NYC Weekend Recap

On Saturday night, Vanessa and I ventured to NYC to meet up with Mike and catch a Norwegian film called "Reprise." It was one of those nights that kind of takes you on an unexpected adventure.

We met at the Chatham train station, in the 95 degree heat. I had a pounding headache, bordering on a migraine, but I was determined to endure it. I seem to remember it disappearing right around the time I got back into the air conditioning on the train.

The ride to the city started off like any other train ride. Until we got to the Maplewood station (Also known as the tilted station.). Apparently, there was some sort of a scuffle or disagreement over a bicycle. The police had to be summoned, and we had to wait until they arrived. Well, let me tell you this: I never want to get shot in Maplewood, because we sat there for about 45 minutes before the cops showed up. I know this, because there was one of those bank clocks outside the train window, taunting us with the passing minutes. Vanessa was screaming inside her head, much like Elaine in that episode of Seinfeld where she gets stuck on the subway. She knew that the movie was starting at 9:00, with or without us, and to miss the start of the movie would be a serious detriment to the evening's plans. I had given up on worrying about it, as I knew my worrying wasn't going to make the train go any faster.

To top it all off, there was a crazy crackhead woman sitting in front of us. She chugged an entire party mug of beer as she got on the train, and then proceeded to bang said party mug on the window in her frustration at the long wait, screaming about how "this is some bull****!" She even peered over the seat to have a word with Vanessa, who did her best to not look like a frightened deer. Once the train started moving again, someone stole her seat, and she walked back and forth along the train looking for her bag. I could've sworn she went back and forth about at least 15 times. In hindsight, I should have been less of a jerk and told her that some punks had stolen her seat and that her bag was in the seat ahead of us. In all honesty, the German in me was getting a kick out of the schadenfreude.

We finally got to Penn Station, and walked up to the street level. We were too late to chance the subway, so we decided to catch a cab. We quickly walked past the suckers in line for cabs outside Penn station, and made our way down the street a little bit to flag a cab of our own. Luckily, a few people were getting out right at Penn station, and we were able to grab their cab as they got out.

We drove downtown, and made it just in time to meet up with Mike and catch the previews. The movie was definitely enjoyable, if a bit out there.

Afterwards, we made our way to an upscale diner in the East Village known as 7A. Vanessa got the biggest bowl of vegetables ("The Healthy Bowl") I've ever seen in my life. The girl seated at the table behind me even muttered, "That's a big salad!" as it was brought out. I got some delicious tortilla chips and some of the best guacamole I've had in a long time. Mike had an Avocado Tuna Melt that looked equally delicious. The restaurant had a nice atmosphere. I always enjoy taking a trip to NYC, because I often find myself at some interesting places.

While we were sitting there, eating our late night meal, a trio of horns (And tuba. Is a tuba a horn?) put on an impromptu performance to serenade the diners outside. The big windows in 7A gave us a nice view of the spectacle, and just enough sound came through to make the atmosphere that much more phantasmal.