New Year's Eve at Times Square 2008

I painted our kitchen all day Saturday and Sunday and then decided at the last minute to join my roommate Jesse and his friend Susan on a trip up to Times Square to catch the New Year's thing. It was my second time doing it and even though it is exhausting, it is something that I think everybody ought to do every so often.

This year we landed prime real estate right next to the main stage and along the path where most of the performers walked by. We caught glimpses of Lenny Kravitz, a bunch of American Idol people I don't know, Rev. Run from Run DMC (left), Kid Rock, Mayor Bloomberg, and a bunch of other people I forget. We were on national television several times, once standing directly behind Tiki Barber while he interviewed the NY police commissioner.

The last time I went to Times Square we were way in the back and I enjoyed getting to know all of the people around us, most of whom were from other countries. This time we were surrounded mostly by Americans, but from all over the country. I was dead tired from two days of painting and little sleep, so I mostly just watched all the entertainment and chatted with the police officers who were stationed right next to us. I had a lot of fun just chatting about noting important with officers McCully, Blanco, Rivera, and others. The commissioner came by several times as well as many high ranking officers and these guys helped me understand the chain of command and other aspects of police structure. It was really interesting.

Other than that, I spent a lot of energy leaning over the barricade and shouting Happy New Year! at people walking through the entrance path to the stage in front of us. I asked several of the more wealthy looking ones to make a year-end donation to Ayuda and gave them my card. I really enjoy hustling for my peeps.

I yelled really loud at Kid Rock to say good job and he actually stopped to acknowledge me. Lenny Kravitz walked by us twice, both times in a big hurry with his head down. Rev. Run was the coolest for me. He was very engaged with people as he walked casually with his family. Think about what it means to be a hip hop pioneer in today's culture. Those dudes changed the way we live.

Another highlight was meeting a gorgeous photographer who does excellent work and was hired by Pontiac to get shots of their stuff at the event: www.babphotography.net There is some cool stuff on that website, including her phone number...

So anyway, another year is here. I have a newly painted kitchen and, oh yeah, a free piano from my friends Job and Christina. So the house is always looking different even if life stays mostly the same. I had a great time in New York and am looking forward to 2008!

Here is how it looked from my phone:


And the "official" version: