7 - Volume One: New York City (part one)

US Thanksgiving 2007

My friend, Lisa, and I spent the long weekend of US Thanksgiving in Manhattan. We ended up spending quite a bit of time in a little Irish Pub near Rockefeller Centre (the Channel 4 Irish Pub). We first went in there because we were stumbling around one late afternoon, freezing cold after shopping most of the day on "Black Friday" and we were looking for a place to warm up. On a very unassuming street (48th between 5th and 6th), with a very unassuming facade, was an Irish Pub and it looked warm, so in we went. And stayed. And returned another night.

The first couple of guys we spoke to were dropping in to their regular after-work pub. I can't recall where the one fellow worked, but I know that the other one worked at Rockefeller Centre, and his job was to oversee the maintenance of one of the Rocks (you know, like 30 Rock). He dealt with all the contractors (HVAC, elevators, cleaners, electrical, etc) and basically keeps the building running. And he was YOUNG - I was fascinated. He told me the schools he went to and I'm sure if I was American I would have recognized them and been very impressed. The entry above is not that guy (John), but the other guy (Ben) who I can't remember as much about. They had a great time teasing us about being from Canada. One of our discussions was about how much of Canada is French Canadian. Lisa was very impressed with our first chat-mates because they were two fun and funny and good-looking guys! They left after a few drinks for the long commute home to their wives and kids.



While we were chatting with Ben & John, the guy sitting on the other side of us, at the bar, asked us about the book and wanted to make a contribution. The only thing he could find was a winning scratch & win ticket.



Hey look, it's John, the guy who works at one of the Rocks. He didn't know what to write, so I suggested he write something about our conversation. Just like a geeky engineer, he wrote a list of the topics of discussion. So funny. I don't even remember half of these..... The second French province was Manitoba! Grateful Dead was a reference to a concert he went to in Toronto, I believe, the only time he had been to Canada. Scottish Bar.... no clue. Summer songs... yes, I recall a discussion about how there are songs that remind you of a particular time of year and it's just wrong to listen to them at the opposite time. I can't remember the song, but something came on that was just WRONG to be listening to during a frigid November night. Ex-girlfriend (insert spectacles) - my glasses reminded him of an ex-girlfriend, and I thought it odd that he said "spectacles" instead of glasses. UES and Bray ... no idea. Maybe he had some tie-in to Bray in Ireland, where Joe and I spent a day hiking, the week that we were in Dublin.



This is the entry made by the bartender, Greg, at the Channel 4 Irish Pub. The card is from another place he worked, in Fort Lauderdale, but he is originally from County Armagh in Ireland. He was a great bartender. It would not surprise me at all if I walked back into Channel 4 now, all this time later, and he would remember me. While we were there, other tourists walked in that he remembered having been there years before.



Don't actually remember much about this guy. It seems to me, though, that everyone sitting around the bar wanted to give me something from their wallet.

Irish guy in the Channel 4 Irish Pub who had barely anything in his wallet (the one for pleasure - read his entry, if you haven't already), so he carefully folded up a dollar bill and asked Greg, the bartender, for a stapler. A very unique
entry.

Gladys was the hostess of the restaurant part of the Channel 4 Irish Pub. Her "station" was right near where we were sitting at the bar, so she came over with this when she had a chance. I think that this is actually a coat check number from the restaurant. Okay, so maybe not technically from her wallet.....

Sarah was a striking looking girl (her heritage explains that) who came in with her friend for a quick drink. By this time (on our first night at the Channel 4 Irish Pub), Lisa was grabbing people as soon as they walked in, to get them to give me something from their wallet!

Laurie, friend of Sarah.

Another woman we met at the Channel 4 Irish Pub (another of Lisa's "victims" - I'm telling ya, she was grabbing people as soon as they walked into the pub!)
This is a neat entry because it is in fact her Disney pass. This is a little fan-fold of paper and the last part of it is a little sleeve or pocket and the ticket (a 2 day pass) is inside.