I saw the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade for my first time ever on Thursday. My friend Lauren, a lawyer I used to work for a couple years ago and have stayed good friends with ever since, invited me and anyone I wanted to bring to her apartment on Central Park West to get the best possible view of the parade. More amazing to me than the parade though, was her apartment. It's actually her grandmother's apartment and she's had it for a million years. Her grandma is 98 years old. NINETY-EIGHT. My family tends to live into their 90s, but 98 is crazy.
This apartment was crazy. HUGE. In New York, you get used to seeing very small apartments and houses. This place was breathtaking and everything in it was a beautiful antique. Lauren introduced me to her grandma Riva. She was the sweetest lady and totally aware of what was going on, despite the fact that she moved around very little while I was there. Riva spoke clearly and obviously wasn't experiencing dementia of any kind. She knew who I was when Lauren introduced me, apparently I had been mentioned before, and I felt privileged to have the opportunity to meet her, as Lauren has spoken so much about her grandma during the years I've known her. I thanked her for letting us into her home.
There was a beautiful breakfast spread of bagels and pastries and a delicious baked ham. We sipped mimosas and watched the huge floats go by. I brought Kathleen and Charles with me and they had a great time. Kathleen and I marveled at the fact that we have been so lucky with events like this where we were able to get a spectacular view. When we were in New Orleans our friends had a balcony on Burbon street where we celebrated during Mardi Gras. When Kathleen first moved to New York she lived in an apartment on Fifth Avenue where we had a priceless view of the Gay Pride Parade. And now here we were looking out on Central Park from the windows of this fantastic apartment, enjoying a view of the most overhyped parade on earth. The baloons were astoundingly huge and the crowds were gridlocked. My favorite baloons were Clifford, Kermit and the Monopoly Man. Glad I got to see that at least once in my life...
Posted by Maria at November 27, 2004 02:08 AM | TrackBackalright, damnit. you're making me seriously jealous here. we're trying to get a hook up for Mardi Gras next year b/c I've never been.
Posted by: girl at November 27, 2004 08:50 AMShit Girl, I wish I could help. This was about four years ago now and my friend Darcie, who I shacked up with while I was there, has since moved back to Portland and we've lost touch with most of the people who afforded us so many of the perks that we enjoyed while we were there.
At the time she was working for an internet domain company that was making lots of money and the owners were her friends, who became my friends, who treated us to a lot of good times that we would have otherwise been unable to afford or fenagle on our own. It was definitely one of the more decadent and privileged times of our lives. Pure, unadulterated LUCK.
If you don't know anyone in New Orleans, the best you can do is get your hotel reservations WAY in advance, and try your hardest to meet someone while you're there who will invite you up to their balcony! Good luck Girl, Mardi Gras can be great fun if you plan it right! (Or if luck happens to strike...)
Posted by: Maria at November 27, 2004 11:43 AM