My Adventures on the East Coast: Travels with Barbara

While it may not be of interest to anyone outside of my family, I have had an interesting five days in New York and Philadelphia, including many firsts for me. Just a few moments from this trip include eating a Philly Cheese steak in Philly, driving through every small town in New Jersey due to a manic depressive GPS system, seeing two Broadway musicals in one day and driving a vehicle in a Jewish funeral procession. While travelling a distance less than Austin to Houston, I have been in three states and pretty close to several others.

The purpose of this trip was to attend the New York meeting of the Commercial Law League. The Commercial Law League is a collections industry trade group. My firm has been very active in the League and I was encuraged to attend this conference along with Barbara Barron and Manny Newburger from our firm (that meant that 3/11s of our lawyers were in attendance!). I spent most of my time with Barbara, who grew up near Philadelphia and attended Columbia in New York. There are a few constants about travel with Barbara. First, she will know unusual places to go. Second, what ever plans we make will change multiple times. There are various reasons for attending, including nonstop meetings and dealmaking, continuing education and Broadway shows. For me, I plan to take advantage of the educational offerings, attend a few committee meetings, show my face at some receptions and take in some shows with Barbara.

Thursday: A Long Trip Gets Longer

On Thursday, we flew in to Philadelphia. We did this because Barbara had family obligations to attend to in Philadelphia after the conference. Initially at least, this didn't work out so well. We arrived in Philadelphia hours late due to an aircraft that had to be swapped out. By the time that we picked up the rent car, argued with the rental car company about the rates and grabbed some lunch, it was 4:30pm.

One thing about the East coast, 4:30pm is just about full on dark, especially when there is a Nor'Easter in town. The wind was blowing sideways, the streets were slick and it was rush hour in Philadelphia when we set out. Traffic on the interstate was moving at a crawl when "Tootsie," Barbara's GPS system told us to get off and try Route 1. Not wanting to argue with a computerized voice, I obliged. It turns out that Route 1 was a small country road which meandered through every small town in New Jersey with red lights every 50 yards or so. On the positive side, I got to see the picturesque Rutgers Campus at night. On the negative side, I wondered whether I would ever see my family again.

Eventually we made it back to the interstate and things were looking up again. As we headed into the Lincoln tunnel, Tootsie said that we were 2.1 miles from our hotel. The entrance to the tollbooths for the Lincoln tunnel was a cross between a demolition derby and a slow motion cattle stampede. Cars and buses merged randomly trying to find a toll booth which accepted cash, since apprently no one had an EZ tag. Nevertheless, we made it into the tunnel without being smashed and started toward the imminent end of our trip. WRONG. Once we exited the tunnel, it became apparent that Tootsie had no idea where we were. We knew that the hotel was on Seventh Avenue and 52nd street. In a city with a geometrically laid out grid system, navigating this maze should have been easy. However, Tootsie started giving contradictory directions. If we were on 45th street, she would tell us to turn right on 43rd street. Even I knew that you couldn't do that. Our progress was also thwarted because we arrived arond 8pm as mobs were thronging to the shows. It was hard to travel in the same lane for long, since there would inevitably be a taxi or road construction or six fire trucks lined up back to back necessitating a lane change with drivers who don't know the meaning of the word yield. After circling for an hour, we finally made it to the entrance to the hotel garage, but a trash truck pulled up blocking the entrance. After maneuvering around the trash truck, we made it to the hotel and checked in. Got dinner at a deli and went to sleep.

Firsts for Thursday: driving in NYC with a deranged GPS system. (I've been to a New York deli before, so that wasn't new).

Friday: Getting My Head Stuffed With Education and My Stomach Stuffed As Well

On Friday, I was able at the crack of dawn to attend an 8am meeting. Got to put faces with some people I had only spoken to by phone. After that, four 1 1/2 hour continuing education sessions. They were all great, but by 4:30, I had consumed as much education as my brain could hold. After that, I was instructed to put in an appearance at a cocktail party. I spoke to a few people, had some drinks and then prepared for dinner.

