New York and D.C. Travelogue 2002

New York & D.C. Travelogue April 2002

Monday, April 8th, 2002

On Monday morning...well, it wasn't TECHNICALLY morning, I got up and returned the movie.
Keke and Crystal went to work, so I was on my own again. I went out sightseeing & exploring New York again, hitting Times Square, Broadway and Park Avenue. In retrospect, I should have gone to the Museum of Modern Art, because I ended up missing it this trip. Oh well, maybe next time.

The New York City Subway is one of the most awesome machines in the world. The value of that system boggles my mind. There are so many lines and stations, and yet it is cheap, easy to navigate and very convenient. Oh yeah, and it runs all night long.

The problem that caught my attention was, of course, the endless stickers, cards and fliers for "Work from Home". I read all the legitimate ads on every subway car I was on, so I can see why pirate herbalife advertisers would strike here too.

I even saw one of these herbalife cards on top of a "call for victims" ad from an law-firm. It seems that they are gathering plaintiffs for a class-action lawsuit against 5 different medical and herbal products, including Fen-Phen and a range of ephedrine-based products. I thought that was pretty amusing.

That night Keke and I met David Gallagher and his friend Cricket at the DuMont Restaurant and had a nice talk. David interviewed me when he was writing the Coca-Cola "H2NO" article in the New York Times last year, so it was great to meet him in person.

He gave me some advice on being a good reporter & then we discussed the virtues of Google.com for almost an hour.

Posing with garbage bags in Manhattan

Manhattan intersection

Traffic in New York City

Pristine lawn near Times Square

Times square tourist standard

Matthews International FDNY statue

Advertising Contest in Times Square

Traffic officers near Broadway

Keke still at work

Tuesday, April 9th, 2002

, Metropolitan, Sushi
On Tuesday I decided I'd better start hitting some museums, or I would run out of week, but I still managed to wander around for a few hours before making my way to the Metropolitan Museum of Art.

The first place I found was this tiny medical supply company that sold scalpels, surgical clamps, bone saws and that little hammer they test your reflexes with. It was strange for me to see this stuff out on display, so I took my time and checked it all out. I like discovering specialized tools that I have never heard of before.

They are called Astra Medical Supply, if you are starting your own "Science Club".

I wandered. I spotted someone with a Manhattan Portage bag, with a striking addition of their NYC skyline logo: two black towers in the background. I thought at the time that it was official issue, but it may have been a custom-job on her bag.

It started to sprinkle, so I hustled to a museum with a styrofoam sheet covering my head.

I made in to the New York Metropolitan Museum of Art and was just starting to get through the American Native works when they announced they were closing. I guess that was why there was no one at the ticket booths.

I walked through Central Park to Columbus Circle and Hunter College. The Hunter College bathrooms are well-hidden, by the way.

I stayed in the city until it got dark, then we went out to a wonderful Sushi place with Keke in the East Village. One of the nice things about New York is that you can get sushi past 10pm.

Update: I later learned that the nitrogen tanks slowly push nitrogen gas into the copper phone lines, keeping them somewhat dry. The tanks are replaced every couple of days. They aren't dangerous, Indeed they've apparently been nailed by cars a few times and held together fine.