It’s very strange, how if I don’t eat, meaning skipping a meal- my spirits just plunge into despair. It happened today and it was very bad. Last night I saw RoDa and it was good. We talked as he worked at Maxwell’s. I helped out some as he worked and since we are both fans of Jean Michel Basquiat it was planned to go see an exhibition in Chelsea that ends this week. RoDa and I have a habit of trying to see shows and postponing over and over and before you know it the exhibition is over.

RoDa is a bigger Basquiat fan than I am and it seemed imperative that we go today. Hundreds of other people had the same idea apparently. I met up with RoDa with his wife and kids and we all headed onto the Path train. It was good that RoDa brought them though I think a lot of the art was over their heads and they wound up going through the exhibition leaving RoDa and I to check out each and every painting. It was very crowded and that meant inching along.

After the show we met up on the sidewalk. The kids were hungry and wanted McDonald’s and I was tired and wanted to take a nap. The cement floors of the gallery and the slow pace did not help my back at all, neither did helping out at Maxwell’s last night which was also standing around for a spell.

Let’s face it, I am getting old. RoDa understood my desire to go home so he and his family went one way in search of the golden arches and I went towards the Path train. When I entered the station I could feel the air hitting my face meaning a train was about to arrive. I was lucky and nabbed a seat and sat reading Barney Hoskyn’s Across the Great Divide, his book about the Band. I sat next to a man and woman who were discussing how books are read and how information is gathered from them.

I got to Hoboken and my spirits crashed. I just wanted to get home. I called Annemarie who was happy and funny and me on the other end just emotionally flat lining. She hit the nail on the head, I skipped a meal, low blood sugar equals crasherama. So I made a quick peanut butter and jelly sandwich which I washed down with some lemonade and then tried to take a nap. The food helped but the sugar in the lemonade did not help the napping. Instead of an hour like I hoped I got about 20 minutes.

But I do feel better and I will likely follow my sister’s advice and graze throughout the day, healthily rather than depend on the 3 meal plan I’ve been following. And now a cup of coffee since I do have things I have to do tonight.

RoDa and daughter

And rest in peace Phil Ramone. I worked with Phil in the 1990’s at Skyline Studios and Right Track Recording. Great guy and quite a character, very funny.

Produced by Phil Ramone.