The first snow of the season

Mum's Birthday 2007

Mum is back. This year for mum's birthday we did a short day trip to connecticut for a nice saturday lunch on the water. It was a fabulous day relaxing eating and drinking... oh and a fab sunset.

.... beautiful...

The weekend before mum's triumphant return steph and I spent the saturday wandering New York. We walked the entire length of central park.... quite an achievement. This photo was from Belvedere's castle in the center of central park... yes... a castle.... well kind of.



next post.... christmas in Dubai!

The Muzz does New York

My New Haircut!

My new haircut.. perhaps not the best timing with winter coming...

... stay tuned for "Murray does Dallas .. or umm NYC"!!

Kerry and Jeff's Wedding (Rowton Point)

Kerry and Jeff

Mr Smith and I

Steph

Steph and her sister Nat

My first Peanut Butter and Jelly Sandwich

Molly

The Sydney Morning Herald Monday, 10 September 2007
___________________________________

Peter Murray Meldrum

MELDRUM, Peter Murray. Died peacefully at home with family and friends. September 8, 2007.

Much loved son of Rua and Cam Meldrum (both deceased). Peter will be sadly missed by the Mason, Noonan, Moon, Towers and Sweeney families, and his many friends.

You wrapped yourself around our hearts
and we will miss you always.

Relatives and friends of Mr PETER MURRAY MELDRUM are advised that his funeral will be held on Tuesday (September 11, 2007) in the Chapel of WN Bull Funerals, 164 King Street, Newtown, at 12 noon. Private cremation.

Peter's family and friends would like to thank Dr. David Goldstein and team at Prince of Wales Hospital Oncology Department and the Palliative Care team of the Sacred Heart Hospice for their caring support.

___________________________________

ANOTHER BIG MONTH - July 4th x2, Spain, Bulls, England, and my Birthday!

okay... July was a little crazy...

So the month started with my first July 4th since coming to the States. July 4th this year fell on a Wednesday so on the Saturday before we travelled up to Connecticut for a Smith family BBQ on Rowayton Point. It was a beautiful day and I thoroughly enjoyed hanging out with everyone.

The following Wednesday (the actual july 4th) Steph and I made our way up to the roof of my apartment building just after sunset to watch the NYC fireworks display. The whole experience was incredible. Millions of people were partying on the interconnected rooftops of Manhattan. When the fireworks finally started they were on all sides of the island and ran for about half an hour.

A few days later I travelled to San Sebastian Spain to spend a week vacation with Mim and Pip, relaxing on the Spanish coast. Unfortunately for the first half of the week the weather had other ideas. At the same time the San Firmin festival in Pamplona was on, so we travelled into Pamplona to watch the Running of the Bulls from the safety of a balcony. The run looked crazy, and awe inspiring but looked like it could be done safely (or so I thought). So later in the week we headed back to Pamplona to join the all night carnival, and in the morning I was going to run with the bulls. I thought I had it all planned out.. I knew where I was going to run to, where I was going to hide, I had a strategy... So at 8am on Thursday morning I was dressed in the traditional white with red scarf and had just heard the gun which indicated the bulls were in the street.

I ran for about 400 metres until saw the bulls getting close and jumped into my doorway as planned. The problem occurred when a stray angry black bull decided it didn't want to run and turned around to impale the guy next to me through the stomach then throw him across the street. It was very quick and I was very lucky. Thankfully the bull then turned its attention up the street and kept running. So.... I can say I've done it... a once in a lifetime thing... never again.

I then visited Felicity who thankfully put me up for a night and we hit a few bars in old London town. The following week was spent working in the Brighton UK office.

Finally when I arrived back in NYC it was my birthday. Steph took me out to a fantastic french restaurant in the meat packing district (where mum & lucy, we had some Bordeaux wine from San Emilion!!) We then saw the Blue Man Group which was hilarious. All in all it was a fantastic birthday... although it was a bit weird being the first birthday away from the Towers clan. But I guess that's a sign of things to come.

So anyway it was a massive month and I hope everyone is well and hope to speak to you soon.

