price fixin' and trash pickin.'

it was such a beautiful friday night, we decided to go out to dinner without a reservation. we strolled up madison; people moved past us with purpose or without. a resourceful and lucky lady rifled through clear plastic bags of clothes by the trash can just outside dolce & gabbana.

later we encountered a haunting and beautiful procession at the synod of bishops russian orthodox church on 93rd street: a large group carrying candles, singing, chanting; some were rather more official looking than others. passersby stopped to listen and look... it all seemed a bit dreamlike, and it felt like a treat to have happened upon it. whatever it was.

...it's nice to see that despite the recession, it's still absurd to walk into any place at 8:30 on friday and expected to be seated right away. we settled somewhat randomly on sarabeth's, which is a perfect mesh of not small and not cool, and thus we were promptly seated on a comfy corner banquette. i think our new thing is going to (have to) be the prix fixe. sarabeth's has one for $30. i'm not sure if it was just what we ordered, but more than a few of their dishes showcase their jammy tendencies. that said, if you do love preserved fruits, each dish manages to balance out nicely, for example how the pleasantly bitter green beans and buttermilk scallion pancakes complement the apricot raisin compote atop the duck breast.

it seems i've gotten kind of used to fancy-pants service, and it was both unsettling and refreshing to enjoy our chocolate truffle cake with a backdrop of butter ramikin and dinner knives.

the park called us as we stepped back out onto the street. when we crossed west on 5th to find our reservoir view another couple was crossing east, looking a bit spooked, and soon we came upon why: a rather large raccoon, lurking by a tree. his masked mug took us in; he defied all attempts at cell phone photography as he began to skulk smoothly and silently uptown, presently disappearing in the shadows along the curb.

it's no surprise that such creatures can thrive on the upper east side. people do throw away some good stuff in this city.

some palindromes and anagrams worthy of mention

i haven't included most of the obvious ones. also, punctuation doesn't count.

palindromes:

I love me, vol. I
go hang a salami; i'm a lasagna hog
tulsa nightlife: filth, gin, a slut
lonely tylenol
stressed? desserts!

anagrams:

listen: silent
aspired...despair
prenatal --> parental
beacon theater: eat bacon there.

the bus drivers are grumpier in philly.

today daisy and i encountered a bus driver who enjoys his job more than average. every stop brought on a little ditty. yeah, it sounds like it would get annoying but it didn't, somehow.

find this man. he was driving the M4 today, going south on 5th avenue at 66th street around 4pm...

discarded bouquet.

found two dozen roses, still in their clear plastic and white paper cone, resting neatly on top of a full trash can on third avenue, on the way back from the supermarket, just as it had started to rain.

took them home. they sure are pretty.

(there must be a good story behind how they got there.)