over-due post worked four days straight last week, which explains this five-day delay for a post.

i didn't have to work last ash wednesday, so i decided to go to st. patrick's cathedral to have me marked on my forehead.
so lemme tell you first where i live. i live in queens, but it's in the lower part of queens, almost in brooklyn. in fact, there's an ATM i use two blocks away, when my withdrawal shows up in my statement, the address shown of the machine is brooklyn. to the left, is where i live. see how close it is to the tracks? haha! my place is the one with white fences, and the first window from the left is my room. i remember when the MTA union decided to have a strike, i kept tossing and turning that night, then i realized why i can't sleep --- i couldn't hear the train!

going to manhattan from my place is about half an hour to 45 minutes. good thing we have two stations nearby, and both run the same M train. now, there are two ways to get to manhattan using the M track, one is to transfer to the L train after two stops, the L train goes to manhattan under the east river then i do another transfer when i reach 14th street and take any of the orange lines (F, V, B, D) since all would make a stop at rockefeller center, which is a block away from st. patrick's. i rarely take that route since the L train caters to both brooklyn and queens commuters, the train can really be packed like a jar of pickles (not like sardines, ask ellen about it). what i usually do is take M train all the way to manhattan, then transfer to the F train (F for francis), then get off at rockefeller.

anyway, st. patrick's is one of the most beautiful churches i have ever seen. i dunno much about classical architecture, but i think it's gothic, with spires and all. the stained glass windows are gorgeous. then along both sides are like mini-altars, some of them my favorite saints like st. anthony of padua and st. jude thaddeus.

right across the church is rockefeller. you know how many cities are built upon religion? well, not new york. new york just happen to be like a port, not a stop-over in a very long flight. that's why many buildings overshadow the church, including rockefeller. and here is where i work :-) see the skating rink? they make it an outdoor eating place, an extension of the two restaurants down stairs. i also heard they change the flags every now and then. last september, they only had american flags around the rink. i work at the met store that over looks the rink.



rockefeller covers 50th down to 47th street. i got nothing to do that day so i decided to walk around. headed down south along 5th avenue to 42th, making sure to get a glimpse of the philippine embassy to see if there's anything going on there. i didn't have a beanie on, and i wanted to get one so i went to this bazaar along 42th to try to find something to keep me warm. couldn't find anything and i thought coffee can make me even warmer. and awake for that matter. walked towards 7th ave in times square, and took a pic of abc's big tv. see the windows on the street level? that's where good morning america does their morning shows. one day, i'll go there early in the morning and bring me a big sign that says "I NEED A JOB". i'll make sure to call dad, too, he would want to record the show.

if you look south, you'll see the familiar ads in times square. i did a painting of this scene for a painting class during summer.


i wanted to go to central park, even if it was a cold day and i only have my usual white chocolate mocha, venti, to keep me warm. took the A train and got off at columbus circle, and near the station's exit is donald trump's hotel.

now this is in the south-western corner of the park. when i was younger, when i hear of central park, i just thoguh it's this small place with trees and probably a swing here and there. central park is huuuuge. it's edges run along 8th and 5th avenues, and starts at 59th street until 110th street. that's 50 streets, and considering that about 20 blocks is a mile, the park is 2.5 miles long.
my usual route would always to head to strawberry fields, named after the beatles song (let me take you down, 'ause i'm going to strawberry fields...). john lennon lived nearby this area, along 72nd street. in strawberry fields, you'll see a mosaic in memory of lennon, it's a rather plain black and white mosaic with the word IMAGINE in the center. i still love the song, even though it irks me to listen to the first part saying about no heaven and no hell, kinda reminds me when he said the beatles is more famous than jesus. but still, it's one of them songs that really compels you to imagine. i wonder if lennon wasn't shot that day, i bet he would and could have done more.

not far from SF is the bethesda terrace. i found out about it from angels in america, that HBO film where meryl streep kissed emma thompson. i never really followed the show, but i saw the last episode where meryl streep went to bethesda terrace and she said that many, even native new yorkers, doesn't know about this place. the angel here, i believe is raphael. i finished paradise lost a week ago, and raphael is considered the healer among the archangels. he was the one lepers were waiting for in the pool of bethesda, where according to legends, whoever jumps in first in the pool when an angel moves the water would be healed of their disease.


along 5th ave at 82nd is the Met, and being an employee, i can get in for free :-) more on that later, though, i really need some rest, i got kinda feverish at work last night, and i still have work tomorrow, so i'm trying to get as much rest as i could.

later, y'all!  ¶ 11:36 AM