The Major and the Mrs. and the Mourners

Today, I had a full dance card. I was out of the house shortly after 9AM, and took the number 4 train from Woodlawn to Brooklyn's Borough Hall. The plan was to meet up with Major Kong, the good Major's wife, and N__B, Mrs_B, and Mini_B, who is not so mini anymore. We rendezvoused at Brooklyn Bridge Park, right outside the Brooklyn Smorgasburg (sic). Our rendezvous point provided spectacular views of downtown Manhattan, just across the East River, and the Smorg provided an eclectic variety of food vendors. I made a beeline for the Bolivian Llama Party and got their delicious triple pork sandwich (festooned with picked onions, pickled carrots, and both brined jalapeño rings and a thinly sliced hot red pepper, then drizzled with crema and sprinkled with a grated cheese reminiscent of cotija). I got a lemonade/rosewater soda to wash it down. We dined at a table riverside, a most felicitous location for brunch. I work on Sunday afternoons, but I think I may make the "Smorg" an occasional stop on Sunday mornings.

After brunch, we parted ways with Mrs_B and Mini_B, who stayed at the park for some outdoor recreation, and took a leisurely stroll through the beautiful Brooklyn Heights neighborhood, where Ned pointed out the interesting architectural highlights, including the Our Lady of Lebanon Cathedral, which features bronze doors salvaged from the ill-fated SS Normandie.

We parted ways at Borough Hall, with Ned and the Kongs taking the 2 train back to Manhattan and myself taking the 4 train back to Woodlawn.

I then drove to my place of employment and walked to a nearby establishment where a dear co-worker of mine was holding a fundraiser to cover medical expenses for her sister-in-law, who had succumbed to cancer at the all-too-young age of forty. Yeah, it's that bad. The family is holding together well, but there is an undercurrent of melancholy that will be lingering for a while. On a happier note, I got to know a couple of bartenders and one of the owners of the place, a place I don't visit nearly enough (I usually get out of work too late to bend an elbow, and I typically limit my drinking to establishments I can walk to, or need to take the train to).

After a couple of hours, I had to head to work, having bowed out of the fundraiser early. It's been a long day, but I made sure I brewed a pot of yerba mate to keep me from flagging. It's not often that I have friends from out of town coming on the same day as friends from the area are having an event, but I'm the sort of person who'll jump through hoops to see everybody.