2003-04-29 - 11:03 a.m.

the weather in nyc turned extra nice yesterday and everyone came outside. despite the emotional wreck that is my personal and professional life, even i was in a good mood.

my new guitar teacher is exactly like my ex-friend arthur. plus, now i'm trying to learn things that are actually hard for me: chord inversions, smooth voice leading, etc. i'm beginning to wonder exactly what i was getting out of the other lessons, they were so much easier and i felt like such an expert! learning jazz makes me feel like a retard. but i just couldn't bear to continue with the three-chord rock and roll.

so despite the fact that he reminds me of arthur and that i'm frustrated with the glacial pace at which i'm currently learning, i even enjoyed my guitar lesson. walking home up grand st, i noticed that the new bar on the corner had opened. the cute redheaded bartender beckoned me inside and poured me a gratis glass of chardonnay. several underemployed sculptors were already holding court at the bar, a few of whom i had met through my chess club. we argued congenially about globalisation and the anti-smoking laws until i realised that unless i went home soon to collect f and my chess boards i was going to be late for chess club.

choking down a naked juice and a few slices of salami for dinner, we headed down to the wonderful lucky cat. we had to move the chess club from the irish bar where we were previously stationed, and lucky cat is the perfect venue for us. several players who hadn't attended in months came out of the wood work to play. i got in several blitz games with r and his roommate. i played a round of thai and a round of medieval chess with a. a glass of cherry juice and three hours of intense gameplay made me pleasantly sleepy.

wandering home close to midnight along grand, everyone seemed to be stumbling around bumping into each other. the sheer benevolence of the weather after a brutal winter was disorienting. the late spring has all the trees in bloom and the air is heavily perfumed, as if in a dream. i wanted to stay out all night, but my eyelids grew heavy before i could even see the sugar factory.

ps: happy birthday, c! you are the sweetest friend an artist could want!