And Speaking of Velociraptors...Relax!

It was barely light outside. Was it even light yet? I don't know. I can't remember. I was awakened from a dream in which someone was screaming, to the reality of birds screeching in the tree whose branches hang low over the back deck, outside the open sliding glass door, of the house I'm renting on Fire Island.

As the fuzz of sleep began to blow away I realized the chirping (screeching?, tweeting?, screaming?) was constant but without pattern. I couldn't latch on to it in order to fall back to sleep. I kept my eyes closed hoping that it would stop and that the cozy fog of sleep would pull me back into its depths again. As I was lying there I began to wonder what the birds were saying to each other. In the haze of partial alertness I wondered if the sound was coming from baby birds crying for their breakfast. Then I remembered the Velociraptors in Jurassic World, how they communicated with each other. What were they saying? What were these birds saying? Were they gossiping? Singing? Fighting? In that altered state between asleep and fully awake the mind can play all kinds of tricks and games, have all kinds of thoughts.

Five minutes later, ten, thirty...the chirping finally ceased. I remember thinking to myself, "Thank God she fed them." I drifted back to sleep.

I don't know how much longer sleep held me in its grasp as I refuse to have a clock on the bedside table and have no idea what time the birds started blaring at top volume. I do know that when I made my way into the living room, in the sleepy morning walk toward the bathroom, I saw that it was still in the 7am hour. This day had already refused to be slept away. I was up.

Before starting my trek into what I like to call "town" to get coffee at Floyd's I noticed the droplets of water stuck in the screen of the screen door. I'd managed to sleep through the midnight rain, awaking to its presence dripping from the flowers and trees in the early morning sunlight. The air was cool and fresh. The sounds of nature alive around me. So much of Fire Island parties into the night. Therefore, so much of Fire Island was still asleep. That has never been my M.O. on Fire Island. For me, my week in Cherry Grove is about being in a sanctuary of freedom, friendliness, and beauty; a place where people say, "hello" and "good morning;" a place where showers are outdoors and nude frolics are the beach are ok, encouraged, and met with nothing more than a passing glance.

It takes just a moment to stop and breath, look and see. It's about smelling the roses even when there aren't any roses around. Be. Exist. Soak it up. Life is short and vacations are even shorter. Whether its sitting on the sofa in the living room, lounging on a chaise on that back deck under the shade of that tree with the birds, or sitting under an umbrella on the beach, there is no time, no agenda, no reason for guilt because you're not doing something, no reason to hurry to get something done.

Relax.

SYTYCD in Boston!

On Monday, I called Neal and asked him if he had plans for Thursday. He said he had to work. I said I knew that, but what about Thursday night, do you have to go to the gym or do you have homework? He said he did need to work on a project. Why I was asking?

Well, I had Thursday night and Friday off. I suggested that I come to Boston to watch So You Think You Can Dance with him. Actually, I asked if he would be willing to not watch Wednesday night so that we could watch the 2 hour performance and 1 hour results shows together.

He agreed that that sounded like a plan. I sat down at my computer and purchased the tickets. Nothing like a 4 hour bus ride to watch a little tv with a friend. I mean, why not?

I made a fantastic summer salad with pasta, cucumber, orange bell pepper, purple onion, corn and feta cheese, tossed with balsamic vinegar and olive oil, along with a fruit salad of mango, strawberries and blueberries. Healthy and so good. Neal didn't eat any of it. He's having a throat issue and is being very particular about what he eats. Neither of us had an issue with the homemade oatmeal chocolate chip cookies though! Nobody's passing that up.

For those of you who read the Amagansett blog, I can drink wine again. I bought a bottle of Malbec Rose. I thought Neal and I should try something new.

We had such a good time watching SYTYCD. We paused and rewound and discussed a lot. Completely what I thought it would be and completely worth the trip.

The weather on Friday was amazing. No humidity. Big, fluffy white clouds. I had to go to the beach. Having missed out on that part of my trip to the Hamptons, it was necessary. The beach near Neal's is one of my favorite places to go to when I visit Boston. It's so lovely. The water has a calming affect on me. I took off my sandals and walked in the sand. I walked to the dock that I enjoy and stood there just breathing it in. The smell of the water and the air.I decided to take photos. I started all the way to my left and 22 shots later I was all the way to the right. A panoramic view of what I was seeing.

Friday evening, I met Neal at his office and we went to see SALT. I was a little hesitant to spend 90 minutes of my short trip sitting in a movie theater, but Neal wanted to see it, and I thought it might be fun to see that movie with him. Boy was that ever the right choice. It was a roller coaster that I'm totally glad I strapped myself in for. It was thrilling and exciting and everything that a summer escape movie should be.

Post movie we went to Clarke's in South Station and had a beer and a great, honest, personal conversation. I do love that Neal and I share the history of questioning our sexuality, at the same time, in college. It's just so refreshing to talk to someone who knows me. I mean really knows me. Pre coming out and all these years post.

It's always worth the trip.

