Nature: Hungry Squirrles and Intense Rabbits

Hankering for a hunk of Italian bread.

I was walking home from the library one afternoon to be startled by a squirrel with a huge hunk of Italian bread in its' mouth, dexterously climbing a bush's branches with it locked down in its' mouth. 

Intensely chewing and staring...at you!

I must have had extra special magnetic rays radiating out from me that day, because later on, the local bunny rabbit decided to stand right outside the window of the room where I stay, surprisingly intense in it's stare, chewing vigorously and intently looking at me with a gaze that didn't break after I walked across the room to take a picture. 

"A bird ran into my giant freak-head."

Sometimes having The Patron Saint of Animals (St. Francis) as your main "go-to guy" is a bit unnerving, like Elaine from Seinfeld's bird phobia, provoked by a kamikaze pigeon flight at her "big head" while walking through Central Park. Sometimes I need to dial my pheromones down a bit. What do you attract?

My wolf pack grew by two that day.

Go Green!

The Boogie Down Bronx sports the green.

Hey New York! It's parade weekend, so if you're drinking a pint or two (and you know you will), stay safe and take mass transit. That's what's it's for, you sot ;)

For those of you visiting from out of town, take a tip from a classic Seinfeld episode about the Puerto Rican Day Parade: just stay away.

Stay safe, and have a great time. Happy St. Pat's—Marie

Video Games

After T.V. console sets, the next step in gamer evolution was the hand-held. The only arcade game I could stand (like George "Can't Stands Ya" Constanza) was Frogger. The rest seemed accurately designed to milk as many quarters as possible from the player. As a kid, that gets frustrating, especially when game after game ends in under 30 seconds. Where's the fun in that? GAME OVER!

 

My brothers had their hand-held games, too. The best was Mattel's Electronic Football: a simple black screen with red dash marks. You started at one end of the screen to work your way towards the "end zone", which was the other side of the screen. After awhile, I got the hang of it. Basically, after one or two moves forward onto the field with a up or down direction thrown in as a feint, you used the "up" arrow key to position the mark representing your player to the very top of the screen, then used the right arrow key to move forward, which dodged all the other marks, to get you into the end zone for a touchdown. 

It became a flawless formula, satisfying in the same way as solving a Rubix cube. But once learned, those games lost their luster fast, becoming so much plastic fodder for the garbage dump, where I'm sure they still are, since this was pre-recycling days. Computer games replaced arcades and hand-held games, which is an article for another day. Suffice to say, I'm back to playing hand-held games on, you guessed it, my iPhone. So what am I playing now, with all these tech advances? Tetris. And it's still so, so good. Current high score: 637,767.

Let the games begin.

St. John the Divine

Street view of St. John the Divine, © Marie Doucette

After years of living out West, my homecoming of several full and glad years has extended itself into one big, long welcome back. I made a promise to myself that I would return for good, and I have. 

A couple of days before the move, years ago, I took a day trip to say "goodbye" to a few cherished landmarks: Rockefeller Center, St. Patrick's Cathedral, and Saks Fifth Avenue, a shopping tourist trap I normally avoid. I made a minor token purchase, just so I could get a small souvenir bag from the store. 

Lady in Contemplation, © Marie Doucette

I told myself that when I came home, I would make it a point to see all the spots I've always wanted to, a New Yorkers' "Bucket List", if you will. And so I have, diligently working my way through it, one special place at a time.

Stained Glass of St. John the Divine, © Marie Doucette

Yesterday was gorgeous. The light was perfect for a visit to the Cathedral of St. John the Divine. I don't get to the Upper West Side often from Brooklyn, so it was the subway ride equivalent to a road trip upstate. And what a great day it was! Flawless lighting. 

The Arches of St. John the Divine, © Marie Doucette

Afterwards, I felt a minor head cold tugging around the edges of my usual unflagging energy. Back at home, going through the shots, I knew it was worth it. I'll have them forever, just like a deep and abiding love for the beauty of life on this Earth.

Park by the Cathedral of St. John the Divine, © Marie Doucette

http://www.stjohndivine.org/

Tom's Restaurant, © Marie Doucette

For the Seinfeld fans out there, here's a shot of the diner on the corner, down the block from the Cathedral. 

Look familiar to you?