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I’m half watching “Manhattan.” When I say I’m half watching, I mean I turned on the TV about 30 minutes into the movie, and I’m simultaneously, well, writing this blog post. So as Woody Allen’s homage to New York plays in front of me, I’m going to launch into yet another one of my own tributes to the city (sorry, I know, it’s a tired shtick).

One thing that has struck me here that has never occurred to me anywhere else I’ve lived: New York City is limitless. I’ve lived in some amazing places: Berkeley and the greater Bay Area, Santa Monica and West LA. They all have a ton to offer. But they felt finite to me, at least in comparison to this. Obviously, the sheer magnitude of New York is enough to make my statement a total duh, but it’s more than that.

It’s more than number of restaurants, number of museums, number of neighborhoods — it’s that I’m finding more of myself around every corner. Being an overly cerebral person has always gripped me in a perpetual state of self reflection and analysis, but it’s obvious New York has cast a special kind of spell on me (sidenote: I’m hearing dad’s voice telling me I’m using 10 words when two will do).

There were plenty of places in Berkeley, San Francisco, Los Angeles, wherever, that I didn’t get around to exploring. Heck, I never even made it to the Getty. Perhaps in New York it’s a foregone conclusion that I’m never going to see everything there is to see, even lifelong New Yorkers can’t, but I feel like every time I step outside I’m going to live something. Maybe I’ll get sick of our neighborhood or the entire city. Maybe I’ll get bored and be ready to move on. But at this point, with an infinite number of combinations of streets, subway lines, foods, sights, enclaves, smells, people, feelings — I just don’t see how that’s possible.

P.S. I DVR’d “When Harry Met Sally” earlier today. I’ll try to prevent it from inspiring me to a similar post.

We were supposed to get 1″-3″ of snow overnight and into today. Then it was supposed to rain and sleet and turn to slush.

I went to sleep with a thin dusting of snow on the ground, and woke up five hours later to about 6″ and it was still coming down. So I sprung out of bed at a very early (for me) 7:45am and decided to enjoy it before the rush hour commute reduced it to muddy slush. Glad I went, because when I plodded home an hour later, almost all the untouched snow on our block was shoveled or trampled on.

The best part of my outing was undoubtedly the abundance of dogs frolicking through the deep, fresh and largely undisturbed snow in Prospect Park. They were bounding around, kicking up powder, racing toward each other and dancing joyful circles. I felt like one of them, heading straight for the areas that no one had walked on yet, stomping my feet and fanning snow into the air.

I wish Curtis were here to romp with me. But I also think it was good that I went alone: This is a distinctly Lydia kind of experience — running out into the snow, taking 100 photos, skipping and giggling. Although I’m certain he would have been game to make some snow angels.

What do you call the day after Super Bowl Sunday and before Super Tuesday? Lame Monday? Except today feels anything but lame, I feel great about ’08.

The parallels between yesterday’s game and tomorrow’s primaries/caucuses are meaningful on many embarrassing English-major levels.

1) Upheaval: Underdog Eli and the Giants topple perfect-season Brady and the Patriots.

Similarly, in the political arena — will this be the year “change” triumphs over the status quo? Will the GOP lose the White House after eight years, just as the Patriots dynasty was silenced yesterday? Will we have a female or black president, just as Eli was MVP and not Tom?

2) It’s anyone’s game: Until 0:01 remained on the game clock, it was impossible to guarantee who was going to win.

The same is true for the Democrats tomorrow. Clinton was leading in all the polls until this final weekend, when her margins over Obama narrowed to a statistical draw. No matter who wins, we’re assured a suspenseful, unpredictable outing. No more foregone conclusions.

3) Lesser of two evils?: NO! For once, that’s not our choice. Super Bowl TV ratings were up this year — people cared about this game. Whether you backed the Patriots and wanted to see them finish a perfect season, or cheered for the wild card Giants to win every postseason game on the road to beat the powerhouse Pats, fans were interested and tuned in.

Similarly, the remaining presidential candidates are inspiring, and people are turning out to vote. There’s no Al Gore or John Kerry to make fun of this year — it’s hard not to get excited about Clinton or Obama. And on the Republican side, with McCain looking like the nominee, the GOP opponent isn’t someone who liberals would move to Canada over (maybe they would, but I’m not in Berkeley to overhear these things anymore). Assuming it’s Clinton vs. McCain or Obama vs. McCain in November — each side will have someone to truly rally behind.

4) Engaging the undecideds: Personally, I don’t care much about the Patriots or the Giants. And while I do care about who becomes our next president, there isn’t a particular candidate that I secretly root for as I follow along this elections season. But I got wrapped up in the Super Bowl drama, just as I’m excited about going to the polls tomorrow — no matter who I vote for. I think this is true for a lot of other folks out there who didn’t have their favorite team in the Super Bowl, or who don’t have a candidate’s lawn sign in their front yard.

Let’s keep feeling inspired and tuning in! What a great start to 2008!