Meghan remarked recently that everyone and his mother/dog was running on her trail the other day, but I have to respectfully respond that she should try running with everyone and his mother, dog, horse, mother-in-law, second cousin (thrice removed), ex-girlfriend's twin sister, accountant, barber and middle school principal. That's a closer approximation to what the Central Park Bridle path was like this morning. Actually, you'd have to also add in a couple busloads of Japanese tourists, a sorority's worth of women in sundresses and high heels and twenty to thirty six-year-olds learning to ride their bikes. And imagine that all of the above have cameras and are prone to stopping abruptly in their tracks to photograph the cherry blossoms.
And honestly, it wasn't that bad. It's hard to complain about much of anything when the sky is blue and the heady purfume of the sugar magnolias spins you around and dips you into the intoxicating tango of this long awaited, desperately longed for, abrupt arrival of spring.
Actually, I have a feeling I'm going to be missing the meandering hordes tomorrow morning, since an even worse obstacle is scheduled to descend upon the park....a presidential helicopter landing. There was already a huge police and secret service presence at the north end of the park this morning, so I knew something was in the works. It's odd to turn the bend in the path to be confronted by a crowd of large men in suits standing right there blocking your way, but I guess Mr. Bush is doing some sort of appearance at a school in Harlem tomorrow, so the north meadow baseball fields must be the closest place you can land a helicopter. Just for the practice landing they blocked off the east side of the bridle path, so I've got to imagine that tomorrow will bring even more restrictions. Perhaps a good day to run in Riverside Park instead, methinks. Or had I access to some form of teleportation, Yellowstone National Park!