pizza at bergdorfs

it is a perfect evening, just right, not too hot and not too cool. and too, the moon has the audacity to appear in full bloom lighting the new york city sky in a marvelous spooky kinda way. the clouds appear as smokey grey fluffy grey pillows across an electric blue sky. it's the nighttime outline of the skyscrapers that makes it spooky really. in any other city it simply would be a gorgeous nighttime sky, lit by the moon and sprinkled with stars. here it takes on a gotham affect with the skyscrapers knitting out a skyline fit for intrigue in spooky film.
with a steamy slice of pizza in hand, i take in the adoration of 5th avenue’s elegant especially lit shop display windows. my time in europe has taught me better, to sit down properly with occasion and enjoy a meal. nyc is bossy and dictates its own behavior; running for the subway, coffee to go, speaking in double time…
with slice in hand in front the windows of bergdorf goodmans, i’m reminded of audrey hepburn in breakfast at tiffany’s, mais sans classe, yet still romantic in its own way. i'd like to think audrey hepburn would approve...

little ones

she'd stepped outside the laundermat, tiny steps, as she was a little thing. she did a small slide towards the wall, parked herself there. her back against the wall, she slid down to the floor. tears in her eyes she let out a big sigh.

i turned my eyes to inside the laudermat to see where might these tears be coming from. who was responsible, and was someone coming to make it better. no one came. only the sounds of machines humming with the sounds of squishy washings, and tumbling drying came out.

i wanted to walk over to the little one, dry her tears and find out what was wrong. maybe help to make it better. but i was afraid. mammas and daddys don't like strangers near their children. understandable completely. so i moved on. pity.

end of summer rituals

with the coolness in the air today one can't help but wonder if we're entering into 'last summer days.' i mean i've got on a light fleece jacket and little wooly socks... what gives? summer? upon thinking about summer ending and the rituals that might go along with it, as we usher in autumntime, something very interesting came to me. i spent 5 summers in spain and one of the things that i loved, as i love summertime, is that summer ends in october. at around april folks start talking about their summer holidays, what we're thinking and what we're planning. how cool is that? for the most part they get the month of august off for summer holiday. i, as a teacher had 2 months off. and then even so, when folks started finding their way back into town, late august early september, i remember that feeling and joyful search for who was back yet, and who was lucky enough to still be away. we came back full of the fun we'd had as well as the rest and relaxation. and it took a few weeks really to get back into the rhythm of things. we did so slowly, almost dusting off summer while meeting in cafes after lunch talking and sharing stories of our summer holidays.

here in nyc, we roll a little bit different. unfortunately? we kinda start talking about summer days ending around the beginning of august, already at that time folks are preparing themselves or their children for the school year. and already are making plans for the coming year. september is almost like a 'new new year.' somehow for all of us around the globe we still have that feeling of september being a new beginning. perhaps all those years of getting ready and starting school in september has left an imprint within.

to my surprise people are engaged in all kinds of end of summer rituals. it surprises me because for the most part i never did so. it had never crossed my mind. sure we did our things to prepare for the new school year, got our new school supplies, new clothes and such, but the idea of doing something special to end the summer and bring in the newness of fresh projects and exciting new doings was not my experience. while browsing through an old magazine i came upon an article about end of summer rituals. i like this idea. and all kinds of interesting ideas followed. for examples, a special breakfast, the same french toast and bacon for the first morning of school. mini vacation, a few days just before september away, kind of like the last hurrah. and then upon return, getting back to more productive and steady schedules, some girls all get together for a kind of home spa evening, where they bathe and do facials, their hair and nails, and gather around with wine glass in hand to talk about their goals, expectations and wishes for the coming year. one woman goes off on her own for a day spa and gets all scrubbed up and beautified before venturing into her new work year. and one of my favorites, going out for ice cream dinner. that's it... ice cream for dinner. how sweet is that?

it seems end of summer rituals are not only fun, they seem like a wonderful way to begin to bend our minds toward autumn with all the freshness, possibility and opportunities it holds. now i'll have to think of an end of summer ritual for myself. do you have one?

text by audrey paradis

photo by mturnage