Joseph and The Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat

So my camera shy daughter played guitar with her high school band this past Saturday in it's production of Joseph and the amazing technicolor dreamcoat.  The audience seemed to actually enjoy the performance.  My daughter sat in an orchestra pit so she was barely visible, but my heart was nonetheless filled with pride.  In ernest she's only been at this music thing for about a year so she's not first string yet - no pun intended.  She holds herself to high standards, so there's little doubt she'll continue to improve.  I'd only wish she'd let her parents celebrate her achievements.  

27,576 miles and counting...

This is the estimated mileage I travelled on the New Jersey Turnpike during 2010 commuting to work.  By now I'm sure I can make the trip blindfolded.  To think the mileage didn't even qualify as a tax deduction.  Can't catch a break!

So the strangest thing was on February 10th when during my drive down to DE a small plane landed on the North bound side of the NJTP.  Goes to show, somewhere, someone is always having a worse day than you.   

I also saw Kim Kardashian on the Turnpike and she was bigger than life.  OK, so her picture was painted on the side of an 18 wheeler.  Gotta give it up to the Kardashian's, they know how to market themselves, even if they have no real talent.  I haven't been caught speeding yet, but it's probably only a matter of time.   Willie Nelson's "On the road again" has become my theme song, even though I'm not really into country music.         

Review: Breakfast at Cafe LuLuc

If you want to experience some pretty awesome pancakes then check out Cafe LuLuc at 214 Smith Street in Brooklyn.  Today  was my 3rd time visiting Cafe LuLuc.  Previous times I was there for brunch, which only means I missed out on the alcohol this go round since they wouldn't serve the Bloody Marys or Mamosas till past Noon.  Gotta remember that next time around.

Anyway, Cafe LuLuc is quite small so seating is limited.  Having to wait for seating is not unusual (more so during Brunch hours) and people line up anyway.  The pancakes are something special.  Rumor has it they actually bake them.  Whatever their secret is they certainly are a big hit with everyone. 

The french toast my daughter had was also pretty awesome. In short, Cafe LuLuc is a small treasure for breakfast or brunch, but bring your patience.         

Destiny or Luck?

Destiny or luck, is there a difference between the two?  Some will argue destiny is a pre-determined outcome that can't be altered. While others counter that destiny is influenced by the sum of decisions and actions taken along one's path.

So was it luck or destiny on the morning of September 11, 2001, when I decided to detour and stop at the Kristy Kreme donut shop that was located on the ground floor of the 5 World Trade Center building, just steps away from the Twin Towers.  If you are at all familiar with the Manhattan downtown financial district, you will recall the Krispy Kreme shop at 5 WTC as a very popular morning stop for many.  I mean they had a motorized conveyor belt gadget that was highly visible to all customers (a good move on their part) that carried their freshly baked pieces of heaven.  You couldn't walk out of that place without at least a few of their hot glazed donuts as they came off the conveyor belt.  It was like their glazed donuts were royality, so they got to ride the conveyor belt thing.  Forget about a just a few, I was there to get a dozen or may two, which they packaged quite nicely in a pizza like sized box. 

I was on my way to work at my mid-town office like most days, however, on this morning I decided to bring a treat to the office - so what better than Krispy Kreme donuts!  I knew no other Kristy Kreme location where you were guaranteed freshly baked donuts.  So from the SI Ferry I walked to the Krispy Kreme at 5 WTC.  I didn't mind the walk, after all it was a beautiful clear day.  So I reached 5 WTC and recall looking at my watch - it was 8:00AM EST.  Got my order and jumped on the uptown train.  So was it destiny or luck that I was able to leave the WTC complex completely unharmed by the events that followed just 45 minutes later? 

At my mid-town office I remember watching in disbelief on a TV in an adjacent conference room as the first tower fell.  We were all in shock - as was all of America.  One of my deputy Managers had no clue his fireman brother responded to the crisis and would become one of this day's many hero's - but a casualty nonetheless.  Later, the 2nd tower fell.  

