THE POKE-ALONG TOURIST'S GUIDE

Artwork by Linda Baldock

Perth, Western Australia

I started reading the freebie newspapers because they were, well...free. How could I pass up such a deal? They did contain local interest articles about which I like to stay current such as teachers' evaluations, Bloomberg's bans, Stop & Frisk, and fracking. I'm not averse to the latest on RPatz, pitcher/author Dickey, and Zarkania, either. However, the main attraction is the horoscopes. I cross reference by reading the amNewYork first and then the Metro. I enjoy being the Poke-Along Tourist seeing the city with fresh eyes Monday through Friday. Every tourist should have his or her day outlined by the horoscopes. 

"A good story is a wonderful gift.

Shared dreams keep you close."

This one was a keeper so I cut it out to put in my Lokta plant-Fair Trade notebook where I am pressing small flowers from Cozy Corner on 2nd Avenue. Usually, the advice runs to, "Don't scatter your forces," as if I were a bundle of energy. I'm skeptical at times since I was born south of the Equator where all the stars are upside down, but isn't this typical of Gemini, making even the constellations festive? At any rate I thought "a good story" was a sign to return to regular blobbing.  

Among my P-ATourist activities is giving one minute "travel calls" on the Little Phone (NY's special cell offer for the low in income). Ordinarily, I pick a busy street to make a Sounds of the City call, one of several categories, though I particularly like sending sounds of the tunes on the Delacorte clock in Central Park. Recently, I was on the ground floor of a ritzy office building housing the Open Space Institute and chanced upon a trio (violin, guitar, flute). Pachelbel! This past week's categories:

Overheard-- "I mean, California was beautiful, wonderful, but the people! They are so laid back!!!!"

Favorite tees-- "IT'S ALL GEEK TO ME" "LOVE PEACE HELLO KITTY

Breaking News--you know that one. 

My daughter surprised me with a message telling me I'll feel right at home on my annual autumnal visit. Her Sounds of the City were the clanging of cranes and construction outside the University of North Carolina Hospitals. She said Chapel Hill is my Other Borough, New York City being divided into five boroughs. That's right! I will be Amtrakking NYP(Penn)-->DNC(no, not the Democratic Party. DNC is the code for Durham, North Carolina). It's just a little further than the Wednesdays trek to Little Italy in the Bronx. Plenty of time to contemplate the zodiac, My Daily Guidance Counselor and learning from Linda how to draw the ideal self-portrait.