TO KNOW ME IS TO LOVE ME

  01/12/25 7:03 am      Our first night on the boat was a hot one, waking up after only sleeping about 2 hours in a sweaty fever. The boat has AC but it could only be run when we have shore power. The drippings of the AC are pumped out of the bilge while we are docked and creates a very noisy water feature that spilled from the side of the boat. Because of this our neighbors had complained before we turned in for the night so we had to shut it off. Hopefully while we’re at sea we get more airflow.      The morning is beautiful despite the lack of sleep. I’m lying in the hammock B strung up between the masts, holding onto a hot cup of coffee. My radio app still worked here so I've been listening to WQXR. I entered in the middle of a Mozart Adagio. I spied a luxurious looking sailboat further out in the marina and watched as a man prepared his sails for departure while his young child laid atop the boom. 9:41 am      We all gathered at the...

  01/09/25      Our alarm went off at 4 am. I booked an Uber last night to pick us up at 4:25. Boarding was at 6:55, flight at 7:45. I had showered late last night, even straightened my hair, so I could wake up, get dressed, and be out the door without much effort. In the car, since I was already awake, I put in my headphones and tuned in to my latest companion, the RadioApp. 105.9 WQXR. Liszt’s   Hungarian Rhapsody No. 2 in C-Sharp Minor was playing. 5:35 am      I’ve never flown American and I’ve never been to this terminal of JFK before. The only open shops were a Hudson News with a Dunkin Donuts attached (and an exceptionally long line) and a hole-in-the-wall spot (with a much shorter line) simply named  New York Deli.  Looking into the prep area I could see a man working at a griddle. Thinking this was a step up from Dunkin’s microwaved sandwiches, H and I opted for the deli and ordered two bacon, egg, and cheese’s on a roll and two...

  01/11/24 7:27 pm      I have my headphones on noise cancellation as I drive on the FDR to Brooklyn. Ryuichi Sakamoto’s  20211130  is playing. The reverberation makes me feel lighter. The tunnel lights changing shape in the dark car comfort me. Drifting. 02/06/24 5 am      We’re in a car headed to JFK. Still dark out, the moon catches my eye. It’s a sliver. I don’t wear my headphones, I listen to the talk radio the driver has playing. A slight breeze from the crack in his window cools my face while the heated seat keeps me warm.      We’re sat at the gate. H grabs coffee and I read my book. I look up to see an astonishing sunrise. People are rushing to catch their flights. I stare into the sun. J and T don’t arrive until near boarding time. We’re all sat separately.  I finished Banana Yoshimoto’s  Kitchen , which I had started on my flight back to New York in December. I shed a few tears. The flight is shorter than I...