Noo Yawker

I was sitting in a little deli opposite the local Hilton just yesterday. Sitting opposite me was my corvid friend from NYC. He was telling me things I hadn't heard before.

"There's a kind of controlling, power-hungry authoritarianism in charge at that place. Well, you had a learning experience, and everything's good now! I'm glad that you've moved on."

He went on to describe the details of a few things. As always, he offered a balanced view. Claim, counterclaim, justification, defence, everything. Then he told me, "This may be the last year of the program. It's kinda sad because this is our 20th year. But funding's low. The NYT might be closing down."

It was a sad moment. I felt despondent — for a fraction of a second.

He continued, "I'll be retiring soon though, and so will my wife, and I'll be coming out to visit old friends and I might even bring my dawwter with me, she's all grown-up now. We'll do a kind of retirement world tour..."

And the world looked right again.