a little new york history

Pam and I made a plan yesterday to walk today.  I get up early to sunny skies.  Get dressed.  The phone rings.  It’s M.  We end up in a long conversation and my motivation to walk starts to wane.

I hang up and call Pam.  Turns out her daughter was out walking at six this morning to raise money for one of the Boston victims.  Pam went with her, as she understandably didn’t want her daughter walking through the city streets alone at six a.m.

I decide I’ll walk later.  It’s easy for me to get derailed.  But I stick to my self-imposed commitment (there is much to be said for Nike’s Just Do it trademark). At mid-afternoon I  leave my house.

I decide on a destination-walk.  Two miles each way to the Museum of the City of New York. It turns out to be a walk well-worth taking.  I stop on my way and pick up a slice of carrot cake at Lloyd’s.  Even a four-mile walk won’t cover the calories.

I had wanted to go to the MCNY for a while.  They are having an exhibit on micro-living spaces.  On display are designs for very small apartments, including a life-size model.  The use of space is brilliant.  I could almost imagine living in one. There are pull-outs and drop-downs hidden everywhere.  Furniture that can be used for multiple purposes.  Drawers disguised as cabinets.  A full-sized dining table slid into a counter top.  And one closet.  If you have four T-shirts, two pair of pants, one coat, and no other stuff, it’d be perfect. 

There is also an exhibit exploring New York’s history of activism, as far back as the 17^th century.  I loved it. 

But my favorite was a 22-minute three-screen multi-media documentary on the history of New York.  By the time the short film ended, I swear I had tears in my eyes.  It’s amazing how a city can evoke such emotion.

Addendum:

Later, I tell M about the exhibit and she says, “I would have loved the film.”  I say, “Yes, that was my favorite part too.  Every city should have one.”  To which M adds, “"Every thing should have one.”  If you can compellingly tell a 500-year history in 22-minutes, nothing should take longer.