I could have gone out, but....

 

I stayed home much of the day, when it was a perfect day to go outside.  Today's focus was on the spreadsheet (see yesterday's post), but I didn't have any real plans for the day.  

- - - - - -

When I got up, I realized that I could either get showered, made up, and dressed.  But if I did so, I'd be spending money I don't need to spend to entertain myself.  And that's something I don't really need to do.  So, I decided to finish work on the spreadsheet, and add two more cruise lines to the options available for use.  It was easy to get lost in the tedium, and time passed as if hours were just minutes.

Around 5 pm, I decided to get showered and dressed.  It was nice to be able to apply makeup again, as I won't be able to spend much time as Marian next week, as I'll be stuck as Mario for both a Doctor's visit and for a pair of Co-Op board meetings.  (Once they are over, I can switch back to Marian mode for a while.). At 6 pm, I drove to the local Chinese take-out to pick up dinner, and I got a call from Vicki - we both forgot about dinner at the local Japanese restaurant.  So, we postponed again, and will likely go to a Brazilian BBQ sometime in the next couple of weeks.  

After I returned home, I got things set up for the Zoom meeting with our Texas friends.  It was a good meeting, as both of our friends were more animated than usual.  When I mentioned that I may have to set up my own Zoom account subscription, one of the gals volunteered to help pay for it.  Now we know how much this one person wants to keep up our monthly Zooms.

- - - - - -

Tomorrow, it will likely rain all day, making it a perfect laundry day.  I'll bet that I find excuses not to do it until late in the day. 

I hated getting dressed today

 

If I could have dressed like this to bring my car to the dealership for a NYS safety inspection, I would have done so.  However, I had to present as Mario today, and there's no fun in dressing as a male of my age.  But the car needed to go in, and I had to take it there....

- - - - - -

I woke up today knowing that there was one absolute task on my docket - My car's annual safety inspection.  With only 26k miles on the meter, I knew that I the car should have a clean bill of health.  The tires are roughly halfway through their expected lifespan, and the next major (expensive) maintenance wouldn't come for another 4,000-5,000 miles.  (I'm wondering when I will need new tires and brakes - but I won't bother doing that tonight.)

Since there was a Wendy's across the street from the dealership, I decided to have their Lenten-only offering - a fish sandwich.  It wasn't bad, and it wasn't that good.  But it sated my hunger.  Once done with lunch, I crossed the street and dropped my car off for service.  While waiting, I saw my downstairs neighbor in the waiting room and said hello as we were paying our respective bills.

Once done, I planned to return home, change into Marian mode, and go out.  But I was a little tired, and figured that I'd rather rest, then do laundry sometime in the evening. When I got home, I started to work on the spreadsheet again, and was interrupted by TCL when I was starting to get into mental "Flow" mode. I was able to get a load of laundry in (washed and dried) before 10 pm, and brought it back upstairs before calling RQS at the end of the day.

- - - - - -

Tomorrow, I will have a Zoom meeting with our Texas friends.  More on this then. 

It was finally time to go home.

 

Neither of us wanted to get up this morning.  It was chilly outside, and it would be another few days until we were together again.  Yet, I was up at 6 am, as the sunlight coming in from the window outside  wouldn't let me sleep.

- - - - - -

For some reason, I couldn't find the undies I left at RQS's place for when I sleep over.  Yes, it's easy to determine which undies belong to me when I'm presenting as Mario.  But, when both are wearing the same gender's undies, things can get confusing.  I was lucky to have a few pairs in the suitcase I brought with me this weekend.  Even more so, a pair of socks had holes, so I pulled out a pair from the suitcase as well.

Around 2:30, RQS and I left her place.  She needed to go to the bodega to pick up tonight's dinner, while I went to the bus stop which services both the express route and the local route.  This was a good move, as the first bus that came along was the express bus.  But even with the express bus, the trip home was problematic - the transit authority was replacing the turnstiles, making an "Accessible" station non-accessible.  I had to drag my bag down a couple of flights of stairs to get myself and my suitcase to the train.  (I'm lucky that the escalator to the upper level was working, as the elevator to that level was shut down for work on the turnstiles.)

Eventually, I made it into Manhattan, and then to Grand Central.  I had just enough time to make it to an express train to Croton, and was home before 5 pm.  By 6 pm, I was at Trader Joe's, picking up food for the rest of the week, before going home for the evening.

- - - - - -

Tomorrow, I'll have to present as Mario to get my car inspected.  After this, I can change back to Marian and put new polish on my nails. 

What happens when the highlight of the day is bed time?

