Your talking dog decided to waste his lunch hour by checking out “the street” around Madison Square Garden. I later went to “The Tank” at 432 W. 42nd Street, a few blocks North and West of the Garden, where “Blogger Alley” is set up; I was most pleased to shake the hands of visiting dignitary bloggers Jesse and Ezra of Pandagon, both of whom are (ahem) half my age; I hoped they solved their technical problem. Nice guys; hope to chat with them later in the week (work allowing). Being an “over 40”, I don’t know WiFi from Kung Fu, and hence, appeared at Blogger Alley sans laptop and wireless modum, and must alas return to a desk top unit for “street blogging”.
I took a few pictures of the Garden area (and Ground Zero, near TD office), which I hope to post later (after I get them developed… over 40, ya’ know).
The subways were unusually quiet; ridership resembles a Saturday or holiday more than a Monday (even a summer Monday). I took a quick ride to 34th Street, exited out the Northeast Corner of Penn Station to the street, which became a cul de sac for 15 minutes, as police cordoned off all four corners, while buses (I guess with delegates) passed by, or were choreographed, back and forth. I overheard an Arizona delegate announcing that John McCain was head of that state’s delegation, and “Isn’t it nice he’s a Republican again?” Well, (the sainted John) McCain is a double-edged sword: he’s yours for this week. He’ll be talking tonight with ersatz saint and true whore Rudy Giuliani, as the GOP tries to (as always) present a more moderate face than the party platform (which, after all, was better in the original German) would lead one to believe.
One curious person waiting at the cul de sac (around 15 minutes before we could cross the street– I like to exaggerate, but it was quite a while) asked me “How does business get done with this going on?” This being the virtual shutdown of central midtown traffic– 7th Avenue and 34th Street, I venture to guess, is easily one of the 10 highest traffic intersections in the City, as Penn Station (and nearby Madison Square Garden) are caddy-cornered with Macy’s. I responded, simply, “It doesn’t.” The other fellow nodded, acknowledging the virtual shutdown of the City. Certainly, anyone here at the office who could get away with not being here… is not here.
The streets were… quieter than usual, except for police, who are… everywhere, and in force. I find it less than funny that, if this is how the City reacts to be visited by a bunch of Americans, how it can possibly dream of having the Olympics. Then again, we probably won’t, so no need to worry about that.
And now, on with the opera…
tdog
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