How to get, how to get to...

Apparently, one of the original names for Sesame Street was "123 Avenue B." I read this illuminating article on the architecture of Sesame Street and how it's influenced the author's view of space. A lot of what he says really resonates with me, too:

"Sesame Street was my first experience of a city. I had no idea where it was set when I was a kid, or even that it was in a city at all. I tended to imagine all settings as more or less equivalent to the small Midwestern city where I grew up...I didn't realize how centralized American culture is, how little of America Sesame Street depicts. I didn't realize my life was considered provincial."

The urban environment in my mind's eye is always going to start with a green lamppost and a street name on it. Behind it, there's a green door under the numbers "123" with a friendly stoop, wedged in between a trashcan and a giant bird's nest on one side and a car-less lot on the other.

I've spent almost a full calendar year in urban environments now, starting in Rome, pausing in Chicago, and ending up here in New York City. If I haven't quite gotten the hang of New York yet, it has much more to do with the major reason I enjoyed myself in Rome and Chicago -- the people around me. In Rome, I was constantly surrounded by my friends, and we had our own Sesame Stoop in the form of a terrace. In Chicago, well, Hitchcock is Hitchcock. I think that's the major reason I never really get homesick, even when I'm in a place vastly that's different from my roots. My home's really just an idea of how a community should interact.

"Whether or not I understood Sesame Street's setting, it stuck in my head as a model for how people should live: close to one another, in a place where neighbors knew, liked, and watched out for each other, where chance encounters were common and meaningful. And I've sought that out repeatedly in my adult life."

I've been getting a lot of questions recently about where I'm going to live once I graduate. I have no idea. But I know what kind of place I'm going to look for once I get there.

More discusstigation.

My addled dream-head coined a new word last night -- "discusstigation." I find it delightfully redundant. There was a lot going on in last night's REM cycles. First, I ended up at my old elementary school with a friend I hadn't seen in ages. I had to take the bus home from school for some unfathomable reason and somehow ended up on a swingset with a girl who gave me some short stories she'd written a few years ago.

Back in the real world, Murphy's Law reared its ugly head. I woke up and found out I had fifteen minutes to get to work on time. So, naturally, my MetroCard stopped working and the machine refused my credit card.

I don't know why, but I feel like today's gonna be a Boss battle with insecurities.

Brawl for one and one for brawl

Yesterday, I had big plans. I was gonna climb the Empire State Building. I was gonna go to the World Trade Center. I was gonna be somebody. I was gonna go to Staten Island.

Unfortunately, due to a combination of an ill-advised gym session in the wee hours of the morning, I only managed to go to the WTC. There was nothing there. Go figure.

I did manage to take a tour of lower Manhattan, passing through Tribeca, NoHo, and SoHo on my way up. I'm really starting to get a feel for the town.

Today, the rain foiled any plans I had of making a longer excursion. I made it twenty blocks before I was forced to duck into a B&N.

Then, I came home and got the shock of my life playing Brawl against Ross and Pelks. Pelks completely schooled us. It wasn't even close. At first I was really upset, but then I started to feel a certain kinship with Yoda.

Anyway, the next four days are going to be spent training brutally until our next rematch. The record cannot stand like this.

Livin' La Vida Local

I'm feeling finally settled in as a New Yorker. In a day defined by largesse, I loafed around the entire time at work today, spent far too much on meals, saw a Broadway show, and returned to an apartment flooded with electronix.

Due to a $700,000 check being misplaced, my boss overlooked the sixty or so grant recommendations I made and frantically began calling the agency that was assigned to deliver it. (I'd been working on my project most of the month.) As such, she told me to "surf the Internet and pretend you are gainfully employed. Here, copy this if you absolutely must."

Luckily, my DCAU collected comics series was done torrenting at that point.

After work, I called my Dad to wish him a happy birthday. Then I met Ria at this somewhat pricey place for Italian food before seeing [title of show].

