The process of moving, I'm afraid, makes for some disjointed blog posts. It's hard to develop a cohesive thread when your life is entirely upended. As we pack we're also scouting places in SF, closing out accounts here in NY, preparing the apartment for our renter, and trying to scratch as many items off our NYC bucket list as possible. Mimi's adding to the frenetic atmosphere with her own special approach to packing: 1. Find box; 2. Remove contents; 3. Drool on contents; 4. Relocate contents to locations unreachable or unknown (there are such places in a 650 sq. ft. apartment and Mimi has, somehow, found them); Repeat.
In terms of the bucket list, we've scratched off two in the past two days. Despite yesterday's downright offensive humidity - something I will not miss in SF - we trudged over to Patsy's Pizzeria for a last slice of genuine NYC thin crust pizza. Patsy's has been around since 1933, and while it doesn't get the same play as Grimaldi's or some of the other upstarts, it's consistently good, family friendly, and there's never a wait. I think Mimi enjoyed her first pizza out with Mama and Papa. Well, at least she really liked the food. Here's her reaction when I tried to take another piece.
Born and raised in California, I still prefer - and it hurts to admit this - California pizza to pizza from NYC. To be specific, a pie from Mountain Mikes with double cheese and triple pepperoni. But this isn't to say that one pie is better than the other. I have a theory about pizza preferences and it's held up fairly well over the years. The pizza you love is the pizza you grew up with: the favorite pizza of your childhood. It's the ultimate take-out comfort food.
We also had a chance to catch up with a few friends at the Boat Basin. This is a relatively unknown NYC attraction, graced with mediocre food and only passable drinks, that offers one of the best outdoor dining experiences in the city. Actually within Riverside park, the Boat Basin Cafe is nestled directly under the 79th street exit roundabout and features some of the best Hudson River views going, particularly around sunset. There are no signs for it and no parking. As a result the crowd is local, laid-back, and generally ready to drink. If you get a chance, and it's between May and October, definitely go!
Two days ago we packed up the vast majority of Mimi's toys. So far she hasn't missed them. I'm taking this as a clear sign that Mimi needs fewer playthings and would benefit from a greater influx of parent-oriented toys, such as a pinball (Sumie will probably disagree with me on this one). Of the few toys remaining her favorite is a little pull-along puppy we picked up a few days ago.
She calls for him by name, "Wan-wan!," and loves to give him kisses. I'm rather amazed at how she has taken to him, almost as if he were a real puppy. She can't pull him around that well yet, despite numerous efforts, so Sumie has tied his leash to Mimi's walker. Now Mimi takes him for a walk up the hall to the bedroom and back, perhaps with a quick stop in the kitchen or bathroom, at least 12 times a day. I kind of doubt that any dog, let alone a plastic one, needs to be walked so incessantly, but Mimi's pretty insistent about it. Perhaps she knows something I don't.
But Mimi's puppy care isn't just a matter of walking and kissing. She knows that dogs need to eat, too. Earlier tonight Sumie encircled Mimi with a few of her remaining toys. Before too long, Mimi took out a plastic spoon and cup and began to feed them. Amazingly, and I still don't know how she knew to do this, she focused on feeding the two dogs.
Now, she's seen Sumie's parents' sheltie, Harry, eat at home, but he always ate from a bowl. Mimi was feeding these doggies with a spoon, just as she would feed herself. And when that got tiresome, she'd bring the cup up to their mouths, tilting it so that they could get a sip. She was feeding them like we would a child, not a puppy. At the same time she was refusing to feed any of the more "human" toys, the Star Wars characters. To me this was fascinating. In some ways, I think, Mimi saw the dog toys as more like her - more needing of care. As I mentioned last time when discussing taking Mimi's house apart, I think she's beginning to extend feelings to objects now, to relate to objects in her world as people may relate to her. I'm very excited to see where this takes her, particularly after she starts talking.
It's not all kindness, though. Apparently, Mimi, like Lando Calrissian, has no love for the Empire or the specialists they hire. "Bounty Hunters," I can hear her say, "We don't need their scum." I think the video below proves it. No matter how much I tell her, in Japanese, that Boba Fett is hungry and needs to eat, she just isn't having it.
-Steve
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