new york tulips

I spent the morning admiring one of the most fleeting scenes in this concrete landscape. I am lucky enough to stay in a part of the city where tulips are planted in long rows, and where getting to Central Park is a five minute affair.

On my way, I got coffee at Via Quadronno. Whenever I go (it used to be a daily, impoverishing habit) I am struck by how good coffee can taste. But then I pay the check, and realize that at $4.50 for a regular cup, the beans must be hand plucked, shucked, roasted and ground, one by one.

The dog outside made me miss Guadalupe, who’s currently kenneled with a pair of elderly neighbors . They have a special love of moth balls, and I worry that when she gets home, she’ll have lost her sense of smell. I wish she could be here now sniffing around Manhattan’s roots–though I’m sure she’d just be digging up the bulbs and gnawing at the pedals. Next year, when she’s not so inclined to chew and scrounge in the dirt, I’ll plant some bulbs in the yard. As always, BBC Gardening has specific advice.

Tags: italian coffee, New York, spring, tulips