u/Best-Candle8651

I take public transit most days. I see kids on the trains or the bus, and that is fine. They are just living their life like the rest of us. What makes me sad are two scenarios I’ve seen recently.

The first is the parents on their phone, and the young kid was looking out of the window, enjoying the view. They were trying to get their parents' attention, pointing out things that were interesting to them, and the parents were nose deep in their phones.

The second I saw is sadder, and that is a kid in a stroller looking at a phone, while their parent is also looking at a phone. At least in the first scenario, the kid is exploring and learning about the wonders of the world. This is just sad. I would rather the kid be giggling or talking than a phone zombie.

What are the long-term consequences for this? Kids need to see faces and interact to learn critical social skills and critical thinking. These kids will be so stunted. The world is beautiful, and there is so much to experience, especially with the temporary wonder of childhood. Why bother having kids if you don’t pay attention or interact with them? Kids are only small for so long before they are supposedly functional members of society.

I know I wouldn’t give them the attention and stimulation they deserve, which is one of the reasons I’m childfree. They need proper enrichment, and if you don’t provide that, why have them?

Sitting on a tech hold right now. I saw Gruesome Playground Injuries at Lortel before this and it was right before one of the winter storms. Someone fell outside of the theater and was injured to the point they had to call an ambulance. They had a doctor hold for that one. A bit ironic given the show’s subject matter. Lol I’m cursed to not see shows at Lortel properly. Thankfully no issues at Data or either time I saw Vanya.

Update: looks like a problem with the lights

Update Update: they were fixing the video. We didn’t have it for most of the first act until the end.

My favorite time to see shows is late Jan to end of Feb. The shows are cheap and navigating around Times Square isn’t a nightmare. The last week or so it’s been getting really bad again. Come summer it’s just dreadful. Part of it is the attractions and part of it is the theaters. It’s just such a nightmare to navigate, especially if you get screwed over by your train. I don’t know where I would move them to, but the current arrangement is so bad.

I want to buy Opus Prism Peak for Switch 2 since the other ones were great, but I heard it was basically non-functional. It has been about a month, and I was wondering if it was fixed or if it is still broken.

Bummer on that one. Hopefully, it will get the Nintendo usual and go on sale for Black Friday. They had half the games at the discounted price that everyone sees, but just not that one. Ugh, so annoying. I would've gotten air riders if I didn't already get that one at Costco.

I was at Just in Time tonight and there was some kind of radio interference. It sounded like it was coming from the back center of the theater. Was it a headset mic or was it a phone? It was loud but couldn’t understand what it was saying. I was wondering if anyone who was sitting closer knew what it was.

3 weeks of free concerts at Rock Plaza starting at noon

5/14

• Wicked
• Chicago
• Hadestown

5/28

• Operation Mincemeat
• The Great Gatsby
• Maybe Happy Ending

6/4

• The Outsiders
• MJ: The Musical
• Moulin Rouge! The Musical
• The Book of Mormon

I saw this with congestion pricing. Now I see it with the redesign of Grand Army Plaza and the median on Park Avenue. We have such robust public transportation, and yet people still want to drive and will be upset if something upsets this. Why not fight for more money to make the subway, bike lanes, pedestrian routes, or buses better? If you hate congestion, why do you want more cars on the road or to make driving easier? This is what causes congestion, and studies find that adding lanes doesn't fix congestion. What fixes congestion is getting cars off the road. You see this every time the city proposes new bike lanes or the walking lanes on 8th Ave. I just don't get it. In Texas and California, they keep adding lanes, but their traffic is abysmal. NYC is also super compact with no room for more lanes anyway. The space is better for green spaces and making the city better for walking or micromobility. I say this all as someone who commutes over an hour into midtown from the outer boroughs, so I am not one of the people who is located centrally in Manhattan. It is a pain sometimes to travel into The City via the Subway, but so is driving, and it is costly to the environment/monthly bills. Hell, MTA is free transit if you don't give a shit.

I love Todd Haimes. The seats are cozy with good legroom. Aesthetically it’s nice and not overly done. It’s also one of the smaller theaters, with no bad views, at least where I’ve sat side orchestra or last row mezzanine.

Special mentions: to Vivian Beaumont, Hudson, Marquis, and Shoenfeld for some other ones I like. Beaumont had great seats, Marquis I met one of my best friends at and is comfy even if it isn’t aesthetically pleasing, also has comfy seats, and Shoenfeld is a very pretty theater with great views. Longacre is also a really nice theater and doesn’t deserve to be cursed. I’ve never had a bad time at The Music Box or the Booth theater even in the boonies.

Hated Theater: Nederlander is so horribly tight. I would say Hayes is tight too but not as bad as Nederlander. Belasco has some of the worst views on Broadway. Broadway feels like a barn and so far away from the action in the rear mezz. The same with Majestic. Longer theaters are worse than taller ones or wider ones. I hate the ones with long rear mezzanines over having a balcony. I have a real love and hate with St James, as I always end up there. Bad views depending on where you are cramped. Golden has better views but the sound is garbage and boy Stereophonic was a marathon in those seat in the mezz. My back wanted another intermission so badly.