Wise  King  Solomon  said

" Better  is  the  end  of  a  thing  than  the  beginning  thereof "

I  must  then  consider  myself  lucky  to  have  had  so  very  many  things
that  were  terribly  difficult  to  say  good  bye  to.

Nevertheless, there  remains  a  hole  in  the  world 
where  my  loved  ones  once  were.

They  had  made  my  life  more  perfect,
but  failed  to  explain
how  to  live  without  them.

I  don't  know  who said:

If  we  are  brave  enough  to  say  goodbye,

life  rewards  us  with  a  new  hello.

I  only  know  that 

Gilda  Radner

{ if you don't know who she was, just click on her name } 

hit  the  nail  on  the  head  when  she  said:

" LIFE  IS  ABOUT  NOT  KNOWING,

HAVING  TO  CHANGE,

TAKING  THE  MOMENT  AND  MAKING  THE  BEST  OF  IT,

WITHOUT  KNOWING  WHAT'S  GOING  TO  HAPPEN  NEXT."

Springtime in New York always
comes with a sense of new beginnings.  The air has a fresh sweet smell.
People walk with renewed vigor.
There's a sense of something good
and important about to occur. 

I pull out my hummingbird feeders with anticipation of their arrival
...on the tail of Canada Geese, it's said. 

Of course, it's not literal.
The hummers move on their own
wing beats and have never been known
to hitch a ride on a goose tail. 

The sound of Canada Geese overhead, usually means that  hummers have completed their migratory journey
as well...back to their place of birth
...a homecoming...perhaps with a new spouse...to create the next generation.

For the past dozen years, the hummers have  been  on time. 
Males arrive on May first and my feeders will be ready with
homemade sugar syrup and hung in their usual location.

It's probably my thousandth time making their food. 
I pour a cup of white sugar and one cup water into a small saucepan.
As I stir over a high heat to dissolve,
my mind begins to wander. 

No longer in my kitchen, 
memory has me in NYC,
strolling  uptown on Columbus Avenue with two friends. 

A red light stops us  and we're being looked over
by a handsome Italian enjoying his drink at a corner cafe. 
He gives us a quick little smile of approval. 

Paige asks me, "Do you know that guy ?" 
I answer, "No...I have no idea who that is.  Do you, Callie ?" 
She shook her head  and we crossed the street as he watched.   
It was an uncomfortable  compliment. 

A block away Paige declared, " I know who that is ! 
That was Robert DeNiro ! 
That's why he looked so familiar. 
We have to go back. 
I have to see if it's really  him or just a look alike."

And so we did. 

A small crowd had now gathered around the window, chatting eagerly and finger pointing . 

Yes,
it was Robert DeNiro,
wearing a corduroy jacket with suede elbow patches,
Touki Smith at his side with an incredibly tight fitting short dress. 

Just then, Richard Belzer, who's very very tall, emerged from the place, 
hailed a cab, popped in and was gone as folks shouted,
"It's the BELZ !  It's the BELZ !  It's the BELZ !"

Back in the kitchen,
my sugar syrup has begun to boil. 
I take it off the heat and put it in the fridge to cool.

Again, I'm taken by memory. 
This time to Junction Pool in Roscoe, NY, { The best Trout Fishing Town in the USA }. 
I'm walking my Chowmation dog, Miss Abbey at the river edge where two men are fishing. 

The short older man turns and calls to me with excitement,
"Ooh-ooh...miss...would you come here ? 
See this dawg ?  Look at this dawg ! 
This is exactly the kinda dawg I was telling you about ! 
This is the kinda dawg  you should get !" 

I could hear the other fellah say,
"What are ya doin, man ? 
I told you, I don't wanna be bothered by anyone today."  

"But we talked about this in the car and this is the kinda dawg I was talkin' about.
You gotta see it !" 

The man turned. 
It was Robert DeNiro...or his twin. 
He seemed very annoyed.

The syrup has cooled off. 
I add two and a half cups cold water,
stir and pour into feeders.

The hummingbirds will be happy. 
I hang one at my kitchen window and the second near the porch swing.

Spring is here and anything can happen.

Maybe I'll go see one of DeNiro's new movies:
THE  BIG  WEDDING
GRUDGE  MATCH 
FIRST  MAN

Whaddya  think  ?

It was June of 1981
when my husband,
Dominic J. DeFilippo
was honoured
for the first time
by the
NYC Police Department
for having single handedly apprehended a serial killer
on East 37 th. Street in Manhattan
just as two women were
being attacked with
a seven inch blade.

It would be Dominic's first
NYC Police Department Award,
but not his last.

He and his son,
Paul DeFilippo,
had earned the reputation
of being NYC Crime Fighters
in the Murray Hill Section,
and were given the nickname
"The  Wedges".

I was proud to be called
the
"Wedgette".

Yes...we were vigilant
in keeping the
69 Unit Apartment Building
we managed, lived in and had our Motion Picture Studio,
free of crime
and have collected
many stories to tell.

It brought tears to my eyes
to hear the news
of the death of our
Mayor Ed Koch
this week.

It was my fault
in being so enamored
with the Mayor
that I missed the shot
when my sweetheart
shook Mayor Koch's hand.

It's the single photo op
I regretted having missed the most
thus far.

Although he was extremely intelligent,
sharing witty remarks,
he came off as a humble clown,
his slacks sitting sloppily low
and more wrinkled than not...
as if he had been sleeping in his clothes,
and yet,
Mayor Ed Koch was
always ready to
send a genuine smile.

He was real;
not like the unapproachable
egomaniacs that seem to have
taken over the political arena.

Mayor Ed Koch was
fascinating
with his
unusual character
and I found myself
actually listening when he spoke.

Rest in peace, Mayor Koch.

God bless you
for your authentic love of
New York City and its People.