FAO Schwartz and the Floor Keyboard

Musician salespeople demonstrate a "floor keyboard" with their clever dance at the famous toy store on Fifth Ave. 

Macy's Christmas Store Front

Macy's at Herald Square is THE place to get into the Christmas mood. Watch the videos below and pay attention to the theme music. I'd say its a mix between the scores of The Nutcracker and Lord of the Rings. . . mysterious, a little frightening, majestic, moody, hopeful. If you stand here long enough--and there's plenty to see while you do--you can't help being drawn into it. It's amazing street theatre.

 

Apartment Living and Making Do

I had to stretch my thinking last Saturday to come up with a ribbon for a gift before heading out to a party. This worked, I think.

Cake Art

 

I realize it's old fashioned to decorate cakes these days with just colored icing. Bakers use marzipan (a paste made of sugar and crushed almonds and rolled into thin sheets) to cut out intricate shapes and place them on the cake. But anyone can do that, right?

This cake, however, has been created by someone with the talent to paint. How realistic these look and how beautifully they are placed on each layer.

Protesting the Protesters

It's fair to assume there are enough people in New York City to protest anything that comes along. In the case of this puppy store in SOHO, the owners have these signs up to ward off anyone walking in wagging their fingers about them being a "puppy mill." Does that prove they aren't? What do you do with the puppies that don't sell?

City Energy

I know it's cliche to talk about the energy of the city (I also know it's cliche to say cliche), but I believe real city energy--the kind that makes you feel connected to the world--is not so much about the "busyness" of the city as it is about being physically close to other people.

I came to this conclusion after returning from a week in Tuscon where things were in motion but people didn't brush up against each other like they do in New York. Here you are constantly adjusting your personal space for others, i.e., making yourself smaller in the elevator, inching over on your subway seat, or adjusting your path on the sidewalk. There are people everywhere. They are close to you. You have to lower your eyes or concentrate on looking ahead to avoid staring at them.

I find the energy that comes from being physically close to so many people all day is, well, energizing. Oddly, it's one of those things you don't realize you may be missing until you experience it then go without for a while, a bit like going without salt.

Here is another video from the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade. Soooo many people. . . and this was a block off the parade path.

In a SOHO shop window.

Elegantly simple use of spray snow in a coffee shop window in SOHO.

A giant snowflake decorates an intersection of New York's Fifth Avenue.

Barneys New York and Lady Gaga

This is a sculpture inside Lady Gaga’s Workshop on the fifth floor of Barneys New York.

Foosball Barbies!

FAO Schwarz is a great place to spend an hour if the place isn't swarmed. There are musicians demonstrating the latest boxed magic kit and really patient sales people helping kids throw circular-flying Balsa wood airplanes. You can also get your photo taken with a very tall live toy soldier before entering the store. I wonder if he's also there for theft prevention like the Walmart greeters.

I was there on a Monday, and things weren't too crazy, but I am sure it's a madhouse most other days this time of year. Just so you know, I didn't see anything amazingly new. No matter how much imagination has been put into the toy design, the best play comes from using your own, in my opinion.

Bergdorf Goodman

The most amazing jewelry and handbags can be found on the first floor of Bergdorf Goodman. It is like walking through a museum of Beauty. It took my breath away. Every item on display felt like it was the only thing you should look at until your eye ventured onto the next thing. I spent two hours here just looking. My purchase was from the candy store- -$36 for a 16 oz. box of caramel toffee (roasted pecans and walnuts, sweet butter toffee, pink Himalayan sea salt and milk chocolate). Worth every penny.

Here's a very small section of one of their famous windows. This one was all paper sculpture and was stunning. Everywhere you looked, you found intricately designed objects made out of pieces of paper.

You can see their magnificent windows here.

Pose with a Half Naked Male Model at Abercrombie & Fitch

Do you see the man sans shirt through the window? This is Abercrombie and Fitch where two fully dressed male models flank the entrance to the Fifth Ave. store and also where . . .

