The Trailing Spouse Does New York City in Search for "Sex in the City"

Lulu was a professor for St. Johns University in the Big Apple before she was lured to Florida State by the wonderful Tallahassee sun. For ten years she commuted 150 miles from upstate Pennsylvania to the Queens and Long Island campuses. It was a very nice time in our lives.

Before that tenure - I hated everything about New York City. In our hometown in Pennsylvania the population was divided - Yankee fan or Yankee hater. The tales of crime in the city filled our evening news. Everything in Manhattan seemed so expensive and there was always a "con" going down.

Lulu used to supervise library interns all over the city. She learned how to get around in the city and we developed a flavor for the life. She had the best of both worlds - she made a New Yorker salary and was able to live in a coal cracker lifestyle back home.

Lulu still does an occasional workshop for St. Johns. Every summer she is beckoned back to enjoy a few days of New York "summer in the city" to visit her roots. This trip she planned to co-incide with the opening of "Sex in the City" - a movie about girls living the high life of Manhattan style - fashion - and sex. For the past couple of weeks - I was planning ways to get out of going to that movie.

Yesterday was opening day of the film. We spent the day just bopping around the city. Fortunately or unfortunately - every ticket for the film was sold out in every theatre. The city was just filled with young ladies in all states of dress - cueing up for the big event. They actually started showing the film at midnight - and every seat was taken.

Instead we enjoyed visited the "Body Works" exhibit - an impressive series of displays of real human bodies in various poses and views. Everything was perfectly preserved and colored to highlight even the smallest nerves - arteries - and veins. It was a very informative two hours. The school groups in the city reminded me of the times when I was the tour guide.

After a day of subways - buses - museums - shopping - eating - and people watching - we boarded our express train back to campus on Long Island.

One of the saddest moments of the trip was when we stumbled onto the memorial of TWA Flight 800 - it is not too far away from campus - on the beach at Smithpoint. You may recall in 1996 that a Boeing 747 had just left JFK Airport on its way to Paris when a fuel tank mysteriously exploded killing everyone. Our little hometown of Tamaqua PA deeply mourned this event - Amy and Kyle Miller - two of our brightest and best were on that flight. Amy served on the very same school board that I did. Kyle managed the hardware store in town. They were going to celebrate their fifth anniversary in the Eiffel Tower. The sobering reality of their names on that memorial forces tears to your eyes and makes one contemplate how truly fragile life is.

So we have experience bothed joy and sadness on this venture. When one leaves the front door of your home - you never know what adventure awaits you. Lulu really enjoys her trips back to her old territory in New York City - and the Trailing Spouse enjoys carrying her bags.