Jill lives in DUMBO (short for Down Under the Manhattan Bridge Overpass), a developing neighborhood of Brooklyn. She lives in a gorgeous converted loft, with a view of the Statue of Liberty, Brooklyn Bridge, and New York skyline. Jill moved there from Manhattan six years ago, and it has since become one of the most coveted places to live. Parks are springing to life everywhere. A new, 15-mile bike path has been opened. And inexpensive, but good, little restaurants are sprouting up all over the place. There's even a little beach a short walk from Jill’s home.
A typical night with Jill goes like this. We decide on a movie or play (never more than two days in advance). We then meet in our seats. We talk for the five or ten minutes before the movie/play begins. We talk again for another few minutes as we walk to the subway.
Tonight is an exception. In typical fashion we make our plans yesterday. Very impromptu. But instead of a movie or play, we decide on dinner. And, we decide to meet in Brooklyn, not Manhattan.
I arrive early and we spent time at Jill’s apartment and then walking around. We end up at a hip little restaurant called Heights Café. It’s perfect. Jill is a healthy eater, so I follow her lead and choose the individual, thin-crusted pizza, mine with plum tomato, fresh mozzarella, basil, and caramelized onions. It arrives and is big enough to easily feed two. I figure that I’ll take half home.
But once we start talking, I get lost in conversation. The real nourishment comes from the stories we tell and the laughs we share. And besides, carrying half a pizza from borough to borough on a steamy summer New York night is not appealing.
I eat the whole thing.
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