Dinner with Friends ~ Upper East Side 5.10.12

     Last Thursday, exactly a week ago, I had the pleasure of dining with some friends in a Mexican restaurant in the Upper East Side. They were from my photographic circle, so as you can imagine, I was eager to meet and dine with them, especially those I was meeting for the first time.  With the security of old friends being present, I was armed with safety in numbers for meeting new ones, and the evening was lovely. It sounds trite, but I will say the food was great and the conversation better.

     Without embarrassment, during dinner I even managed to break out my Canon from underneath the table, when the mood struck me. Non-photographers would have found it strange, and I'm sure some still did, that I photograph food and decor while dining. But they didn't. They were tolerant of my sometimes compulsive need to capture memories on film (ok, digital memory card) each time it is even marginally acceptable. It was comforting.

     The guacamole was the avocado stuff that legends are made of, with a chicken enchilada chaser and a straight-up margarita (with salt, course).  Did I mention the enormous quantities of tortilla chips I consumed? Because I did that, too.  And the laughter. So much happiness that night.

     And after the goodbyes and let's-do-it-again sentiments were exchanged, I headed back to my car (I had found close-by street parking, always very exciting for me in Manhattan, as if $60 magically appeared in my pocket!) and headed downtown.  But not before spotting a dead-end street near the East River, with an amazing views.  I stopped, parked, and snapped away at there, and other parts of gorgeous Manhattan along the way. It was a perfect night.