 

As I write this, the US war against Iran is in its 3rd day.  Our president has made the major mistake of having peace talks while preparing to bomb a country.  America is about to get into another Vietnam, without any of the support it could have had if this were a just cause.  To make things worse, it feels like the war was started to cover up the Monster's presence in the Epstein Files. I wonder how many people will die because this madman wants to have a legacy that survives him

Why did I open with this?

Over the weekend, the most common thing in our YouTube feeds were talking heads and their discussions about the war.  It's hard to escape the insanity that is going on in the "Real World" when a madman's fancies are destroying everything America stood for.  I'm glad that my nephew is out of the military, as he'd be part of the cannon fodder the Monster is using to achieve his goals.

- - - - - -

Neither RQS nor I bothered getting dressed today.  It rained a little and the snow has melted a bit.  Soon, parking will be "easy" to find as before the snow storms hit.  Today was one of our relaxation days where we did nothing, save for having breakfast and dinner.  I shouldn't say we did absolutely nothing - RQS finished the reorganization of her storage shelves, and things are much easier for her to get at.

Part of me is looking forward to going home tomorrow.  My reasons are simple - I want to get back to work on my cruise cost calculation spreadsheet, and I can only work on it at home.  This has been a fun project for me, and something I will likely keep playing with as time progresses.  I already have some enhancements I'd like to work on that would make the spreadsheet much more useful.  But it will take some time to implement them.

My brother looks like he'll have a new job, and it looks like we have new tenants for the family homestead.  Although we will have money coming in, we will either need to reinvest it in the house, or let the next owner do so.  I'd have rather sold the property, but the timing of everything is fouling that plan up for now.  Assuming he has the new job, I'll get together with him for a last dinner before he moves out of town.  Yes, he'll be returning home to check on things now and then, but things won't be the same as before.  I'll likely get stuck managing the property - something I don't relish doing.

- - - - - -

At least, we caught up on our sleep for a change....  

A trip into the city for a play

 

No, we did not pass through Grand Central today.  But it would have been nice if we were able to do so.  Instead, our route brought us to a subway station I've never used before, as well as an area of the city I've never been to before on foot.

- - - - - -

When we woke up, neither of us had an idea of what we wanted to do.  So, RQS looked up the "Freebies" available on Club Free Time to find something cheap.  Settling on a play called "The Giggling Granny", we planned our day around our evening's entertainment.

RQS wanted to reorganize her kitchen a little, and have me help with fixing shelving that needed fixing.  (Its fourth corner was improperly supported, and could collapse with the right force used against it.)  So, we took everything out, and I inserted the support which leveled things out.  Now, RQS can reload the shelves at her own convenience.

What I haven't mentioned yet, is that the Orange Monster started an illegal war today against Iran.  Yes, it is a desperate attempt to distract people from the Epstein Files, but it poses great risk to the USA and to the world.  Both RQS and I are appalled - even though the Iranian government deserves to be destroyed.  Yet, it shows something else - the Orange Monster never negotiates in good faith.  The Iranians believed that they were close to an agreement.  (Too bad for them that they never read Ambrose Bierce and his Devil's Dictionary.  They'd see that Peace is only a period of treachery between two wars.) 

With all of this in mind, we both got dressed and went into NYC.  Sadly, I was semi conscious during the play, and missed most of it.  On the way back to the subway station, we stopped for gelato.  And then we passed by two one-dish restaurants - one selling pasta, and the other selling Mac & Cheese.  Both of these are places I want to try some time in the future.

Soon, we were on the train back home, and back in the apartment for SNL's cold open.  One could tell that they had to rewrite everything to account for the big news of the day, and they referenced themselves in the skit.  Once Weekend Update (the Real Fake News) was over, we turned off the TV and went to bed for the night. 

Visiting RQS at her place for the first time in a while

 

Before I went to RQS, I had things I wanted to do: Clean up some of the mess in my apartment and do some Laundry.  Well, I got to the first task, but not to the second task.  

But first.... 

- - - - - - 

I woke up with the alarm, and realized that I had to clean up some of the clutter in my place.  There was a lot of clean laundry which had to be put into my closets and my drawers.  So this was the first task I tackled.  For the most part, my clothes were put away, and I was left with a single basket of stuff which required special handling.  (Towels to the linen closet, sheets to a drawer, and other items to be put in proper spaces.)  And then, I continued debugging a spreadsheet I developed to compute estimated cruise pricing, given expected purchases of items not included in the fares.

