Beautiful morning. Rose early for my interview, and had to pass through a corner of the Bronx on the way to the station: the El clattering overhead, traffic worse than insane, and yet everywhere these neat and spotlessly dressed Puerto Rican kids, being led by their moms or dads to school. In most cases the parent held the kid’s hand, even if the kid was 12, and in most cases there was an evident connection. Beautiful to watch. But on the faces of those young parents the strain of living for so long in such a loud, crowded city showed. You could see them trying to protect the kid from it, and actually succeeding. Must require amazing strength.

The radio station is on the Fordham campus. Jesuit school, quiet little oasis surrounded by city, with the NY Botanical Gardens across the street. Great staff, and a great interviewer: George Bodarky. He interviewed me for 30 minutes: good, insightful questions. Of course we got into the the SoHo/Chelsea scene–both the real side of it and the absurd side. Great deal of fun. Afterward he took me on a tour of their new facility, which they’ll move into next week.

Now? Think I’ll take a stroll in the Botanical Gardens, then later have lunch with an old girlfriend in Tarrytown. Tonight I’ll give a talk at the Art Center of Northern NJ, for all those artists who can’t afford to live in NY. Looking forward to it. Always felt Jersey got a bad rap.