Reno Update....

OK, I was just kidding. There is no update on the renovation. At this point, perhaps not decamping for a temporary apartment and living through the Manhattan renovation stress and frustration might be better than an upheaval - especially for wonder-cat who is now a bit more than 20 years old .

The good news is that despite the economy, at the moment Jay and I are still bringing in enough to pay the mortgage and maintenance and have enough left over for human and kittie treats. Sadly, that's not so for many here in our neighborhood. Our proximity to Downtown Manhattan means that many people in Greenwich Village are in the finance and banking businesses. And it seems that several people that used to disappear by 6:45am and return no earlier than 7pm are now around in the afternoon, dressed much more casually than last month. Not a good sign. Seems we'll all just have to hunker down until the storm has passed, and hope we don't get buffeted (unless it's Warren Buffeted) by the storm surge.

Sorry - while I'm quite happy to not have any life upheavals to report, I know this post isn't very interesting... :-(

Airborne Pigs and Chilly in Hades

While the Mythical Renovation remains a myth, pigs did fly and it got cold in hell on the Fourth of July, 2007. Yes, Jay and I are now truly, legally and completely married! We ran away to a Caribbean island, waited through the required residency period, and on a lovely evening just before sunset we were pronounced husband and wife.

Am I the only one who finds it ironic to get married on Independence Day?

Yes, life just got more wonderful and more interesting....

Stay Tuned

While no news or information or pretty much anything yet, I have real hopes that my next post will really and truly be... interesting!

The Mythical Renovation...

...remains a myth. It is a promised wonder of architectural beauty, usability and convenience, but the incredible amount of work that needs to be done prior to the first sledgehammer swing is daunting. Plus, we'll have to move out for the approximately 6 months of clearing-to-the-walls and rebuilding everything in the kitchen, two baths, living area and bedroom. In a loft, you can't partition off work space and living space during the process.

We're really OK living in this space for now. The counter-high 'frig has made life oh so much better, and we can even sort of freeze little things briefly (yippee!). It's so much easier than renovating, that making our home homey has taken a back seat to work, life, and enjoying Zoot-cat as he approaches 19.

More when/if there's anything even vaguely interesting to report, and I suspect there will be soon....

Dog Days and Valentine's Day

February in the City means two things: the Westminster Kennel Club dog show, and Valentine's Day. If this were New Jersey, I'd add in the Big Apple Sporting Society and GSA Specialty dog shows as well, but it's Manhattan so I'll keep from "straying" too far.

In addition to being a former Long Islander, the Westminster Kennel Club dog show (WKC or "the Garden show") means a lot to me. I competed in this champions-only show five times in a row - well, my dog competed; I was just along to translate the judge's commands. Just getting in to the show means your dog is a Champion (unless you're a Junior Handler, and I'm far from a junior anything). Now that my dog is gone and Zoot the wonder-cat is my companion, I still satisfy my dog-show jones in two ways. One is my club's show on Long Island, and the other is by attending the Big Show at The Garden.

This year was cold and the snow started during Day Two's events, but I wouldn't miss it. The gorgeous Akita from the Working Group was my hope, and the Dandie Dinmont from Terriers was the favorite but it turned out that the judge picked a nice English Springer Spaniel, though I've not always found that dog's handler to always be nice when in competition against her. Oh well - can't hold the handler against the dog, or the dog against the handler.

As far as the Day After the Dog Show, it was Valentine's Day. Jay had selected a gift for delivery on the day of hearts, but the snow-and-ice event caused whatever that was to not appear. Jay spent days trying to reach the company by phone, growing more frustrated as they charged his credit card without actually delivering anything. Today, President's Day, two dozen roses arrived thanks to Jay's giving up on The Item and calling a florist. They are gorgeous, even if the story behind them is uncomfortable yet interesting....

Ringing in the New Year in an Old Way

Every year, I've watched the New Year's Eve festivities/insanity on my TV, serenely glad to not be one of the masses crowded into Times Square. A good New Year's Eve had me asleep a few minutes after midnight. A better New Year's Eve saw me asleep an hour before midnight, sleepily kissing Jay sometime around the year's turn, and back to slumberland.

A slightly new tune is now sung here in my little slice-ette of Greenwich Village. Turns out that ringing in the New Year with a whole bunch of strangers (and Jay, of course) in Times Square is a whole lot better than I thought it would be. It was...dare I say the word...FUN!

The secret, evidently, is to have a fiance who has a strong contact in Times Square who gets invited to the "party within the party" - a private gathering in the middle of the very public gathering. We were part of a group that had its own barricaded-off section of Times Square, and best of all, access to warmth and indoor plumbing. Yup - that's the way to ring (and flush) in the New Year. I found the whole experience quite interesting....

Holiday time in the Big Apple

Getting through the crowds on Broadway, frenzied shopping mania and Christmas tips for building personnel are all part of the NYC full-service holiday experience. Was easier last year before I had a roster of clients all trying to tuck in year-end work, but I'm glad to have the work and just turned to eBay for much of my shopping ;-)

There really is a tree in Washington Square Park right in front of the arch on the 5th Avenue side. Lots of lights, and looks very pretty at night. We've been having such delightfully warm weather this year (it's probably due to Global Warming so maybe I shouldn't be so happy ), that I took a moment to go to the park, and then take a walk to Union Square (didn't notice if they had a tree - I was on a mission to Trader Joe's, still my favorite store).

As far as proceeding on The Renovation, well, we've agreed to start thinking about it again one of these days. The very good news is that the new-and-improved version of Coleman double-height queen size blow-up beds crap out within a month or two, which means they're still under K-mart's return policy. I've got the pack-up, bring back and exchange for one without big airbumps (6 or more inches higher than the rest of the bed!) thing down pat, and the people at K-mart have been really nice about it.

And the fridge-ette, aaaah the joys of a fridge with a compressor! The little freezer compartment (about 5" high) actually keeps things pretty much frozen, if you don't put a lot of stuff in there. No light in the fridge was an unpleasant surprise, but really - who cares???

So life continues at the end of my first year in the Big Apple, though lately it hasn't been very interesting....