End of the Year

End of the year, and what a year it has been!

It was quite an experience to see The Half-Life of Marie Curie virtually every weekend for the duration of its run. Seven times, and I loved it more each time. Great wit, great heart, magnificent performances! Unforgettable! I am so glad that this play has been recorded by Audible. Nathan Pyle author event was quite fun, I enjoy following his alien creature comics. The talk about Leonardo DaVinci was interesting; perhaps, I would have enjoyed it more had I not been still recovering from bronchitis. The Galaxy Documentary was a true pleasure, a wonderful celebration of the film's 20th anniversary! David Sedaris is hysterical. Laugh out loud funny evening in my hometown. Finally, Sir Patrick's performance of A Christmas Carol was pure genius. I am thrilled that the plans have changed fortuitously at the last moment, and my sister and I got to share this truly unique experience!

I am looking forward to next year's adventures! Trek on!

January 15th - Astronomy on Tap NYC Presents: It's a Star Trek Universe
January 25th - RUGM Open House
February 3rd - Year in Review With Neil deGrasse Tyson at AMNH
March 1st - 8th - Star Trek: The Cruise IV
March 14th - Riverdance 25 at Radio City Music Hall
March 13th - 15th - Monster Mania in Cherry Hill, NJ
March 20th - 22nd - ACE Comic Con Northeast in Boston, MA
April 18th - NJ Mineral, Fossil, Gem and Jewelry Show in Edison, NJ
August 5th - 9th - The Official Star Trek Convention in Las Vegas, NV
October 8th - 11th - New York Comic Con
November 13th - 15th - Destination Star Trek London

Great Experiences!!!

I do not think I have ever had a fall like this year - so many amazing events and great experiences!!!

It was fun to meet Gavin Pretor-Pinney, founder of the Cloud Appreciation Society, thanks to whom a new cloud classification had been added to the International Cloud Atlas. Great sense of humor and lots of cloud fun. Bill Bryson gave a nice reading and talk, and was absolutely lovely to meet. Julie Andrews is, without a doubt, an international treasure. I feel so lucky that I managed to find a ticket to attend her author event for "Home Work", her new memoir. Living legend! New York in 27 Buildings was entertaining enough, but I really got my fill of construction and architecture-related things during the CTBUH 10th World Congress in Chicago. I got to stay in an iconic building (Aqua), and I got to listen to some great presentations on various topics regarding the design and construction of the tall buildings in the world. The Congress outing was immediately followed by a one day trip to RICC, which was quite a bit of fun. Speaking of living legends, the one-night Broadway show with Ian McKellen turned out to be nothing short of extraordinary. Close to three hours of sheer brilliance, as he told stories from his life and career, recited and even acted out some of his roles. My sister and I were floored! Riding this wave of excellence, I then attended the charity reading of "Driving Miss Daisy" performed by Morgan Freeman and Dana Ivey, who originated the roles when the play was originally performed back in the late 1980's. Amazing! Finally, "The Half-Life of Marie Curie" is a brilliant new play. As of this post, I have already seen it twice, loved it, and am planning to see it several more times. Great screenplay. Both Kate Mulgrew and Francesca Faridany are fantastic in it!!!

November 19th and 21st - The Architecture of the Theater at ICAA - alas, did not attend
November 19th - The Half-Life of Marie Curie play with Kate Mulgrew (with my sister)
November 20th - Strange Planet by Nathan W. Pyle at Strand Bookstore
November 23rd - The Half-Life of Marie Curie play with Kate Mulgrew (with my sister)
November 25th - Leonardo DaVinci Rediscovered: Carmen Bambach in Conversation with Walter Isaacson
November 26th - Never Surrender: A Galaxy Quest Documentary
November 29th - The Half-Life of Marie Curie play with Kate Mulgrew (with my sister)
December 5th - David Sedaris at MPAC
December 8th - The Half-Life of Marie Curie play with Kate Mulgrew (with my mother)
December 11th - "Dead and Gone" Distilleries Scotch Whiskey Tasting - unfortunately, cancelled
December 11th - Sir Patrick Stewart's one-man charity performance of A Christmas Carol
December 14th - The Half-Life of Marie Curie play with Kate Mulgrew (with my sister and friends)
December 22nd - The Half-Life of Marie Curie play with Kate Mulgrew (closing night)

