That's IT?!?

Last Friday I found myself running errands in midtown, not too far away from Rockafeller Center. As it was a balmy 16 degrees and I hadn't seen the famous tree yet, I decided to walk a few blocks out of my way to go check it out.

(See? Proof - I was there!)

As is the case with so many famous things, they tend to be disappointing in person. The trip to the tree was harrowing and almost not worth it. My route took me right by Radio City Music Hall about half an hour before their matinee show was scheduled to begin, and the sidewalk was packed with tourists and groups of small schoolchildren, many of whom were wearing reindeer antlers or nutcracker hats. I can't stand slow walkers in the first place, and when it's 16 degrees out and therefore recommended that one keep one's pulse racing to prevent frostbite, I came closer than I ever have to knocking old ladies and small children out of my path into into oncoming traffic. (Relax, that's not as bad as it sounds. Traffic in Manhattan hardly moves at all.) Time speeds up when you're having fun, but when you're flirting with hypothermia, it slows to a snail's pace.

The area around the tree, once I finally reached it, was crowded as well. It was really pretty, blah blah blah, but it looked so small. TV cameramen must put their cameras under the tree and shoot directly up, because the thing looks massive on the screen. I mean, it was a big tree, don't get me wrong, and if I'd seen it on Main Street in Visalia I'd have been mightily impressed. But somehow, surrounded by skyscrapers, the poor thing looked dwarfed and sort of bewildered. The skating rink was temporarily closed because an interview was being filmed there. I could have waited until it wrapped up to watch people circling the ice, but I'd had about enough of wind that reached into every crevice of my clothing to poke icy fingers at skin I thought was well-concealed (silly me). So I retreated to the warmth of the subway, got off a few stops later, and bought three sweaters and a pair of gloves.