Walk-O-Rama Special Edition: OMG I Wanna Sit

On Saturday, April 27th, many members of Walk-O-Rama, as well as a few of our present and former colleagues, embarked on one of the greatest challenges we have yet known: a ‘Lost New York” scavenger hunt in the Financial District of Manhattan. I am sorry to report that much of it still remains lost, despite our best efforts. Unlike our last eating hunt, this one involved much less munching, and, disappointingly, much more thinking.  This is a difficult thing to do the day after post-Regatta racing celebrations. And so it was that Team OMG I Wanna Sit was narrowly beaten by The Wooden Teeth Brigade.  We failed most of the clever clues in fantastic fashion, thereby leading us to the conclusion that we should limit any future Watson Adventure participation to only those events that revolve around eating, which is a challenge that we are always up to.  Though we had been training for all this walking and adventure for over a year in Walk-O-Rama, the best times seemed to come afterwards, when our two teams merged and we enjoyed more of the often overlooked treasures that the city has to offer.

Food stop #1, and bathroom stop number 13 of 47. AKA the place that made Kristen not be so angry hungry.

Innocently thinking we were not about to spend the next few hours failing at our hunt

But we did…

Having unsuccessfully located a supposedly severed head and a building on stilts near Battery Park, we decided to do some hunting of our own as we searched far and wide (well, 3 or 4 blocks) for a tavern that George Washington himself had been known to visit.  This was a wonderous place filled with rare ales and other beverages, whose names we cannot recall since Kathy referred to them solely by their alcohol percentage.  Kristen had cider 6.5%, whereas Kathy introduced us all to the rare Pale Ale 7%, which many soon after ordered as well. As we explored the historical tavern, we found a plethora of centuries old artifacts, including an 8 foot tall leather banquette that Kathy was not successfully able to sneak out the door.  Hours were spent dining on funky cheeses and fish and chips, as well as some divine strawberry rhubarb pastry thing that Raquel kindly shared with the members of her losing team.  Thanks, Raquel!

If it’s good enough for George Washington I guess it’s good enough for us.

Nothing says ambiance like a gun on the wall.

After some presidentially inspired drinks, it was decided that the next logical step would be to board the Staten Island Ferry and ride it to and fro, which reminded Kristen of the poem Recuerdo by Edna St. Vincent Millay.  This new experience was a first for some of our group, and plans were soon made to also board a freight ship to France and ride the Port Jefferson Ferry to scenic Connecticut as well.  We are uncertain which of these two would be more exciting, and so the plans have been put on hold until a unanimous vote is taken.  No delicious cookies or ice cream were to be found anywhere on this vessel, much to Mary’s dismay.  Nor did time permit her to get some in Penn Station, due to inconvenient time restrictions.  With any luck, she had a stash of her own at home.  Such a happy ending would have just made the fun day complete!

The most unorganized picture ever

Oh, we did!

Finally, we got to sit.

The view almost made up for the lack of cookies and ice cream

Group picture: attempt number 8

John showing the MetroCard guy who’s boss. It turned out to be the MetroCard guy.

We hope you will join us next time as we return to munching in our hunts as opposed to thinking.  And we also hope to see you on Thursday when we enjoy the fine weather on another on or off campus walk!

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Walk-O-Rama Special Edition: Can’t Beat Our Wiener

Last Friday the professional conduct of all Library Staff was put to the test, as our hotdog shaped Roth Regatta boat (a play off the ‘frank’ in the Frank Melville Library) brought out the fourth grader in all of us as we resisted the urge to make too many offensive wiener jokes.  But this was no laughing matter.  Our two sailors, Ken and Donna, had their game faces on and they were prepared to do the unthinkable, prove that all other competitors, despite their best efforts, could not in fact ketchup to our wiener.  We were very proud of their achievement! After over a week of working tirelessly on assembling a sturdy boat that would withstand the rough waters of the raging Roth Pond, the man-made pit of H2O (we hope) that was known for eating boats and their crew members whole, the moment we had been long awaiting was upon us.  With the theme of ‘America’, the competition was a fleet of happy meals, eagles in military attire, and space shuttles that now served no other purpose besides entering this race now that our space program has been all but dismantled.  How, you might be wondering, could our delicious looking boat possibly hold its own in a group of such artistic excellence?  Well, as it turns out, boats cannot stay afloat on good looks alone (nor could that girl who jumped in to get her free Regatta t-shirt and went under at least four times as we all looked on) and clever design was not necessarily an indication that the boat would not sink upon initial contact with water.  We know, we laughed at many tragic yet comical attempts.

Some staff were more successful than others at hiding their immaturity

Sad but true.

There are cannibals among us

Team Melville Hot Diggety Dogs

A dance-off was held to choose who the members of our team would be. Or at least that’s what we told David

We could not have asked for a more beautiful day for the event, which was good for those who wore the standard t-shirt and apron costumes, and bad for Kathy and Meryl who had decided to attend in full hotdog attire.  Their show of team spirit did wonders for library publicity, as students from all over campus asked to be photographed with them, and one small boy laughed with innocent delight at the dumb lady in a wiener suit.  It was great.

