早安，星期四。 (Good morning on this Thursday.)
Once upon a time, as one version of the Chinese folklore goes, 12 animals competed in a big race across a river.
The rat jumped on the back of the kindhearted ox, who saw no problem giving the little guy a lift from one riverbank to the other. But as they neared the finish line — ahead of the others — the rat jumped off the ox and snatched first place. The ox came in a close second.
The Year of the Rat is, then, the first on the Chinese zodiac calendar, followed by the Year of the Ox, and so forth, based on the order in which the creatures finished the race.
This Chinese Lunar New Year, a multiweek celebration that begins on Saturday, marks the Year of the Rooster.
“Roosters have been viewed, from around 1,000 B. C. E., as in charge of time,” said Shenzhan Liao , the director of the school of Chinese studies at the China Institute , a cultural and education center in downtown Manhattan. “The rooster wakes up the day and is considered to be in charge of the light.”
(The rooster, the 10th year of the zodiac, is also symbolic of hard work and diligence, she added — always the first one up, with energy to take on a new day. Perhaps we New Yorkers might actually be roosters in human bodies?)
New York City has the largest Chinese population of any city outside Asia, according to the Department of City Planning, and the city officially recognized the Lunar New Year as a public school holiday last year.
To honor the occasion, the Empire State Building will shine red and gold tonight and there will be fireworks over the Hudson River .
There will be a large firecracker ceremony in Chinatown on Saturday, followed by festivities on Staten Island on Sunday and at the China Institute , the American Museum of Natural History , Flushing Town Hall and the Queens Botanical Garden next weekend. The 18th Lunar New Year Parade will march through Chinatown on Feb. 5.
While the Lunar New Year has always been important here, it’s especially so this year, given our political climate and the state of international relations, Ms. Liao said.
“People are not so sure about aspects of U. S.-China relations, and celebrating holidays and Chinese culture is even more important when there’s uncertainty in the economic or political field,” she said. “Cultural ties will never cease in importance.”
恭禧发财. (We wish you good fortune in the Year of the Rooster.)
Here’s what else is happening:
It’s a good day to have your head up in the clouds, because there will be enough of them for us to share.
We have half a chance of rain today, and things will stay overcast and breezy in the meantime. But it’ll rise to 50. And this being January, we’ll take it.
Tuck an umbrella in your tote to be safe.
• “Sanctuary City” mayors — from New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, New Haven, Syracuse and Austin, Tex. — vow to defy Trump’s immigration order. [ New York Times ]
• Remembering Mary Tyler Moore, the adored, “incomparably spunky” actress born in Brooklyn Heights and raised in Brooklyn and Queens. [ New York Times ]
• Builders in New York are now designing and creating more resilient structures , taking initiative against the effects of extreme weather. [ New York Times ]
• In case you missed it, here’s what you need to know about the Metropolitan Transportation Authority’s vote to raise fares and tolls. [ New York Times ]
• The Bronx has no general-interest bookstore. One resident has begun a crowdfunding campaign to bring one to the borough. [ Gothamist ]
• Trenicia Childs turns her Bronx apartment into a makeshift classroom for her four-year-old daughter as the family pushes past financial struggles. [ New York Times ]
• Today’s Metropolitan Diary: “ Take a Pigeon for a Walk ”
• Scoreboard: Heat burns Nets , 109-106. Mavericks kick Knicks , 103-95. Flyers land atop Rangers, 2-0.
• For a global look at what’s happening, see Your Thursday Briefing .
• The New York Boat Show continues at the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center in Manhattan. Noon to 9 p.m. [$16, tickets here ]
• The author of “My Son Wears Heels,” a book about “one mom’s journey from clueless to raising a gender-creative child,” discusses her work at the Central Queens Y in Forest Hills, Queens. 7 p.m. [$5 donation recommended]
• The New York Philharmonic’s Tchaikovsky Festival continues at David Geffen Hall at Lincoln Center. 7:30 p.m. [ Tickets start at $44]
• Join a spelling bee and comedy show , with proceeds to go to Planned Parenthood, at Union Pool in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. 8 p.m. [$10 suggested donation]
• Looking ahead: Bryant Park’s nine-day Winter Carnival — where you can see a giant ice castle , watch professional ice skating (and take lessons), and more — begins on Friday.
• For more events, see The New York Times’s Arts & Entertainment guide .
• Subway and PATH
• Railroads : L. I. R. , Metro-North , N. J. Transit , Amtrak
• Roads : Check traffic map or radio report on the 1s or the 8s.
• Alternate-side parking : in effect until Saturday.
• Ferries : Staten Island Ferry , New York Waterway , East River Ferry
• Airports : La Guardia , J. F. K. , Newark
The Lunar New Year is laden with traditions and superstitions.
A few you should know about:
Exchanging red envelopes. It’s customary for the older generations of a family to offer envelopes of money to the younger generations, a symbol of giving and sharing, Ms. Liao said.
Writing couplets. Couplets are like a two-line poem, typically two sentences with the same number of characters on each line and written on two pieces of red paper, Ms. Liao said. People often leave the couplets in front of their doors for good luck and protection.
Wearing red. The color red is a symbol of protection, Ms. Liao said. This year, people with the rooster zodiac are encouraged to wear more red for extra protection.
Playing word games. The Chinese character for roosters (鸡, jī) is, phonetically, the same as the word for auspicious (吉, jí) and opportunity (机会，jī huì).