Once finished with all of this, I packed a suitcase with the stuff I'd need over the weekend (as Marian), and got ready to trek into NYC.  I barely made a local to GCT, and then had to transfer to the subway.  As usual, I made the mistake of transferring to a Brooklyn/Queens bound line at a station where the elevators weren't working.  But, once I lugged my bag up and down some stairs, I had a seat for the rest of my trip to RQS's place.

- - - - - -

Although I have keys to RQS's house, I had a problem - for some reason, I couldn't get them to work.  (I also couldn't get them far enough out of my bag to use them properly.)  So, I had to buzz RQS to let me in.  Once my bags were dropped off, we were off for some Thai food at a nearby place.  I had my usual - Drunken Noodles with Crispy Duck, a dish I could have more of any day.  But then, I love duck.  It may not be as much as in Daffy Duck and the Dinosaur, but enough that I rarely turn down the opportunity to have this bird for dinner. 

- - - - - -

It's nice to have a girlfriend/partner who seems to accept the idea that I prefer to present as Marian as much as possible.  The other day, she mentioned an area in Jersey City we may consider moving to, a place where I can ditch much of Mario's wardrobe and live as Marian 99% of the time.  When I mention IF we get married (there are financial negatives for us to do so), we'd both be shopping for (and wearing) wedding dresses.  That's something to look forward to! 

 

I was a lazy bumette today.

 

Although I awoke with the alarm clock, all I did while the sun was up was eat, sleep, and watch YouTube videos in my jammies.  And yet, I don't feel guilty, as I decided to get ready to go out around 4:30.  

- - - - - -

Last night, in my usual chat with RQS, we agreed that I'll be visiting her at her place this weekend.  Although I wasn't sure whether I'll be presenting as Marian or Mario, I figured that I might as well go down as Marian - I have the foul weather boots ready to wear, and I am not worried about a significant snowfall. This decision made my shopping decision much easier, as I would not have to buy any perishables until next week.  So, I could put off much of my shopping until I return from RQS's place and then everything could be fresh.   (And, I'd be able to keep my nail polish on until Monday, when I'd have to remove it for several appointments as Mario I have scheduled for early March.)

Yet, I still ended up getting dressed and going out to shop.  I wasn't in the mood to cook, and I had a hankering for a Wendy's fish sandwich, something only sold during Lent.  So, I shaved, showered, and made up my face, then took the 30 minute drive to Fishkill.  Once I was done with my fish sandwich, it was off to Walmart when I ended up spending $101 on various items, including a cheap bodysuit (on closeout) that I wanted to try.

When I got home, I put everything away, and then tried on the bodysuit.  I can understand why women tend not to like these things - having to hold the split gusset apart to relieve oneself would be annoying - even if one has the anatomy the garment was designed for.  No wonder why many women prefer not to wear these garments, or choose ones with an awkward hook and eyelet fastening system.  At least, this garment was comfortable, but not practical for my purposes.

Eventually, I got into my usual jammies and went to bed.  It was a lazy day, but one I needed. 

 

 

Come fly away, come fly away with me.

 

The other day, I was at a meetup where I felt a woman was trying too hard to make me into her travel partner.  If I wasn't happily attached, I'd have considered the possibility of traveling with her, but I'd have to tell her that I'm non-op trans - and that would be a big risk factor I'm glad I didn't have to address.

- - - - - -

RQS and I are halfway through paying for our next cruise, and I think we'll be done by mid April.  Come hell or high water, we will make all of our payments by final payment date.  But even with that issue having to be addressed first, I've started to look at cruises taking place in 2027, specifically ones that sail from mainland Europe then going to Iceland and back. 

Now that RQS has seen Rick Steves' video on Iceland, I think RQS is starting to understand why this remote place, a land of fire and ice, is on my bucket list.   Like Norway and its Fjords, Iceland has places to see which are unlike any other place on earth.  I want to visit while we're both able to do so, as old age is rapidly creeping up on us.

One of the things I've found out about Iceland is that it seems LGBT friendly.  I could see flying to Amsterdam, cruising to Iceland and back, all in Marian mode.  Right now, I doubt that I'd do this with the current political climate in the US, but one can dream.  (As I write this, the Orange Monster, in his SOTU address, attacked us TG's once again.  Who wants to take a risk with TSA/CBP personnel right now, as they are hassling more and more people - including Americans.)

Hopefully, by the time I book this cruise, I will have my second citizenship and my second passport.  I'd like to fly into Europe without having to bother with ETA paperwork, being treated as if I were a citizen returning home. 

The state of disunion

 

For the most part, I did nothing bout relax all day.  Yet, a conversation I had with my niece underscores her reluctance to visit the land of her birth, much less with her British husband.  

