New York City

ennui [Fr. ennui, OF. enui, L. in odio] The feeling of mental weariness and dissatisfaction produced by a want of occupation , or by lack of interest in the present surroundings or employments.

Now I know why the French invented the word “ennui.” It is used to describe the barely bearable tedium of a 4-hour ground delay at SFO, waiting for a flight to Newark. Some scaredy-cat bigwig was frightened of commonplace thunderstorms and, so, we waited. None of the flights to neighboring airports were delayed, so I took it personally.

The traffic at the Newark Airport was hilariously chaotic. I now understand why auto makers still put horns in cars. It’s for the New Yorkers. They love honking horns almost as much as they love ignoring others honking their horns!

One good thing about arriving in the middle of the night, is the wide open road, once you get out of the airport. A brisk Lyft ride and I was in Manhattan, staying at the Yale Club, across the street from Grand Central Station.

New Yorkers. One wonders if they are aware of the enormity of their self-parody. Everyone is O! So Busy! Rushing around with their street faces on, unsmiling, frowning, perpetually irritated. Many of them (stupidly) wander the perilous, crowded streets with headphones or ear buds installed. Amazing!

Walgreens in NYC keeps practically everything behind locked plexiglass. Not just high value items, like in normal Walgreens. That means you have to ring for a clerk when you want something. They provide efficient and effective service in the traditional harsh and brusque manner. Also, only in NYC can the request “One shopping bag, please” be said as a soul-scorching insult.

I toured United Nations Headquarters; it looks just like all the pictures you’ve seen. I didn’t realize the extent of their art collection. My tour group was a mini-UN itself, comprising people from all over the world. The Secretary General walked by our group and bade us “Good morning!”