Planning Revised

Last Thursday was a busy day.
I had lunch with Taurean at Earl Biddy's on Murray Street, followed by watching Norman eat lunch at Flavors Cafe on Broadway and finally hauled ass to midtown to enjoy a snack in the DPW cafeteria with Ester who is preggers. Clearly I was a bit late to work but not late enough to get in any trouble.

Taurean was excited for his trip north with the new woman in his life. He recently came out of a broken engagement with a heart full of pain and a mind full of anguish but it's all seemingly in the past as he forges ahead. I am always impressed by the resilience people showcase when it comes to love. It makes me wonder if I am fundamentally broken in my inability to rebound with the speed and tenacity all around me.

Norman related to me tales of joy tinged in woe. He's been offered a terrific professorial post at USD but having a Jewish mother can only lead to so many guilt-free weeks, so the victory is bittersweet. The far distance he must traverse to make a new life is met with more sorrow than joy by the close-knit family he described as "a many headed beast that bites and hugs all at once." I couldn't get over how similar that was to Indian families, I guess that explains why so many Judeo-Indo weddings occur in the tri-state. My mother being no exception.
Additionally, he's participating in a triathalon which involves training. He's been joining his fiancee at the gym every morning. It's amazing the things we will do for love. Inherently, he wants to get back in shape and maintain a healthy lifestyle but it is her influence alone that could bring about such a seismic shift in him. Kudos to her and salutions to Norman!

Ester's bump is not much more than that but she was aglow despite her self-professed lack of glow. I'm so impressed with her. She supports her mother and grandmother who are in residence at the dawn of another generation joining their ranks. Her husband who she actually and actively calls "Hottie" is a strapping Italian who works in fashion and isn't even remotely metrosexual--very Euro though. I only had 25minutes to spare because I'd run so late on my earlier reunions but it was time well spent. As she munched on her olive oil drizzled lettuce and chomped on what looked to be rather firm bread, I fell a little bit in love with this future mother. She exudes a warm that is colored by tolerance and highlighted by openness. It's the very definition of maternal I ascribe to--despite my lack of baby having/wanting ways--and it made me grateful to have met such a woman in my generation. Her Peruvian-Italian baby has the best future ahead of him/her.

This Thursday I plan to meet with my pink haired librarian friend, Gemma, and reuniting with Norman for what I hope will become a weekly coffee date as long as my schedule remains thus.