Pretend Normal

A first social gathering since the onset of these COVID times.

No urgent purposes, no missions.  Just getting together with friends for the sake of company.  Masked, outside.  A city "hike" around Roosevelt Island.

To the lighthouse ... on Roosevelt Island.

Friend "Writer/OT" proposed it; I was marginally hesitant, but then another careful friend, "Activist," was willing, which made me more willing.  Sissy was not so keen, but since I won't see the folks again until Christmas, she begrudgingly accepted.  Not that she could have done anything to stop me from going.  I jumped at a chance to resume some sense of normalcy, and to put off impending work - a rite of the long Thanksgiving weekend.  Balance.

So we went.  The three of us took the tram, which required masks, limited capacity, and had the transoms open for the short four minute trip over - not bad for precautionary measures.  We met friend "Defense Attorney" there.  And we walked, and talked.

Duplex for some lucky birds.

Friends were here before us - at some point.

There was nothing monumental about it.  Other than that it happened - the first purely social get together since March.  Eight months. 

From Tom Otterness's "Marriage of Money and Real Estate."

It was not as fulfilling as perhaps I was hoping of a reunion after so long a period apart.  Though, truth be told, I had seen two of the three during Defense Attorney's pressing office move a few weeks back - so that might have contributed to the lower sense of novelty and satisfaction.  

But it distracted from matters at hand.  And so in that sense, it was a successful excursion.  Thanksgiving was the start of that process - refocusing my attention on all I am fortunate to have.  This excursion was more fortune piled on top.  It all helps to suppress the mournfulness.  Maybe that was really it; to expect a friend gathering to completely subsume the other was really too much too ask.  Evaluated on its own merits, the outing was lovely.