I met a secret service agent in the elevator this morning on my way to the lobby. It was just the two of us with 21 floors to go, and he stepped into my vision as if he was actively waiting for me to read the “Secret Service” lettering stitched into his vest. I did. I asked him if he was allowed to tell me who he was protecting, and he said with no hesitation that he protects the president and the vice president of the United States. Go figure. “Is he here?” I asked, thinking My God, he’s supposed to be brusquely asserting his mulligan at Mar-a-Lago right about now. He said that he couldn’t tell me whether or not he was here, but then he shook his head. I’m not convinced. When I left the elevator I said “Nice to meet you,” and he said, “See you soon.” That threw me for a loop. Will I be seeing him too, or is he now watching me? A little unsettling.
Once we left the building, we made our way to the Upper East side, where many a Gossip Girl quote was recited as we admired the brownstones before walking right up the steps of one and into our first stop of the day. This was a talent booking company owned and run by an incredible woman who set up shop in her own gorgeous home. She gave us her original schpeel on the ins and outs of publicity, and the politics of booking with Jimmy or Ellen or the other Jimmy first. We love gossip like that. So did she. It was fascinating to see how she worked and extremely reassuring to hear what tricks to succeed in the entertainment industry she keeps up her sleeve. Our next item on the agenda wasn’t until 3pm, so we made a pit-stop at the Met a few blocks over and explored that for free with our New York passes. I love history, but museums don’t generally tend to be my favorite proponents of the subject, and a lot of that has to do with the way the exhibits are presented, or the way they enclose you until you’ve seen every porcelain teacup and terra cotta mini-sculpture in the entire establishment. The Met was perfect, though. We hopped on a subway to Brooklyn and a few of us stopped for lunch at a Shake Shack in Dumbo Park, and then we met up for our second tour of the day at the traditional ad house, 72andSunny. I’ve worked at a traditional agency, so I know from my own experience that I’ll always gravitate toward film as my product of choice, but the office space was by far the most magnificent view I could ever hope to have. Right on the bay of the East River with the Brooklyn Bridge out one glass window and the Manhattan Bridge out the one adjacent, it was almost too distracting. I liked what they had to say about the name of their company; it’s not a forecast, it’s a mindset. We caught a ferry to our next stop, and for a girl who rowed for two years straight, I really was surprised at how much I hated being on that boat. Apparently I have to power the vehicle myself in order to enjoy aquatic endeavors. The destination made up for it though, because don’t ever think that drinks can be passed up at a bar with a name like The Honky Tonk. The majority of our group grabbed a round there before our finale at the Nitehawk Theater, where you order food and drinks and eat a full meal as you watch the film (this year’s showing being Green Book), all the while being able to request more as a discreet waiter sneaks around and replaces your order cards with whatever you’ve chosen from the menu. I ate a life-changing pulled pork sandwich and split a charcuterie board with Renee and Lindsey next to me, and must nod to the theater’s choice of cabernet. Most of my posts will probably end with a nod to the cab.
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