A BIG month! - The Girls, Mothers Day, a run, Memorial Day and Connecticut

Okay since the last entry a fair bit has happened, the girls have been here which although its always tough having a full apartment we've made it work and I've enjoyed having them here. Coincidentally Aunty Judy, Cousin Stephanie Towers and briefly Anthony all made visits to NYC and it was great getting to catch up with them also.


Mothers Day this year was very cultural, we took mum to an east village cafe for brunch before heading up town to visit the Metropolitan Museum. I had been excited to show mum the Egyptian collection which contained a number 4000 year scarab beatles similar to the one I gave mum after my trip to Egypt last year.


Another event was the Wall Street Run, a charity run for heart diesease. On a thursday evening during rush hour authorities closed most of the streets in the financial district of manhattan. It was a rare oportunity to join 17,000 people and run around lower manhattan. I ran with a few of the guys from work and we completed the 5.3 kms in a respectible 26 minutes.


Finally last weekend was the Memorial Day long weekend similar to ANZAC Day in Australia. Camilla, Mum, Steph Smith, and I did a little road trip up to Rowayton Connecticut to see the town's memorial day parade, Steph's family and friends, and partake in a good old fashion BBQ. I had a great time and really enjoyed getting to know everyone. Is is an increadibly beautiful sea side town and on arrival mum was immediately trying to figure out how she could move there.


Now we're back in NYC and Camilla's boy Hiren is in town, they head back to Dubai tomorrow, followed by mum next week. The next big event will be my vacation in Spain, business trip to the UK, and maybe a weekend in paris to see lucy.

Mum and Uncle Graeme - Moffat Falls, Australia

Kentucky Derby & the Return of the Girls

Since the last update things have been relatively quiet. I've just been getting on with work and getting out and about. Summer has arrived and the trees are green again. New York is so much friendlier in summer. We had a picnic in Central Park on the weekend, there were bands, and buskers, and concerts, and an increadible retro roller disco. Its was just fantastic.

Felicity has been staying with me for the week. Its been great having her here. On saturday afternoon, Felicity, Steph, and I went to a Kentucky Derby Party. I had a great time. I placed a bet on a horse called Circular Quay who had a jockey wearing green and gold... it was SURE to win!!!! ... until it came last!

Later that evening Camilla, and mum arrived from their L.A & Vagas holiday. They returned to Bua in triumphant fashion! . . . . here we go again!

The Characters of My New York

One of the things that has struck me about New York are the characters that make up this city. I thought I would introduce you to a few of them;

1. The Morning Joker. Leaving home each morning I say hi to a Vietnam veteran who walks (on crutches) up and down Avenue A, telling jokes to people he walks past. He has a great sense of humor, is always smiling and I look forward to each morning him telling me my shoe is untied, then him laughing uncontrollably when I look down.


2. Then there is the Homeless Busker, this guy is the spitting image of Sammy Davis Jr, and has the same mannerisms. He told me how he had it all and now he lives on the streets and refuses to beg, so he provides a service. He will sing you a song for money. He has an incredibly soulful voice, and his version of Amazing Grace was so heartbreaking that it is still one of the most amazing experiences I have had.


3. My Activist Neighbour. The guy in the apartment next door to me is a classic. He is on every bandwagon under the sun. He has meetings in his apartment on everything from Nuclear Disarmament to Astrology.


4. My Composer Neighbour. The guy that lives in the apartment below me, lives in a small studio about the same size as mine with his pregnant wife and cat. He has also managed to squeeze a grand piano into his apartment. He is a classical music composer and ever night spends hours playing everything from blues to baroque. His music filters through my floor, and I love lying in bed late at night with the window open listening to the incredible music which comes out of his apartment.


5. The T.V Delivery Man. Okay I met this guy once but he made SUCH an impression on me. I bought my TV downtown and for an extra $40 I could get him to deliver it, and give me a ride. He must have been at least 80 years old. The first thing he said to me was "I learned to drive on a model T Ford two blocks from here" He wears with pride a WWII Veteran Baseball cap (which has seen better days) and keeps his black and white WWII photographs on dashboard to show his passengers. He was genuinely excited meeting me, and said he had a lot of "aaaaseeee" (aussie) buddies during the war. He told me old stories about NYC and said he lives near the boardwalk at Conney Island, and would never live anywhere else. Top Bloke.
   

