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Sleep deprivation has finally caught up with me.

NYC was fun as usual! The first part of our trip was circling around the Jersey turnpike. My dad wanted to get breakfast, and saw a sign for Cracker Barrel. He didn't want to stop at those truck stop bathroom/restaurant places (thank God). We reached the turnpike, and my dad got off at the wrong exit, so we drove around for an hour. This is where I had to start using my GPS on my phone. All this time I kept thinking to myself, "hmm, I should really get a car charger for my phone," I never got one. I could've really used it on Friday. Anyways, we finally find Cracker Barrel and take a break to have some food. I found that peg game that's on every table, and I was determined to beat it. The object of the game is to leave one peg. It's on a triangle and it says:
---Leave 1 peg - You're Genius
---Leave 2 and you're purty smart
---Leave three and you're just plain dumb
---Leave four or mor'n you're just plain "eg-no-ra-mooose"

After lots of time and frustration from previous attempts, and there were many for past trips, I finally beat that stupid game! I was having a conversation with my parents, when it just happened. I don't know if I could repeat it again.

After breakfast we get back on the road and I crash automatically. I don't know if it was the itis, or if it was sleep deprivation, but I was KO from the moment we left the house. We arrived in NYC, and I had to start directing where to go. We made it to the Strand with ease. I was in heaven when we got there. The Strand was having a massive sale outside, there were books on sale starting at .87-$1. I get inside and soaked in the ambiance. It was hot and muggy. The amount of bodies in the building didn't help much either. I break out my list and starting snooping through the store. First I had to locate the fiction section. I found all my books with ease. The night before, A warned me about flying books. She said that there are ladders placed around the store and in between sections, so you can get your selection yourself if it's on the top shelf. I wasn't so much afraid of flying books, I was afraid of me flying off. I had to use the ladder a few times, and considering how cramped the aisles are and how many people were moving in and out, people would have had to look for for a flying me. The one section I almost fell in was the poetry section. Of course Federico Garcia Lorca's books were on the top shelf! There was another cart in the way where the ladder was, and the poetry section mixed with the film section. I was deliberating on which book to get, since there were only two selections. People were trying to squeeze by the ladder, and I think they finally realized that it wasn't going to happen. All this time I continued to stand at the very top debating. Good thing I didn't wear a skirt! I decided to get both books, since they were really cheap. One is a bilingual anthology of some of his work. The other is a book containing his work he composed during his attendance at Columbia University, and his short residence in NYC. After asking the staff, I had to make my way to the second floor to the children's section. There I found the fantasy section that didn't contain Harry Potter. I was appalled until I realized they were moved to the center. The guy at the info desk said that there probably was a slim chance of finding the British version of any of their books, since the computer couldn't pin point what was in their inventory. I found Harry Potter in Latin. The problem is I don't read or speak Latin. I found the American versions, which I already have. I found a purple hardcover that had different artwork, a signature of the author, and different font for the title. I noticed that the publisher wasn't Scholastic. Just to be safe, I checked the page were the publishing info is contained. It was a British hardcover version "Goblet of Fire" AND it's a first edition. It was only $20! I saw the British paperbacks of the Sorceror's Stone and Chamber of Secret`s, but I was running out of funds. I didn't want to use a plastic bag, so I bought one of their totes. It was special edition bag with artwork by Art Spiegelman. At the end I spent $60 in the Strand, but it was well worth it. I read every chance I got while walking around.

Next stop was Canal St. We got lost trying to retrace our steps, so we had to go all the around the FDR back to W Broadway. The GPS was failing, and so was my battery. We passed a Verizon store, but of course I didn't stop. We made it to Canal St and went to our usual parking garage. We didn't really buy anything there, except for the Mario power up mushroom plushies for Keisha's birthday. I got her 4 of the mini plushies you attach to your phone, and one for our niece. We also got each of them a big power up plushie. I got a bunnie rabbit plushie that's now dangling from my phone. I went inside and I also got a Hello Kitty wearing a tiger costume. My mom said I should get another design, but I told her the tiger is to represent school; Towson tigers. It doubles as a mini bell. We walked over to this old bakery/restaurant that was shut down by the health inspector just for kicks, and it turns out that it reopened. There my parents bought 1 and a half dozen siopao, and I got a some buchi buchi (sesame balls with the bean paste inside) and almond cookies. We made an attempt to go midtown, but we were stuck in traffic for two hours trying to leave Canal. There my dad decided that we should just go home from there. That sounded good. We were on our way to this pet boutique to get something for Maxx, but it was too much of a hassle to drive. I crashed as soon as we got out of Lincoln tunnel. All I remember was waking up as we entered one of those truck stop places to get gas, and I said I needed some food. After about a half hour we were back on the road and I crashed once again. My dad laughed at me, wondering how it is I was so tired when he was doing all the driving. Honestly, I don't know. My sleeping habits really got me. I guess it's a good thing since school starts next month. Oh God...