2020

March 1st - 8th - Star Trek: The Cruise IV
March 14th - Riverdance 25 at Radio City Music Hall
March 13th - 15th - Monster Mania in Cherry Hill, NJ
March 20th - 22nd - ACE Comic Con Northeast in Boston, MA
August 5th - 9th - The Official Star Trek Convention in Las Vegas, NV
November 13th - 15th - Destination Star Trek London

Fall Events

Fall is rocking away!
Both tasting events I got to attend were fun as usual, especially the Hard Cider one. Delicious! The talk about indigo was fascinating. I have been anxious to attend something at The Explorers Club for a while now, and I am glad I finally had a chance. The club itself has an amazing atmosphere. I look forward to checking out more talks when opportunity arises. NYCC is always, always an experience in a class of its own. Overwhelming and exhausting in its sheer size but absolutely exhilarating in the content. For the first time ever, I had an opportunity to attend both a Main Stage panel and an industry panel at the Hulu Theater at MSG. Saw Adam Savage twice - the separately ticketed event via Anime Fest @ NYCC and at the aforementioned Main Stage panel. Excellent! And, of course, the key experience at NYCC this year was the complete Star Trek overload - the Friday talk with Ben Robinson of Eaglemoss and DSC/PIC production designer Todd Cherniawsky, the Saturday morning Star Trek Universe panel at the Hulu Theater, an absolute highlight, followed by Saturday evening PaleyFest NY Star Trek Discovery panel. Incredible! But I didn't stop there, the following weekend was taken up with an in-and-out single day trip to ACE Comic Con Midwest, in order to meet Chris Hemsworth and Taron Egerton. I haven't done a full one-day-only comic con outing in a while, so this was a fun experience! I am looking forward to doing the same with RICC.

October 15th - Cloudspotting for Beginners at The Explorers Club
October 17th - The Body: A Guide for Occupants by Bill Bryson at Strand Bookstore
October 19th - Julie Andrews and Emma Walton Hamilton in Conversation with Annette Insdorf
October 21st - New York in 27 Buildings at MCNY
October 28th - November 2nd - CTBUH 10th World Congress in Chicago, IL

November 1st - 3rd - Rhode Island Comic Con
November 5th - Ian McKellen On Stage: With Tolkien, Shakespeare, Others …And You!
November 11th - Driving Miss Daisy reading with Dana Ivey and Morgan Freeman
November 12th - The Half-Life of Marie Curie play with Kate Mulgrew
November 17th - The Half-Life of Marie Curie play with Kate Mulgrew
November 20th - Strange Planet by Nathan W. Pyle at Strand Bookstore
November 23rd - The Half-Life of Marie Curie play with Kate Mulgrew (with my sister)
November 25th - Leonardo DaVinci Rediscovered: Carmen Bambach in Conversation with Walter Isaacson
November 26th - Never Surrender: A Galaxy Quest Documentary
December 5th - David Sedaris at MPAC

2020

March 1st - 8th - Star Trek: The Cruise IV
March 14th - Riverdance 25 at Radio City Music Hall
August 5th - 9th - The Official Star Trek Convention in Las Vegas, NV 

Small Update

I got a chance to check out two more mid-sized comic cons in very short period of time right after and on top of all the STLV excitement. Exhausting but so much fun. Silicon Valley Comic Con trip was entirely thanks to my sister's initiative, and we got to meet Arnold Schwarzenegger!!! Keystone Comic Con was more low-key but it gave me a chance to spend some very nice time together with friends and fellow fans. Another weekend trip took my sister, our grandmother and I to Kykuit, home to four generations of Rockefellers. What a stunning place! The weather was next to perfect, and the Grand Tour had proved itself to be incredibly informative!

