Jolly

On Earth Day I heard from a friend on Facebook that Origins was giving away free cleanser in exchange for empty cosmetic bottles. I am running low on cleanser and can't afford to replace what I have. So, I pulled an empty bottle of toner out of the recycling bin, and walked over to the Flatiron store.

It was a nice spring day and the door was open. There were about 15 unhappy women in the tiny space. The store just ran out of cleanser.

I was headed to the Upper East Side, so I inquired about stores uptown. A helpful employee gave me the number to the Upper West Side store. A few minutes later I was on a subway car rocketing to 72nd Street.

There was a line at the 85th Street store, but I managed to get one of the last bottles of cleanser. It smells great. I'm looking forward to trying it -- especially after the effort it took to get it.

I felt pleased to have accomplished my little mission and was enjoying my walk over to the east side. Around 84th and Columbus I passed a group of boys sitting outside of a school. One of them looked like an African-American version of Seth Rogen.

"Miss, you look jolly today!" he said with a smile.

It was unclear to me whether he was simply a friendly kid, a cheeky guy perfecting a pick up line, or a student trying to use vocabulary word jolly in a sentence. Regardless, I had to smile as I walked past.

This is my favorite time of year. Chartreuse is one of my favorite colors and it is the top note on nature's palette right now. Everything looks tender and lush.

This year, almost all of the flowering plants are blooming at once. Central Park looks like a film set. One would think a prop department planted blooming hyacinth, tulips, iris, pansies, blue bonnets, lilacs, and wisteria over night. Everywhere my eye fell, there was a touch of floral color.

Although it was a bit off of my path, I went through Shakespeare's Garden, Belvedere Castle, and a some of the Ramble before skirting the Lake.

In addition to the abundant flowers, I saw several robins and noticed a man pushing a medium-sized dog in a wheel chair intended for humans. The shivering animal curled up in the seat looked very sick.

As I walked across the park the sky darkened. I love the contrast between delicate spring green plants bursting with optimism and a menacing stormy sky. The rain fell steadily as I walked around the Lake. I paused under a wisteria covered arbor and watched the drops form designs on the Lake's surface. It seemed like a gift to be in this place at this time.

When the rain eased, I pulled out my umbrella and continued walking until I got to the Whitney Museum. I felt really happy and it must have showed. A man ducking the rain at a construction site around the corner from the museum looked at me quizzically and said, "I'm glad somebody's happy!"

Me too. There have been far too many sad days lately. On this day it was my turn to be happy.

Go Before You Go

As a child, I resented the suggestion that I use the bathroom before leaving the house. After all, the only place without a facility would be the car. If the need arose, I could control it until a bathroom was available.

As a New Yorker, I religiously follow the childhood advice before leaving the apartment. There are very few public toilets in New York, and many of them are unpleasant.

Today I went to the Upper East Side to attend a dance class in Central Park. It takes about an hour to get there.

Although I had a "preemptive pee," I needed a bathroom by the time I approached Central Park.

In general, Starbucks are the most reliable public bathrooms in New York. I walked up Madison from 68 to 74 hoping to find a Starbucks. Instead I passed stores unlikely to share their facilities with me, such as Tom Ford, Ralph Lauren, Prada, Dior, and Dolche & Gabbana.

Finally, I noticed a Christian Science reading room. It seemed like a long shot, but it worked.

Once the emergency had passed and I was washing my hands, it amused me to note that there was no reading material in the bathroom of the Christian Science reading room.

They are missing an opportunity for an unusual marketing program.

Spring Awakening

I had to travel to the Upper East Side again today. I took my computer back to the repair shop and then went to a doctor’s appointment.

Without a phone or computer there is very little I can accomplish. I have already cleaned my apartment and done my cooking for the week. It's strange that in the height of an anxious situation (scrambling for employment), leisure has been forced upon me.

I had an errand to run on the other side of Central Park and the weather was fair, so I decided to take advantage of my free time and walk through the park.

This has been a cold winter in New York City. It snowed on the first day of spring. With the cold air and limited exposure to the outdoors, it is easy to forget that nature continues to follow its season cycle whether it seems like spring to New Yorkers.

Today was sunny, but still chilly. As I walked along the paths by Wollman Rink and the Hallett Nature Sanctuary, I was pleasantly surprised to be greeted by signs of spring.

Large clumps of yellow, purple, and white crocuses created mats of color on the park floor. Forsythia bushes blazed like suspended yellow fireworks displays. The trees were dotted with subtle buds of chartreuse. Even a few early daffodils exposed their sunny faces.

As I exited, I heard a strange sound in a tree. After a moment of careful looking, I spied a brilliant blue jay on a shaded branch.

It had been an awful week of setbacks, yet these signs of spring reminded me that unpleasant things can change. Events may be different from what they appear to be. Forces of good are at work. There are reasons to be hopeful.