Shopping at Macy's

It's true you can find virtually anything you could desire, at one particular city block of Manhattan. At this one spot, you can purchase clothes for every culture, shape, size, age, species, or even era. Electronics, sports equipment, bedding, home furnishings, jewelry, cars, boats, RVs... you name it. Even, if you had enough money, a small country. Not to mention practically everything is discounted. You need a math degree just to figure out how the complicated markdown process of multiple discounts translates into a hard number.

All this, in one location, one HUGE location, at 34th and Broadway.

Macy's

Last night I decided to wobble my bike down 30 city blocks through a complicated and very narrow path of empty space that presented itself between J-walking pedestrians, impatient cabbies, other bikes, bike tour buggies, and Broadway tour buses. Why? to be a part of the huge humanitarian project that is otherwise known as: Christmas shopping at Macy's.


I have been to Macy's plenty of times since I have moved here. It's always crowded, there's always a sale on one of it's massive 9 floors, and I always seem to regret going there. But it's the same as getting really drunk and paying for it the next morning - somehow, you forget about how much you hated it, and do it all over again like a mindless automaton.

During the days leading up to Christmas, Macy's is somehow, quite unbelievably, even more crowded than usual. Since words can't really describe how crowded it is, I decided to shoot some video footage of what it's like.

Enjoy . . .

Keywords and phrases to cap my full year stay in NYC

Ice Skating at Trump RinkS/M/L Runs in Central ParkPacked like a sardine in a bar on New Years EveJoined a singles activities group, during the few weeks I was actually singleSwitched to MACBusiness Opportunities LoomingRENT, my god the rentAnyone remember a game called Golf?New BicyclePlaying FB Poker, a poor substitute for the real thingJoined a Composers Group - went to one meetingMixed Martial Arts white belt > yellow belt > orange belt > onabreakHey! That's my Bike!$50 min bar tab for Credit CardsMost. Expensive. Bowling. Ever. Composing, stay tuned for new songStolen BicycleHiking the Mohonk MountainsRiding laps around Central Parkcontracted some variety of illness once every other monthSipping a Beer Overlooking the Hudson River Docks Watching the Sun Sinking into the HorizonMessiah @ Carnegie HallSummer Beach Bike RideVisiting Fire IslandNY1 News Casts and their cheesy, yet oddly satisfying musicNew (again) improved BicyclePlaying tennis is the freezing coldPlaying LOTRO1001 combinations of 4 suits and 20 tiesGirlfriend ♥Hittin' the local watering holesPassionProject (new band)Yankees won world series, I stayed homePizza, mmm, bad... mmmm....Soccer pickup games around random parks, with random peopleWinter Wardrobe + Summer Wardrobe = Too Much WardrobeP.E.T.T. (Personal Electro Transport Thingy)Preston|Child Pendergast novels, right in my own backyardSubway nOob . . . . Subway ChampQuaker Oats Squares - Seriously, look into itFree Admission Saturdays at the Brooklyn MuseumWorld Cafe + Coffee + Book + Museum of Natural History Park Bench = AAAhhhhhhPardon me, excuse me, sorry, here's a dollar, HOOoonk! , Hurry up, no thanks, i'm in a hurry, no timeNavigating the horde in Times SquareRaw Spinach + Banana + Milk + Fage + Agave = damn good smoothieJazz Clubs in the VillageDodging Traffic on My BicycleMissing my piano, but the ones at work will doRain, Snow, Sun, Wind, Leaves, Lots of leaves, Lighting, Cold, Heat, Dry, WetAsk me which way the paper goes into the fax machine just one more time. Go on, I dare ya.Rockefeller Center, Giant Tree, and my Sister :)Air Guitar contest in Williamsburg

He's Alliiiiive! Allliiiiiiive!!!

Prologue:

As the June posting date clearly shows, I have delayed posting this update far too long, so I will now post it, and continue to delay my next update for several more months. So stay tuned for my Thanksgiving update, due out sometime in June.

On to your regular, not so timely scheduled, but so-worth-reading, scheduled program . . .

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HAAAPPY NEW Yea..uh... Wha? We're halfway through 2009 already?!? *edit* all the way through 2009?!

WTF!?! Where have I been?

Yeah, I know. My last blog was 5 6 7 8 months ago. HHHhhhhhhhhh - what can I say, procrastination is a real time sink.

So what have I been up to since December of '08?? I'll just give you the highlights:

Job: Still have it. The economy has destroyed the piano industry, but the ship is still afloat. I am lucky enough to be with a financially strong company that provides good service, fantastic products, and caters to a city full of economically sheltered rich people. BUT, there's drama... oh the drama. See, the guy who hired me doesn't employ me, the guy who employs me doesn't really need me, the guy who needs me (probably) doesn't even know I exist, and the people who know I exist can't really use me. While you are chewing on that, I'll elaborate..

I was hired by the son-in-law of the folks I currently work for. He was going to buy them out and combine their rebuilding factory, and piano piano showroom, with his business. There is a lot more to this than what I can write here, what with the lawsuit and all, but it isn't pretty. They are suing each other, and the premise under which I was hired has completely disolved. So much for doing business with family. The good news is the company at which I am employed continues to thrive in a down economy. While we have internal power struggles, a confusing hierarchy, sometimes baffling methods of handling things, and no coffee machine: read - no coffee machine whatsoever, I am still happy to be a functioning member of their team.





Pad: The apartment has worked out quite nicely. Sure, it's more than most mortgages and 1/4th the square footage, it's all about location. A block from my house is the Beacon Theater. Two blocks from my house is one of the best grocery stores in the city: Fairway. Half a block away I have Riverside Park. I don't have to walk further than four blocks to have any of the following: drugstores, haircuts, pet supplies, Starbucks, Pizza, Chines food, Tai Food, Italian Food, Sushi, Greek Food, Comedy Shows, Live Music, Massages, Gyms, farmers markets, flee markets, bond markets, you name it... It's here. In fact, people ask me what it's like to live in New York, and how I compare it to California. I tell them it's kinda like taking a week's worth of food, squishing it all down into one 2" cube, and eating it all in one bite.

Overstimulation.

There's so much to do, I can sit in my apartment, befuddled, trying to sort it all out, and not get one single thing accomplished. Still, I love my location, but I've gotta move. Rents are down, and deals are out there to be had. So I may be saying goodbye to my apartment, depending on my landlord's willingness to negotiate. I'm not optimistic. Last time I tried to negotiate, which netted me a savings of $50 per month, she said, in her ever so pleasing old-lady-irish-accent "Oh deary, you've really got me over a barrel now, don't you?".

I think I'll just have to relocate.