Friday - It is freezing cold in The Big Apple

Good morning my loyal and faithful readers. It is freezing cold in The Big Apple. When I woke up this morning at the usual 8:00am the temperature was 16 degrees and with the gusting wind it feels like 9 degrees (according to the local news stations). The sun is out and there isn’t a cloud in the sky, so it looks great - great that is until you step outside the front door of 420 W. 42nd and then the wind howling off of the Hudson River cuts you like a knife. Light snow is predicted for Saturday and Sunday. Thankfully, it is supposed to clear up by the first of the week and my Tuesday departure date is predicted to be in the 35-24 range and cloudy.

Luckily PHC is nice and warm and cozy even though it has lots of windows and very high ceilings. I have a ballet show tonight down in the Village and the venue is only a block away from the subway exit. I do have to brave the cold this afternoon for a quick trip across the street and down the block to the grocery store. Will put this off as long as I can in hopes that it will warm up a bit.

OK, now I have a confession to make in the name of fair and unbiased reporting. Now calm down, it ain’t that bad, although I guess it does fall into the category of a sin, so ... “Please Forgive Me, Sister, For I Have Sinned.” You see, as I previously posted my entertainment event for Thursday night was “Sister’s Christmas Catechism” at a theater on 46th Street. For whatever reason(s) I just didn’t feel in the mood for this kind of show but because it was a complimentary ticket from one of my ticket services I had to at least show up at the box office, pick up my ticket and have my name crossed off the ticket list. So, I did just that - bundled up in everything warm that I own, walked up to the theater, picked up my ticket and then ... I sinned ... I left the theater and walked down to a movie theater on 42nd Street and saw the recently opened “Up In The Air” with George Clooney.

“Up In The Air” is a dramedy about a commitment-phobic businessman, more comfortable in a hotel than at home, who flies around the country working for a company whose job it is to fire people. It has gotten very favorable reviews and has received several award nominations already, including Clooney. I loved the show and highly recommend it. So, “Sister, Please Forgive Me For My Sins.”

Wow - I feel soooooooooo much better now that I have been forgiven.

I have added two events to my already awesome weekend schedule, the details of which are in an earlier posting.

Tomorrow, Saturday, at 3:00 I am seeing - “The Heart Is A Lonely Hunter” - Off Broadway. “Carson McCuller's classic novel is a timeless tale about the universal need for human connection, follows the story of a deaf man, John Singer, as he navigates the world without his dearest friend who has been committed to an insane asylum. When Singer moves to a small Southern town, the locals flock to him as a new found confidant, seeking compassion and understanding from the one person who needs it the most. Singer's isolation in the world is mirrored in a few of the townspeople he meets along the way a cafe owner, a rebellious teenager, a black physician, and an idealistic labor organizer whose dreams have been shattered.” (discounted TDF ticket)

This show has received very good reviews and I have been planning to see it but for some reason kept putting it off for other shows. Well, it closes on Sunday, so I had to grab it. As previously posted, at 8:00pm I have the Broadway musical “Ragtime.”

My second addition is Sunday afternoon at 3:00 at Town Hall - “New York City Gay Men's Chorus 30th Anniversary Concert.“ - The press blurb is: “A Holiday Celebration of the Power of Love. Over 250 talented singers will be joined by the amazing Tony Award-winning Victoria Clark (Light in the Piazza; Encores-Follies) performing holiday favorites and songs by Jason Robert Brown; Stephen Sondheim; Jule Styne; and Peter, Paul, and Mary.” (discounted TDF ticket).

They usually perform at Carnegie Hall but for some reason are scheduled for Town Hall this season. No matter, they put on a wonderful concert.

Sunday evening at 7:00 I have “Basically Brandenburg” @ Symphony Space, which I described in an earlier posting.

Yesterday, Thursday, I had a great lunch with student/bartender/manager John Scott Reed. It constantly amazes me how he is able to maintain his sanity with school, full-time work, and an awesome social life. He is living life to its fullest in The Greatest City In The World and I am so happy for him and so thankful that he finds time to include me in his social network. And, to top all of that off - he is being the “super-son” over Christmas by hosting his Mom, who lives in Lakeland, FL, for an extended Christmas visit in The Big Apple. Yep, Scott, you are indeed a Fabson.

Well, it has “warmed” up to 26 degrees so I think I will post this and run to the grocery store.

Go Gators!!

Billi Pod

“Don't pick a fight with an old man. If he is too old to fight, he'll just kill you.”