I just need to leave these here

http://markdavison.blogspot.com/2007/10/mark-davison-dda-riverside-district.html

https://www.linkedin.com/in/mark-davison-b241ba19

January 16: The Reading Partners

I spend my lunch breaks once a week reading to an elementary school girl at lunchtime to foster confidence, reading abilities, and one-on-one investments in an at-risk youth. She's quite the handful. But occasionally, so affectionate and sweet that it melts my heart.

She has a friend in the program, and after the bell rings and we finish our reading log and pack up our our things, they usually shout at each other, run and collide in a hug and then trip over their feet out the door and into the hall and off to their classroom. That's what happened today, and I put my purse together and was saying goodbye to the program director, when my reading partner and her friend come back, arm-in-arm, to the room.

"We have something we want to give you!" they shouted.

"Okay! What is it?" I asked, leaning down to them.

"A hug!" they shouted in unison, and we all hugged each other together. It melted me a little bit.

Sometimes, we don't see the fruits of our labor immediately. But that's never to say that it's not having an effect and working.

January 15: The Applicant

Busy busy busy application season. Normally I can blow through all those and process a good 50 applications within 3 hours, but once in awhile I stop to take something in: the courses on their transcripts, the tone of their recommendations, or their personal statements.

Today, the one personal statement I happened to catch blew me away. I couldn't tear my eyes away and his story was incredible. Watching his father die at his birthday and being raised "the son of a widow" and fighting for women's empowerment globally.

We had to make a list of outstanding candidates just to put him on it. Way to go, sir. And good luck.

January 14: The Painter

It's like Amelie come to life. I don't think I fully appreciated my usual bar hangout until I took in the full scope of its characters, and this one is my favorite.

Every afternoon until early evening, this man comes in, sits at the first booth, and pulls out painting supplies from a canvas bag. He only drinks Manhattans, and the bartender is always whipping them up without question or fail. Then, he pulls out supplies and he paints... the same picture... over... and over... and over again.

Is this not amazing? I have so much to ask him about his life and why he does this, but in the end I don't really care. I just love that he exists, and is a regular at my place of choice.

January 13: This Ice Skater

You haven't experienced New York City until you've taken time out of your busy schedule to watch the ice skaters on any of the ice skating rinks that emerge in the wintertime. Amid the blurry, whirring crowds of couples, teens and kids all slipping and tripping and holding the railing for safety, there is always a gem of a character holding out for you to find them. Tonight, I did just that. This man was getting down with his bad self and shakin' and groovin' the 90's beats playing loudly over the speakers.

If you think that this is good, it gets better. Because as it turns out, his ice skates actually LIGHT UP.

Unreal. And yet, so awesome. I had actually sat down here at Bryant Park to take in the ice rink and try to relax while my brain ran at a mile a minute with a deep personal crisis I am currently navigating my way through, and seeing this man made it all worthwhile.

What a joy, what a smile, what a great way to love, appreciate and live life! Just knowing that this man exists should make the world a better place for all of us.

January 12: The Master of the House

Not a huge fan of Tom Hooper's Les Misérables, but certainly a fan of one Mr. Sacha Baron Cohen, who plays Monsieur Thénardier in that mess. But that's not even the half of it. When I'm stuck indoors due to the le misérable weather and too many writing assignments, I can get down. What picks me up?

BRUNO! Maybe it's the German in me, maybe it's the fag hag in me, the comedian in me, I don't know, but this ALWAYS picks me up. Watching this movie made my spirits soar again, when I had spent all day indoors and hadn't seen a single soul except my roommate otherwise.

Gay Converting Pastor: Can I tell you about the man who changed my life?
Bruno: Was it... Karl Lagerfeld?

Never gets old! Thank you for being my favorite person of the day, January 12.

January 11: "We're Following The Drag Queens"

I was out with friends in the Village at a bar for after-work drinks. I was planning on going home following the second round, sneaking out when everyone relocated to a new bar, but then they said that they wanted to go dance. Well, count me in. We went to the Village Underground, only to find a cover and a live band, neither of which we were interested in. Everyone seemed a bit discouraged. Oh no, would the night just end?

Someone in the group took charge and led us away toward Christopher Street. I thought he had a plan, but all he declared was, "We're following the drag queens!"

Apparently there was a show of drag queens who knew where the party was and we were following them! We could have went anywhere, after that comment I knew that it would be a good night regardless, but we also ended up at The Monster in West Village which had a killer dance floor, so it was fabulous. But the guy who announced we were following the drag queens was my favorite person that day.