Let Your Conscience Be Your Guide

You would hope after our bad start that all would go well for our happy group. It did and it didn’t. Here’s the tale. I didn’t schedule anything for Saturday so that everyone would have a say in the activities. Don heard about a train exhibit in the Citibank building so we decided to make that our first stop. The exhibit cost a quarter of a million dollars to set up every year which has been deemed too expensive so this is the last year they are going to set it up. That made the visit even more special. As you moved around the display the year depicted, location in the US, and seasons changed. The detail was exquisite and the settings were charming. We eagerly got out our camera to capture a few of the vignettes only to find out that the battery was dead. We enjoyed the tour just the same and are thankful for the internet that allows us to enjoy someone else’s photography.
Next on the must do in New York was shopping. After all, we were in the shopping Mecca of the world. Keep in mind; this is the last Saturday before Christmas. Every store was filled to capacity. Byron arrived without a neck scarf so that was top of the list. We found a classy burnt red and olive green checked scarf at a street vendor, but it was probably better suited for spring than winter so despite the purchase the quest was still on. The second scarf was long enough for two scarves, so if Byron’s date ever needs a scarf he can share his and use it as an excuse to get close to her; or if he doesn’t like her there is enough length for him to keep his distance. Having conquered the scarf quest we moved on to the next activity, ice skating at Rockefeller Plaza. I have looked forward to skating with Paige, but at the price of $29 for entrance and rentals I decided to take my usual spot with the spectators and enjoy what I have missed, Paige skating. We weren’t the only ones with a dream to skate. We found the entrance to the rink, but it was blocked with queue ropes which meant the line was long and needed channeling. Calling the line long was an understatement, it was gargantuan, forever, 'I don’t think so', long! Not to mention that the long lines also meant a crowded rink. This could wait for another day, not to mention that on the way in we spotted Anthropologie across the street! Oh happy day. Like vampires on the scent of blood, Paige and I were across the street and through the doors. All Anthropologie stores are decorated in the same way, but this one was special, it had three floors! We were in heaven, the girls were anyway, and we were going to take our time and look at every corner. The boys quickly got bored and went in search of a camera shop so they could buy a battery charger while we played. I don’t know how long we shopped, but we found some great stuff and would have gone back again if we had a rich uncle to pay the bills.
The boys made their purchase and went on in search of food that they could take back to the hotel. ESPN would provide plenty of entertainment for them while they warmed up. Paige and I were assigned to get tickets at Time Square for that evening. Fueled with the excitement of our finds we calculated our direction and started off to Time Square. No one was sure what street the tickets were on so we walked a little further that we should have, but no problem, we were in New York and that made us happy. Excitement and happiness did not provide warmth, and it wasn’t too long before our hands and feet were beginning to respond to the cold. Paige went on a quest for Starbucks hot chocolate while I queued for the tickets. I made and inquiry about the play Spring Awakenings which Paige wanted to see and the guy said to not go if you were easily offended. I don’t like close-mindedness so I ignored his advice and didn’t ask any more questions. When Paige returned I told her what he said, and we decided to ask him to clarify his comment, but we couldn’t find him. By now we were frozen and I think maybe our brains were frozen because we could no longer think clearly and despite our conscience telling us to not buy the tickets, we bought them.
Day two provided a blunder almost as big as missing a flight during the holiday season. We were so frozen that we ran into the first store we could find and pretended like we were shopping. It was a small boot shop so it didn’t take long for us to overstay our welcome, however my Anthropologie bag was tore and could no longer hold our stuff. Luck for us the store clerk was nice and the store was a boot store so she was able to give us a sturdy, big bag. The boys had our lunch and we thought we could make it home, but we only got to Toys R Us before we had to go inside again. We could have renamed the store sardines in a can. We went to the second floor because the higher you went the warmer it was. The store was a mess and there were people everywhere. I would have cried if I would have had to stand in line for a register. When we were warmed up we found the escalator and headed down. No one could have prepared me for the end of that ride! The end of the escalator and the exit door were not that far apart and people don’t normally move as quickly as escalators so when you got to the bottom you were crushed together, like sardines, only there was a person pushing everyone forward toward the door so that the line wouldn’t stop. I could almost feel the back of the stair behind me as it came down to be sucked under the frame. Gratefully the line moved just in time and I myself started pushing the people in front of me forward so that I wouldn’t be the cause of an elevator accident for the people behind me. Out the door and home as quickly as our feet would take us was the goal. If the sidewalk wasn’t icy and the coast was clear we would run. We were cold and hungry and ready to rest up for the evening. Anxiously pensive could describe my mood as we dressed to go to the play. We told the boys about my conversation with the man, but Paige had researched the play before we left and some of her friends had seen the play so we felt confident that it would be okay. At this point the monologue is feeling torturous so I will tell you two things. Number one, the girls in the seats behind us were talking about the play in excitement so I turned around and asked them about it. One girl said she loved it so much that she tattooed the lyrics to on of the songs on her side, then she raised her shirt and showed us! Number two, we left at intermission. End of story, and end of day. Oh dear.