Bye NYC

Last morning JOE.

As You Like It

Shakespeare in the Park is another gift to the lucky people of this city.  It can be a full time job to get the free tickets however.  There is a daily, on-line lottery.  One can also go to the box office of Delacorte Theatre and get first-come-first-serve tickets.  I have met people who go with a lawn chair and snack at 7am.  It can be a very convivial experience. Another option is the stand-by line for tickets that are not picked up by 7pm.

While trying daily, we did win the on-line lottery ticket.  Tuesday was an additional performance and I think it was not on a lot of peoples' radar.  The email message suggested that I call the box office to check how many line tickets were left.  I walked over and got two!  I was not suppose to take photos but I could not resist - we are sitting at the next to last row! We made a picnic for the park  from the refrigerator leftovers and a water bottle full of the remaining Manhattan supplies. 

A Few of My Favorite Things

Weekly fresh flowers from the corner store $15
Wash and fold laundry $8.50/10#
Mani/pedi with creative color suggestions $24
Central Park Conservancy
West Side Community Garden
Riverside Park
All Souls NYC
Weekday Cyclists
92Y
Museum pass
Geezer Metro Card
Shakespeare in the Park
Brooklyn Bridge
Barge Music
129 W. 89th Street
Museum of the City of New York
The Met

East Bay Visit

I spent a whirlwind visit to Audrey as she wound down her teaching year.  I loved spending the day with her teaching in the classroom.  We had a leisurely dinner out with time for a coffee stop on University Avenue.

Another day was spent sorting out lesson plans and her classroom for the end of the year, then dinner with Erica and Lenny at Vanessa's.  Vanessa's on Solano is fresher, more delicious and less expensive than anything we have had in NYC!  The third day was gathering items for her trip to the Galapagos.  We had a delightful surprise by running into Freya and her family at the Whole Foods Market in Oakland! How could one baby look so much like her Mom, her Dad and her Grandmother? Well, I do know about genetics.  She is a beautiful, sturdy bundle for sure.

Columbus Lassies

A nice dinner at Becco with Bon and Bev.  We each worked together at some point in Columbus and moved to NYC in 1966, 1967 and 1968.  I left with Carl in 1972!

One last hug!

Oh, CP, I love walking in and through you every chance I get.

West Side Community Garden, you are the beauty of every season and my welcome rest spot.

Hydrangea time!

Roosevelt Island

Note the fear in my face having just put the bike on an elevator to get on the Tram.

and you may remember that I do not like heights!

It is another world on Roosevelt Island.  My favorite place was The Octagon, a restored apartment complex.  Carl had explored "Welfare Island" in 1966 as a graduate student.  They walked over the 59th Street Bridge and climbed down a stairway from the bridge to the deserted island.  They entered The Octagon, a deserted hospital and found the circular stairway and saw rooms full of beds and medical records laying around.  The fire department practiced burning buildings on the island. 

This is the remains of the Smallpox Hospital.  The housing and "main street" look pretty boring.  The residents to whom we spoke liked living there.  Newer changes of note are a nice park at the south end and having a Duane Reade - not my idea of a great thing however.  I think they could use some planning before  Cornell moves in. Why cars, for instance?

We biked home via the East River to Carl Schurz Park then across town through CP to home.  This stairway is part of the bike path - right? Take note of the rail on the left, an easier way to push your bike up or down the stairway.