Category: Happy Surprises

I had a really good feeling about Thursday December 1st, and my hunch turned out to be correct.  12/1/16 turned out to be a very special day.   Let me back up (smile).  My co-worker Jamie approached me about 6 weeks prior to that day and asked if wanted to plan a joint client appreciation trip to the ABC studios in NYC to see a taping of The View.  Of course I said ‘Yes’ (smile).   Once we had the date confirmed and the total number of clients attending the show with us (5),  Jamie and I received a  2 page  “House Guest List” from ABC Studios on  what to expect on our taping day.  We were asked to wear bright, fashionable clothing (as if you were being invited to a nice dinner),  we were asked to bring our photo IDs and we were asked to arrive by 9am for check-in to the ABC Studios as the doors closed at 930am.   We were also warned that we would have to go through a metal detector.  And lastly, we were told that although we could use our cell phones prior to the taping, once we entered the studios we would literally be asked to power down all of our mobile devices…

Here’s how my day played out:

I woke up at 4am on Thursday, December 1st, left the house at 510am and met my client,  Sheree,  at 530am at the News 8 parking lot.  Our goal was to catch the 605am train.  Sheree was running a little behind so we ended up arriving at Union Station in New Haven at 550AM.  Turns out the valet parking, which we planned on using, did not open until 6am (sigh).  In the meantime  Jamie and her 2 clients Nina and Christine were already at the train station for our 605am train, so Jamie went to purchase all 5 roundtrip tickets at the kiosk (no ticket windows were open until 610am) while I worked on getting the valet parking attendant to open before 6am.

Everything worked out, I got my car in the valet parking lot in time, Jamie got our tickets from the kiosk and the 5 of us rushed to make the 605am train.  Whew!

Once on the train, we could finally relax and enjoy our 2 hour journey into the City.

When we got to Grand Central, we stopped for a quick cup of coffee and muffin at one of the many restaurants.  Then we had to hail a cab to the ABC Studios on the Upper West Side.  As it turned out Nina was a pro at this, and not only hailed us a cab but managed to get one that was large enough for the 5 of us to ride together in (did I mention she was pregnant while doing it (smile).

When we arrived to ABC studios it was just 830am but there was already a long, long line outside.  There was also an audience coordinator working his way through the line to make sure everyone was up to speed.  We had only been standing in line about 5 minutes when he got to us and discovered that Jamie and I worked at an ABC affiliate (News 8).  He quickly took us out of the back of the line and all the way to the front where we checked in with another staff member who took our names and quickly ushered us inside.  As promised we were met by metal detectors and then seated in the waiting area.  It reminded me of a medium-sized cafeteria but with a Starbucks in it.  They handed us all a juice and left us to our own devices.

It didn’t take long before people started taking pictures in front of The View canvas poster.   The View is celebrating its 20th anniversary this year so everything, including the hashtags on the poster and all of the memorabilia being sold at the kiosk had The View 20 on it.  We had  plenty time to kill as the taping was not until 11am and it was only about 9am.  So we took lots of pictures of each other and then helped others by taking pictures of them and their party.  When it came time to go to the restroom we were taken 5 or 6 at a time and closely guarded so as not to get lost on the way there or back.

Around 1015am the studio doors opened and after waiting in another short line, we were  finally allowed to go in.  The 5 of us were brought to the center of the surprisingly small studio and seated  in the first and second r ows:  Sheree and me in the first row, Jamie, Christine and Nina in the second row.   I was super psyched!

There was, I’ll call him an audience warm-up guy for lack of a better term in the studio, so for the next 45 minutes or so the AWG had everyone in stitches as he went from section to section of the small studio making complete fools out of the people he was picking on!    It worked too because the time flew by and before we knew it, we were clapping loudly as the women of The View took their seats.   Whoopi, Sunny, Joy, Sarah, and Jebediah.   Looking much smaller and younger than they appeared on TV.   It was a day for Hot Topics so Whoopi immediately launched into a hot political conversation regarding the post Election.  All of the ladies weighed in with their opinions and then after the next few breaks, the often-controversial (CNN’s) Van Jones was their guest.

Van Jones did not disappoint and Whoopi did not want to let him leave the stage as his thinking was so in line with her, Joy and Sunny, the liberal voices of The View…

Then came the Wildings (Elizabeth Taylor’s grandchildren).    They were all so adorable to look at and very well spoken.  As it turned out it was World Aids Day this Thursday, December 1st, so a short film was played showing Whoopi from years back.  This film illustrated Whoopi’s selfless devotion towards working with Elizabeth Taylor on a cure for AIDS.  This was at a time when very little people wanted to touch the topic…Then Elizabeth Taylor’s grandchildren presented Whoopi with a legacy award.  She was in tears and completely surprised.  This was part of what made the day so special — Whoopi was totally caught off guard in a good way, basically she was being rewarded for something she had once been criticized for involving herself in…My cell phone was purposely powered off or else I would have taken a picture to share of this special moment (smile).

As I mentioned before, the actual taping  of the show flew by so when I heard Whoopi say, “…take a little time to enjoy The View” I knew it was time for us to go.  They quickly ushered us out the side door but not before handing us a special edition magazine of Vanity Fair Icons featuring Elizabeth Taylor (as house guests” we were not eligible for the giveaway of the day).  We then walked a few blocks and hailed another cab.  This time to Bryant Park as Christine had a good restaurant recommendation there.  Once there, we entered into Winter Village at Bryant Park, with free admission ice skating, pop-up  boutique-style holiday shops and tree-lined alleyways.

We ate lunch at Bryant Park Grille (Christine’s recommendation) and the food was fab!  We ordered 2 appetizers and then (keeping with my clean theme) I ordered Monkfish with baby choy, jalapeno peppers, pineapples and brown rice.  It was delish!  We all enjoyed our lunches.

Bryant Park Grille’s interior was a solarium garnished with Fall leaves and holiday lights  (2 seasons!) so we felt like we were outdoors but eating indoors.

After lunch we walked along Winter Village at Bryant Park‘s Winter Wonderland to check out the artsy holiday pop-up stores and restaurants up close as well as to look for a place to eat dessert.

Bryant Park is not too far from Grand Central so after dessert we walked a number of blocks (instead of cabbing it) back to Grand Central to catch the 335pm train.   We arrived at New Haven’s Union Station around 530pm.  I was beat down!  But I felt gratified as this day turned out better than I could have ever expected…I quite literally took a little time to enjoy The View…

Sincerely,

TVFL