Tis the Pre season

Yes, it is before Thanksgiving in New York and the winter holiday season is about to begin. In anticipation of the even shorter days the ‘city elves’ are putting finishing touches on holiday decorations. Most are kept hidden until after the Thanksgiving Day Parade. I will follow up this blog with those details next week.

For now, a few of my favorite November sitings. I annually visit the CanStruction sculpture exhibition at Brookfield Place. This year celebrates the thirtieth competition and subsequent canned-food donations. There were close to twenty sculptures made of thousands of unopened cans. All the cans will be given to food shelters along with cans brought by visitors. A few of my favorite selections include King Tut, Bodega Cat, WaCanda Forever Black Panther Helmet, Coffee with a Bacon Egg and Cheese Sandwich and a fan favorite, Baby Yoda.

There are shelves filled with candy canes in the pharmacies and there are wooden braces on the sidewalks waiting for pine trees to arrive from northern forests. Lincoln Center has traded out last summer’s giant disco ball for a creation under construction that, I have been told, will be a giant snow globe. (I will hopefully confirm this in a few days).

The sidewalks are filled with vendors selling pashminas and gloves to tons of locals and tourists. There is a wonderful anticipation of a season of holiday glitz and seasonal good cheer. Let the parade begin!