September 13th - The Art of Cocktails - Tasting and Workshop in Private Members-Only Bar
September 26th - Tasting Hard Ciders From Around the World
October 1st - Indigo Trail: From Egyptian Mummies to Blue Jeans! at The Explorers Club
October 3rd - 6th - New York Comic Con (I am attending on Saturday and Sunday this year; another weekend of Trek - hoping to attend the Star Trek Universe panel and the PaleyFest NY Discovery panel on one day, and to hang out with friends and fellow fans on another; plus I have a separate event ticket for "My Neighbor, Adam Savage: An Evening With the Maker and Miyazaki Enthusiast" on Friday via Anime Fest @ NYCC)

October 11th -13th - ACE Comic Con Midwest in Chicago, IL
October 15th - Cloudspotting for Beginners at The Explorers Club
October 17th - The Body: A Guide for Occupants by Bill Bryson at Strand Bookstore
October 21st - New York in 27 Buildings at MCNY
October 28th - November 2nd - CTBUH 10th World Congress in Chicago, IL

November 1st - 3rd - Rhode Island Comic Con
November 5th - Ian McKellen On Stage: With Tolkien, Shakespeare, Others …And You!
November 11th - Driving Miss Daisy reading with Dana Ivey and Morgan Freeman
November 12th - The Half-Life of Marie Curie play with Kate Mulgrew
November 20th - Strange Planet by Nathan W. Pyle at Strand Bookstore
November 23rd - The Half-Life of Marie Curie play with Kate Mulgrew (with my sister)
December 5th - David Sedaris at MPAC

2020

March 1st - 8th - Star Trek: The Cruise IV
March 14th - Riverdance 25 at Radio City Music Hall
August 5th - 9th - The Official Star Trek Convention in Las Vegas, NV 

Summer Rocks!

It has been quite an awesome summer so far!

Mel Brooks is a legend, and my sister and I loved attending his very limited appearance at Lunt Fontanne Theater. The CTBUH walking tour was quite interesting; I wish I were feeling better to appreciate it more, but I do not regret going by any means. The lecture on historic brickwork proved to be unexpectedly fascinating; I am considering looking into more details on this subject matter. The behind-the-scenes event at Madame Tussaud's was an absolute highlight, clever and hilarious! Celebration of the Moon landing was fun, if somewhat hampered by very high temperatures in New York. It included a nice lecture and discussion, followed by observation of ISS timely passing over the city. I also must give a shout out to the Amateur Astronomers Association of New York, whose members brought telescopes for observations of Saturn and Jupiter. My 10th consecutive Star Trek Las Vegas convention was simply fantastic, a geeky nirvana! I already cannot wait until next year!

August 16th - 18th - Silicon Valley Comic Con in San Jose, CA
August 23th - 25th - Keystone Comic Con in Philadelphia, PA
October 3rd - 6th - New York Comic Con

October 28th - November 2nd - CTBUH 10th World Congress in Chicago, IL

November 5th - Ian McKellen On Stage: With Tolkien, Shakespeare, Others …And You!
December 5th - David Sedaris at MPAC

2020

March 1st - March 8th - Star Trek: The Cruise IV

Halfway Through the Year

Things just keep chugging along. :)

I have said it before, and I will say it again - Eddie Izzard is a genius. My sister and I had a fabulous evening at the Beacon, and got to meet Eddie again after the show at the stage door. Grave Robbing proved to be a rather fun, if fittingly wet, event - nothing as ghastly as the title suggests, but an interesting walk through the downtown Manhattan, recounting New York's colonial burial history. The Right Stuff live interview at NYU definitely fell into the "incredible" category. A true honor and pleasure to see and hear speak three real-life space heroes. "Enter Laughing" was side-splittingly hilarious, and I loved it. Unfortunately, Dinos After Dark did not pan out, as I had to miss it due to health problems. Oh, well. The new T. rex exhibit is going to be on until the August of next year, plenty of time to check it out.

June 18th - Mel Brooks on Broadway
June 27th - 2019 Global Walking Tour: New York City via CTBUH
July 8th - Historic Brickwork: A Design Resource
July 17th - The Art of Wax Model Making at Madame Tussaud's Wax Museum
July 19th - Astronomy Night Celebrates Apollo 11 at USS Intrepid
July 31st - August 4th - The Official Star Trek Convention in Las Vegas, NV

August 23th - 25th - Keystone Comic Con in Philadelphia, PA
October 3rd - 6th - New York Comic Con

October 28th - November 2nd - CTBUH 10th World Congress in Chicago, IL

November 5th - Ian McKellen On Stage: With Tolkien, Shakespeare, Others …And You!
December 5th - David Sedaris at MPAC

2020

March 1st - March 8th - Star Trek: The Cruise IV

Almost Summer

The spring has finally arrived and brought some fantastic experiences with it!

