TD and I Got Married!

When I began this blog in 2008, 469 posts ago, I started with a post about TD, Beautiful Thing #1. I am happy to say that recently, upon the occasion of our 30th anniversary (how can that be?), we got married! With the Supreme Court decision in June making gay marriage a right, it was high time. On our fifteenth anniversary in 2000, we had a big commitment ceremony celebration party with family and friends at the home of garden designer Rebecca Cole on King Street in Soho.

This marriage ceremony involved only our two ministers at Judson Memorial Church, Rev. Dr. Donna Schaper and Rev. Micah Bucey, to officiate. A few days before the ceremony, we went to the City Clerk's Office to apply for a marriage license. I had been to the office last summer with my sister Cynthia and Barb. The City Clerk's Office is a joyful, happy place because everyone there is getting married. There are all kinds of couples - young, old, gay, straight, every race and combination you can think of. It's very New York. Some people are dressed up, like women in bridal dresses, and we saw kids in short and flip flops. Some couples come with family and friends, some couple come alone. But everyone, as they wait anxiously for their number to come up, is happy to get married!

Once we had our marriage license we took it to Judson Memorial Church for the marriage ceremony with our two ministers. Our ministers know us very well so the marriage ceremony was very intimate and personal and perfect. We did it!

Afterwards, a picture outside in Washington Square Park –

We promptly high-tailed it out of town and headed north to Hudson, New York, a once prosperous river town which had fallen on hard times but is now a favorite destination with a plethora of good restaurants, bars, antique stores and art galleries. A lot of New Yorkers with good taste have moved up to Hudson. We stayed at the Inn At Hudson which was built as private home in 1903.

It's a beautiful inn with gracious hosts. We recommend it.

After enjoying the pleasures of Hudson we drove farther north up to Argyle, New York, to visit my uncle Brian and wife Susan. They own some houses on top of a hill with beautiful views and down the road is a peaceful lake.

Susan took us to her favorite antique stores in the area which was great fun, and we enjoyed some wonderful dinners with them. It was a most relaxing Labor Day weekend.

Back in New York my brother Thom and his wife Karen hosted a celebratory dinner. Karen, who is trained at Le Cordon Bleu, made an extremely delicious buttercream wedding cake decorated with two elegant grooms which she searched for -

She also made vanilla heart-shaped cookies personalized with our initials -

Two grooms –

It's a beautiful thing.

Christmas Eve in Greenwich Village

University Floral Design on University Place.

Last night on Christmas Eve TD and I trundled over to University Place to have a holiday drink with my long-time friend Abigail and her family. I met Abby the third month I lived in New York in 1983 and we have been great friends since. Now she's married and has three beautiful children – such a delight to see on Christmas Eve. Then TD and I headed over to Grace Church, built in 1846 on Broadway, for their service called A Festival of Nine Lessons and Carols (our church Judson Memorial held a festive Christmas service this past Sunday). We had been to this Christmas service at Grace once before and I have wanted to return.

At the very beginning, the choir, led by children, proceed into the church, each holding a candle. The few children's voices peal out, delicate and clear like a bell. Bingo. Tears in the eyes. It's so beautiful. So simple. Really transporting.
The choir proceeding in:

The service included many wonderful carols and readings. The Reverend J. Donald Waring gave the sermon. He spoke about Christmas being "a thin place" where heaven meets earth. I knew what he was talking about – those unique places where or moments when you are beyond the realities of the world and experiencing something special that is removed from the grind of everyday life.

The lights in the church dimmed and the congregation knelt to sing "Silent Night." We each had received a candle at the front door, and now they were lit, neighbor to neighbor. There were no instruments, just the rising voices and candle light in the darkened church. We were in a thin place.

It reminded me of Christmas Eves in my childhood. This was when we lived in the little Cape Cod house on Morris Circle in New Hartford. We always invited for dinner my grandparents, my father's parents, and my aunt Betty who lived with them; she passed away two years ago. Towards the end of the evening, the lights in the living room were turned off and we sang around the colorful Christmas tree. After "Silent Night" Betty always said, "That one is my favorite."

A few more carols, and the choir proceeded out.

It really was a beautiful thing.

I am wishing you many thin places, wherever you may find them.

We usually celebrate a jolly Christmas Eve in Montclair with my brother Eric's family but this year there was a change of plans – right now we are packing for Mexico! My brother Thom has invited the family to join him in Puerto Vallarta to celebrate his birthday. We are very excited to say the least. Feliz Navidad and Happy New Year!

Fall Days in New York

A cloudscape on Bowery.

The last two days in New York City have been beautiful, with thin white clouds skittering across a clear blue sky like shallow water lapping at the shore. Fortunately I have some free time to enjoy it!

On Wednesday I went up to midtown to have lunch with my friend Abby and then I attended a reading at the library where my friend author Michael Gross was talking about his new book Rogue's Gallery, about the Metropolitan Museum of Art – more on that in a subsequent post. Later I went to a birthday party for my friend artist Richard Haines in a tiny, rockin' East Village gay bar.

Thursday, I hopped on the blue Schwinn and headed downtown along the Hudson River Park. The river sparkled through the green.


Fall colors are coming to the trees


and the grasses that line the park.


Downtown, I had lunch with my friends from the ad agency. It was great to see them.



Back on the bike, I headed to Soho to check out some stores. Opening Ceremony, on a little street called Howard Street, carries avant garde fashion for men and women. Odin, on Lafayette, has cool clothes for guys. Then I went to one of my favorite stores in New York, John Derian, on East 2nd Street.


I've been writing here about Rough Luxe, and John Derian is a master. The store has a country vintage feel, and he offers iron tables with wood tops, lamps made out of industrial parts, and tee shirts printed with nineteenth century images.


The front of the store features tableware and handmade decoupage objects.


There is peeling paint and a weathered edge but still everything is very refined.

Next door he has another store which sells textiles and is a little softer. It's always fun to visit John Derian. And it was a pleasure to be outside enjoying the city on these afternoons. I still get amazed by the sheer power and population of New York. Uptown, downtown, east side, west side, day or night, the city's energy and its people go on in every direction. I've lived in New York for twenty-six years but sometimes on the street I still look around and think to myself, "I love New York so much."