So, I generally don't hold truck with PoMo bullshit, and especially not in my favorite medium, but for some reason the meta-elements really worked for me. The cast was just so goddamned earnest and charming and clever that they totally won me over. I wasn't really a part of the target audience for the show, not being 1) gay 2) obsessed with musicals or 3) a New Yorker. So it was kind of interesting. It was akin to me and Pelks talking Muppets in front of a captive audience for 90 minutes.

The two leads reminded me of my relationship with Ross, except for two differences: they were gay but unmarried to each other.

Afterwards, I came back to an apartment and noticed that Neil had delivered an extra futon, two tables, a toaster, several feet of extension cord and (wonderfully) a TV. I set up everything in five minutes, but kinda over did it. At one point, waiting for the Wii's wireless to connect, I had my computer playing music, the toaster going, the Wii, and my DS as I waited. I heart technology.

Then I played my first online Brawl match with my Wii against Adam and Becca, which was oodles of fun.

All in all, it was quite day.

Of Bats and Gorillas

A few months ago, Pelks gave William and I a shot at Splash!, which is a program wherein college students gain access to the minds of impressionable children.

Bad idea. Here are the courses we're teaching:


HIST 11000: The Dark Knight Abides

The World's Greatest Detective. The Dark Knight. The Caped Crusader. The latest "Batman" film cemented his place as the greatest hero in the history of comicdom, and he doesn't even have any powers. How has Batman evolved over the years? What makes Batman tick? How does he do the crazy things he does? This course will analyze Batman by studying his history, psychology, and crime-fighting methodology. Shark-repellent Bat-Spray not included.


BIOS 11000: History of Giant Apes Wearing Ties

"He's the leader of the bunch. You know him well." Donkey Kong was one of gaming's first icons. Starting with Donkey Kong in 1981, the well-dressed D.K. has swung, punched, and clapped his way into a variety of genres, including platforming, fighting, racing, and even rhythm games. Join us in this Kong quest as we examine the career of this amazing ape and the history of one of the world's most successful companies, Nintendo. Get N or get out!

Trainer Tips

Last night, Margot and Noel flew in on their way to Lisy's at midnight. This was kind of problematic, 'cause I had had my first trainer session at the gym. I made the mistake of telling Ash Ketchum that I'd need to be in a Batsuit by November. Since he saw "Dark Knight," he's clearly convinced I need to go back to Chicago in better shape than Christian Bale. He is going to destroy me.

Anyway, Margot, Noel and I wandered around the neighborhood before getting gyros and beer. I had to get up for work at 7:30, but that didn't stop me from staying up until 4 with them. Then I slept on Neil's cot.

If you truly wish to take the measure of a man, spend a night in his bed. I mean, what?

Comic Relief

Yesterday I arrived at the house of some family friend who'd known me quite a while. They first met me in 1992, when I was five and they were twenty-five. Now I'm almost as old as they were when they first met me. Talk about perspective.

They had guests over, and it had the potential to turn into one of those awful Indian gatherings where I just sit in the corner, but luckily there was an English lit. student from Binghamton who was just a year younger than me there. She and I talked Batman, Firefly, and comics in general, so it wasn't that bad an evening. She said she'd put me in touch with her NYU friends, who also like comics. And here I thought I wouldn't meet anyone new in the city.

Today I told the family about my four-day annual mother's day event. The father thought it was the greatest thing he'd ever heard of in his entire life. The seven-year-old wants to come for Scav this year. I was doing very well until I mentioned that I'd looked up which cities are on opposite sides of the globe (for the Earth sandwich) and the ten year old told her Dad that his "Nerd virus was spreading." I think my status as cool, older cousin is in jeopardy. Although I did take them to see "Journey to the Center of the Earth", so I think I get some points for that.

They're going to a gathering tonight which I'm not required to go to, so I am free to watch the Avatar finale in peace!