. . .you can get your photo taken with a half-dressed one. There was a crowd of people just hanging at the entrance--I think watching this guy and trying to get the nerve to stand beside him. I did not get the nerve. . . yet.

Window Dressings

 

Isn't this a beautiful window display? There is a hint of Christmas in it without distracting you from that  awesome lamp. The building's brickwork adds a perfect frame for this scene, something I'm sure the window designer took into consideration.

New Yorker Comics on Mugs

 

What is funnier than a New Yorker comic? Here are some of the best ones on coffee mugs. I wanted to buy one for each person on my Christmas list, but who needs another coffee mug, really? The place is called Fishs Eddy, and it's full of brilliantly clever stuff that makes you think, "Why couldn't I have thought of that?"

Window Dressings

Toy Soldiers

Pictured here is only half of the display in front of a Park Avenue UBS office.

 My husband suggested I stand next to the display to give viewers an idea of the size of these guys. My salute is a little wimpy.

Must Have Caramel Corn

The singular purpose of getting out of my apartment today may be to purchase and consume caramel popcorn from Bryant Park.

We received our lease renewal notice and learned that our rent is going up $500 in February! That's per month, people!

Sooooo, we have been looking at other options. Now, just across the East River, the rent is 40% cheaper for 25% more space, and it's only a subway stop away from our current place!

Long Island City reminds me of Boonville (for those of you reading from Indiana) or Clifton (for those of you reading from Ohio). Mostly we saw young people, some with small children walking around and lots of pet-owners. No taxis. A beautiful riverside park.

After spending about 4 hours there, we noticed we were running into the same people, so that's definitely different than in Manhattan.

Bargain Eats in Long Island City

When the waiter brings you a Bloody Mary with three separate garnishes, you know they care.

The sugar for my coffee was served in a miniature cocktail glass. Love it!

The server couldn't tell us why there were playing cards on the ceiling.

My lunch was a scrambled egg wrap with Spanish rice and beans and white cheddar cheese. Must remember this for the next family get-together. The bacon was stolen from my husband's plate.

Our bill was delivered in this tiny woven basket and was half the cost of what we would have paid in Manhattan.

Remember Paper Snowflakes?!

I decided to decorate the apartment for Christmas, but I didn't want to purchase any new decorations I'd have to store after the holidays: paper snowflakes!

 

This autumn moon outside my living room window is partially framed by the 1930s style Tutor City complex and the modern United Nations building in the background.

New York Windows

 

This being Christmas time, I'll be posting some of the awesome window displays for which New York is so famous. This is just a tiny electronics shop on Third Avenue. I love how they have taken a small artificial Christmas tree, turned it upside down, and hung bright shiny red balls of various sizes on it like a bunch of hanging grapes.

Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade

I knew we wouldn't get the best view by leaving our apartment at 8:30 a.m. to see a 9 a.m. New York City parade; the front line spots get snatched up way before 6 a.m. However we did find a place to sit in Bryant Park with a small window see the balloons. Here is a video of one of them coming through on 6th Avenue. We enjoyed being in the crowd, seeing little kids all bundled up in their hats and mittens, and sipping on Duncan Donuts coffee. Best seats were back at the apartment in front of the TV.

Governor's Island

This is the building you enter to catch the Governor's Island Ferry. It's located in the southern tip of Manhattan. My family and I took the 10 minute ferry ride with hundreds of others, many on their bikes, this summer. Governor's Island is a great place to enjoy grassy, rolling hills and learn a little history. There are many activities offered through the warm months that include art fairs and such. Next time I go, I'll take advantage of the bike rental. I highly recommend doing this, plus the ferry's free.

Not a good place to take a call. . .

This statue in front of Macy's is NOT a good place to take a phone call, especially at the top of the hour when those bronze figures start swinging their hammers at that bell. I won't make that mistake again. The best place to take a phone call on the streets of NY is at an actual phone booth. . . or a Starbucks. The former is not that prevalent; the latter everywhere.