- - - - - -

As I have mentioned before, my niece lives in London and will likely never return to the US to live.  (There is a paperwork issue, that due to a misfiling, may change this.)  She sees the signs of oncoming fascism in America, and wants no part of it.  Her friends report an increased scrutiny of British subjects (all with valid papers) at TSA/CBP checkpoints, which makes them feel like unwanted guests.  Even my niece, a US citizen, has undergone more intensive screening on her return to the US.  This does not bode well for my country, and I strongly suggest that if you don't have to visit the US until 1/20/29, don't do so!

We connected by Zoom around 12 pm (my time), and chatted for well over an hour.  We talked about my brother's job search, current affairs, and my niece's potential guilt for not being near family to help out.  (My sister in law has a disease which has pushed my brother away from her, and even my niece refers to her mom by her first name when talking with me.  You can guess what she feels about her mom these days.)  If all goes right, their family homestead will be in a trust by the time you read this, and my brother will be well on his way to getting a new job (and a new life).

- - - - - -

Once my niece and I ended our Zoom, I decided to relax a little.  I had no reason to go outside, and every reason to relax.  Around 5 pm, I realized that I squandered my chance to go out today, so I put dinner in the oven and got ready for a zoom meeting with my Texas friends at 8 pm.  Well, I screwed up the meeting, and we rescheduled it for next Wednesday.   RQS and I used the zoom in place of our usual nightly phone call

 

Getting snowed in.

 

You may be wondering why I posted an image of the Cruise Globe, with most of my voyages listed on its face.  Well, I'll get to that eventually, but first, let me describe my day.

- - - - - -

I woke up this morning, and knew that I didn't want risk moving my car, only to lose the one visitor's parking space left in our lot.  A blizzard was coming, and they expected the snow to start by mid afternoon.  RQS was safe in her home, near all the cold weather gear she'd need when the blizzard is over. As for me, I got dressed for only one reason - to take kitchen waste to the dumpster before the snow made it impossible for me to do so.  (Once back inside, it was back to my jammies.)

As I may have mentioned, I am working on a spreadsheet to allow people to plug in key parameters, and generate an approximate cost for an adult taking a specific cruise.  Each cruise line's beverage prices, Wi-Fi prices, package prices, package inclusions and automatic gratuity charges differ, and there is only so much someone can do to allow people to "Compare Apples to Apples."  At least, this spreadsheet comes reasonably close to doing so for basic fees, but it doesn't include things such as Specialty Coffees, Bottled Waters, and Top Shelf Beverages.  Work on the spreadsheet kept me busy all day and much of the night.

When I came up for air, I watched some cruise videos and read some cruise news.  There were 3 ships scheduled to leave from the New York City area, and all of them were affected by the weather.  NCL's ship left Manhattan as scheduled, and I expect people will get seasick before they spend their first night in the casino.  MSC's ship left Brooklyn, and returned later due to the weather.  Finally, Royal Caribbean's ship took on its passengers, but stayed in port.  Although the plans are for this ship to leave either on Monday or Tuesday, passengers had to be on the ship before its originally scheduled departure time.  Both RQS and I are very glad that we took our latest cruise in January, as the winter snows that came in the last month would have caused us some grief when we returned.

- - - - - -

Tomorrow, I expect to get dressed as Mario and shovel my car out of its parking space.  Since it's a heavy snow, I don't plan to rush things.  I'm no longer in my 20's, and I have to be careful not to over exert myself. 

 

Should auld acquaintance be forgot....

 

I'm not sure whether my friend knows I'm trans or not.  But I knew that I'd have to play things down a little, yet be honest when called for.  I met this acquaintance at a meetup many years ago, and she introduced me to Arts Westchester.  From there, we lost contact during Covid, and it was a phony Evite email that harvested email addresses which got me to reach out to her again.

- - - - - -

The weather, when I got up, was a constant drizzle.  Cold and damp was the forecast for the day, and I didn't want to go to lunch.  I wanted to stay cozy in my jammies and stay warm inside my apartment.  But I didn't want to screw up things, so I got dressed in something warm and left for a Chinese restaurant in Mamaroneck.  

While driving to the restaurant, I wondered whether this was such a good idea or not.  People were driving like mad men.  One driver I saw was weaving through traffic with barely a car's length of distance between the two cars.  On a dry day, this would be bad enough.  But when the road is wet, I knew enough to keep my distance and then some.

