A Pre-Thanksgiving Day Treat: Macy's Parade Balloons Up Close

 

Kermit the Frog

 
Last night I did something I’ve always wanted to do. That’s head over to Central Park West around 79th street, the night before Thanksgiving and watch as the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade balloons are inflated.  I’d never done it before so when I got the opportunity to go behind the scenes with a group of fellow bloggers, courtesy of Macy’s, I jumped at the chance.

B. Boy in Progress

Our small group met on Columbus Avenue and 75th street around 4 o’clock and were greeted with a steady drizzle but excited tourists and New Yorkers, eager to get a preview of the big parade.  As with any big event in New York, there are glitches and even though we had bona fide press passes firmly around out necks, the NYPD didn’t want to let us into the restricted area where all the balloon goodies waiting.  But our contact Lauren Roseman did some fast talking and got us through.  

Safely behind the police barricades, we were able to get a closeup look at some of the hard work that goes into getting the 15 giant balloons and 44 mid-size balloons ready for their Thanksgiving Day close-ups.  There were spotlights along the street so workers and spectators could see the balloons more clearly and large speakers piped out jaunty Christmas music.

Julius the Monkey

First we hit 79th street where the balloons at the head of the parade are located.  They’re lined up on the street in the order they will appear in the parade.  Earlier this week, they were transported through the Lincoln Tunnel from their new studio home in Moonachie, New Jersey, to the streets of Central Park West.

Tarra and Bella: An Animal Love Story (Video)

Image Courtesy CBS News

 

You may have heard the story about the bond between an elephant, Tarra and a stray dog, Bella who lived together as friends in a Tennessee animal sanctuary.

The original story was reported by Steve Hartman on CBS's Sunday Morning:

They were so close, in fact, that when Bella got injured a few years ago and had to spend three weeks recuperating in the sanctuary office, guess who held vigil the entire time? Twenty-two hundred acres to roam free, and Tarra just stood in the corner waiting. Home video of their reunion shows how inseparable they'd become and remained, right to the end.

Unfortunately the end of the relationship came last week.  Fair warning, keep the tissues handy.

Here's the original story about the pair.

Y'all know I'm a sucker for doggies, but now I think I'm a sucker for elephants too.

A Dead Qaddafi and the Media: Some Modest Thoughts

If you've been anywhere near a TV, newspaper or magazine this week, odds are you got a glimpse or more than that of Muammar Qaddafi's dead body, face or bloody wounds up close.  Personally, I'm happy for the Libyan people and won't lose any sleep because Qaddafi is dead, but I do question the broad dissemination of the images of Qaddafi's bloody face all over network and local news. 

First there was the shaky camera phone footage of Qaddafi when he was captured, alive but bloody.  Then there was the footage of his body being dragged through the streets after he was dead.  Then finally, the shots of his dead body in a meat locker where some Libyans understandably lined up to get a glimpse to prove that indeed Qaddafi was dead.

I'm surprised there wasn't more debate in American media circles about whether or not so much gruesome footage of Qaddafi should have been used.  During the first couple of days of coverage, there were warnings from news anchors before showing the footage, but by the end of the week, the shots just showed up out of nowhere.

Is it okay because he was universally considered a bad guy and deserving of whatever punishment the Libyans decided he should have?  Is it because once the footage was out there on the internet the networks and local stations didn't want to feel left behind?

Call me old fashioned and maybe the least bit squeamish, but I wish more restraint had been shown, because the almost casual broadcasting of the images has only added to our already high desensitization to that kind of violence.

RIP Steve Jobs

I'm not a Mac fanatic, never have been, but I have iTunes, an iPod, and a Droid X, none of which would exist without the visionary genius of the late Steve Jobs.  His impact in the technological and entertainment world will live for years to come.

September 11, 2011: I Wear Pink Now, I Wore Pink Then

Ten years ago today, the world changed.  As a New Yorker, I remember feeling like someone had broken into my house and destroyed everything I loved.

I didn't lose anyone close to me, thank God, but two acquaintances died that day along with the nearly three thousand others.

So I wear pink now because I wore pink then and I remember along with the rest of New York and the rest of the nation.

After the "Apocalypse" Smell the Roses

If you're reading this, odds are you're not in heaven.  Odd are you're also not in hell.

No, there was no Judgement Day, Rapture or apocalypse. 

Just some guys selling doomsday t-shirts in Times Square and a whole bunch of non-raptured citizens whooping it up on a Saturday night as usual.

But that doesn't mean a lesson shouldn't be learned out of all the false predictions of apocalyptic doom and gloom.

Yeah, all those people who sold their homes, packed up their cars and decided to see the world one last time, are gonna go home to some harsh realities, but they also did something maybe the rest of us should learn from. 

They took a little time to smell the roses.

Now I know they did that because of the false claims of a cult-like figure with delusions of grandeur, but in a small way, maybe the rest of us should be doing the same.

Just a little lesson from the day the Rapture died.

Osama Bin Laden is Dead, This New Yorker is Pleased

It seems only fitting that since I was at work when 9/11 happened, I was also at work when I found out the perpetrator of 9/11 was dead.

But what was I doing?

Why, watching "Celebrity Apprentice."  I kid you not.  I was killing time before going home when NBC ran a ticker that announced President Obama was going to make an address to the nation within minutes.

Now remember, this was just one night after Obama and Seth Myers had opened a big ol' can of whoopass on Donald Trump at the White House Correspondents' Dinner. So how cool was it that Obama's national address over whatever the important issue was, just happened to interrupt Donald Trump's show?

You couldn't script it better.

Then came the big announcement:  Osama bin Laden was dead. 

