Talkin' New York

My family is divided by thousands of miles, so whenever I get to see them we plan action-packed trips to make the most of our time together. This weekend was no exception; I flew to NYC in order meet my baby niece Madeline for the first time, see my talented older sister Lisa, her charming husband Garrett, and my incredibly sweet Mom.

Since my Mom and I were watching Maddy Friday, we took her to every trendy 10-month old’s favorite place: an Irish pub.

She looks ready for a day of grinding bottles:

I even managed to sneak in her first poker lesson; if trying to teach her to count to five qualifies.

Meeting the first member of the next generation of my family was more emotional than I’d expected. When angry, her eyebrows arch just like my Dad’s.

I loved watching her perform an unexpectedly elaborate dance routine while propping herself up on a full-length mirror. Years from now, I could find myself flying back to NYC to watch her dance on Broadway!

Grindette Jennifer Shahade made the trek to Times Square to catch up, and it was great to have a chance to personally compliment her on her recent article for Card Player. I only wish we’d had more time together, and that we’d remembered to take a picture: we happened to be wearing very coordinating outfits with her in cobalt tuxedo pants, and me in a cobalt sweater and tuxedo jacket. Being as her fashion sense (a gorgeous blend of classic and eclectic) constantly inspires me, I suppose this wasn’t actually much of a coincidence!

Later that evening, Lisa and Garret treated my Mom and me to a wonderful meal at Brasilina. Previous to this, I’d only had Brazilian food at Churrascaria restaurants. This place proved that there was way more to that cuisine. I had “CAMARÃO NA MORANGA” which is shrimp roasted inside a pumpkin with Catupiry cheese: rich and earthy, I look forward to attempting to copy this perfect fall dish at home.

My Mom and I strolled in Central Park, and took in the Metropolitan Museum of Art for the second time. Luckily for us, a Warhol exhibit was going on. Seeing his Marilyn has inspired me to go as his Technicolor portrait for Halloween:

And Tom Sachs’s bricolage inspired thoughts about consumerism:

That night, my Mom and I went to the New York Comedy Club to see The Clayton Fletcher Show. Clayton is also a poker player, and being as he was wearing a Plinko shirt the first time I met him (at the WSOP this summer) I had high expectations for his comedic stylings. What I wasn’t expecting was the immense talent of all the other comics involved in the show. The emcee, Jamie Lee is so perfect for her role that her name rhymes with it! She proved that the best interactive humor with an audience has nothing to do with insulting people.

With material centering on his poker-playing Mother and jazz musician Father, Clayton’s routine had the crowd hypnotized with humor from start to finish. He performs all over the world, and any poker player that hasn’t seen him desperately needs to undo that bad beat!

One of the things I love most about NYC is all of the street fairs. After my Mom treated us to a tasty brunch on Sunday, we stumbled upon tons of vintage stalls with extremely diverse offerings. The items are so unique that many have signs warning against taking pictures for fear of copying. Unlike in the MET, which boasted a $25 entrance fee, I decided to uphold their wishes.

After 5 minutes of a tense internal debate, I decided against buying a giant peacock-plumed purple hat, since I don’t plan on attending the Kentucky Derby or becoming a pimp anytime soon. But I had to buy a black cashmere cape, since I might wake up one day and decide that my true calling is to be a super hero.

Getting to reconnect with many of the most important people in my life made this one of my favorite weekends ever. I’m not sure how I can be so lucky as to know so many amazing people, but it really does make me feel like a super hero (even more so than my new cape).