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New York and the Big Dogs

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One of the most elemental feelings that you can get in New York City is the sense that something might suddenly happen, and soon.  This state of being on the verge of an unknown event or quality is hard to describe, but absolutely certain and present, and it’s also very, very appealing. There is something similar going on in the city on the other side of the country, Los Angeles, but there are differences, and these differences are some of what really distinguishes the cities from each other.  On the west coast, the good luck that’s about to come your way will lead to a house and a car and time to skate near the ocean.  On the east coast, good luck is going to lead to conversations with people you’ve always wanted to meet, and a better set of conditions in which to make new work.

The difference, then, can be reduced to the cerebral over the physical, but that would be to pose a kind of mind-body dualism that could be taken apart too quickly.  This might be why there are New York casino hotels here, as well as near to Hollywood.  It’s a kind of way to make manifest the sensation of something interesting, that kind of on-the-verge-ness that’s always lurking, and keeps people moving here.  Part of the appeal, of course, can be reduced to money, and that is a commodity that can be logically understood in both cerebral and physical terms.

But there’s something much more to it than that.  In fact, there is a kind of quality about the way winning is presented in each city that is subtle but absolutely there.  In New York, it is a kind of big dog contest, and the biggest dog gets everything, and the biggest dog will also be lucky at the table.  In California, the dog doesn’t have to be big, but young, and also sleek, and a little smart doesn’t hurt.  But not too smart, because that takes away the charm.  Young dog vs. big dog, then, might be the distinction, and those who do not wish to be dogs might have to stay somewhere in the middle, where they can sleep all day and not worry about things that may or may not matter.

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Wedding Rehearsal Dinner at the Rusty Pelican in Miami

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Once again Fanny was left behind as a bridesmaid and had still never received a single marriage proposal. She was now the last of a group of ten friends and after Wendy’s upcoming wedding she would be the only one of them who was yet to be married. Interestingly, this was actually part of a conversation three of them had taken part in when Jodie, the first of them to get married, became engaged. Until that happened they never really thought about a particular order and on that night the three of them made a list of who they thought would get married and in what order and the also included what they anticipated to be the length of each marriage and whether or not they currently knew the person’s future spouse. As it turned out that night, Jodie was scheduled to be sixth in line for the big day, not last and at the time the other two even thought she was dating her future husband. Jodie wanted to laugh, but she was also surprisingly melancholic as she sat in her room at one of Miami’s fabulous hotels on the morning of the wedding rehearsal. Everything went beautifully that day and Fanny had to enjoy herself, despite of herself. She didn’t wish Wendy, or any of her other married friends, ill will and felt about her own disappointed feelings, but she just couldn’t escape a nagging feeling of failure.

However, everything suddenly changed for her during the rehearsal dinner party that was held at the Rusty Pelican that night. It seemed as though from out of nowhere a beautiful man appeared and unbelievably he seemed to be by himself. What was he doing there she wondered. After a little bit of investigation, she learned that he was a friend of Monique’s (one of the ten) husband. The husband had asked him to come along because he thought Monique would be off with her friends the entire time and he wanted to watch a few ball games. Oh, and the mystery man’s name was Jake. It got even better from there. Jake and Fanny were seated next to each other ended up having a great conversation over the shrimp scampi. Somehow, each of them knew and could tell by the look in the other’s eye that the knowledge was mutual. They were destined to meet each other that night and Fanny suddenly thought she was the luckiest of the ten friends.

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The Wright Brothers From Dayton, Ohio

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Wilbur and Orville Wright are two of the most famous world personalities to spring from Dayton, Ohio, and “wrigthly” so. They are also the two people who developed and built the world’s first successfully flying airplane. This is a national distinction, let alone one based at the city or state level. The real magic began in December of 1903. On the seventeenth of that month the Wright brothers actually sustained their first human flight. During the following two years they continued to work on their flying machine and completed their version of a fixed wing aircraft. It should be noted that other people had attempted flying machines and experimental aircraft though they are credited with being the first to invent the aircraft controls that allowed fixed wing flights to be possible.

Residents of Dayton, Ohio are sure to know the details of this early flight and the development of their craft. However, tourists who visit the city and stay in one of the hotels Dayton are likely to be happy knowing the Wright brothers are responsible for making their trip happen. However, while they are there they may learn that the brother’s greatest invention would be the three-axis control mechanism, which allowed the pilot to maintain equilibrium. This system remains standard on fixed wing flying devices.