Turns out, not only was Osama bin Laden dead, our armed forces went in to get him.  And better yet, we had the body to prove it.

I'm a New Yorker so the news that this mass murderer was dead made me glad.  Yes, it's a little unseemly to celebrate the death of any human being, but on this occasion I have no problem making an exception.

Watching as a crowd spontaneously started celebrating outside the White House, I was surprised at how emotional I got.  Mixed in with that emotion was gratitude to the armed forces that pulled off the dangerous operation so flawlessly, pride in our country and especially our President.

Say what you want, and I'm sure many will, but Barack Obama will go down in history as one of the greatest presidents ever. 

Oh, and Trump fired Hope.

Megan's 4th Blogiversary!

 

As y'all know, it's Valentine's Day, but more importantly, here at Megan's Minute, it's Blogiversary Number 4!

Four years, I can't believe it!

Ironically, as a direct result of starting Megan's Minute, I don't have much time to write in celebration because I'm just a tad too busy.

I'm still writing for BlogHer but I'm also in graduate school, working full-time, working another job part-time--to help pay for school--and all around trying to keep my sanity.

But no way could I let this day slip by without a little toast to Blogiversary Number 4.

Oh and Happy Valentine's Day!

Courageous Journalism Allows Us to Get the Real Story form Egypt

Imagine that one day you're watching CNN and a breaking news story comes on saying that Diane Sawyer, anchor of ABC's World News with Diane Sawyer, has suddenly quit. 

In an interview, Sawyer says the reason she quit was because ABC was demanding, via the White House, that she read a story at the beginning of every newscast that says citizens are rioting in the streets of New York and the National Guard must be called in to restore order.

The problem is the streets of New York are quiet. Or as quiet as they ever are. Sawyer goes to work through the streets of New York everyday and knows for a fact that there are no riots. How could she in good conscious read a story that she knows is totally untrue? The answer: she couldn't. So she quit.

That scenario actually happened last week, except it didn't happen in the United States; it happened in Egypt. And the famous anchorwoman in question was not Diane Sawyer of ABC but Shahira Amin of the Egyptian state owned broadcast network, Nile Television.

I'm Shutting Off TV for a Week: Day 1 - Tragedy Takes Precedent

Obviously my little No TV experiment pales in comparison to the terrible news yesterday of the shooting of Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords and 17 others at a shopping center in Arizona. 

As of now 6 people are dead, including a federal judge, John Roll, and a 9-year-old girl.  Five others, including Giffords, are in critical condition.

It's an awful tragedy and my heart goes out to Giffords' and her family and to all those who died or were wounded.

As I said, my little TV tune out is frivolous in comparison, but I think my reactions while trying to avoid TV and stay connected to developments throughout the day are worth writing about, so here goes.

Happy 2011!

Happy Thanksgiving!

 

Enjoy your friends.

 

Enjoy your family.

 

Enjoy your life.

 

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

Megan

Airport Body Scan Travel Tip: Suck it Up

For everyone who has a problem with the new body scanners, or pat downs at the airport, I got three words for you:  World Trade Center.

Every news outlet that does a story on the complaints from the public about the new security procedures needs to show pictures of Lockerbie after Pan Am Flight 103 blew up. 

Or the disintegration of the World Trade Center, or the smoldering Pentagon, or that black, smoldering pit in the middle of a Pennsylvania field that used to be United Airlines Flight 93.

Better yet, accompanying all the video of guys telling screeners "don't touch my junk,” they should also show interviews with a relative of someone who died on September 11, 2001, or was blown to smithereens over Lockerbie.

The other popular complaint is that the sweet little old lady can’t be a terrorist.  That nice looking older man can’t be a terrorist.  That little girl carrying the doll can’t be a terrorist.

Well listen up.  Don’t you think the real terrorists are paying attention?  Don’t you think they might put a bomb in a little girl’s doll?

Ever hear of a guy named Timothy McVeigh who, before he became the most notorious American baby killer ever, looked like he could be on the cover a GQ magazine?  A regular Mr. Normal American. 

Except not.

People, you don’t want to go through security?  Drive.  Take the bus.  Take a train.  Walk.

See because the problem is, the minute some whack job with an agenda gets past the TSA screeners and blows up a plane is when these same people are going to be screaming about why something more wasn’t done.

Time for the media to remind the American public that these rules and regulations didn’t just come out of thin air.

September 11th: A Clear Blue Sky and a Pink Cotton Skirt

It's always about the beautiful weather.  Bright, sunny, just a slight nip in the air to remind you that fall is coming.

Every year since September 11, 2001, there's a cloudless beautiful, blue sky day in late August or early September in New York where I think to myself, this is what it was like on that day.

Of course now we know that the beautiful weather was all part of the plan.  They chose a clear, blue sky day so that the weather wouldn't impede the evil they were about to do.

Because the weather was so gorgeous, I wore my favorite pink, cotton skirt.  Little did I know when I put it on that it would be another 36 hours before I took it off.

I worked in that skirt, I ate, slept and cried in that skirt.  When I was finally home, finally able to shower,  finally able to take off the skirt, it was like removing a crown of thorns.

I haven't worn that skirt since.  I still own it, somehow I can't bear to add it to the bags of clothes I give away every year, but I'll never wear it again. 

But every year, on a beautiful blue sky day in late August or early September in New York, I think of that pink skirt, and as hard as it is, I remember.

 

Happy Earth Day!

Happy Earth Day Folks!

Remember not to abuse it, because it's the only one we've got!

Photo:  Mackinaw River Valley

Via Indie Ink and Laurie White on Facebook