It’s that time of year again folks! Yup– you guessed it: end of the semester crunch!

After having an incredibly wonderful time in NYC this past weekend, it only took 2 days of ‘normal life’ to make it feel like ‘normal life’ again. Enter the thought: Mark just took a break and needs another! So I did. I went to chapel. er.. chapel came to me, last week’s that is. I actually woke up early (for me!) and listened in on “Uncle CJ” (I think one of Christine’s friends made such a comment!) One of my friends suggested I listen in, since I’ve recently had a relational conflict! He did a great job of spelling it out. And I sure hope a bunch of guys ‘got it’, cuz we need that sermon so much! I certainly have heard the lie that home is to be PRIMARILY a “refuge for relaxation rather than context to serve.” I loved his ‘cravings’ list: “affection, attention, power, vindication, control, comfort, hassle-free life.”

Bingo. That’s SO me. Why do I want a hassle-free (task-free) life? Because my heart is SCREAMING for –space–. Peace. If I’m being hassled on the inside by the lies, by my unconfessed sin, then I will SCREAM for space and peace and an empty ‘task list.’ (Note: lame guys go after what they feel is the ‘hassle-free girl’!)
And with all this comes something I think (because I keep experiencing it!) is common in schooling: losing vision. I had the worst ‘crash’ in undergrad, just waiting to get out. I’ve talked with a guy here who had a similar ‘crash’ a year ago. And even last night, when asked “What about Germany Mark?” Oh.. what? huh? planning for that? Sheesh! One MORE thing I’ve forgotten to DO! Well, one thing at a time & it’ll have to wait til crunch time is over.

But really.. the solution to all this? It isn’t to hate to do lists more.. I hope we’re all smarter than that. It’s to keep our world ‘right side up’.. keep our hope first, and our tasks second. If our tasks are first, our hope won’t just be second, it’ll die. And we’ll die with it. And death isn’t exactly what Jesus, or those after him are about..

It’s funny, cuz I live 90 miles per hour (that’s 144 kph.. I need to practice for DE!) There’s something in me that likes the pressure.. likes to have things ‘flowin’ & goin’. I’m thinkin it’s the ‘D’ (dominant-control) in me meeting up with the ‘C’ (organising).. the result: self-worth not in what I do, but in how well/fast/efficient I’m able to do. I’ve written before in passing about how I think each personality has significant spiritual issues to deal with, and I think this is definately mine. And so I return to the now-old line: “Could it be, that my worth should depend, on the crimson stained grace on a hand!(J.Knapp, for those who don’t recognise)”

10.30.06: 20:00:

24 hours ago, I was in an airport in NYC. 12 hours ago I was in an airport in Chicago. 9 hours ago I arrived back in L-ville, and 6 hours ago I got a text message from one of the guys: “I wanna go back to NYC!” I agree. I don’t think I got enough of Central Park.. I know I missed out on bunches..

I guess it’s nice being back. I’ve had renewed energy (even before my 1.5 hr  dead-to-the-world nap) to work.. but maybe that’s out of requirement than desire..

I weighed my pack when I got in and to my dismay, it was a mere 30 lbs with my laptop in it! The thing felt like 50 yesterday! Not having had any rest last night, I dreaded each time I put my pack on this morning. And now I feel my trapezoidal muscles being supertight.. time for the advil.

I’m really glad I took *this* trip.. I’m glad I took the chance & flew out of NYC instead of Philly with the others. I’m glad I kept to budget (albeit on a fluke with the lack of planning!) It’s more than ‘task accomplished,’ not so much ‘lessons learned,’ but life experienced, stories to tell & enjoy. and perhaps “bragging rights” is involved in there somewhere. I’ve been to NYC. “And it was good..”

10/28/06 : 11:15:
We got separated on the train in to nyc. Now I’m alone in the the apple! Rock on.
Manhattan is actually easy to get around in! I know where I’m going & I’m cool with it! To the bagel shop!

10/29/06 10:53: review of yesterday, and the rest of today..
Ok, so the bagel shop was further a walk than I expected.. actually, just a warmer day & it was hidden with subtle color tones

& I didn’t get my cream cheese, but corned beef instead, since it was lunchtime by the time I got there.
The guys went off for tickets & I headed over there. Went too far, almost to central park & came back thru times sq to Empire State.

Times was the ‘awe’ we were looking for. It’s FILLED with mouing color! Mostly LED signs- the biggest you’ll ever see. And people. Since it’s tourist-central, they don’t move.

So empire state.. It was SO windy up top! It started cloudy, but broke enough to cast some good light on the buildings & get a sunset shot over the Hudson.