The Wright brothers were two of seven children born to the their parents Milton and Susan Catherine. Both of the brothers attended high school though neither of them received a diploma. In addition, neither of the brothers ever married and they devoted their lives and their attention to their work. Their fascination with flying and flying machines is frequently reported to have began when their father brought home a toy helicopter for them. The boys loved this bamboo and cork foot long helicopter and played with it until it broke. After that they built a new one.

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Lawyer Starts New Career in San Francisco

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Victor crossed the Bay Bridge in his new Toyota Camry and was headed home to his new apartment in the city. He couldn’t believe it. After all those years of uncertainty and endless hours of academic writing, reading and studying he had finally finished law school and had even landed a promising job in San Francisco. It was only three months ago that he had first arrived to the California Bay area, and that time it was by plane. He flew into Oakland and took BART to a hotel San Francisco where he relaxed and prepared for his interview the next morning. It was also there a month ago after having received the job offer and found himself the apartment he was now headed home to.

Ultimately Victor planned to start his own criminal defense practice though for now he intended to gain as much experience as he could. He never dreamed that he would be so fortunate as to actually get to live and work in a city such as San Francisco, but as he exited the bridge he was sure it was real. This was now his life and he was going to make the most of it.

He had even already made a friend. Well, technically it was an acquaintance but it gave Victor more of a sense of belonging. One thing he discovered immediately was that it was easy to feel lost and alone in a big city, especially one in which he didn’t know anyone. However, he had struck up a conversation with one of the court clerks while he was at the San Francisco Superior Court on his second day on the job. He was being given a tour of the city and all the buildings he would need to frequent regularly and he noticed Kelly’s friendly face right away. She introduced herself and the two of them hit it off right away. He looked for her again the following week when he was there and found her walking through the door as she returned from getting coffee across the street. He looked at her and knew San Francisco was going to bring him great things.

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San Francisco’s Not a Disappointment After All

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Let me explain, when I was in Portland, I was in this hiking shop and was reading about all the numerous hikes I could take while staying in San Francisco. I thought this was great since I booked a cheap hotel on-line for 6 nights: http://www.sanfranciscorestaurant.com. But, when arrived in San Francisco and made a few inquiry’s about these large number of hikes, I was told that the majority of the hikes were inaccessible by public transportation. My hopes were shattered.

I did my best to uplift my mood, so I headed downtown and came across ‘Union Square’ and just happened to see this man perform. He was promoting a variety show that he and his fellow performers would be performing later in the evening. He was a juggler – comedy act and I found him very entertaining. I was really enjoying his performance, but then he was followed by a stand-up comic who wasn’t funny at all. I felt kind of bad for him, he was really blowing it. I left before any more damage was done.

I found the Famous ‘Bloomingdale’s’ and was stunned by how huge it was and by how expensive it was. There were a few cool things in the store, like the two enclosed glass cabinets displaying the costumes for the ‘Joker’ and for ‘Batman’ from the movie ‘The Dark Knight’. Later, I hoped on the tram, which really didn’t do anything for me, I felt like there were just glorified buses. I found myself at the waterfront and I came across a chocolate factory that had some free samples. I managed to down a load of samples, and no one gave me a dirty look or anything. I then walked down the waterfront a bit further and came across Pier 39, which turned out to be a very interesting place with cafes and shops, a Hard Rock Cafe and a shop that was selling an original Abraham Lincoln signature at the sheer price of $18,000! Then I heard seals, but not before I smelled them. There on the harbour were all these massive seals hanging around a dock, well more like took over a dock. I stood watching them for a while, they were so funny. As I continued down, I came upon Fisherman’s Wharf.

By this time I felt I got in a good hike, even though it wasn’t a nature hike, I at least saw wildlife! I returned to my very inexpensive hotel room and call it a night and a great day after all.

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Weekend Trip to LA and a Production of Les Miserables

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One of the most exciting and overall fun times I’ve had in my life was an overnight trip to Los Angles that my boyfriend of the time, Dan, surprised me with. I’m an actor and have been most of my life, having been bitten by the bug at an early age after appearing onstage as part of a grade school class project. It so happened that I was in rehearsal for a production of William Inge’s The Dark at the Top of the Stairs when my twenty-second birthday rolled around. My car’s timing belt had broken and my car was in the shop overnight so Dan had dropped me off at rehearsal and was going to pick me up after it was over. At the time I wasn’t even thinking about the next day being my birthday. Plus, I was going to be twenty-two, all the exciting birthdays were over and I would officially be old. Or so I thought.