Although I had a hard time with the parking meter, I was able to pay for my spot and walk to the restaurant without getting drenched.  My friend came about 10 minutes later, not being sure if the meter had registered her payment or not.  And then, we both ordered the same dishes - Hot & Sour Soup, followed by Roast Duck.  Both were yummy.  We talked about many things, but the conversation was of the "Getting to Know You Again" genre.  Towards the end, she mentioned my dress - not noticing I was wearing leggings under it, and not tights.  (We were talking about the practicality of cold weather dressing.)

All too soon, lunch had to end.  So we bid each other farewell, and went out own ways.

- - - - - -

Later on, I picked RQS up at the station. Since I had Italian, Greek, and Chinese this week, it was off to the diner for dinner.  There are some dinners I go to as Mario and others I go to as Marian.  So, I chose the diner in Peekskill where I tend to go as Marian.  Food portions are plenty here - the fish and chips I had were enough to feed 3 people (or 1 of me).  And RQS had a healthy meal as well, also bringing home salad for tomorrow.

When we got home, we watched the weather reports - none of them were good.  RQS will now leave early, as a blizzard was coming in for Sunday/Monday.  AARGH!  This will likely be a very wet snow, and a bitch for shoveling out my car when it ends.  At least, my apartment will stay warm.  

Lunch with CCS, Laundry, and a Living Spreadsheet.

 

There was only one "Must Do" and one "Should Do" item on the docket today: Lunch with CCS, and Laundry.  And, believe it or not, I took care of both things.  But, doing laundry threw me a curve ball - one of the dresses I was to launder was labeled "Hand Wash, Dry Flat."  And this made me wonder about two other dresses from Universal Standard that found their way into my laundry basket.

- - - - - -

I woke up early enough to catch part of "Morning Joe" on the vidiot box. But it took me another couple of hours to get dressed and drive to the Italian restaurant in town to meet CCS.  When I got dressed, I put on a tunic dress over leggings, as I couldn't justify a dress with hosiery on a slightly rainy winter's day.  And, I got to the restaurant before CCS for a change.  During lunch, we talked about family events, our upcoming cruises, and politics - the usual stuff.   And, all too soon, lunch had to end.  Both of us had leftovers to eat another day.  So we scheduled our March lunch, and went our separate ways.

After lunch, I drove to Briarcliff Manor in the vain hope that I might stumble into the acquaintance I met at last night's meetup.  Of course, I did not stumble into her.  I guess she may have realized that I couldn't be the travel partner she seemed to desperately want.  (I also wonder if she wanted me as a lesbian partner.  But that's another reason I had to tell her that I have a long term partner in RQS)   Since she did not try to contact me, I'll write her off until the next time (if there is one) I stumble into her.

Once I was back home, I started work on my spreadsheet of cruising costs.  Finally, with enough experimentation, I was able to get the computation down for one of the nine cruise lines.  While doing this, I had two baskets (should have been three) of laundry in the washer and dryer.  So, after everything, this was a very productive day.

And now, back to my everyday life

 

I dropped RQS off at the station today for her trip home.  She'll have 3 days to run her errands (and me the same) before she returns here this weekend.  

- - - - - -

There are only so many current events videos I can watch before getting sick thinking of the Orange Monster and what he's doing to this country.  So, I limit my consumption of political news.  I wish I could filter out the damage the monster is doing to this world, so that I could focus on everyday events that occur in the NYC region (fires, building collapses, murders, subway derailments and other disasters that affect a small number of people in my region.)   To contrast a NYC view of things vs. the rest of the world's views, I suggest looking at a case of suicide via subway train during rush hour.  To outsiders, we'd be mourning the tragic loss of a human life.  To New Yorkers, we're getting pissed off that some jerk has screwed up thousands of commutes at the worst possible time - if the person wanted to off himself, the least he could have done is to wait until after rush hour AND have the good taste do it where it wouldn't affect anyone's commute.  (One needs a certain sense of callousness to live in this city.)

I got up around 8 am, and let RQS sleep until 10:30 am.  Around noon, I started getting showered and dressed, so that RQS could make a 1:30 pm train.  Although I was thinking of doing a couple of loads of laundry today, I decided to make a run over to Target and pick up a few things I'd need over time.  Sadly, the route that I'd normally take home was closed off to me (and to all) as the failure of a bridge over the nearby railroad tracks prevented me from taking my usual route home.

Arriving home, I decided to contact a friend and schedule a lunch get-together.  Although her schedule was a little tight, we found a convenient lunch date, and scheduled something for this week.  And then, I decided to rest for the remainder of the day, giving up any plans to go out again.  So, off with the makeup and outside clothes, and on with my jammies, and I could go to bed any time I want. 

