I had decided I wanted to go up to NYC alone and see a show (I don’t travel well with other people) so that was planned for early this year and it ended up being this last weekend. I wasn’t sure what show to see and I wasn’t sure what else I wanted to do up there but was certain that I wanted to stay near Times Square.

Jim, the boss, got me a hotel room at the Residence Inn Times Square, I had a room on the 34th (top, corner) Floor and have great views. Gary, the roommate, got me a train ticket, I rode business class Acela – but in hindsight would probably rather have taken a regular train and enjoyed my book for longer, trains can be relaxing to me.

I had been talking to a handsome guy online, who lives up in New York City, named Tom and asked him if he wanted to go to dinner and a show. He agreed and so I had him give me suggestions for a show. We picked Ragtime, but soon learned that they were closing the show so we traded the tickets in for Next To Normal on Saturday night.

I arrived promptly at 12:50 on Friday afternoon and was met at Penn Station by my friend Erika who escorted me to my hotel and then she and I caught up over lunch at a nice little Italian restaurant of which I can’t seem to recall the name, but it was good. Erika and I really had a nice time catching up and it was great to see her.

Returning to my hotel I anxiously awaited the arrival of Tom and our plans were to go to the Museum of Modern Art (MOMA) on Friday night. Apparently if you stand in line Friday night you can get in for free.

Tom arrived and was just as cute as his photos. I brought him up to the room so he could see the view and then we departed for the MOMA. Unfortunately the cold temperatures and humongous line were a daunting thought for the both of us so Tom suggested we take the subway to the Ferry and go see the Statue of Liberty, which I had mentioned to him that I had never seen.

The NYC subway system I’ve been told is easier to understand and navigate then the DC Metro system… really. I do believe all of the people that have told me this have been native New Yorkers. I wasn’t really sure where we were headed or how we got there, but I did recognize several distinct odors on the subway platforms which made me long for the cleanliness of homes mass transit cleanliness.

Tom is very funny and engaging, he had me laughing and smiling most of the evening with his quick wit, impersonations and charm. I like him. Woof. Grrrr. HUGZZZTTHH. (private joke). I stood out in the cold and watched as the Ferry floated by the Statue of Liberty and took photos that don’t look too bad, Tom stood inside where it was warm – see he’s smart too. Tom suggested a few restaurants for dinner and I chose the Cowgirl Hall of Fame. Tom strongly recommended the Chicken-Fried-Chicken but I opted to play it safe and have a burger – after Tom allowed me to have a bite of his I regretted my decision. Ah well.

Tom and I returned to my hotel and well the rest of the evening is censored. But you probably get the idea – it was a lot of fun. He didn’t spend the night.

Saturday morning I awoke early and headed out in the cold, I didn’t have breakfast at the hotel as I just wanted to get out there and see all the things I wanted to see.  I arrived at Midtown Comics 2 minutes after it opened and spent over an hour just in love with the place – if you’re a comic book geek like me it’s an oasis. I had a $60 gift card that I received from Gary which was quickly spent on a Superman statuette and then I spent more on comics and graphic novels. LOVE that store, want to go back. So at this point its a little after 12:00 p.m. and I went back to the hotel room to lie on the bed and read comics – that’s the best part of a vacation doing whatever the hell you want to do.

After a nap and an interrupting phone call from Tom I got all gussied up for a night out. Tom arrived and we walked around Times Square for a while being touristy and getting annoyed at the tourists (yes it’s possible) who don’t know how to walk on a sidewalk or just suddenly stop or turn with no indication. Funny. We arrived at our restaurant Gallagher’s Steakhouse of which I’d heard great things. I’d eaten at the one in the New York New York hotel in Vegas and ordered pork chops and been frowned at so this time I ordered Fillet Minon and really liked it. Tom first broke a tooth on the hard dinner roll that they gave us and then was disappointed in his sirloin so they replaced it with beef roast… which he says was good. We opted to have dessert somewhere else after the show.

We arrived at the Booth Theatre for the show with plenty of time and I bought myself a tshirt (it says Superboy) and the CD in anticipation of good music. We checked our coats and were seated in the orchestra section. The show began on time and was great. There were moments during the first act that I couldn’t hear the daughter singing very clearly and she was a little soft, but the second act was all cleared up. The show itself was an interesting look at mental illness and the family dynamic – entertaining, funny, off-beat. I really enjoyed it. Tom said it was like watching something familiar – his story not mine. We returned to my hotel after dessert at Junior’s and it was pretty late at this point, 11:30 or something (yes, I’m old). So we lay awake in bed for an hour or so just chatting, no really.

Sunday morning we awoke around 6:30 – yes crazy – and lay there for a while before getting up to have breakfast at the buffet on the 3rd floor. Then we went back to my room I packed up and we had a little fun before Tom walked me to the train station and I headed back home.

I had a great trip, was glad to meet Tom and hope to go back to NYC and spend time with him again.