eating and sleeping

I took a New York City bus for the first time today.

I had ridden with Vera in a taxi out to LaGuardia for her return flight to Toronto. We had risen too late to dine in the city so at the airport we had lunch at au bon pain. I ate a tuna sandwich on a French roll and an orange which cost $0.79. I looked across the table at my friend and felt a very nonchalant comfort. Though we have been friends for more time than we haven't been friends, we get to a place where everything goes but anything can still sting. She drops the prickly facts on me every now and again as I do on her. Saying goodbye was also a time to say "This is what I meant by what I said..."

On the M60 bus back to Manhattan, I stopped into a mattress shop on 125th St. to lay on bed after bed. I haven't decided on a winner yet since everything costs between $400-$600. Not having an income at the moment, the way my money leaves my hands has changed. I was never a frugal person but growing up and having to consider finances is inevitable. It's the in and out of cashflow. For now, I monitor the in and out of air through the leak in the Aerobed.

I decided to walk 12 blocks through Harlem back to my apartment. It had started to sprinkle but I was in a down coat that withstood the rain. For 10 minutes, I was the only non-black person I saw. It was a curious feeling that I haven't experienced since I started doing poetry in 1999 when I would be the odd one out at readings. Most of the people I saw were older. It was Tuesday afternoon so the children were at school and the mothers and fathers were at work. I stopped into a bakery for orange juice and got home just as Nate was waking up. A real Italian at the restaurant where he works recommended a pizza place on the LES that he wanted to try so I tagged along to Luzzo's. We took another bus and strolled the LES along 1st Ave. We passed Bird Bath Bakery and each bought a cookie. The store was of a strange ambiance. It's a "green" bakery but the vibe was somber and stolid. Tall pillar candles stood next to stacked cookies in the window. A very odd display.

Luzzo's was incredible. We started with calamari which was mezzo mezzo. The squid was not fresh and too chewy for my taste but the pizza...oh, the pizza. I had thought Lombardi's set the standard for my pizza eating future but Luzzo's crust and soft burrata from Napoli made the rainy weather clear up. The dough was light and soft like a cloud with a crisp bottom. The sauce and the cheese, the basil and the scent swirled together in a perfect pizza dream. We also had an order of gnocchi which I thought was lovely though Nate found it a bit gummy. For dessert, we walked a few blocks to Sugar Sweet Sunshine and got a half dozen of vanilla, chocolate, pistachio, lemon, pumpkin and red velvet cupcakes. Then a quick stop at Starbucks for coffee (for Nate) and a green tea latte (for me) and back home to tear into the box of pastel goodies with Karen who had come home from her shift.

This is possible here. The many stops for food. New Yorkers are like hummingbirds in constant search of nectar to sustain their perpetual motion. In Los Angeles, making a stop for food is an annoyance and a bother. But here, walking home usually means you'll pass a delectable storefront at which you can pause for a bite.