- - - - - - 

Tomorrow will be a "Fat Tuesday" meetup, and I hope all goes right.  I think I'll wear a nice dress for the evening, and get some use out of it this season. 

Getting dressed up for Valentine's Day (a short post)

 

When presenting as Marian, it's always nice to have an occasion to dress up.  Valentine's Day was it for us.  And I know I enjoyed doing so more than RQS today.

- - - - - - 

Both of us were glad to stay inside most of the day.  Saturdays are often a day of rest for us, and we do that well.  What can I say about two seniors who know how much energy they have to spend, and want to spend it wisely?

Around 5 pm, we both started getting ready to go out.  Both of us had red dresses at the ready, and we were ready to wear them.  Both of us did our makeup, put on our jewelry, and did everything we needed to look our best when we went to the restaurant.  If the weather had been colder, I'd have worn my flannel dress.  If the weather had been warmer, I'd have chosen a lighter dress.  However, the sweater dress I chose was perfect for the evening - and a few minutes later, we were going out the door.

We made it to the restaurant 20 minutes early, finding an almost perfect parking spot in front of the restaurant.  When we entered, the host remembered us from previous visits and made a table available to us before our reservation time.  Then, we got started with dining.  In front of us was a proper table setting, with the napkin folded like a red heart.  It was the perfect setting for a Valentine's Day meal.   And both the food and service was as good as we expected - perfect.

- - - - - -

After dinner, we went to the supermarket to refresh the soda supply in the refrigerator, then homeward for the evening.  It was a nice day, with the high point being our V-Day dinner.

Another Jammie Day (a short post)

 

This morning, I woke up around 10 am and had nothing on the docket.  Should I go out?  Should I clean my apartment?  What would be the best way to spend my time?  So many ways to spend the day, and I spent it watching videos on many subjects.  Even as I write this entry, I have a historical video on TV, covering the history of the A-Bomb and how our government managed its propaganda during WW2.

The clothes horse side of me wanted to see what dresses I could buy.  Did I need them?  No.  Yet, I can see how my late wife got addicted to buying clothes she didn't need.  So I always try to ask myself: Does the new garment add something useful to my wardrobe?  Usually, the answer is 'no.'  But, last week, the answer was 'yes' , when I placed an order for a pair of brown leggings that I'd be wearing with a light brown sweater dress.

I eventually got moving around noon, and moved into the living room.  6 hours later, I finally did something useful and deals with two suitcases.  The first, a 28" bag, contained most of what I carried with me on our January cruise.  The second, a 24" bag, contained some items from my female winter wardrobe that I planned on wearing last weekend when at RQS's house.  Even though nothing was removed from either bag (I actually added underwear and socks for my next cruise in the 28" bag), I placed both bags to the corner of the room where I previously stored empty suitcases, making space in the living room.

Was it a wasted day?  To a degree, yes.  But I will be busy over the next week or so, and I don't want to be overwhelmed before then.

Ragtime

Today, there was only one thing on the docket - going into NYC to meet with RQS and see Ragtime at Lincoln Center.  As much as I'm not a fan of musicals, I knew RQS would enjoy it, and we planned for this day long before Xmas.

- - - - - -

I set my alarms to wake me up around 8, so that I could make a 10:42 train.  This would bring me into Grand Central at 11:40, giving me 20 minutes to make it to Union Square for lunch.  So, I hopped into the shower at 9:15 (after I finished the co-op's meeting minutes for review), and was ready to go to the train station by 10:00.  This was a little chancy.  I'd be late if I couldn't find a parking spot (the station I go to is large, but often has no vacancies), but I wanted to pick up an egg sandwich before getting on the train. But luck was with me today, I got a decent parking spot.

Given this is winter, a sweater dress was my choice of the day.  Although most cisgender women were wearing trousers, some were wearing dresses.  So I didn't stand out too much.  I hoped that there wasn't too much of a snow melt, as I  didn't want to be stepping around puddles while wearing flats and tights.  I got lucky there as well.  So, when I made it to Grand Central, I chose the non obvious route.  Instead of taking the 4th avenue line direct to Union Square, I decided to save on walking by taking the shuttle to Times Square, and the Broadway line to Union Square, where I'd be leaving the system at 16th Street instead of at 14th Street. (2 street blocks = 0.10 mile, plus a 1 avenue block = 0.33 mile.)  The walk was long enough already than to add close to 1/2 mile of unneeded walking.  This was a smart move, as I ended up less than a block away from where we planned to eat lunch.

