quote of the day

"If you can't say something good about someone, sit right here by me."

- Alice Roosevelt Longworth's motto appeared in an interesting article in New York Mag about how people bond over shared dislikes.

an elevated situation

You know that moment when the elevator doors begin to close, and you look up from your phone just in time to make direct eye contact with the person scrambling to make it?

Since elevators are part of my everyday New York life, I find myself in this situation all too often.  

I work in a huge office building with eight elevator banks.  Mornings are usually busy, I'm rarely waiting on an elevator alone.  But today I was.  I get on, look at my Blackberry and think, "I never get an elevator to myself in the morning..." 

Cue closing doors and slightly chubby 40something year old man running to the elevator, briefcase in tow.  The look on his face says he's determined to make it.  He's desperate, he's definitely too far.... he's yelling - "Hold it please!"

I panic.

The doors are about half way open (I wonder if he'd say they're half closed?), I decide to go for the buttons.  There are 30something floors in this building.  I'm not ready for this kind of pressure at 9am. 

He's just a few feet away now.  The doors are about 6 inches away from closing...

FOUND IT!!!  I start pushing the button like crazy.   

He finally gets to the elevator, the doors are still closing.  This button is NOT working, all I could do now was yell...

"EEEEEE! I'M SORRY I'M SORRY!"

I tried, I really did.  

I looked down, I still had my finger on the button...  

THE DOOR CLOSE BUTTON.

quote of the day

"We take fun very seriously. After all, fun is a very serious business."

- Aaron Basha