The reading with LeVar Burton was inspiring; great guests reading and performing. Awesome Con turned out to be the most relaxed and straightforward comic con I have ever attended - fantastic guests, vendors and programming, and, what is more, I got to share it with my sister and many good Trek friends. Tremendous time! Physical and social sciences were very nicely discussed during the Professor Cox's event and the cartography talk at NYPL. Adam Savage is the king of the geeks; his author event at Barnes & Noble was truly fun. DS9 documentary showing at AMC Theaters on 42nd Street was sold out and well-attended by the local Trek fan groups. I have already had the pleasure of seeing it as a backer, but it was just marvelous to see it in a theater full of Trekkies. Kate Mulgrew's second memoir has been released, and I had the honor and the pleasure to attend two of her author appearances, the signing in NJ and the book launch in NYC. Absolutely fabulous experience going to both, absolutely wonderful to see Kate again! As I already mentioned in my review, it is truly an excellent book, well deserving of attention and accolades.

May 22nd - The Art of Wax Model Making at Madame Tussaud's Wax Museum - cancelled
May 24th - Eddie Izzard Wunderbar World Tour concert at Beacon Theater

May 29th - Grave Robbing 101 with Atlas Obscura
May 31st - The Right Stuff: What It Takes To Boldly Go, an event during the World Science Festival
June 4th - Enter Laughing: The Musical
June 13th - Dinos After Dark at AMNH
July 8th - Historic Brickwork: A Design Resource
July 31st - August 4th - The Official Star Trek Convention in Las Vegas, NV

October 3rd - 6th - New York Comic Con

October 28th - November 2nd - CTBUH 10th World Congress in Chicago, IL

2020

March 1st - March 8th - Star Trek: The Cruise IV

Spring (hopefully)

Elton John had said goodbye. A tremendous concert, his last one ever in NJ. Quite an experience!

The Apollo 11 movie was a masterpiece; I am glad I got to see it in IMAX, and I cannot wait to get a DVD.

Big Apple Comic Con became a rather nice start to this year's convention season for me. An old-style, boutique convention in the middle of Manhattan. A bit of a remnant of the 90's but, with lots of familiar faces attending, I ended up having a wonderful time.

Repeating my words from an earlier post - whiskey tastings do not disappoint. Informative and tasty. The late March tasting has confirmed that that my favorite Irish whisky is still Redbreast.

All in all, the NJ Mineral Show was rather nice. I have noticed a more pronounced presence of things tumbled, polished and carved, and there were definitely less fossils this time around. I walked away with a lovely piece of polished lapis lazuli but not much else. I think this year, the best part of the show was the Aerolite Meteorites exhibit. I hope they will attend again next year.

April 17th - Selected Shorts: LeVar Burton and Friends at Symphony Space

April 26th - 28th - Awesome Con in Washington, DC

May 1st - Professor Brian Cox: Universal at NYU Skirball Center

May 2nd - The History of Cartography Project event at NYPL
May 8th - Adam Savage author event at Union Square B&N
May 13th - DS9 documentary, What We Left Behind theater event (and huge Trek fan get-together)
May - Kate Mulgrew author events (May 20th - signing at Bookends and May 21st - launch at East Side B&N)

May 22nd - The Art of Wax Model Making at Madame Tussaud's Wax Museum
May 24th - Eddie Izzard Wunderbar World Tour concert at Beacon Theater

May 29th - Grave Robbing 101 with Atlas Obscura
May 31st - The Right Stuff: What It Takes To Boldly Go, an event during the World Science Festival
July 31st - August 4th - The Official Star Trek Convention in Las Vegas, NV

October 3rd - 6th - New York Comic Con

October 28th - November 2nd - CTBUH 10th World Congress in Chicago, IL

2020

March 1st - March 8th - Star Trek: The Cruise IV

How to Forget: A Daughter's Memoir by Kate Mulgrew

After reading “Born With Teeth”, Kate Mulgrew’s first book and a gem of a memoir, I could not wait to hear that a second one would be coming.

