magicbeans. nothing if not awkward.

I waited on the downtown C/E platform at Spring Street for half an hour. With a whole lot of other people. Turns out there weren't any trains stopping at the downtown platform. No signs. No caution tape. No announcements. Eventually a good samaritan on the other side yelled out, "Hey, there's no trains stopping there."

So, across, uptown, and and around, another long wait at West 4th, a sluggish train, another long wait at Hoyt Schermerhorn. Finally home around 3:00 am. The potential of four and a half hours sleep. But no, four and a half hours of tossing and turning uncomfortably.

Up after at best two hours. Shower, dress, coffee, bus, train, Metro-North New Haven Line. My cousin Tom and his girlfriend Clare are having a kid. Ostensibly today was a baby shower, but not so much in the traditional sense, and more of a big friends and family party. A little like a wedding reception without all the overhead and stress associated with a wedding.

Tom's going to be the first parent in my generation on my mom's side. And they're talking about moving from Harlem down into Brooklyn, perhaps even my neighbourhood. Second cousin doesn't sound quite as good as uncle (it's bidirectional, for one), but maybe I'd get to feel a little like an uncle.