falling in love all over again

siiigh . . . holiday weekends . . . those who can, flee. those who cannot, relish the relative quiet to which the city succumbs. save for the influx of tourists. but they often fail to drift into the neighborhoods that are what make this our home. afterall, we do not actually LIVE in the middle of times square, the empire state building, or macy's. in fact, we do our damnedest to stay as far away from them as possible.

so on weekends such as this, when i don't hear incessant chatter and honking on the streets. and there is simply a crowd rather than the impenetrable mass that usually accompanies most shopping districts and parks and bars. and it is absolutely beautiful out. well. i feel as though i've been given a vacation right here at home.

and when the weather is as gorgeous as it has been, it goes without saying that it will be a great day. because in new york, so much relies on the weather. because you're IN it. you have to walk and carry and climb in it. you have to work with it. so when it's shitty out. you're likely gonna be feeling the burn. and you want to just curl up into a little ball and get blown away. but if it's sunny and it's "just right," you feel like you've never been so lucky. you're walking with it. you feel like you're living a dream. you can see it in everyone else too.

walking down the street yesterday a ragged looking man was approaching from the opposite direction. with a cat on a leash. perched on top of his head. now i've seen a man with a large bird perched on his shoulder sitting on the subway. and i've even seen a cat on a leash once when i was at central park. but i believe this is the first time i've seen this particular configuration. and as the man strutted passed me, i couldn't help but wonder how he and the cat decided upon that arrangement.

i cut through the park today - as i often do - and suddenly heard a boombox cut on. and very formal big band-ish sounding music blaring. i turned my head. and an older gentleman was placing a hand puppet on his right hand. and began singing to the tape being played on the boombox. screw the mystique of ventriloquism. he moved the puppet's mouth as well as his own. and passionately sang: "OH! on a beautiful day like toDAY . . ." i couldn't help but smile. and noticed that after he - and the puppet - finished their song, he simply packed up his gear. and left.

as usual, it was only a few feet ahead - within earshot even - that i found more performers. 3 guitars, 1 harmonica, and 1 recorder/flute performed rousing, but abbreviated, renditions of classic songs like "Wild Night" and "The Weight" (aka "Take A Load Off Fanny"). all the while, a man with a boombox sat directly to their right blasting other rock hits by bands like Rush and um Phil Collins. i'm constantly reminded that in washington square park there are no rules.

and as i walked through the other end of the park, a couple of guys started hollering out: "hey! hey sunshine! hey! yeah! sunshine! beautiful! hey! sunshine!" i walked on. i let myself assume that, like me, they were observing the day.

huh . . . even as i'm writing this. suddenly. a small make-shift marching band has stomped by chanting . . . something. though i'm not sure what.

but i'm telling you. i think it's the weather.