my town

Today I hung out with friends new and old, from dinner with a new friend to coffee and gelato with some old lab buddies.


As I was walking to meet my lab friends at the gardens, I noticed some unusual activity on one of the tiny streets I normally walk along. I especially liked the faux lightposts (note the bright green paint).


And later, as my friends and I wandered back up the hill with our gelatos, we saw even more action. Thanks to Sofiene's traslating, the rumors being circulated were that it was a new Woody Allen movie being filmed.


But the filming was in the way of me getting home, so we walked a few blocks around and then cut back across to my street. We stopped near the cones that were barricading the road to lick our dripping gelatos and say our long (french) goodbyes. Suddenly the guards in the street started moving the cones and telling us to get out of the way. An antique car came rolling up the narrow road and slowed to make the sharp corner onto the blocked-off portion of my street. It was an old convertible, 1920s style, with beautiful people dressed in period clothes spilling out onto the back of the car. We turned to look but I didn't recognize anyone. "Oh, some indie film," I thought. But then as the car turned I could see the people in the back more clearly and I locked eyes with Owen Wilson. We stared at each other for what seemed like too long to be coincidence. (I think he was jealous of my gelato - it was hot.) Then the car turned. I couldn't help but be so happy in my little neighborhood. I mean, I always thought it was beautiful but sometimes its nice to know that other people like it too. And mostly I was really proud. When I looked at Owen Wilson, I think there was this twinge of jealously. I could have said to him "I live here, don't you wish you did too?" Or maybe he really did just want my gelato.