When RQS arrived, I said that she should go buy her lunch, and that I'd get up when she got back to the table.  All of a sudden 20 people walked in, and the store received a large door dash order at the same time.  It took her 20 minutes to get a sandwich which normally would be ready in 3 minutes.  So, we split her small sandwich, and headed up to Lincoln Center for the play instead of lingering in the sandwich shop.

It took us 15 minutes to make it from Union Square to Lincoln center.  Not being familiar with the complex, I had to ask for directions - and found the theater in the back of the complex.  It was nice to enter the theater from a mid level, as we didn't have to walk up too many flights of stairs to get to our seats. Although the seats were too narrow for me, my knees weren't hitting the back of the seat in front of me. So, I was able to be tolerably comfortable for the two acts of the play.

Rarely does a musical make me say "Wow!" But this was one of them.  Like a good Opera, the songs told the tale.  Unlike an opera, there was some spoken dialog that helps people understand the play.  So, when intermission came, there was the usual mad dash to the women's room.

I've never seen a sign like this before, but it made sense.  Where does the long line to the ladies' loo start?  In the case of this theater, the line was over 120 feet long.  Yet, that line moved, as there had to be 20 stalls available for use at any one time.  As for RQS and me, we were on a different line for only 2 stalls.  And it was just as well, as I liked having the extra room that a single stall facility has.

The play ended at 5:00, and both of us entered the subway around 5:15.  RQS was home by 6:15, while I was home by 7:00.  It was a long day, but well worth the effort I made to get to see RQS and the play.

Returning home in the cold

 

 

Given the weekend's cold weather, I was not in a hurry to go outside and go home.  But, I had a dentist appointment scheduled for Tuesday, and it had already been postponed once.  So, homeward I had to go, and that meant I'd be leaving RQS sometime in the afternoon.

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As usual, I woke up relatively early, allowing RQS to sleep for an extra hour or so.  It took us a while to get moving, as she had things to take care of as well.  Around 2 pm, I ended up leaving her house and walked to the bus stop, where I didn't have to wait long for the bus to arrive.

When I reached the subway station, I didn't go straight in.  Instead, I picked up a sandwich and ate it on the train.  (This is New York, after all - no one gives much of a damn on an uncrowded train, as long as one is far away from the people on the train.  I'd never do this in other cities, as it would be an unforgivable sin.)  It took a while to reach Manhattan, and then 20 more minutes to reach Grand Central.

So far, today's trip was much easier than Saturday's trip - it was 15° f warmer than Saturday, with much less wind. Also, I could use ADA Accessible stations to make my transfers between subway routes. In short, it was relatively comfortable trip  for a winter's day.  So, I felt comfortable going home, as I didn't have to deal with Saturday's travel issues. When I arrived at Grand Central, I took the time to get a buttered bagel at Starbucks, and still had time to spare when catching the train home.  Although I took a semi-express train home, I got home around 5 pm or so, and was able to rest. 

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With the afternoon having been spent in transit, I took the rest of the day to rest, and to work on my travel blog.  It's my way of keeping busy and doing something constructive. 


PS: It was nice being able to go to RQS's place as Marian - the cold weather made it easier, as I wouldn't overheat in what I was wearing.

Going to RQS's place for a change

 

 

 

It's been a while since I've been to RQS's place, and it was time for me to make an appearance.  But, alternate side of the street parking has been suspended for a while, and I was warned that I wouldn't find a parking spot.  So, I knew that I'd be taking a cab to the train station, then the subway to Queens, and possibly a bus to RQS's house.  It would be a pain - especially with the subways on a weekend schedule.  Yet, I didn't realize how much of a pain this would be.

 

- - - - - -

 

I didn't start to get moving until 10:30, and proceeded to get showered and dressed.  Around noon, I went out for my usual sausage and egg sandwich, then called the cab service around 1:00 for the ride to the station.  By 1:45, I was on the train and heading for Grand Central.  This would be the easy part of the trip.

 

Once at Grand Central, I had to make it from Manhattan to Queens.  I made the mistake and followed Google's directions for the subway:

• Take the #6 line to Canal Street.
• Transfer to the J line to Essex Street.
• Transfer to the M line to Myrtle/Wykoff
• And finally, take the bus to RQS's place.

Well, Google didn't take into account one thing - I was toting a suitcase.  The Canal street transfer is not accessible for those using wheelchairs.  Even though I am able bodied enough to walk, I would need elevators to make the transfer at this station tolerable.  Instead, I should have taken the #6 to Brooklyn Bridge (a known accessible station) and made the transfer there.  Sadly, Canal Street is a complex station with many confusing passages (with staircases) to navigate - and I must have walked up and down at least 5 flights of stairs with a heavy suitcase.  AARGH!

