Well it’s good to be home. Very shortly after my return from Asia I was on a plane to Orlando to teach a reportage class with my friend and fellow studio 1482 member Margaret Hurst. We were in Epcot, and of course I went to the Japanese pavilion. I was mooning around there, practicing my few words of Japanese. Arrigato!! Konichiwa!!! Wakarimasen!! It was fun. Of course, the Japanese people there humored me and smiled at my enthusiasm. I really do love those people.

This is a little drawing of a group of people that I did while at the park. The family interactions at Disney are hysterical. I notice that there is usually one person who drives the entire family dynamic. In the case of the family above, you would think the poor little girl in the wheelchair would be the main event, but actually it seemed to be the large woman at the right. Battle of the egos! Seriously, I don’t know why the sociologists of the world haven’t descended on Disneyworld in droves. It’s a regular petrie dish of human relations. You see adults acting like kids, kids acting like adults, and everything in between. I saw ‘Prince Charming’ there as well. The guy actually said to me, ‘Do you know who I am? I’m Prince Charming!’ It was great. If I were in a nightclub in NYC I would have given him the old eye roll, but since I was in the Magic Kingdom I loved it. What a neat place; we had a blast. However, I am happy now to be waking up in my own bed here in NY. I love this city. It’s so REAL. The people may not be as refined in their politeness as the people in Tokyo are, but they are just as nice in their own way. For example, every time in my life (twice) that I have experienced a flat tire while driving through the city it has been in one of the so-called ‘bad’ neighborhoods of New York. And BOTH times I was approached by a young man who looked like a gang member who called me ma’am, and changed my tire for me. How great is that? Gotta love it.

So anyway, I’m home, I’m happy, and I’m getting ready to do some exploring right here in my home town. Right after I pick up a coffee and a bagel!!