing demolition, a group of high profile celebrities and architects rallied around the plan to create a park in its place.

In 2006, that plan became a reality and construction of The High Line Park began. After hearing about it for years, it was a joy to finally see the park open in June, 2009.

Today it’s one of my favorite parks in all of Manhattan. Lucky for us, it’s a few short blocks away from our apartment.

In the summers it’s packed with a mix of locals and tourists, but winter also has its charms. While the flowers aren’t yet in bloom, the raised elevation gives you a different perspective on the buildings below. The clouds seem more vivid, the Hudson a deeper shade of blue.

It’s a great spot for a stroll, a picnic, or as Lauren and I like to do: sketch the buildings and sights below.

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Family

Did the weather get dumped?

Tuesday, February 25, 2014

It seemed fitting to write another weather post because February is showing signs of despair and melancholy.

Instead of a weather forecast, I thought I’d do a 7-day recast so that you can reassure me that I’m not, in fact, losing my mind. February is to blame. He’s been playing games and torturing us with his mood swings. When you can’t figure out whether to step outside in a down-filled jacket or in shorts, you know there’s a problem.

Sunday: Snow

Monday: Sun

Tuesday: Snow

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NYC

Memory lane

Tuesday, February 11, 2014

Super Bowl madness took over the New York City last weekend, with hundreds of thousands of visitors in town for the game. We needed plans that didn’t involve football. Figuring that people weren’t likely to be furniture shopping on Sunday, Lauren and I headed down to CB2. While I returned some pillows, Lauren surveyed they company’s use of armchair fabric.

Joyous about my discovery that I’m raising a like-minded home décor junkie, I left CB2 with a bounce in my step and suggested that we take the scenic route home.

Lauren and I haven’t walked around Soho together, and I was eager to show her all of the interesting architecture and cobblestone streets. As usual, her eagle eye beat me to the punch. “Mom, shoes” she said as she pointed skywards. Even more bizarre is the fact that I’ve seen two other traffic lights wearing similar outfits this month; can someone please enlighten me? An art installation? Frat hazing? A protest against uncomfortable footwear?