APHC, BXL, RC and TLE.

12-20-10 SHORT HILLS: On Saturday night, the 18th, we saw the radio broadcast of “A Prairie Home Companion” with Bill, Lynn, Roger and Leesa. It has become an annual event, and we follow it with dinner at BXL Cafe, a Belgian restaurant next door to The Town Hall, the venue, and just off Times Square. The show featured Nathan Gunn, Pink Martini, Erica Rhodes, Andra Suchy as well as Garrison Keillor and all the regulars. It was a great evening. The show ended with more Carols, the beer and food, I had frites and moules, was bistro-esque and tastier for eating it with old friends.

The crowds and traffic in the city were both heavy, especially Times Square, near the theatre, and Rockefeller Center. We had run up there to see the tree before the show. The crowds of people, and baby strollers, around the tree were as thick as the needles on the tree. You could see hundreds of cameras popping up above all the heads to capture the images.

Celestially, tomorrow is quite exciting, not only is the winter solstice marked by a full moon, but also by a lunar eclipse. When the sun, earth and moon line up for the eclipse, the sun will be at its southern-most declination, 23.5° of latitude south of the equator so, I assume, the moon, at the moment of fullness, must be at 23.5° of latitude north of the equator, the summer solstice declination of the sun—interesting coincidence.


Rockefeller Center with the tree, crowds and moon peeking over the building on the right and fore-shadowing the eclipse.


Times Square with lights and crowds.


Here's another shot of the red-bellied woodpecker showing the lack of red on his belly.