Donna was prepared for any scenario, as she brought along her fancy professional paddle for winning, or a matching life vest and water shoes in case the boat were to capsize.  Both rowers wore diner hats and aprons to fit the theme, since neither could be conned into dressing as condiments of any sort.  As it turns out, Donna did not need her fashionable accessories after all, for they rowed to victory in the first heat with ease.  All others sank at the starting line, which did not make the victory any less sweet for them or any members of the Library.  Though the duo was very narrowly beaten out by a Twinkie in heat #2 (a boat that we’re certain used just as many questionable crafting ingredients as its “edible” counterpart) we were still so proud that the boat was in tact, and therefore a testament of the Library’s fine craftsmanship.  Having seemingly failed to advance, Donna went back to begin the survival celebration. Much to our surprise, we were soon after called back to the starting line to race again in the final heat between the four fastest speedsters!  Unfortunately for Ken, Kristen had to jump in in Donna’s absence, and she had never held a canoe paddle in her life.  Halfway through the course she was quite positive that she was going to have to give up and rely on the currant to coast them to shore, but embarrassment compelled her to keep on rowing and they finished, happily, still in one piece. Though they did not win a trophy this year, the team still made up their minds to celebrate just as if they had. It was a great day for all, and we can’t wait till next year to see who our brave representatives will be!

Kristen was about as effective at carrying the boat as she was at rowing it

Donna’s determination clearly frightened off all the competition, for none of them made any attempt to challenge their speed

YAYYY!

These wieners were publicity winners today! Thanks, guys

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Walk-O-Rama: Foolery. Tom Foolery. (cue James Bond music now)

Having heard rumor that today’s plan to walk might be a no-go due to “meetings” that as far as any of us could tell were just previously scheduled midday cookie breaks, we were forced to push back our usual high noon rendez-vous hour to ensure that we could all get out to play on this, the nicest day we’ve had all year.  Having gotten the lunch/cookie eating business out of the way prior to our new walking time, we found ourselves with only one thing left to do – walk.  After mere moments this became tedious, which could mean only one thing.  Hello shenanigans.

Kathy rockin’ her awesome Walk-O-Rama hat

So as not to look too health nutty, Celeste made sure to bring a plate of leftover cookies as a prop as we strolled about enjoying the 75 degree weather.  Unfortunately, chocolate and warmth are notorious nemeses and could not exist together in this world in harmony.  So we decided to partake in some good ole library outreach by giving them away to students who were far too in shape looking in their cute spring clothes.  Like any obedient children who are taught to reject candy from strangers, the students momentarily resisted.  But few have the strength to deny our charms, and soon they were gobbling up the cookies in true Cookie Monster fashion.

Library Outreach at its finest

With neither Richie nor Ken present to guide us today, we decided to follow John, mostly because he was slightly in the lead, but also because men are, according to legend or something, good with directions.  Possibly due to the fact that he had been successfully duped by a childish prank at the onset of the outing, he was sadly lacking in focus, and led us in a roundabout loop that ended in a third of the time that we are used to.  That’s ok, I’m sure there will be more equally nice days in the future so we will enjoy them then.  Oh, wait…

On second thought, perhaps there will never be a nice day again

In fairness to John, it was only the 4th oldest joke in this book

from http://uncyclopedia.wikia.com/wiki/The_Oldest_Trick_in_the_Book:

There’s Something on Your Shirt

5000 B.C: In Ægyptüs‘ Old Kingdom, the Pharaoh, Menes (who wasn’t really a meanie, he just had an odd sense of humour), enjoyed a good laugh. One of his favourite tricks (and the fourth oldest trick) was to tell a person “You’ve spilled wine on your tunic!”. When the victim looked down, Menes would flick them on the nose.

While walking, we began discourse about possible boat designs for our upcoming Roth Regatta boat race! With the theme of America, it was hard not to consider ideas that did not consist of fat suits or jobless attire.  We will do our best to represent our great nation on race day, however, as we row for victory and our lives on April 26th.  We hope you can make it to cheer on our effort!

And we hope you can make it next week if another nice walking weather day comes our way!

Note: There was an additional picture taken today that is currently being held hostage on Kristen’s phone – one of Celeste with her cookies. It may be released eventually, if Kristen decides to give in to her phones demands.

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Walk-O-Rama: Chunkier U Spotted On Campus

Today we learned that there have been a few defectors among us, those who have opted to join the more disciplined walking group on campus that is aptly named Healthier U.  Though this name has its appeal, who would deny that we here at the newly named group Chunkier U have all the fun? This name has been chosen since 1) we eat a lot, and 2) we felt that the O-Rama in our Walk-O-Rama title, obviously taken from the Ancient Greek word ὅρᾱμᾰ, meaning “spectacle”, was too negative in feeling.  So Chunkier U it is.

Celebration was in order as we marked our second National Walking Day.  It is a shame that we chose this day to venture out instead of tomorrow’s more intriguingly named holiday, National Walk Around Something Day, as the weather was chilly and windy and not well suited for anything besides scouting out the warmth of somewhere heated, like a restaurant or something – which we wisely did.

The roundabout way we chose in honor of National Walking Day

Healthier U promo. Photo evidence!

Due to his absence, Ken had to be replaced with someone who was happy to be referred to as Ken 2, and this substitute pulled the role off nicely.  He was caught in mid-consumption of a beverage, and as we all know Ken loves being photographed while partaking in food and drink.  He also seemed to be auditioning to be a John replacement, in case Ken comes back next week or John decides to go on another month-long vacation.  Note the way he cooly holds a cup in one hand as he embarks on the walk.

The Ken/Keith resemblance is striking in this action shot

Keith prepares to add “John double” to his repertoire

Ken and Richie decided that chunkying it up with us would be far more exciting than golfing in the cold, and boy were they right! Richie reclaimed the curiosity of his youth by asking 500 questions that have been recorded on our reference question statistics sheet, and David ate pizza.

It’s unanimous: Chunkier U/Walk-O-Rama and pizza are all awesome.

Yeah, seriously.

These Chunkier U’s look as healthy as they are happy

Well, if you’re out and about tomorrow don’t forget to do some extra walking around things to celebrate.  Other than that, we hope to see you next week as we take advantage of the warmer weather to do some walking and/or “walking”.

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