In the cab on the way to dinner, we learned that Barbara's aunt had passed away. Her health had been failing and Barbara knew that a funeral was definitely a possibility on this trip. Indeed, we had flown into Philadelphia specifically so that she could meet with family. Still the actual news was sad. Of course, the news meant rapid fire calls during the cab ride to inform other family members and make arrangements for food for the visitation. The death of a loved one took precedence over our prior plans for Sunday. In the Jewish tradition, burial must take place nearly immediately. Because Saturday is the Sabbath, that dictated a Sunday funeral back in Pennsylvania. Thus, we went about our remaining Friday and Saturday activities under a slight cloud.

We went to El Faro, a little hole in the wall in Greenwich Village which Barbara remembered as a date spot when she was at Columbia. Manny Newburger joined us. Had some good paella and sangria. Went to Ferrara's for dessert and ate some things that weren't on my diet. It wouldn't be the last time. After dinner and dessert, I was exhausted and ready to crash.

No firsts for Friday.

Saturday: In Pursuit of Shows

Saturday started slightly later at 8:30, so I decided to hit the fitness center. It was just below street level so I could see all of the people walking along 7th Avenue. It made for an entertaining view, even though the weather was still cold and gray. There were only two educational programs on Saturday, both related to bankruptcy. I enjoyed those, especially hearing from a panel of bankruptcy judges and went to another meeting.

Got out of my meeting just in time to join Barbara and her friend Guy for the first of two Broadway musicals. Of course, this didn't leave any time for lunch (or breakfast--you have to work hard to have fun). They didn't have a ticket for me, but told me where I could get last minute discount tickets. However, I got lucky and bought a ticket from a guy named Chuck outside the theater. He gave me a good discount, but required cash. Fortunately, the ticket was real and I managed to get in. Our first musical of the day was West Side Story. As the story went on, I realized that I had only seen bits of pieces of this before. I was stunned by the blatant racism, which Barbara assured me was in the original. West Side Story is a variation on Romeo & Juliet, so I was inclined to like it. Shakespeare's story of star-crossed lovers defying their rival families translated just fine into rival gangs staking out turf in Hells Kitchen. However, the dancing was a bit too pretty. It was hard to take the fight scenes seriously when the hardened gangsters had been gracefully pirouetting moments earlier. I liked it, Barbara hated it and her friend Guy loved it.

Went back to the hotel. I used what should have been my nap time to work on an article for my bankruptcy blog. Couldn't quite finish it before it was time to attend another cocktail party. Scarfed down large amounts of sushi to make up for not having eaten earlier in the day. Barbara went to this party with me, which meant that I got to meet everyone that she knew, which was most of the people there.

Our second show for the evening was Bye Bye Birdie. Barbara and I both loved it, while Guy said meh (or something like that; my teenage daughter Kristen is the only person I know who actually says meh, but it was something to that effect.). Guy was able to cadge a ticket for both of us for this show (thanks Guy) so I didn't have to entrust my cash to scalpers. I loved the sets and the general mood of the show. They updated it so that it was part 1950s Elvis-era and part 1960s-Laugh-in psychedelia. John Stamos played Albert, the Dick Van Dyke role from the movie. It was a little harder edged than the G-Rated movie version that I am used to. The sweet teenagers of Sweet Apple, Ohio ask Conrad Birdie if he wants to smoke some reefer and want to have an orgy (although it's not clear that they really knew what either meant). It was humorous to watch Conrad Birdie being rescued from the amorous teens by the police and then being smuggled out of town in a dress. I strongly recommend it for anyone who has the chance to go.

We tried to get dessert afterwards, but there was an hours wait at a place called Serendipity that Barbara said had been in some movies. That was too much for me in the cold and the rain. I successfully hailed a cab and went back to the hotel to finish up my blog article, which I finally completed around midnight.

First on Saturday included: buying a ticket from a scalper, seeing two Broadway musicals in one day and successfully hailing a cab in NYC.

