Living large (albeit briefly) in the Big Apple!

Me and Ming in New York

I got back from my fabulous trip to New York on Sunday night, but was totally exhausted and could not even attempt to endeavor blogging about it. This was in large part due to the fact that I got lost in the fucking wilds of Florida on my drive back to Gainesville from the Jacksonville airport. I'm not joking here folks. Florida can be a scary ass place. I'd made it most of the way home, but then somehow missed an itty bitty sign in the darkness and ended up in fuck-knows-where. Let me just say I was about ready to have a nervous breakdown. It was like I'd managed to find myself in some scary Texas Chainsaw Massacre-style alternate universe on a two lane road with NO FUCKING LIGHTS! And no signs of civilization save for the occassional dirt drive leading into the woods on either side, and undoubtedly to the home of some wacked out incestuous cannibals waiting to skin me alive and eat my plump juicy flesh. During this trip down the Lost Highway I really freaked out because: 1) I had no cell phone--so if I got a flat or any other problem I was royally fucked, 2) There wasn't a gas station or other sign of civilization anywhere, 3) I had no idea where the hell I was or how to get where I needed to be going. After panicking and driving down this road for half an hour I came to another side road I could turn onto that seemed to be heading back the way I'd come. So I took it (fingers crossed) and a few minutes later I found a sign indicating I was already 10 miles outside of Gainesville. Fortunately, this road was better lit and it finally got me back to where I needed to be. But let me just say, I was never so glad to see the wee lights of Gainesville proper once more! A harrowing tale to be sure--but I digress. I must tell all my dear readers about my adventures in New York!

So, it was fabulous to see my pal Ming again. We had loads of fun talking about music, joking about crazy ass shit, and watching Netflix episodes of X-Files Season 1. Hellah nerdy I know, but it was awesome!

I went to MOMA, where they had an awesome Edvard Munch exhibit going on. People tend to be most familiar with his famous painting "The Scream," but he also did some other amazing work and much of it was on display at MOMA. And I got to see it for free because Ming got me the awesome hook-up! Yay!

I really enjoyed the following works that I saw while cruising the exhibit. Munch's "Madonna" above.

"Vampire" and this painting which I didn't get the name of alas... But after seeing this exhibit I'm looking for a good biography about Munch, because he had a very interesting life and I'm intrigued about the very tumultous relationship he had with the woman who was his most frequent muse. If anyone knows of a good one I should pick up please drop me a line in the comments!

Ming and I also ate plenty of awesome food while I was in town, but by far I think my favorite was when we visited Otafuku and had delicious takoyaki and okonomiyaki! It totally brought about a wonderfully nostalgic culinary moment for me. It was like being back in Tokyo again. Mmm! Yummy! I must admit though, that the many cupcakes we tried also tied for top place with me. We went to several different bakeries and tried just about every kind imaginable! They were super tasty, but now I must get back to the gym to burn off those crazy calories...

While in NYC I also went to Central Park and wandered around. But shopping was pretty big on my agenda. I wandered around and visited H&M, the NYC branch of Kinokuniya books (hunting for manga!), The Strand bookstore (8 miles of books yo!), Toys in Babeland (woot!), and Beard Papa (for yummy Japanese cream puffs). I also found myself some sparkly eyeshadow at a cool cosmetics store frequented by drag queens. :)

Unfortunately, I never found the sparkly sneakers I've been dreaming about. I don't think they've been created yet. But I wait for the day with great anticipation!

Okay, so my fave events while in NYC...

1) Sweeney Todd!!!! It was totally spectacular. Not as gory as I was expecting, but wonderfully tongue-in-cheek and morbidly grotesque. Michael Cerveris was simply amazing as Sweeney Todd (and I really wished I could have seen him in Hedwig and the Angry Inch in London!). He had a superb voice and a very compelling presence on stage. I also enjoyed Patti LuPone (even though she didn't manage a very convincing English accent).

2) Seeing the Silver Jews in concert. This was a really fantastic concert and we were able to get pretty close to the stage. I hate being so far away you can't see jack. Anyway, I totally have an even deeper appreciation for David Berman after seeing him perform. Big thanks to Ming for getting me into this awesome band!