However, Dan, being a true romantic had asked my roommate Jodie, who also happened to be my best friend, to pack an overnight travel bag for me that would include a nice dress to where to the theatre. He then had his friend Troy take him to pick me up and told me that his car had also broken down. We were both students at the time and car problems were a common occurrence. I didn’t think anything about it, other than it was unfortunate, and got in the car.

That’s when things got really strange. After I sat down in the car Dan blindfolded me. I didn’t resist, though I had no idea what was going on it felt like fun so I went with it. When the blindfold was finally removed I was sitting at a departure gate for Southwest Airlines. This was before September of 2001, by the way. Way before. At that moment Dan showed me the two tickets to Los Angeles and also two tickets for Les Miserables, which was playing in the city at the time. I was absolutely stunned and thrilled. We flew in with time to have a nice dinner before checking into a Los Angeles cheap hotel. We had a fabulous time that weekend and Dan’s friend Troy was there to pick us up again when he got home. However, I had to go straight from the airport to the theatre as the trip had been planned perfectly between them. That was one of the greatest birthday weekends and also one of my favorite trips to LA.

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Justine Henin Back for Australian Open

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Belgian tennis star and former number player, Justine Henin is back for the upcoming Australian Open Tennis Championship Tournament.  Last year she claimed she was quitting tennis for good, which would have quite a loss to the sport.  At the times she quit and retired for the quiet life, she was ranked in the number one position worldwide.  She has, after all, won the gland slam 7 times, forty-one Women’s Tennis Association Tour, about more than twenty million bucks in money for her wins and accomplishments.  Perhaps such accomplishments are all the more surprising considering her small size and weight.

She actually came back in September when she made the formal announcement that she would be returning to prepare for the Australian Open in 2010.  Henin believes her time off from tennis has actually been good for and improved her game, though she has been fiercely preparing for the tournament that will be held at Brisbane International.

Part of the reason she feels that she is better is that she has matured during her time off from tennis.  The tennis world can be a very exclusive one, and not as large as say the world of basketball or football, American and British versions.  Getting out of the world of tennis actually was quite refreshing and renewed her enthusiasm for the sport.  Henin knows it will take some time to get back to her peak performance abilities and level, but she doesn’t mind.  It’s all a part of the journey for her.

She is famous for her one-handed backhand, which John McEnroe commented on as being the best he had ever seen in men’s or women’s tennis, and being a former top professional tennis player himself, is no small compliment.  Her speed and agility made her famous too, along with her ability to stay tough during difficult games; she never let an opponent psych her out.  And that’s the kind of ability you never lose and that will help her during the tournament.

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Family Fun in Austin, Texas

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When traveling through the city of Austin, Texas you will find that not only are there many options for nightlife, in the way of fabulous restaurants and legendary live music venues, but so too are there options that are fit for the entire family to enjoy.  One of the hot spots of the city, sits just thirty miles from the downtown district, located close to many of the best Austin hotels, and along the banks of Lake Travis.  This is the Volente Beach Waterpark.  This is the only park of its kind in the city of Austin, and so many of the locals flock here during the hot summer months.  There are many rides, many water slides, an area for the very young and unsteady, as well as a sandy and beautiful beach to set up camp for the day and have a picnic.  There are many different tours available, in the forms of hiking and cruise ships, as well as the rentals of boats and companies providing the adventurous activity of para-sailing.

One of the favorite spots for an afternoon lunch or an evening cocktail is the Sundowner Grill.  The restaurant offers up a bit of what is now commonly known as Tex-Mex fare.  Zilker Park has many activities to offer for family fun as well, including soaks in the Barton Springs natural pools.  If you and your kids are not too squeamish, one of the traditional activities in the city during the summer occurs each night at sunset.  This is the time to be close to the bridge of Congress Avenue …and it involves thousands and thousands of bats.

Yes, bats!  Each night upon the arrival of dusk, the bats wake from their daytime naps and head out across the city.  Not only is this a spectacular sight, but a natural wonder.  There are a lot of bugs patrolling the skies during the summer, nasty things like mosquitoes, that not only wreak havoc on tender human skin, but on the crops and the ecosystem as well.  The bats take care of this.  Without them, the city of Austin would be as fun to walk around as say, a small town in Northern Minnesota, where the mosquitoes are as big as hummingbirds and the vicious black flies are hungry.  In all, there is a variety of fun things to do, from water slides to spooky bats, that will keep you and your children not only occupied, but filled with wonder, on any trip you take to the city that likes to “keep it weird“.

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