What a Day!

I left the house about 8 this morning but it seems a long, long time ago. It has been a day of many new experiences, not the least of which was my first time flying. After becoming quite nervous while being herded along, feeling panicky, like we were sheep being led to slaughter, I soon evened out once we were in the air. It went by amazingly quickly, I with my little notebook writing furiously just about the whole way. I had a window seat and so spent much of the time peering out the window, watching the land become a distant jigsaw puzzle, all the pieces so neatly fitted and then the landscape was overlaid with white puffy clouds which gave way to a milky haze.

I sat next to a really cute guy, but we didn't talk much until shortly before we began our decent. His name is Archie and he is an art director with an international advertising agency. Lives in Brooklyn. Originally from Houston, Texas. He was really gracious, even waited for me when we got off the plane to wish me luck and tell me it was good to meet me. What a doll of a man! And did I mention he was really cute...

Okay, so after I make my way to baggage claim and grab my borrowed bag when it pops out of the chute, I call Pilley and tell her I'm here. She and her husband, Jay, come to collect me at the airport and we're off, darting in and out of traffic, so many yellow taxis everywhere. We're in Queens, they tell me. We cross over a bridge and there is a huge cemetery. I would guess it would be expensive to die here, or at least be buried, given the price and scarcity of real estate in New York, I say.

The buildings are low and gritty as we get into the old warehouse district, Brooklyn. There is graffiti on the pillars of an overpass. We pass a school, which Pilley says makes here think of a prison compound. Jay says it actually isn't bad. School is still going here, doesn't let out until mid June or so but they don't start until mid September.

"Do you have friends here," Jay asks.

"I do now," I say.

We park on the street and walk across to their house, which is a brick building that doesn't look at all like a house. It looks like some non-descript industrial building. We enter through a weathered brown door. Then through another door and up a narrow, old wooden stairwell. At the top of the landing I meet Molly, the calico cat, who eyes me suspiciously. I later meet her sister, Mystic, a smokey gray.

Inside the house, it is so quaint, with lovely antiques and a cozy down home feel with hardwood floors and a big poplar-colored wooden kitchen table with benches. The house reminds me of the old houses in Brevard that have been converted into restaurants. It has that come-on-in-and-sit-a-spell warmth, not at all like the chic, polished, sterile environment I imagined.

I quickly changed into shorts as it was a hot afternoon and the slacks I'd worn to fly in had to go. Afterwards, Pilley and I sat at that rustic kitchen table and talked, like old friends catching up. Keith was right, she is like that, like someone you've known your whole life. Meanwhile, Jay had gone to pick up their son, Aidan, from school. After they returned and Aidan and I exchanged pleasantries, Pilley and I set out.

Soon we were out and about on the streets of New York. We went by Fete but most everyone, including owners Jung Lee and Josh Brooks, were out, getting ready for an event (in Long Island ??) tomorrow. What a glamorous office, with big double paned glass doors with brushed steel handles that led into a posh reception area. We took lots of pictures.

Oh, and guess how we got there? We took the subway! That was way cool. We went into the scruffy tunnel and boarded a train. Then, at another stop, boarded another train. I was completely lost. We went to a beautiful park near Madison Square Garden, Madison Square Park I think it was called. Then to Union Square, where we got some apples and watched a shirtless, tattooed man with a ponytail do acrobatic tricks for the crowd.

Before that we went to this fancy shop, ABC Carpet and Home, which had lots of shiny, pretty, glittering things with really big price tags. We ate on the street at an adjoining restaurant. I don't really know what I ate but it was good. Oh, and in that restaurant, attached to that fancy shop, I looked up on the wall and there were steel tractor seats. Wait til I tell my brothers I went all the way to New York to see tractor seats on the wall!

A waiter saw me with the camera and told me I wasn't supposed to be photographing in there but I pleaded with him, "But I'm from way down south and here I've come all this way to see tractor seats on the wall." He just waved his hand, turning away, and said "I didn't see anything."