Autumn in New York

After spending the morning watching the NY Marathon, I've been feelig sort of gung-ho NYC. Paul Tergat nosed out defending champion Hendrick Ramaala in a photo finish, and Jelena Prokopcuka glided past Susan Chepkemei in the home stretch. Awesome wins to be sure. And yet, as moving were the 37,000 other runners out there competing. I wonder if it might not be a pretty important challenge to take on! My "I Love NY" feeling was perked up again when I read Fodor's "Autumn in New York" which paints a pretty enticing picture of this quirky city: "Crisp air, cool nights, gorgeous autumn foliage set against peaks of steel and glass -- this is New York City in the fall, arguably the best time to pay a visit to the Big Apple... autumn in New York promises plenty of subtler pleasures, from a free bike ride along the Hudson River to a walk through the greatest urban park in America." Perhaps its the presence of a friend visiting from Paris that's reminded me what a neat town this is. Funny how that works. Guests help movitate us to become tourists in our own homes. Yesterday, for example we sat next to the coal stove at McSorley's Ale House (15 East 7th Street) and sucked down mugs of nice dark ale. Later we took the Staten Island Ferry for an enjoyable round trip, returning to Manhattan as the setting sun glowed orange and pink on the skyscrapers. Home, sweet home.