'Bee Season

A couple of Monday's ago I went to Central Park to throw the Frisbee with my buddy Joe. Oh by the way, Happy Birthday Joe.

Anyway, he had the day off work because it was Yom Kippur (he's not Jewish himself, he just teaches in the New York public school system) and it was an absolutely gorgeous day, so we went to do what is basically our favorite thing to do together. Well, besides drinking, criticizing bad movies and whining about getting old (HAPPY BIRTHDAY JOE!).

So we were in the Sheep Meadow section of the park getting some great air in perfect Frisbee-throwing weather having a great time and a tall skinny guy who looked like a younger version of Tony Kushner walked up and asked if he could join in. So we spread out and had a good three person throw going for a while. The guy who joined in at first threw pretty horribly and I was worried we made a mistake letting him in (Joe and I can be real Frisbee snobs), but once he warmed up he was fine.

A short time later a guy in a shirt and tie walking through the Sheep Meadow went up and spoke to Joe. Joe nodded and the guy took off his tie, rolled up his sleeves and joined in. And this guy could throw. Nothing like a great foursome in Frisbee to mix things up.

If that weren't enough, we had another guy jump in.

A hippy looking couple had been throwing three Frisbees to each other, real short distances trying to do some trick-type stuff, right by where I was standing. She eventually got bored or tired and went to sit down, and he turned towards us and asked in to our group. And he put another Frisbee in play. So we had five guys and two discs going. It was Frisbee Utopia.

Hippy Guy and I even started tipping the 'bees to each other, working in tandem as if we actually knew each other for more than three minutes

So here we were, Hippy Guy, Skinny Jewish Guy, Business Guy, Joe and me. For us I can't come up with anything but "Nondescript Late Thirties White Guys," which I guess is its own stereotype. Not a very interesting one, but there it is.

But what a great time. And of course the one thing I couldn't help but think to myself was just how happy I am that we don't live in fucking Boston anymore.

This kind of thing wouldn't have happened in Boston at all. Not only are people not social enough to walk up and talk to someone, but if one were to ask some people if they could join in their Frisbee, hacky-sack or other group activity, they would more than likely be told to fuck off.

So yeah, nice to be out of there.

But also thought, "Hey, for a couple of guys in their mid-thirties, Joe and I can still fucking do this. And well, dammit."

Probably helps that we both quit smoking years ago.