raids, leading the blind

a fairly good review from ben brantley of west side story, starring matt cavenaugh who is a friend of mine from college. he's so pretty.

 

so i'm at my favorite dive bar. we're there for katie's birthday. and because we're regulars, garry the bartender sees fit to shut down the jukebox and give a little speech about her that entails her going home with an irish guy one night and implying that she'd go home with anybody as long as they were irish. about 5 mintes later, 10 cops bust in and pretty much take over the bar. they stand throughout, doing what appears to be a routine check. they're all up behind the bar, have some computer with them and they're doing data entry. i kind of lean in to hear what a few of them are saying, to guage whether their presence means trouble for my favorite bar. my friend jason is doing the same thing. there's this pudgy cop standing with the cops on whom i'm eavesdropping. he looks me up and down, looks jason up and down and then shakes his head like he's disgusted with us.

 

i'm not even drunk at this point. i'd had all of two bud lights and an irish car bomb. i look at jason and say, loudly, "did you see that guy, he just looked us both up and down and got all judgy on us!" and the cop turns to me and starts full-on yelling, "THAT'S BECAUSE YOU'RE NOT MINDING YOUR BUSINESS. YOU NEED TO MIND YOUR OWN BUSINESS, THAT'S WHY!" and for a split second i thought to be shocked but it passed so quickly and the whole thing was so, i don't know, crazy that i burst out laughing. and then everyone around me started laughing. and the guy looked like he wanted to hit me. and while still laughing i'm trying to remember from crim law what cops can and can't do to a civilian without cause. and also thinking that i should be ready to yell, "i'm an attorney, touch me the wrong way and i'll fucking sue the city and you'll lose your job so fast...." but then he retreated to the front of the bar. i'm assuming the dude was just having a really bad day. but, like, i can't remember when the last time i was that i was yelled at. and i've never been yelled at by a complete stranger, at least not that i can remember. so weird.

 

i was waiting for the bus and i heard a soft voice. i turned and saw a woman asking me if i was waiting for the bus. i said i was and she said she was too. all of this was a bit off and then i realized a walking stick and that she was blind. so now i have the job of making sure she got on the bus, a job that i did just fine. but she stayed at the front, i walked towards the back and when she went to get off a few stops later she slipped down the stairs. it was kind of a backwards slide that left her sitting on the stairs of the bus. nobody went to help her and by the time i'd gotten up and halfway to the front of the bus she was up and safely on the sidewalk. but then she was walking soooo sooo slowly. the bus was sitting there for some reason so i had plenty of time to watch her make her way to the far side of the sidewalk, nestled just along the row of madison avenue stores. one store jutted out and she walked right up to it until her stick hit the marble slab and that's when the bus pulled off.

 

i wanted to jump off the bus and grab her by the arm and walk her to her destination. hell, i wanted to keep an eye on her all damn day to make sure she would get home safe. it tore me up inside thinking about how difficult her life must be and how cold and cruel this city can be for some people. and to think of it, this city is better than most for getting around with a handicap but it's all still so sad. it took everything in me to remind myself that i had to go to work today. and that i couldn't be with that lady every day and that she wasn't my responsibility. she was not my responsibility. i can't take care of everybody. i'm not sure why i always want to...

 

had a fantastic brunch at blue smoke. then a dress fitting for a custom made frock to wear in emily's wedding! then a crazy workout with dani (the one dating a personal trainer who has trained a-rod and madonna, no joke). then lots of drinking and playing board games at ted's which is probably my favoritest place to be and thing to do in the whole whole world.