You know what they say – when the plane starts looking shaky, you have to put the oxygen mask on yourself first – in order to stay alive and help your loved-ones.

Based on this sound advise, I ran-away for a 4-day weekend in New York ! Although Gunny and Cash came along, we made the wise decision to leave Napoleon with a friend – best idea ever!

I honestly had every intention of making it a “working weekend” and hitting every show room in town. But, somehow, I got waylaid by Mario Batali’s pizzeria OTTO, accosted by delectable street-food, and seduced by beautiful bagels slathered in cream cheese – for four glorious days !

We did manage to visit relatives and celebrated the dual birthdays of Gunny and his father. I had heard Valencia’s Bakery in Harlem was the place to go, so I hopped on the Subway to Harlem and returned the best vanilla custard layered birthday cake ever! ( a miracle at just $28!)

Cash had a blast playing on the subway system, exploring Chinatown , then heading to FAO Swartz which, he observed, had apparently shrunk from the immense size he remembered from his childhood visit, at age seven.

And, for further indulgences, we took-in .. The Shows ! The Phantom of The Opera – again. Love it every time! It was Cash’s first time seeing it and he loved it too.

Even better was Wicked. This show was absolutely spectacular! I left humming “Defying Gravity” the rest of the weekend. Many of the performances were fantastic but I was blown away by Glinda, she was hilarious. She made the show!

Phantoms, Witches, and loads of Treats! Sounds like we did Halloween a bit early this year! It was a great time, wonderful to be with “my guys” and to visit family. Sometimes you’ve just got to run-away and go a little crazy !

I promise I go back again later this season, and make the rounds of the showrooms and dutifully report back to you – honest!