Tea & Sympathy (or All Things British)

Googling tea shops in New York City can lead to interesting discoveries. I did just that a couple of days ago and settled on Tea & Sympathy. (www.teaandsympathynewyork.com) Located on Greenwich Avenue in Greenwich Village, it's a little bit of Britain right here in NYC. It's a tiny little restaurant where they won't seat you until your entire party is there. Once seated you might as well make friends with the people next to you 'cause you're pretty much touching them. My friend Mandy and I decided to hang out today and Mandy invited our friend Colette. We all like tea shops so this seemed like a good choice for all involved. As Mandy and I had never been, this continued my quest for new things in NYC.

I was gung ho to try all things British. I started by ordering English Breakfast Tea. Such a nice tea to enjoy with a bit of milk and sugar. I asked questions about things on the menu that I was unaware of and made the most intelligent choice I could - Shepard's Pie with Lamb. I can't tell you the last time I had Shepard's Pie. I think I remember my mom making it once, but I could be making that up. Ground lamb with carrots, covered in mashed potatoes, topped with melted cheddar - it was so good. It was served in it's own small baking dish with a side of peas. As a child I used to mix my peas and mashed potatoes together so as soon as I'd eaten enough to create some space I added the peas to my Pie. So good. I'm going to have to go back and try their Bangers 'n Mash and their quiche. That's two more reasons to go back. Not that I really needed one. So many tea choices also. How many days off in a year do I have? As I was trying all things British I decided to have Treacle Pudding for desert. Treacle Pudding is steamed sponge cake with golden syrup baked on top. Mine was covered with and sitting in hot custard. Okay, how much weight did you just put on thinking about this desert? Wipe the drool off of your chin it's unattractive. Let's just say I wanted to lick the bowl and leave it at that. Damn!!

Colette said there was a chocolate store nearby that she had been to once so we set out to find it. Her sense of direction was fantastic because even though she wasn't sure where it was, she led us right to it. Li-Lac Chocolates (www.li-lacchocolates.com) I gained 5 pounds just by inhaling after we walked in. A person could go wild and spend a fortune in this store. Everything looks amazing and is sold by the pound. Be careful, big eyes lead to empty wallets. I walked out of the store with one chunk of white chocolate and a chocolate covered marzipan acorn which was a gift from Mandy. Good and good!

After stuffing our faces and filling our bellies with British goodness and chocolate decadence we headed to a couple of small parks in the area to just sit and enjoy the day and each others conversation. Oh and did I forget to mention that we stopped by Perry Street, home of Carrie Bradshaw's apartment exterior, to watch just a second of filming on the second Sex and the City film? Well, we did!

This was a full day and there are still two more stops to go. Mandy had never been to The Highline and we were so close that we took a jaunt over and walked around and looked at the beauty that the City of New York created out of something ugly. Such a good use of space and resources. Can't wait to visit again in the fall. A nice crisp breeze with a jean jacket and a chaise lounge sounds like a little piece of heaven. Give me a good book and save me a seat.

Last but not least, I headed to New World Stages to support many of my co-workers who are putting on a show this week. The producer, director, and most of the actors work in some capacity at New World Stages. It felt so good to support them in their endeavor and to support people who want to make art and found a way to do it. It reminded me of the excitement I had in college when it was time to perform a show that I'd been rehearsing for several weeks. There's something energizing and renewing about watching people who are not jaded, performing in a work that is fully realized because of their passion for it.

NYC is a little crowded with tourists this weekend, but none of them took away from the fabulous experience of this day.

All Washed Up

I did something today for the first time that most New Yorkers would probably find laughable. I dropped my laundry off. I attempted to do the laundry myself, but as I've moved to a new neighborhood I had to find the laundromat first. Google to the rescue. 51st and 2nd is the nearest one. Only three blocks down. Not too bad. I packed the two books I'm reading, my journal, and my water bottle and headed out to wash my clothes. Turns out that what Google didn't know was that the above location had been torn down and was under construction for something new.

As I had no clean underwear left I had to take advantage of the ladies at All Washed Up. It weighed in at 12 lbs which equaled $12. Much more expensive than if I'd done it myself but I digress. With my laundry dropped off and not ready for pick up until 7pm, my day kind of opened up.

I went to a new patisserie called Financier Patisserie for lunch. It's a cute little French cafe I've been wanting to try for about a week. They make a fantastic Coconut Rocher w/chocolate. It's basically a macaroon, but better. Then it was off to Home Depot, The Door Store, Bed Bath and Beyond, and Crate and Barrel. I'm looking for blinds and storage items for the new apartment. Realizing I was a block away from Central Park with books in my bag it seemed the perfect opportunity to go sit in the park and read for a while.

Sitting on that bench in the park, I was surrounded by beauty. French boys next to me, a lake and flowers in front of me, and a lovely lawn behind me. The sky was blue with white clouds. The birds were chirping. People were walking by talking and laughing and we were all enjoying our lives.

Then I saw a homeless woman with a bag as big as she walk past me in too big shoes and dig the remainder of an ice cream cone out of the trash. Our realities are so different. I threw away food last night that I was just too full to eat. She was a small reminder of how blessed I am. I have a home, food, and thanks to the ladies at All Washed Up, clean clothes.