Spring Fever

I awoke bright eyed and bushy-tailed, as we said back home in Indiana, yeserday mornig with a list in my head of things I wanted to accomplish this weekend. Mostly spring cleaning-rearranging related. Like putting away the boots and getting out the sandals, stashing the cashmere turtlenecks and getting out the short sleeved t-shirs. Also some house cleaning and related jobs. I also planned weekend time to be outdoors.

It's Sunday evening and I've accomplished most of my list. There's a ton of ironing to do and a few odds and ends not done. But I managed to walk by the Hudson yesterday and stop to each lunch on a bench near the boat basin beneath a portion of the long stand of flowering trees -- all in lush bloom! Gorgeous to look at -- no scent. The breeze from the river was coolish so I didn't sit long after lunching but walked on up to the community garden that I love. That's where these pictures are from. It is always predictably beautiful. Yesterday was no exception as you see.

Today the ambition remained. I was well into chores when I went out and discovered the first of the spring street fairs was setting up on the east side of B'way. A sure sign of spring. A visit to one usually tells me what the subseuent ones are goiing to be like -- same sorts of booths. But wandering with the crowd later on in the day made me feel connected to the tradition of "Market Day" that goes back at least to the Middle Ages and, really farther back into history. Here we had no haggling --it's against the American commercial tarditions although it persists many other places. There was a great display of cheap goods and various eateries -- I noticed a new level of bad snack food -- high or low? I can't say. Ponder! Fried Oreos? No? You like your Oreos in their original form?: Well, then you can have fried Twinkies! I kid you not!! Despite constant emphasis on healthy eating the street fair people have come up with Fried twinkies. I also noted chocolate covered marshmallows, super gooey crepes, how about filled with banana and drizzles generously with chocolate syrusp ... sounds pretty yummy to me. I got my street fair inulgence, a gyro to bring home -- experiences has taught me that walking and eating a gyro is an invitation for disaster -- yogurt sauce dripping down my chin onto my clothes, shreds of lettuce and tomato spilling all over.

But the dictum is true: You've seen one, you've seen them all. The rest of the season's street fairs will offer the same booths ot $2 Chinese junk jewelry, '"hand strung genuine pearl" necklaces, 24 hours scented votive candles, Indian embroidered long full skirts and 4 for $10 socks. Ah, spring in the Big Apple.