Amelie

I met my friend, Franc and Brian at Dojo's for dinner and then we went to see the film, Amelie. It was a wonderful film which I will purchase the very minute it's released on dvd. The colors, the story, the cinematography was just outstanding. At the end of the film, my friend Franc said, "It was like watching a film about you, Wendy...she sort of dresses like you". I found this interesting because one of the reasons I wanted to see it was because I relate so much to the character...the other reason, of course, is because I'm a Jean Pierre Jeunet groupie! He's my favorite director.

When we left the theatre there was a police van waiting for us as they wanted to give Franc and Brian (and Brian's chiro) a private tour of "ground zero". I took advantage of the ride home and with as much bravery as I could muster, went into the site with them. I spoke with the the cops about that horrible day - we shared our stories, our feelings. I noticed a pile of origami peace cranes on the. corner of the platform where we were standing. Brian's chiro started to cry a bit.

I think he realized that it's much more terrible in person than it is in photos or on tv.

Beth

A year ago or so, I was standing on line in the grocery store when I noticed a very beautiful women in front of me. She appeared to be in her 60's. She had white hair and blue eyes. She had wonderful lines in her face from years of smiling. I couldn't help myself. I walked right up to her and said, "excuse me, I don't usually do this sort of thing, but I must tell you that you are absolutely beautiful". She was both elated and gracious and introduced herself to me. Her name was Beth.

I had seen her aournd the neighborhood many times since and we chatted in passing. I hadn't seen her since 9/11 and wondered if she was ok.

Well, tonight I ran into her on South End Ave. I ran up to her and told her how happy I was to see her familiar face again. She hugged me. She told me that she is a chaplain and worked for the united nations. We talked about our experiences and our difficulties living here and the we spoke about peace.

I can't help but think about how we met. I'm so glad I had the courage to tell a complete stranger that she was radiating kindness and beauty...if I hadn't, I might never had had the wonderful conversation I just had tonight.

Ode to my Sting Ray! ( A half decade of fun)

Five years ago, while wandering the SoHo flea market, I found a really swell bike. It was a 1970's Sting Ray...blue with a glittery blue and silver banana seat and 5 speeds. As soon as I sat on it, I knew it was MY bike. I bought it for a mere $35 and ironically had to shell out $90 for a good lock.

I had such adventures on my Sting Ray. It's front end was a bit light which made for unintended and fierce "wheelies". I had a few near wipe-outs, but was never hurt and became very adept at handling it. The sting ray was a looker and the power to cause nostalgia. It has come be known as the "babe magnet" in my social circle as I get stopped several times a day while riding it. Mostly by fellas wo exclaim with boyish dreamy-eyed nostalgia, "I had a bike JUST like that". That recurrent scene was worth a LOT more than the 35 dollar I spent, believe me! I often thought of making a bet just moments prior to one of these events...I wanted to say, "bet you 5 bucks I know what you're going to say", then "I had a bike just like that". (Ka-ching) I could have cashed in!

This evening I left my office to find my sting ray had been stolen - lock and all! The Buddhist fruit vendor told me that some guy took it with what looked like a key and didn't realize it was being stolen. I walked home. It took 1 1/2 hours. When I reached Canal St, one of the state troopers yelled, "Hey Wendy...where's your bike!?!?" You may find it strange that he knew by name, but it had everything to do with the sting ray. He too fell victim to it's secret power in early october as I passed his check point each morning. He's been stationed there since 9/11.
When I told him that it was stolen, he was quite upset and swore if he saw it, he would steal it back for me.

The likelihood of such a thing is rare, I know. Yet is a unique bike and I've yet to see another like it anywhere. So, for those of you familiar with the "babe magnet", please keep an eye out for it. Call me with he exact location and then call the police. They already have a report.

I just got home and put my helmet away...there is a big, sad, empty "parking spot" in my walk-in closet. I can't say that I blame the thief for stealing it...he probably fell victim to it's spell too...just as I did a half a decade ago.

There are two possible happy endings to this story:
1. The sting ray turns up under some kid's xmas tree and spreads the loooove.
2. Or that i find it and steal it back!

*The above photo was taken on Thanksgiving Day. I had dinner with my friends, Dan & Roger in Greenwich Village. I was to nervous about taking the train out to LI to see family. It seemed like the whole city was on holiday and there were hardly any cars. I rode my bike right down the middle of the street.

Feasting

The Main Course:

Yesterday, as I sat creating my holiday cards for this season, I was distracted by 3 bands of pink clouds spanning the sky. I went to the window and discovered the most spectacular sunset I had ever seen. The colours were nearly neon. I decided to go to the roof and photograph it. Soon other neighbors were coming up to the roof for a better look.


The Dessert:
Last night I went out with my telescope and tripod to take a peek at Jupiter which would be very close to the moon. I wandered down South End and staked out the perfect spot when I was approached by a ranger.

He said, "You dan't do that".
I explained that it was not a camera, but a telescope and was looking for jupiter".
He said, "You're kidding, right!"
"No", I replied, pointing to the planet.
"You mean that star", he said sarcastically.
"Yes", I replied, "only... it's not a star... it's a planet....it's jupiter".
He got angry and said, "You can use the scope, but not the tripod...there's a law".
Not being familiar with any such law, I asked, "If I remove a leg and make it a bipod, would that be ok?"

He did not laugh.

Tonight saturn is supposed to be one of the best shows ever so you KNOW I'll be back out there with my flashlight, map and scope. Perhaps I should fashion an extra leg for my tripod and make it a quadra-pod or are there laws against those too?!?!