Now that I made it to the platform, I saw my train pull away.  It would be almost 10 minutes for the next train to come. At least, I was still sheltered from the sub-freezing wind outside.  I hopped on the train, and made it to the next transfer point, where the train had just pulled into the platform.  And now, I was on the train that could take me close to RQS's place.

Finally, I made it to Myrtle/Wykoff.  I had a decision to make.  Do I leave the subway system and take a bus to RQS's place?  Or, do I take the subway 2 more stops, and go down 4 flights of stairs to make it to street level, then walk to RQS's place?  The accessible station won out.  Leaving the station, I hoped that the MTA's bus schedule was correct - I'd only have a 5 minute wait for the bus.  This may have been the second big mistake of the day.  Once I was outside, I was hit with a blast of wind that almost knocked me to the ground.  If I didn't find shelter from the wind, I'd get frostbite - it was less than 10°f outside, and 5 minutes' exposure to the cold would be the maximum one should risk.

Luckily, I didn't have to wait long for the bus, and I was finally within 10 minutes of RQS's place.  But this trip would take longer than the expected 10 minutes.  First, there was the streets, narrowed by snowbound cars which hadn't moved since the big snowfall 2 weeks ago.  My bus was stuck waiting for an Uber to unload.  In normal times, the bus could squeeze between the Uber and cars parked on the other side of the street - but not with snowbound cars on both sides of the street.  Next, there was construction/demolition equipment at the end of the block, taking up more than their share of space.  (This is where a fire displaced 120+ people 2 weeks before, just around the corner from RQS's place.)  Finally, I was in walking distance of RQS's place - and by 4:15 I was inside her apartment, enjoying both the warmth of the place and the aroma of meatballs being cooked.

I'm not going to do everything all at once.

 

I'm not going to do everything all at once.  That's a lesson that can be overwhelming to most people, as they look at the big picture before breaking it up into little, more manageable tasks that need to be done.  In the case of my other blog, I have to rebuild and rewrite all text from scratch, including my impressions which were lost to a typo.  So, expect me to keep you informed of my progress over the next few days.

- - - - - -

Unlike yesterday, I was able to wake up around 6 am.  However, I did it on (maybe) 4 hours of sleep.  So, I knew that I'd be tired later in the day - and I was. For many people, if they have to go to the toilet in the middle of the night (or early in the morning), they usually fall back to sleep once they relieve themselves.  As for me, the movement needed to get to the toilet is just enough to bring myself to full consciousness, and knock my sleep/wake cycle out of whack.  So, when RQS got up, she saw me semi-conscious on the sofa.

Once I woke up again, I knew that I would need another nap.  Around 2 pm, I drove RQS to the station for her return home, and then I picked lunch at Mickey D's.  (Sadly, there were no places serving what would fit my food cravings, so I had to settle for a fish sandwich.)  Arriving home, it was time to nap - and I didn't get up again until 6 pm.

- - - - - -

Now that I was awake, it was time to sort out my mail, and start work on the travel blog again.  At least, all my photos were still safe on blogger, and I could use some of what I wrote for this blog as tools to refresh my memory of the cruise I took in November/December. 

Getting out and about when it's cold outside.

 

Provincetown, MA.  It looks beautiful after a snowstorm, but I wouldn't want to live there in the aftermath of one.  It's been a week since New York's last major snowstorm, and cars are still stuck in the snow on many New York City streets.  When I next visit RQS at her place, I'll need to take mass transit, as there will not be any available parking on the streets if I were to drive there.

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It's been a week of sub-freezing temperatures, and my stadium coats have gotten the most use they have gotten in years.  One advantage of this weather is that the snow won't melt and leave ice patches in dangerous places.  Given the mountain of snow that was plowed in front of my car (there was no other place to put it), I expect to see the remains of last week's storm hang around well into February.

RQS and I decided to go out today.  She wanted to get some coffee and try out the French Press I have in my kitchen.  As for me, I wanted an excuse to go out.  So, we bundled up, and out the door we went.  Off to Home Goods, and then to dinner.

Well, RQS found her coffee, and I decided to go to the same buffet that Vicki and I went to the other day.  This time, I overdid it.  Way too much food, but all of it was good.  On the way back, we took a route through back roads until we hit a roadblock.  Seems like a quarter mile section of road was out, and there was a 15 mile detour because of it.  As for me, the detour still brought us home without returning to the open section just past the detour.