1: wake up and shower in a pink bathroom. shave your legs behind the new shower curtain that is an old black and white photograph of paris.
2: hop on the C and have coffee in the chelsea market. surprised, reply “yes, we have met before,” and then blush and nod when he recalls the details. decline free cappuccino.
3: walk on the high-line and take photographs of italians taking photographs of the high-line. remark at the beauty of tenth avenue, the length of which is remarkable as it is seen from your particular spot, looking straight down uptown.
4: head south of houston. identify with west side. reject all incoming phonecalls. read a text message that temporarily ruins your mood. call and take care of it. worry about your friend. let the heat seduce you out of your sweater.
5: step into murray’s cheese shop. don’t buy anything. step into amy’s bread. ciabatta for your roomate. step into the yogurt place and accept a taste of the best damn greek yogurt in new york.
6: sit on the steps of a real estate agency with your roomate and your lunch: a roast turkey sandwich.
7: go see audrey tatou at the angelika theater: 4:15. hold her hand and cry together when boy dies. feel what nobody else in the theater feels. feel the loss of him. understand the gravity of this loss and feel your shoulders sag. hear yourself sob and watch tears stream down her cheeks. want to hold her tight. stop shaking your foot.
8: choose the Q.
9: make salad while she paints another room in the apartment. after dinner she’ll want to lay a second coat and you will be inspired to
10: make a cake completely from imagination:
OLIVE OIL CAKE
in a big mixing bowl add three quarters of a cup of extra virgin olive oil with two eggs and one and a half teaspoons vanilla.
in a medium mixing bowl combine two cups semolina flour, one tablespoon baking powder and one tablespoon baking soda.
slowly add flour mixture to olive oil mixture. stir until smooth. add one cup almond milk and continue to stir for about a minute.
pour mixture into a 9 x 12 cake pan that is greased with olive oil and powdered with flour. sprinkle sliced almonds on the top of the cake. bake at 350º for about twenty five minutes.
once the cake is finished, set pan on a cooling rack and spread honey on top. pour some hot almond milk over the cake - not so much that the cake drowns, but enough that it soaks in the milk and honey.
serve with sweetened mint tea.
