Last night was marked by two dinners, the first with my mentor and friend Anne Midgette (she used to write music reviews for the NY Times, but will be taking a position at the Washington Post soon) and her husband Greg Sandow. Our meeting for drinks turned into a full meal, with lots of laughter, toasts, and talks of the arts community. Anne leaves soon to take her post as chief music critic at the Washington Post. I will miss her very much.

After hugging Anne and shaking hands with Greg, I parted just as rain drizzled in midtown Manhattan. I tried desperately to hail a cab with no luck. I made lemonades out of my misfortune by strolling through wet Times Square. Navigating the puddles, crowds, traffic and noise was like swimming. I surfaced on Madison Avenue, and decided just to ride the bus home.

Today we got a late start but decided to go people-watching in “The Dance Belt” (the streets and areas on the west side surrounding Lincoln Center that dancers frequent). Mother grew hungry so I took she and Dione to Le Pain Quintoden, the same place Tonya Plank and The Winger’s Tony Schultz ate at in July. We sat at the community table and I sipped their ultra-rich Belgian hot chocolate, Dione swears she saw Sasha Radetsky.

We walked through Time Warner Center and stopped at Borders for a copy of Dance Spirit but they didn’t have it, so we took a cab home. I think I’ll spend tomorrow learning the subway system.