Rainy Day in NYC

Today the winds were blowing from the east, a storm was moving in.

how it all ends

Something was brewing, and about to begin. I pulled on my rain boots over my favorite jeans, tugged on a hat, grabbed my umbrella and left the house in the windy rain singing "Chim chimney chim chimney cheroo"

Good luck with rub off when I shake hands with you. chim chimney...

I arrived in NY's Penn Station. This was my second trip without my husband and I really wish he would have been there. Not to enjoy the fun of walking in NYC torrential rain but to hold my wimpy clammy hand walking past a city of homeless smelly and crazy people. Homeless New Yorkers go into the subway system when the weather is harsh. Since today it was raining like the Amazon and everyone was drenched, Penn Station reeked of pee, farts and sweat....it was really gross. I am also terrified (God forgive me) of homeless people and am likely to dart off across the street like if a rabid bear was chasing me if I get the feeling I am being followed. It is shamefully bad. My husband, weirdly but like a saint, gravitates towards homeless people saying they are suffering souls and much safer than people who look normal but are really psychotic. I am sure he is right, and sweet like St. Francis but my feet can't help wanting to run when I get close to a large colony of homeless.

So, today, with my stomach in my throat terrified of homeless men, I put on my very bravest "mean mug" that one of my students at Hopkins taught me. He is from Queens and said I was too nice to survive in NYC. He said I needed to make a face (in NY called a "mug") like I could take down anyone in an alley if I needed to and to think of that when in the NYC subway and I wouldn't be targeted as a tourist. So, this girl put on as mean of a mug as possible, popped out the Totes umbrella and strutted in her purple glossy boots like a gangster down the flat iron district. As soon as I was away from homeless terror I was soon all smiles and thrilled as I realized that I was in the Fashion District.

There were suddenly shops, tons of little shops filled with all the projects future fashionistas make! WHAT?! Yeah. What was I to do but to wander in one of these shops and see what kind of chic I could find?

Spiked stilettos. How classy.

Well, I guess fashion students are that for a reason because most of what I found were strange pieces that looked like they should belong on Napoleon or the Jetsons.

The rain didn't stop.

 I was chilled to the bone by this time.

Gorgeous Home Depot building.

Can you see the water droplets hop off the sidewalk?

Then I saw my weakest point: A kitchy kitchen store.

Oh my gosh my golly...it was like time for mistletoe and holly in my heart. Drenched and shivering like a wet cat I went in Fishes Eddy to warm up and just fell in love with the place.

Storageware: Try to contain yourself! HA! 

They had mugs from Alice and Wonderland, NYC, such cute kitchy designs. I could have moved right in and started cooking.

The Three Little Pigs!

Manhattan espresso cups

After calming myself from the original overwhelming feeling after having discovered an emotionally creative goldmine, I decided to be practical and buy only something I really needed to replace something broken....

Michelle Obama kitchen towels...I don't think she is useful even on a dishtowel.

So I sensibly bought two AWESOME dishtowels (of the NYC skyline), four espresso cups, and some linen napkins! My rational is that maybe using cloth napkins will make us use less paper ones and thus lessen our carbon footprint on mamma earth....or they just look really cool.

I decided to head back earlier than planned because the rain was coming down so strong, I had been drenched for a while and was feeling achy  On the train home I fell into a deep deep sleep....luckily I woke up in time to get out of the train. I walked home feeling gross, then made a nice hot strong coffee and started watching Coco Before Chanel. I wonder how she would have handled NYC on a rainy day? 

What would Coco do on a rainy day in NYC? Would she have been drenched like an angry cat? Probably not.

However fabulous she was I am sure she wouldn't have ended it as nice as I did with a hot bowl of pasta piselli soup with chunks of parmegiano.....Oh, the benefits of having married an Italian man who cooks.

That's Amore