A Behanding In Spokane

 Man, when I get back on the blogging wagon, I really let it loose!  This will be my last post for today *tears* - but don't fret, I will (hopefully) continue to document my list.

So, Friday night (Feb 27th) we went to see A Behanding in Spokane, a play by Martin McDonagh.  

I was driving to an appointment in Times Square the other day, when I saw Christopher Walken's name on a marquee.  Well let me tell you, I LOVE me some Christopher Walken.  I immediately called Stephen, well, maybe I texted him - any way, doesn't matter.  I got a hold of Stephen, who googled the play.

Turns out the play is only a 16-week limited engagement!  We hopped right on those tickets (translation: bought in a hurry) in the new found spirit of getting things done in this city.

Because I'm a little wordy, I have taken the summary off the official website:

Martin McDonagh's first American-set play—the outrageously funny A BEHANDING IN SPOKANE—has arrived on Broadway in a star-studded, 90-minute world premiere production.

Carmichael (Christopher Walken) has been searching for his missing left hand for almost half a century. Enter two bickering lovebirds (Anthony Mackie and Zoe Kazan) with a hand to sell, and a hotel clerk (Sam Rockwell) with an aversion to gunfire, and we're set for a hilarious rollercoaster of love, hate, desperation and hope.

                                    

Besides Christopher Walken, we got to enjoy the immense talent of Sam Rockwell, Anthony Mackie, and Zoe Kazan.  True fabulousness.

Year of the Tiger

So the first thing on the list was to attend the Chinatown Chinese Lunar New Year Parade and what perfect timing with my list and all, because Chinese New Year happened to fall on the same weekend!

My inaptitude for being able to read a calendar resulted in a trip to Chinatown two Sundays in a row - the first Sunday, Feb 14th, happened to be the Firecracker Ceremony where the use of over 600,000 firecrackers warded off the evil spirits for the year.  It was way too crowded (see below) to get any good pictures or really a good view period.  Stephen & I just listened to the firecrackers ward those spirits away.

Here are pics from the parade the following Sunday:

one of the many floats

look at that beard & his dog was just like him

regal fellas

taking it all in

prepping for her day

fanned out

the year of the tiger

colorful end

cutest boy

goodbye to chinatown

elaborate masks

Shalom Y'all

Two weekends before I moved to New York I went down to Austin to say goodbye.  While at Trudys indulging in Stuffed Avocado & a Mexican Martini (or two), I stumbled (no pun intended) upon my horoscope in the Austin Observer.  And here is what it said:

Leo Horoscope for July 21-27 2006

The Hebrew word "shalom" is both a hello infused with a goodbye and a goodbye leavened with a hello.  That's why it would be wise and fun for you to make it your word of power in the coming days.  You'll be spinning through a transitional zone in which it won't always be clear which direction is up.  You'll be coming and going simultaneously, embarking on new journeys and ending old ones.  Whenever you say "shalom" whether it's a greeting to someone else or a mantra uttered in solitude, you'll remind yourself that the threshold you're in is pregnant with a thousand possibilities.

Now at the time, and really still to this day, I found this to be the most amazing horoscope ever.  I mean I was moving to NYC and my horoscope not only talks about journeys old & new, but uses the word shalom to do so.  Brilliant. 

Lately I've been thinking about the last line - "pregnant with a thousand possibilities" - and have determined that while I have enjoyed my time in NYC, I have not taken advantage of all the things I should do before I eventually move (I mean you can't stay in a studio apartment with a husband & dog forever, right?).

SO, I got Stephen on board & got one of those childhood composition books & have written out a "to do list" for all the things we want to see, places we want to go, food we want to eat, etc.  A bucket list if you will.

The plan is to do at least one item a week (sometimes more) and also to cross them off while we go (well, actually just a red check beside them, so we can read them later).  So far it is working & so we don't forget, I went ahead and put all the cool things we have done in the almost 4 years we have been here and checked those off, too.

The second part of the plan is to post about each of the things we cross off.  I know this is the part that excites you the most! (yes, sarcasm)...

Any way, I guess the only thing left to say is Shalom Y'all!

this hangs by my front door with the horoscope taped to the back of it 
a gift from Susie to help with my transition