“How to Forget” is a tremendous book! Not unlike the first memoir, I have swallowed it in a matter of hours, and then found myself needing several days to be able to articulate a more fitting opinion on it than simply “heart-rending”.
This memoir is first and foremost about the lives and deaths of Kate’s parents, and about how her relationship with either one of them had shaped her own life. A truly no-holds-barred journey through memories in turn fond and poignant, full of wit and of profound sadness, each one of them told in almost devastatingly vivid and starkly frank detail. Kate has an extraordinary gift as a storyteller; her narrative so engaging, it is impossible not to sink into each chapter. I have to stress that, as captivating as these stories are, the subject matter of the book is very real, bound to affect many readers, and I cannot help but admire Kate’s fortitude not only in living through these experiences but also in sharing them, as deeply personal as they are.

The book will be released on May 21st, followed by a tour of author events. I look forward to attending as many of them as I can.

Winter Updates

And we are already at the end of February, the tax season is upon us. :)

Whiskey tastings never disappoint - enjoyable and very informational. The Japanese whiskey tasting was also quite fascinating. I am looking forward to attending another one as soon as an opportunity presents itself. The Discovery second season premiere truly blew my mind. The attendees were never told what to expect, so pretty much everything - reserved theater seating, complimentary concessions, incredible red carpet access, two (!!!) first episodes, gift bag and a signed poster at the end - simply took everyone's breath away. I skipped the RU Geology Museum open house again, looking forward to the NJ Mineral show instead. The Escher Exhibition & Experience thankfully got extended, and I finally got a chance to see it - absolutely loved it! Pretty much all of my favorite pieces (originals!!!) were there!

The convention season is almost here, and I cannot wait. Another exhibition to look out for (which I haven't been able to visit so far because of the crowds) is the Tolkien: Maker of Middle-earth at the Morgan Library.

March 2nd - Elton John concert at Prudential Center (Farewell Yellow Brick Road Tour)

March 5th - Apollo 11 in IMAX

March 9th - 10th - Big Apple Comic Con in NYC

March 27th - Irish Whisky tasting, From Teeling to Redbreast
April 3rd - 7th - New Jersey Mineral, Fossil, Gem and Jewelry Show

April 17th - Selected Shorts: LeVar Burton and Friends at Symphony Space

April 26th - 28th - Awesome Con in Washington, DC

May 1st - Professor Brian Cox: Universal at NYU Skirball Center

May - Kate Mulgrew author events

May 24th - Eddie Izzard Wunderbar World Tour concert at Beacon Theater

July 31st - August 4th - The Official Star Trek Convention in Las Vegas, NV

October 3rd - 6th - New York Comic Con

October 28th - November 2nd - CTBUH 10th World Congress in Chicago, IL

2020

March 1st - March 8th - Star Trek: The Cruise IV

Here We Go Again

Another year is beginning!

January 16th - Japanese Whiskey Tasting, From Yamazaki to Suntory Old
January 17th - Live Premiere of the second season of Star Trek Discovery in NYC
January 26th - Rutgers University Geology Museum Open House
March 2nd - Elton John concert at Prudential Center (Farewell Yellow Brick Road Tour)
March 9th - 10th - Big Apple Comic Con in NYC
April 3rd - 7th - New Jersey Mineral, Fossil, Gem and Jewelry Show
April 17th - Selected Shorts: LeVar Burton and Friends at Symphony Space
April 26th - 28th - Awesome Con in Washington, DC
May 1st - Professor Brian Cox: Universal at NYU Skirball Center
May - Kate Mulgrew author events
May 24th - Eddie Izzard Wunderbar World Tour concert at Beacon Theater
July 31st - August 4th - The Official Star Trek Convention in Las Vegas, NV
October 3rd - 6th - New York Comic Con
October 28th - November 2nd - CTBUH 10th World Congress in Chicago, IL

2020
March 1st - March 8th - Star Trek: The Cruise IV

Happy 2019!!!

I wish everyone a very Happy New Year! Best of health, happiness and luck!!!