Urban Jungle

New York City is often referred to as an Urban Jungle; however, this weekend we had the opportunity to visit the real Urban Jungle, the Bronx Zoo!

For Christmas this past year, Matt and I gave his younger sister a trip to NYC. At the time it was probably a let down. I mean, I would definitely rather get some new clothes than I lame book filled with IOUs. But hopefully, after a weekend jammed packed with fun (Spider-Man Turn Off the Dark, Burgers at Shake Shack, the zoo, etc) the wait seemed worth it.

The Bronx Zoo was definitely the highlight of the weekend for me. Seeing all of the animals up close was truly magical. Of course seeing the giraffes was my favorite, but I think that seeing the gorillas was a very close second.

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I am sure there are people out there who will argue that zoos are inhuman and what not. I’m not knowledgable enough to fight that fight. So I will leave that to PETA.

New York Through Rose Colored Glasses

Although I moved to New York in November of 2008, I feel as though I just started enjoying and appreciating all that the city has to offer. Having a job, not only that I love, but one that keeps me tied very close to the heart of the city, has made all the difference. And while there are certainly days where the city kicks my ass, I am starting to grasp just how special this city is. It is hard to put into words what it is like living here – you really can’t do the city, both the positive and negative things about it, justice.

Thankfully freelance cameraman Andrew Clancy has captured some of the spirit of the city in his 4-minute short film, A Year In New York. He started filming his life in New York City last January and just kept going. Eventually he stopped, and when he did he sat down and edited his footage into this amazing film.

How knows how long Matt and I will call New York City our home, but while we are here, I am going to do my best to take advantage of everything this city has to offer. And while I will never sport a Yankees jersey or cheer for the Giants, I will root for the city of New York.

Bling

I have been a delinquent blogger of late. My last post nearly two weeks ago, and even before that post, I wasn’t hitting my 4-5 posts per week goal. I really don’t have a good excuse. I guess I can say I have been busy at my new job learning all about the world of development, but mostly, I just don’t want to look bad by blogging all day long.

Well, this past weekend, I had something happen in my life that was blog worthy. On Saturday, naturally, I was celebrating National Marquette Day with some of my favorite people. I was texting with my sister, as per usual, when she suddenly seemed a bit more anxious than usual to know what I was doing. Text flooded into my phone: “what are you doing? what are you doing later? how long are you going to be doing that for?” It was like I had my very own stalker. Soon enough, Abby revealed to me that she herself was in New York City! She decided to come up for the weekend and thought it would be fun to surprise.

While I was slightly sad to cut my celebration of National Marquette Day short, I will basically drop ANYTHING for my sister. So we decided to meet for some shopping and a mani. We didn’t buy much, put the few hours of sister time was priceless. And while our time together was brief, the memories will last forever and the sweet manicures we got lasted well into the week.

When Matt purposed, I was impressed with how much though he put into the actual proposal. A private sailboat at sunset – it doesn’t get much more “straight out of a movie” than that. But what really impressed me was Matt’s choice in ring. It was stunning, so much more than I deserved and fit perfectly. More than that, it was super sparkly. And anyone who knows me, knows I love sparkle. Whether it is on a “work appropriate tiara” (aka headband), a poster cheering on HWSD or announcing my candidacy for class officer, or a jar of Martha Stewart glitter, I love it. And this ring sparkles!

Well, my sweet manicure might actually down play the ring. As Abby described it, “it is like a disco ball on your fingers.”

Thank goodness for sisters, bling, and sparkly nail polish!

It’s Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas

Every year millions of tourists come to New York City to catch a glimpse of the famous Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree and skate a few laps around the world-renowned ice skating rink. The tree gives people a reason to celebrate. It serves as a symbol of hope, a beacon of peace and is the official sign that the holiday season is upon us. This year’s tree arrived in Rockefeller Center this morning and will be raised later today. No matter how hard I try to hold off on celebrating Christmas until Thanksgiving has passed, it is difficult not to be excited by this sight.

(A special thank you to Matt for stopping to take these pictures on his way to work!)

Although the official Christmas tree tradition at Rockefeller Center began in 1933 (the year the 30 Rockefeller Plaza opened),the unofficial tradition began during the Depression-era construction of Rockefeller Center, when workers decorated a small 20 foot balsam fir-tree with strings of cranberries, garlands of paper, and even a few tin cans on Christmas Eve, December 24, 1931. Some accounts have the tree decorated with the tin foil ends of blasting caps. Click here for a photo tribute and history of the Rockefeller Christmas Tree.

Many Rockefeller trees were given to Rockefeller Center by donors.Members of the Gardens Division of Rockefeller Center, scout in a helicopter for the desired tree in areas including Connecticut, Vermont, Ohio, upstate New York, New Jersey, and even Ottawa, Canada. Once a suitable tree is located, a crane supports it while it is cut, and moves it to a custom telescoping trailer that can transport trees up to 125 feet (38 m) tall, although the width of New York City streets passing through Rockefeller Center limits the height of the trees to 110 ft. This year’s tree is  74 feet tall and hails from the town of Mahopac (in Putnam County) which is located approximately 50 miles from Manhattan.  The 75-year-old Norway spruce, is especially meaningful since it comes from the yard of 9/11 first responder and firefighter and was found on September 11th of this year.

Once at the Rockefeller Center, the tree is supported by four guy wire attached at its midpoint, and by a steel spike at its base. Scaffolding is put up around the tree to assist workers in putting up 30,000 lights attached to 5 miles of wiring. The star that has topped the tree since 2004 is 9.5 feet in diameter and weighs 550 pounds and is made out of the famous Swarovski crystals.

This year, the annual Christmas at Rockefeller Center tree lighting celebration will take place on November 30, 2010.