Quirks

New Yorkers are a breed of their own. If you pay a few bucks extra, you can get anything you want here - and directly to your doorstep, too: the paper, food, drinks, groceries, videos, you name it. In fact, I recently saw a sign in a shop window: "I want it all, and I want it delivered."
It gets better, though.

Try nine-year olds at beauty salons, getting their nails done.

Or rain coats, "party collars" and faux fur (!) designer coats for dogs.

But think what you may, citizens of the Big Apple do have a sense of humor, paired with real dedication to the cause. Here are a few examples I stumbled upon myself in the past weeks.

The Naked Cowboy, who stands on Times Square, rain or shine, in white speedos, boots and a Stetson, playing his guitar and posing for tourists.

A young guy I recently spotted on the subway one early Saturday morning, carrying a long black bag on his back. When asked what he was carrying, he pulled out a giant, "custom-made" light saber and demonstrated a few moves he had learned in his light saber fighting club.
Missed that photo op, unfortunately.

A loving fiancee who dedicated a bench in Central Park to her future husband:


And, lastly, a scribbled response to a graffiti statement:


Gotta love it.

On a different note, between trips to Yale, DC and last minute errands, time is flying by. The next blog (including pictures from the past weeks) might already be written from my room in Vienna - hard to believe!