Have I become a bloody Tree Hugger?

Okay, I've just seen the documentary 'An Inconvenient Truth'. I'm sure you've heard of it, it recently won an Oscar. Its the one where Al Gore (the guy who lost to Bush) talks about global warming. Probably doesn't deserve an Oscar, but its still really shocking, and has some less than positive things to say about Australia. I strongly recommend everyone watch it. AND yes Mill and Mum when you get here I AM making you watch it.... lets call it RENT :)

Anyway have a look at the following links;

Click here to find out about the Kyoto Protocol It has some unsettling things to say about Australia!!!

Click here to go to the Inconvenient Truth Website

Or Click here to buy it on the Ezy Dvd Website in Australia

OH MY GOD I'VE BECOME A TREE HUGGING HIPPEY!!!! .... WTF!!

The Superbowl, NY Rangers, a Snow Storm, and Pip and Mim

The last few weeks outside work have been largely characterised by 4 events. My first New York Rangers Ice Hockey game, my first Superbowl Sunday since moving to New York, Pip & Mim arriving in New York, and a snow storm.

The boys at work are big Ice Hockey fans and of all the U.S sports Ice Hockey is one of the most foreign. The boys and I went to Madisen Square Garden to watch the Rangers play the Toronto Maple Leafs. The Rangers lost and to be honest I didn't enjoy the game as much as I enjoy the Knicks, or the Yankees, but it was still a cool experience.

On Superbowl Sunday Murray's sister Miriam and her friend Pip arrived. We caught up in the afternoon to watch the game, and parked ourselves at a bar near me which had 2 for 1 drinks. We fulfilled the American tradition of eating Nachos, drinking far too much beer and watching the Superbowl. A top evening all round!

It was nice having the girls around and I had a great time frequenting NY bars and resturants with them. I did find it amusing though, that they were here for the coldest week of the year (average temp of -10 C)!!!

Also the night they left we had a snow storm which blanketed the city in THREE INCHES of SNOW!! The following morning was VERY exciting. I had to walk through inches snow to get to and from work. For a guy from Sydney it was VERY exciting.

Happy Australia Day!!

HAPPY AUSTRALIA DAY! Its BLOODY COLD over here!! With windchill its -14C outside, and sadly over the last week all the snow has melted or turned to ice.

For my Australia Day (and to stir my American co-workers) I brought into the office the Big Australian Flag that Mum and Camilla gave me as a Farewell Present. I hung it on the wall in the main thoroughfare near my desk. The Americans LOVED IT :)

Also in Preparation for Australia Day I discovered an Aussie Meat Pie Bakery called DUB in Brooklyn where I picked up a couple of pies. I also know a bottle-o near me which sells Coopers. So tonight after work I'm going to sit back with a Pie and Tomato Sauce and have an Aussie Beer. Noice....

So Cheers and Happy 'straya Day!

SNOW!!

The gang have all left now. Camilla is still traveling India, Mum is back working at the Opera, and Craig is back in Sydney paying off his holiday. So I'm back into the routine of work... cheeky drinks with guys from work, working on my swing at the Chelsea Piers golf range, trying to get fit for rugby season and sadly working from home.
BUT YESTERDAY!! Its started snowing... and not Australian Snow either... I'm talking snow flakes that are about three quarters of the size of golf balls. It looked like someone was spraying foam of the roof of my apartment building!! Unfortunately it only lasted for about an hour. BUT I'm hoping for more. This morning on my way to work New York was COMPLETELY different. I had noticed that over the last month the shape of the city was changing with awnings and enclosed entrance ways going up all over the city. Now with the white snow changing the colour of everything the city really looked different, and for me refreshed! The city even sounded different, maybe it was the snow absorbing the city noises or the extra clothes everyone was wearing or snow muffling the sound of foot steps and car tires. But instantly the city has been refreshed and is more exciting. Cool huh! I can't wait for more snow!

CHECK OUT THIS BOOK

This is the bloke I listened to at the Refugees International event at the Australian Embassy. The one I discussed in my first Blog entry. His book is finally released and it is SUCH an INCREDIBLE story!

Click here to view Ishmael's book at Amazon.com