We dismissed staff early that day.  I walked from midtown (40th street) to the South Ferry terminal on the chance the SI Ferry was still running.  Getting there I passed images of a smog filled city that looked like a war zone.  It felt surreal seeing National Guardmen line the streets with their machine guns.  It was an erry feeling.  Well, I finally made it to the SI Ferry terminal and yes, remarkably it was running.  As the boat departed the downtown terminal I turned and watched the void where the Towers once stood as a memorable part of the New York skyline.  I was left with an emptiness I can still vividly recall. So was it luck, or was it destiny?   

       

Source Code, A Good Thriller, 3 of 5 on my rating scale

Checked out Source Code yesterday.  Hadn't been to the movie theater in a while, so the $12 per ticket admittance was a bit of sticker shock, especially with the whole crew in tow.  On my rating scale this was a 3 out of 5.  A good thriller which kinda reminded me of Vantage Point the way the critical scene was continuous re-lived.  The Director was smart enough to accelerate each re-wind which kept the pace of the story line moving along.   

Jake Gyllenhall played the lead convincingly and my girls were simply swooning.  I won't get into the storyline so as not to spoil it for those who plan to see it.  I enjoy thrillers so for me it was worth the price of admission.  If this isn't your style of entertainment, save your money, it will be on DVD or On-Demand soon enough.        
  

My Maylasia Trip

Got the opportunity to visit Kuala Lumpur in December 2010 on a business trip.  This was my 2nd visit to Maylasia having been there in 1995.  So I left NY in the middle of winter with coat in tow.  20 hours (ouch!) and way too many bad movies later, I touched down in KL greeted by a sunny hot and sticky day.  But what else would you expect landing on terrain that sits on the earth's equator.  Backing up a bit, when preparing for landing, the aircraft's crew announces that any dealing in drugs is a crime punishable by death!  I think they mean business. 

I landed in the wee hours of the morning, but it still took well over an hour to get processed through customs.  Standing in line was no fun while fighting the urge to stripe down.  Anyway, hopped on the hotel shuttle and enjoyed the lucious landscape decorated by beautiful and plentiful plam trees.  45 minutes later I'm at the hotel. 3 hours later I crashed till the next day. 

The hotel was pretty cool and modern.  Ate breakfast in a big atrium setting surrounded by international food stations that prepared everthing fresh to order.  Felt curious and tried the Indian station.  They made me an crepe like pancake - although I think it was actually some form of flat bread served with a variety of sauces.  Took the mild sauce since it was early morning.  It was yummy!  

Over the course of the week I treated my pallet to Cuban, Asian and Indian.  Yes, there was very loud Cuban restuarant tucked away on the ground level that featured a live band and dancing.  In the late hours one evening I sat in this very masculine cigar room with several colleague nursing some after hour drinks.  Envision a dark wood trim room wth glass block walls and fitted with dark brown leather sofas.  A pretty macho setting! 

Yet another evening we ventured out by car service to another hotel for pre-dinner drinks.  This hotel was situated opposite the famous Petronas Towers.  The towers are quite a sight to behold when fully lit against the backdrop of the night sky.  Anyway, on the 37th floor we entered this dimly lit bar that featured a 40 foot pool in the middle of the floor.  It also had rain drops falling on it.  The setting screamed party, party, party!  So we had a few drinks and enjoyed the view of the Petronas Towers from the floor to ceiling glass surround.  A chain smoking DJ was playing some pretty lame retro music.  Went elsewhere for dinner afterwards. 

  

Took to the mall on another day and entered what must have been designer nirvana!  Never saw a mall sparkle so much.  There were more people cleaning and polishing than there were customers.  Prada, Vittuon, you name the designer, they were here.   Much surprised by all the Christmas Holiday decorations in the Mall and in the streets since  Maylasia is overwhelmingly Muslim.

The week flew by quickly and before you know it, I was on the 20 hour trek back home.  Malaysia however was a good experience.  I must remember to pack more shorts next time around.