December 21st, 2012

New York City is just now starting to get chilly and it seems that winter is on its way after all.  Part of me was hoping it would miss us entirely.

This fall has felt like that game of kickball we used to play in gym....where things keep getting thrown at you. Although I was out-of-town during Hurricane Sandy,  it was incredible to see the devastation, and I felt for the people that lost their homes.
NYC banded together and things were settling down again, and then we were devastated to hear about the events in Newtown, CT. The day after that, I was subbing at my former job, teaching the beginning violin class. Many of those kids are 6 years old. They always make me smile with the way they look at the world,  and that brought it all home.

In spite of all the kickballs, I decided to go beyond the Macy's window and do some real shopping.

 I made it as far as the LEGO store in Rockefeller Center.  That is not a store for the meek or those that don't have a clue about legos.  Legos seem to have developed quite a bit since I remember them and I was pretty lost there, but I managed to get in the HUGE line with a purchase, although that was almost my shopping limit for the day.
After the lego store,  I walked by St. Patrick's Cathedral and decided to go in and sit for a minute. It's such a beautiful church and felt very peaceful after the consumer madness. I needed to remember what Christmas was really about, and it was a great reminder.
Admittedly, after feeling the true spirit of Christmas, I did head over to the American Girl store for a quick purchase. I do enjoy walking around this store, and don't feel I need to buy everything there, unlike some people in line. I like watching the girls with their dolls and the hair salon for dolls always makes me smile.
I'm almost ready to start getting ready for the holidays! And I may be the last one, but I do love the magic of Christmas, and hope that we can hold onto that throughout life.

Vita and I have our first concert of the New Year in Windsor CT on January 19th 7:30 pm.  It's at a place called Northwest Park. Northwestpark.org/concerts.htm
We've been working on new sets to kick off the New Year and it should be a special show. So tell anyone you know in Windsor, we'd love to see them!

Wishing a very happy holiday season to all!
cady