One of our guys was still looking for some shoes, so he tried Aldo across the street while I found us a $120 dinner. Salmon & tuna.. & more laughs.

They strolled off to Rent, & I back to the hotel for work. Met a guy from Israel walking down 6th. We joked about how his work brought him here & my friend in NYC is in Tel Aviv. He was leaving town & gave me his map.

It’s funny. I’ve done this routine to NYC from the hotel 3 days now. And I know it like the back of my hand already.
The other guys went back to Philly this morning. I’m kinda glad I chose a flight out of LaGuardia. I think I would have been sad to not see Central Park or the dinosaurs! I would have had more time with the guys though.
[missing post.. come back for edit later: events: train to central park(and bouldering there!) and American Natural History Museum]

10/29/06 15:10
My bag is heavy! My back & knees are sore. Need pecs & lats worked
I’m SO not a biology guy! Dinosaurs & cosmology & that’s it! Why do they make all the dead animal exhibits so dark & scary?!

10/29/06: 15:56:
They just kicked me out of the metro art museum! (ok, denied entrance) 16″ bags only. Grr- wanted to see the Ancient Near East stuff some friends did on their class trip here!
Gugenheim? No time.

10/29/06 16:32:
I think I’m getting my exercise for all of winter walking CP! But the wind blowing through my wear is a perfect offset to my heat!

CP is something else. Old trees (unlike manicured Chicago) with tall buildings 1 block off.. city & nature. Amazing.

10/29/06 17:44
Got out of CP right on time! Started getting dark & I headed (luckily) to the populated & lit broadway, where my bus to Laguardia is. I even saw one stopped!
Asked 2 locals & found ‘Tom’s Restaurant’- that is, “Seinfeld’s Café” where I am writing this. The place has gotten snazzed up since then. Characatures of each of the cast.. I knew it was over this way thanks to the ladies behind us in line for the Empire State. They gave us their audio tour handhelds which told me it’s in the NW corner of CP. It’s a great little place- not a ‘greasy spoon’ by any means.. It’s got the full gamut of food- like ‘Golden nugget’ in Chicago.
Just ordered a pork dinner- the chicken soup was incredible! I never finish my soup- the broth is.. broth. Oil. But this stuff! Hearty, thick & good!
Alright. This place is my new favorite! great all around. Even if it is run by a bunch of mexicans!
It’s funny- maybe sad. I can’t think straight I’m so worn. My legs & back have been hurting for 3 hours now. Like Carmen noted- when traveling, your senses are heightened- you’re so aware of every little thing. And like hiking, I’m worn & food tastes so good. Only had a bagel & cream cheese & dinner 2 nights in a row! Ha! I just had to loosen my belt!
I couldn’t finish! My stomach had shrunk.

Trekking the city with this (presumed) 35 lb pack is such a ‘test run’! Sure I got some looks with it, but I felt most people happy to help when asked.
I could imagine doing this in any city anywhere so long as I had the language.
I *couldn’t* imagine doing this with anyone else. There’s no way anyone is THIS hard-core! I walked from one end of CP to the other, criss-crossing the whole way! SE corner @ Carnegie, through & up to Am. Nat. Hist. Mus. Over & up to Metro Art Mus. Up to Gugenheim, up & across to the NE corner to broadway. My 2 guys I came with wouldn’t last. Especially with a pack!
10/29/06 20:04: LaGuardia was a nice little 40 bus ride.. only to find ATA closed at 6pm, reopening at 4:15 am. Looks like I’ll be blogging alot tonight..

10/27/06: 00:55:

Wow. It’s been a day. I’ve already posted on half of it, but here’s the crazy rest of it! Last time we found our intrepid explorers awaiting vistas of grandeur of the nation’s largest city. And Vistas of Gradeur they found! Pictures after pictures taken from cameras upon cameras! My 3megapixel, one guy’s 7 megapixel with my SD card, a 1.3 megapixel phone, another 2 megapixel phone.. and waaay too many pix! It’ll be great to compile ‘em all!

After the ferry around the harbor (skyline, ellis, liberty statue, brooklyn bridge) we meandered through the streets of NYC to find the WTC.. or lack thereof. Upon walking too far north we bump into “the happiest place on earth”.. no, not Mickey Mouse’s home– STARBUX!

Lemme just say, the grande pumpkin latte WASN’T big enough! So good!
Well, we find our way to the old WTC & it’s this big, open chasm. In the middle of the city, blocks open, surrounded by fence. And it hits us. People were running through THESE streets.. ya just stand there & wonder.. recreate a bit.. become apart.

We go off to find a TKTS, which we ask a million people where it is.. & miss it by 30 minutes. Ahh well, we say more of the city. Off to dinner, eh? Or shoe shopping. Close enough? It started sprinkling, so we needed to warm a bit.

More walking.. to soho. And walking.. thru soho. And starbux, and walking.. to little italy. And more rain. Man, it’s chilly! I had the warm clothes, I just didn’t expect it to cloud over like it did until tomorrow. oh, and soho is totally ‘bucktown’ in Chicago. One other striking comment– there’s huge mounds of trash on the sidewalk at the street’s edge. Why? No alleys. Definatlely makes for a dingy city.

So we make it to little italy. Honestly, it’s not an area so much as 1 little street. 1 very PACKED little street. Every place said 2 things: 1) we don’t have pizza, that’s at Lombari’s(sp?) 2) we don’t have lasagna. So we go off to this nation’s FIRST PIZZERIA! 1905, in NYC. The herd of people waiting attest to it’s quality. But we get in quick, and have a very nice Ukrainian waitress who tried to sell us more food. Definately doing her job!

Now, the 3 of us being from Chicago (more or less.. more less really) had to compare the NYC pizza to the Chicago deep-dish. Yeah, they call it “Deep dish” for a reason in Chicago, cuz this NYC stuff definately ain’t what you’d call “hearty.” More lik e an eighth to quarter inch crust rapidly cooked on the bottom. It works.. it was good. But not Chicago. The 3 of us downed the large in no time, with room to spare. Which was promptly filled by cheesecake and..

MORE LATTE’S!! This time from an Italian bakery 3 blocks off.

And it’s late, so we return to the hotel via 3 trains & a tram. Luckily, the tram was 24 hour, not ‘ending at midnight’ like the guy said.

I certainly learned a ton today. It was amazing to see the personalities(mostly the same) of my two friends come out compared to my hard-chargin’ personality come out.

One comment that we all made: “it isn’t overwhelmingly huge.” Honestly, it’s not like the buildings were insanely big. It’s not like there were endless, impossible heards of people. Maybe cuz it was colder, but we all thought it like Chicago, just “more of the same.” But the people looked & felt different.

[edit] One fun story from what is now yesterday.. Taking the NJ train into NYC was easy, especially with our new-found native New Yorker’s help. But coming back out was another trippin’ story altogether. Coming in there’s only 2 tracks. Going out of NYC? 10 tracks. A big station, and lots of people. All my “CD” instincts came alive & I was checkin’ the monitors & findin’ the track.. got it all in the 5 minutes we had to get on the train.

It was one of those “wow. that was crazy.. but that was so ME ‘on’..”

More fun at the museums tomorrow!

Trip log NYC – 10/26/06

From L-ville, it’s all wet & rainy so the flight is delayed to Chicago & the Philly flight out is as well.
No problem, I’ll just do some work. My laptop decided to be incredibly dumb & not connect to my phone. Random.
The battery was low, so now I’m sitting next to an outlet with my laptop wired out the camelback hole. Works well.
So I guess that means it’s 1/1 now. I could be reading, but I’m insanely tired. My 40 hours up haven’t been recovered. Didn’t sleep at all last nite either. Couldn’t nap either. My body can’t calm down. Hard to do or be anything.
Last minute hotel change. Now 3 blocks from Central Park, with 3 rooms for $50 more. This will be a crazy expensive trip.
Still waiting to board.

10/27/06 12:30:
ok, so I’m behind on writing! We got 5 hrs of sleep & had to take the girls to their convention. So crazy getting to their hotel! We went thru philly airport at least 5 times!

Breakfast at IHOP- we all got the same thing.. Cinnamon roll french toast, eggs, bacon, hash.
And off we fly- dood drives 90mph!
After not enough sleep, Mark becomes a control freak. We arrived at the hotel talking about personalities. I get it! My cohorts are “S”s! They’re so in love with that we’re here, no details can stop ‘em! but I like a ‘well oiled machine’ – all the details worked out so my emos can be free to enjoy things. Like my friend to join us.. Same as me. But I can learn to relax! I just need to tell myself I’m ok.

10/27/06 13:51
Just got on our $14 train from newark to manhattan. It’s slow man! The jokes continue.

10/27/06 16:06
Waiting on the ‘unofficial’ ferry around the islands (ellis, liberty). We missed the last official ferry by 20 mins. We’ve been waiting for 40 mins with the Statue to my left. Battery Park is cool.. City seen through fall trees. It’s a cloudy chilly day too.

In the harbor are always 3-6 tour ferries.
Taken some good pix with friend’s camera. Oh! We met a nice asian lady! She helped us from our hotel tram to NYC penn station! Even gave us her card & said to come back & she’d connect us with housing. Oh yeah, we’ll be coming back. & her company needs a new website.. Did I mention I do that??