Sunday: Sunshine and A Jewish Funeral

On Sunday morning, I went back to the fitness center for another workout. However, this meant that I wasn't quite ready to be checked out and in the lobby by 8:30 as previously arranged. I received no less than three frantic phone calls in 10 minutes (as well as a text that I didn't get for two days) even though I was only 15 minutes late. The need for early morning action was prompted by the need to be at Zabar's by opening time at 9am. For those who don't know, Zabar's is the ultimate Jewish specialty food place. It wouldn't be a funeral or other special occasion without baked goods and fish from Zabar's. Despite my tardiness, we were there by 9:06, wasting only six precious minutes. I learned something else about New York. There is rarely any parking anywhere. My job was to keep the getaway car idling in the loading zone in front of the store without getting a ticket for illegal parking. Just as I was getting complacent, one of New York's finest pulled in right in front of me. However, he did not give chase as I sped away. After circling the block several times and seeing the blue and white still guarding the store, I found a safe parking spot a block away and waited for the signal that would allow me to actually be loading in the loading zone. Barbara and Guy emerged from Zabar's with what looked like dozens of bags of food. We stuffed them into every crevice of our medium-sized rental car.

It is much easier getting out of New York than getting in. There is no toll to pass through to New Jersey via the Lincoln Tunnel. (It is $8 to get in). I am told that this is because they want to encourage people to leave New York. We made it to Philly in an easy two hour drive by virtue of staying on the turnpike which had minimal traffic. As a Texan, I was pleased that I could drive 80 mph most of the time and still get passed. Made me feel at home. It was a beautiful day. The sun was out. The remaining leaves on the trees gave a hint of the glorious colors that had decorated the landscape in October.

Driving into Media, Pennsylvania reminded me a bit of my childhood in Massachusetts. Narrow lanes were bounded by rock walls. Piles of raked leaves lined up between the walls and the street, waiting for the street cleaner to vacuum them up. The comfortable homes under a protective canopy of trees looked like a mix of structures built in the 1970s and the 1770s.

At the house, I met Barbara's cousin's family. I already knew three members of the family. I had driven Gordon and Hope (the parents) around Austin when they were visting Austin. I particularly remember not being sure whether the Bob Bullock Museum was on 15th or MLK, displaying a certain confusion about my home. I also know their daughter Alicia, who is a recent transplant to Austin, having spent time as Barbara's houseguest and a temporary employee of the firm. As a result, I didn't feel that out of place attending the funeral of someone I had never met.

A Jewish funeral is much like a Lutheran one. The Twenty-third psalm, eulogies from family members and a clergyman who knew the deceased primarily from reputation were common elements. Of course, Lutherans sing hymns and the Jewish chant in Hebrew. Other than that, they were similar. After listening to the eulogies, I felt acquainted with a woman I never met.

Barbara's vehicle was third in the funeral procession, behind the hearse and the immediate family. I got to drive our rental car which now had funeral stickers on it. I have often seen funeral processions, but have never been in one. There was also a graveside service. In Jewish tradition, everyone is invited to throw a spadeful of dirt upon the coffin once it has been lowered into the ground. According to the rabbi, this is a a great boon because it is a favor which the deceased cannot repay. It is also a mark of closure.

Afterwards the visitation at the home followed. What to say? There were many guests and much food. The conversation was jovial, although muted. The Philadelphia Eagles were losing to San Diego, which dampened things somewhat. After four days of non-stop activity, I was spent. I went back to the hotel and napped though the evening while Barbara and Rick (another friend from Texas) went back for Shiva.

First for Sunday included evading the NYPD, attending a Jewish funeral and driving in a funeral procession.

Monday: A Little Business, A Lot of Travel

Today has been a calm day. I had a pleasant breakfast at the Classic Diner in Malvern, PA with Barbara and several local lawyers. I spent the rest of the morning plotting strategy and touring the impressive offices of Becket & Lee in Malvern, while Barbara engaged in a field trip to Costco to buy more food for the second and third nights of Shiva. I joined Barbara and Rick for an authentic cheesesteak in an authentic Philadelphia diner. (Eating the roll was not on my diet, but I will go back to being good tomorrow. After all, I went to the Fitness Center twice, so that should make up for a cheesesteak roll and a few sweets). Now I am on my way home. Tomorrow the madness at work picks up again.

So that's it, five days, seven firsts. Life is one big adventure if you look for it.