© Photo TheMariga'Zbulle - New York - Top of the Rock - septembre 2008

Edit du 28/09/08 :  Surtout ne me demandez pas de faire un choix entre l'Empire State et le Top of the Rock, je vous répliquerai sans hésiter qu'il faut faire les deux. Idéalement l'un le jour et l'autre la nuit pour avoir une vision d'ensemble de Manhattan par le haut.

Même si Zok soutient que c'est une ville de la nuit, et que les deux points de vues devraient être faits à la tombée du jour... soit, moi j'aime cette lumière du matin, qui donne un côté maquette à l'ensemble, voire des couleurs quasi irréelles. 

En pratique, il y a nettement moins d'attente au Top of the Rock qu'à l'Empire State Building, quant au tarif, guère grande différence, comptez environ 20$ par personne pour l'accès (coupons réductions dans les magazines distribués dans les Visitor Center). 

Toutefois, ne tenter pas si le ciel est couvert, vous n'y verriez pas grand chose dans les deux cas !

I found a dance partner. I could fill pages telling you all about what a fantastic dancer, and friend he is. You know how you meet someone, and feel as though you have known them your whole entire life? But then you can top that awesomeness off with someone who is a really, really good dancer with goals just like yours. (And somebody who shares your photography obsession?) There are simply not words to describe that.And hey, mad swing dancing love.

Finally made it out to another HTR house party after missing some months for this reason or that. It was most excellent to catch up with my N... drinking what I discovered to be a tasty $3 beverage from my local liquor store that tastes like banana candy. Also, I never really noticed how neat their quote wall is.

M took me on a really wonderful suprise date to Top of the Rock. We got there in time to watch the sunset. At this point, I would generally post a few pictures to better communicate the incredible-ness that was that sight... but my computer's being silly and not recognizing my memory card or cord. So, till I get that mess cleared up, you'll just have to take my word. Breathtaking, from the crystal chandelier to the view... really, like nothing else in the world.

I could go on and on, but bed is calling soon and a shower is sorely needed before that. (More sleep tomorrow morning that way!) In the meantime I'm going to go ponder the secrets of the universe, i.e. why I'm so damn good at starting blogs but not keeping them up. Haha.

Back In Town: We created this Dancing Bear Night Light for the Grateful Dead a few years back, and they are once again carrying it in their online store and catalog. So for all you Grateful Dead fans who've been asking me where they can get one, here it is: Grateful Dead Dancing Bear Night Light. It features a nickel silver frame over light blue stained glass and has a 4 watt bulb.

As soon as I shipped these night lights out to Grateful Dead Productions, my eldest daughter, who is 12, came home with new Dancing Bear Converse Shoes. She was so excited to show me them and I can see why. They feature about 5 colors of the dancing bears in a random pattern all over the outside (and inside) of the shoes. Very fun, colorful design! Nothin' too serious going on here....

Design Your Own: Converse now offers the ability for you to create your own sneakers. This is the type of custom service we here at Kyle Design have been offering for over 25 years (!), where we allow you to create your own gifts using the design, colors, metal finish and product of your choice. You might say it isalmost infinitely possible to create an artful gift that is unique. (The current rough math: 300 designs x 45 colors x 2 metals x 100 products = 2,700,000. Do you need more choices than that? Well, if so, there is always our custom design services....)

Custom Work: I have created custom pieces such as the night light above where I take a company logo, in this case the happy dancing bear itself, then incorporate that image into a scene or design based on the product shape. I have designed custom bookmarks and business card holders for Yosemite National Park based on a door hinge pattern, developed a line of vitamin cases and money clips for the Top of the Rock Observation Deck Gift Shop at the Rockefeller Center based on their logo, created a custom letter opener for Trinitas Hospital, among other projects. Please visit the Kyle Design Custom Work Gifts page to see more examples.

But if you don't want to go through all that trouble and just prefer to pick from the nearly 3 million possibilities that we currently offer, then please visit Kyle Design: Cool Custom Gifts for Over 25 Years. Why, we can even ship your custom gift today if you need it shipped that fast. We normally do send orders with 1-2 days, even with custom engraving. Check us out if you want something different

Technorati: Grateful Dead, Grateful Dead Productions, Dancing Bear, Logos, Custom Gifts, Dancing Bear Nigh Light, Custom Work, Custom Design, Kyle Design, Art, Gifts, Design, Night Lights, Create Your Own, Create Your Own Gifts, Converse, Rockefeller Center, Top of the Rock, Vitamin Cases, Money Clips, Yosemite National Park, Trinitas Hospital, Kids, Fast Shipping, Online Shopping, Cool Gifts, Letter Openers, Designers

Anyway, it was a fun tour. We got to see the MSNBC studios during a live broadcast, and we visited the NBC Nightly News set. For me, the highlight of the tour was the Saturday Night Live studio. SNL isn't taping during the summer, so the studio was temporarily being used for other purposes. However, you could still view the three SNL stages: (1) where musical guests perform, (2) the main stage where the opening monologue happens, and (3) a staging area for the more complicated or "messy" sketches.

After the SNL set tour, the group was ushered into a sound stage that looked like a newsroom. They asked for volunteers. I raised my hand and got to conduct the weather report for a fake newscast. Reading the teleprompter while trying to watch the monitor (which shows a flipped image) was difficult, but fun. I now have more respect for the weathermen -- haha!

