Wasting time with Jet

It's been the news most of the week that a blizzard was going to hit the city tonight. You would NEVER guess if you woke up and saw how beautiful it was at 8:30 in the morning...not a cloud in the sky!

I woke up this morning (Despite staying up late last night...) becuase I wanted to see JOE out in long island and I needed to catch an early train out there (The 10:38). Psycho-Sis was bring my niece along to visit mom and even through we haven't seen them in 3 straight weekends (A world record, I'm sure!), I did NOT feel like staying home today.

The SOCIOPATH is just showing off because she just got her tax return and is expected to blow it all at stupidly as possible. She's planning a trip to Alantic City, and some other insane spending spree...

While I was trying to get ready, something in the back of my head told call JOE before leaving. God it's murder being right all the time...

"YO!, I was just about the call you, man...you know that snow is coming tonight, right, I was wondering if you wanted to stay over the night and I try to drive you to the station sunday morning..."

I couldn't believe this guy...

"Hell no!" I replied

"C'mon, man! You know I'm afraid to drive in the snow..."

"You know what, then...FINE, I ain't Commin!"

"WHAT!?!?...Wait!" JOE screams.

I was just about to hang up...

"What?" I barked.

"You NEED to come, you my way out!"

"Out of what?" I asked.

"MY wife's taking the kids to some house warming party! I'm staying behind to chill with you! If you don't come over Imma haveta go!"

I was furious!

"Put her on the phone..." I said calmly.

"What?"

"Put HER on the PHONE, NOW!"

A second goes by...

"Hello?"

"Hey, it's me, listen, this snow's scaring me a bit, tell the boy I can't make it out, today okay..."

If it was possible, I could almost SEE JOE's wife smile through the phone...

"Okay, LESLIE, I'll tell him, thanks..." (Hangs up the phone.)

As soon as I clicked the cell phone off, I put it on vibrate, five seconds later it started buzzing...I let it go voicemail...

"That'll teach that stupid punk..."

Ironically enough, I did have a backup plan...someone out there needed a smile on their face, and I was just the FRIEND to help put it there...

BUT things never go the way they're planned. In a perfect universe that friend and I would have gone down to the seaport, checked out the latest exhibit down there, walked around inside the mall a bit and we would have been back at each other's home just as the snow was starting to fall...

But naturally, those plans fell through, too...

So, by 1pm...I grabbed my digital camera and decided to just roam the island...

Before I headed down to the subway, I took a picture of a billboard in the center of the main street in the heights...



1:15pm - "Fifty's still king in the Heights, I hear his movie's hitting DVD in a few weeks..."

I brought a all-day pass and headed down to the fashion district...



2pm - "I've passed this thing so many time and always wanted to take a picture of it..."



2:30 - "What's midtown without a look up at the Empire State Building?"



3:30 - "Squirrels in Madison Square"

As I started past the Flatiron Building, I started to see some flakes...



4:00 - "The Virgin Megastore at Union Square"



4:15 - "What kind of person would be proud enough call his coffee "Mud"?, and sell it on a "Mud Truck"?



4:45 - "Battery Park, The wind is starting to blow the snow around a bit, now. (but it's not sticking to to ground!)



5:00 - "Water Street - Found this poster on the phone booth."

At around 5:30, I arrived at the Seaport, an ordinary person would have been drawn away by the weather now. Dark, cold, windy, and a dusting of snow, me? I was having the time of my life like a crazy person! There were people still around the mall area as I window shopped all the stores. All the walking around was getting to me, but I was afraid if I sat down, I'd fall into a coma (Had to keep walking around to stay awake...). I decided to treat myself to some minutes on a massage chair. $5 for 15 minutes, $1 for 3...once again, seen it a few times, never tried it...IT WAS HEAVEN!, I'd recommend it for anyone whose been stressed out.

The seaport is always cool, I remember the last time I was around here, I took a picture of a nut in a chicken suit.

At 6:30 I left the seaport and started heading uptown, it was pretty dark now so taking pictures was out of the question. Walking back to Union Square when I could have easily taken the bus was crazy, but I did it anyway...I kept thinking back to that Bruce Springsteen Music Video for "Streets of Philadelphia"...him just walking throughout the streets...

And me, walking alone in the city, in the sleet in the snow...This is the story of my life, the way I'm going to be for the majority of my life...the snow pelting of my face, the wind numbing my fingers and my body through my thin autumn jacket...this is my life...a long walk down a cement street in the cold. Man, I'm getting deep.

It was 7:15 when I arrived back at union square and walked into the warmth of Barnes and Noble. I checked the Humor section for any Garfiend, Boondocks or Foxtrot Comic Strip collections, then browsed around a bit.

I can't believe some people in these bookstores that lay on the floor in the aisles or stand in front of certain shelves reading books, they look like statutes frozen stiff and in the way! Some don't even move when someone's approching..."Hey buddy, get yer nose outta the damn book and move so I can reach one!"..."Get off the floor, this ain't your mom's house! People are walking around, MOVE!" I found the infamous PostSecret book based on the website, and a new attempt on Sci-Fi by Walter Mosley.

At 8 0'clock I checked in with mom at the house, she said Psycho-Sis brought a washer and dryer and arrainged to have it delivered, she then dropped off my niece at our house and took off before the snow got real bad. I sighed, knowing what was waiting for me at home made me wanna stay out later (Damn, I wish I drank...). Still afraid to sit down and fall asleep walked around the bookstore s'more and browsed the bargain books tables.

By 9, it was getting late and I was finally getting hungary to I started walking crosstown from 5th and found a Wendy's. The snow was starting to coat the streets and parked cars so I took the train home back uptown. I would have taken the scenic route with the bus, but sometimes I'm afraid to take the bus in the snow...

At 10:15pm, I walked in and my niece immediately came up and hugged me in my damp cold jacket...

This kid, the more she drives you crazy, the more you love her...

"I was scared Uncle Leslie!"

"Scared?, Why?"

"Cuz you don't stay out a long time like you did..."

"Well, baby girl, sometimes I jus need some time alone..." I said.

"Oh, alright, just DON'T do that to me again, okay?"

I pat her on her head and smile..."Alright, I won't."

I took more pics than the ones posted and will put them on my Photoblog someday (Bear with me...).

By the time I went to bed, the snow was coming down but didn't seem like much, we'll see what happens in the morning...

Peace!