Following the NBC tour, we went to the "top of the Rock" to get a glimpse of New York city from 70 stories up. The top of the Rockefeller building gives you glorious 360 degree views of the city. It was gorgeous up there.

New York skyline and Empire State Building

Central Park

Gary pinching the top of the Empire State Building

Rockefeller Plaza Area

After leaving the Rockefeller Center area, we grabbed a late lunch at one of the local cafes, walked around Times Square and headed to the airport. It was a great day and a fun trip.

On Monday, I was back at work. Gary had the day off so of course I was jealous. I really wished I could take another day off, but work is crazy right now. Two days of vacation was all I could take.

Anyway, I made it through the day without losing my "vacation aura", then headed to the first rehearsal for SNL. I'm really happy with our cast and sketches for the show this year. I think it's going to be great! Mark your calendars -- October 3 and 4. You don't want to miss it!

El video a continuacion es solo una pequenya muestra que comprueba una vez mas lo accesible y envuelta que es con sus fan@s nuestra diva, aqui se le puede ver como se mezcla con su publico como si fuese uno mas de ellos.

En la siguiente foto se puede observar a nuestra diosa, probando nuesvas tendencias en la moda, asesorada por su nuevo consejore de imagen y pasarela Dani, quien el dia hoy vuela a Chicago a un concurso de modelaje, esperemos que le vaya muy bien.

Y por ultimo, para que veais que la Perroja, aun tiene alma de ninya y en su tiempo libre se divierte con lo que puede, aqui juega con un ninyo de su la Fundacion Perroja ( mas detalles manyana ).

Sin mas por los momentos se despide de vosotros.

Editor.

Note: Names have been changed to protect respondents' identities

Domani, cioè oggi, vado agli Universal Studios e domani a Malibu! Poi partiró per San Francisco ecc ecc, ma vedrò di scrivere un altro articolo.. Ciao!

També vam veure el mític Blue Note...

Vam doonar un tomb pel Rockefeller Center i cap a 2/4 de 5 vam pujar al Top of The Rock, planta 69 d'un dels edificis del Rockefeller Center.

Des d'allà vam fer moltes fotos de Manhattan mentre es ponia el sol i sense sol. Des d'aquí si que es veu el central Park, a diferència de l'Empire State. Resulta que aquest edifici on erem tapa el Central Park si el mires des de l'Empire State.

Després de la sessió de fotos, vam baixar amb el nas gotejant i vam fer cap al musical "Spring Awakening". Vam triar aquesta obra perque quan estavem mirant quines obres feien a l'aparador de l'oficina del TKTS una senyora ens va preguntar si li recomanavem alguna obra, que ella hi anava sovint i en volia veure una altra... al final ens va acabar recomanant ella a nosaltres, clar. Ens vam deixar aconsellar i n'estem molt contents! l'obra va valdre la pena (i els $$$ que vam pagar!) Un musical molt dinàmic, veus precioses fins i tot del personatge més secundari que t'imaginis i una posada en escena molt detallada i completa.

Zum Sonnenuntergang auf das Rockefeller Centre zu fahren, und sich von der "Top of the Rock" genannten Aussichtsplattform den Sonnenuntergang anzuschauen:

Vor zwei Jahren war ich auf dem Empire State Building: Ich habe drei Stunden angestanden, die Auffahrt dauerte mit vier Fahrstühlen noch eine weitere halbe Stunde, und oben war es so saukalt, dass ich trotz guter Ausrüstung nach einer Viertelstunde wieder abgehauen bin. Gestern waren wir auf dem Rockefeller Turm: Anstehen keine fünf Minuten, der Aufzug beamt einen quasi nach oben, und dort ist es wahlweise lecker warm, etwas frischer oder frisch. Wir waren fast anderthalb Stunden dort.

Ich empfehle jedem den Besuch dieser Aussichtsplattform. Denn nebenbei sieht man von hier aus auch das Empire State Building.

On the 23rd August, we all went to Poughkeepsie, NY for Marc's fantasy football draft, and met all our friends there.  It was the best of both worlds because the first night we spent out in the country on a fruit farm, and the kids got to ride in the back of a pick up (off road only!!) and pick some peaches and nectarines right off the tree and then see the fruit being packed and then the next day we went to a winery, and we did some wine tasting and the kids ran around. It was so hot  and humid at the winery that I had a lovely glass of Rose -only because I knew it would be chilled.  I have to say New York wines aren't much chop. (I'll probably get hate mail now). 

 On the Friday night, the whole group had dinner at the Culinary Institute of America, which was very nice.  All the food is cooked and served by the students there.   I thought it was a bit expensive for people who are still practicing - especially since my chicken entree was not that good. Appetiser and desert were fantastic though, which more than made up for it.

 Saturday was the day of the draft, so I took the kids on the train into New York City, and we went to the Top Of the Rock, which they kids loved, and we had lunch at Carnegie Deli, then bought some souveniers and limped back to the train and returned to Poughkeepsie and then home on Sunday.

 This past week has been busy getting ready for school to start on Tuesday. I now have a kindergartner and a 2nd Grader. We had Back to School Night on Thursday and then Meet the Teacher on Friday, and everyone was very excited for school to start, and no one is more excited than me!!