‘On a Whim, I Decided to Do a Silly, Shirley Temple-esque Tap Dance’

Solitary Show

Dear Diary:

It was late one night in the 1970s. I was taking the PATH train home to Hoboken from Christopher Street after a rehearsal when I noticed a bank of cameras aimed at the turnstiles.

What a boring job it must be to have to stare at them all night long, I thought.

There was no one else waiting on the platform so, on a whim, I decided to do a silly, Shirley Temple-esque tap dance to amuse whoever was monitoring the cameras. I fake-tapped up and down the staircase a few times and ended with a big finish. Ta-da!

As I curtsied, I was startled to hear a series of slow claps coming from somewhere off in the darkness. Looking around, I saw that a young man had stepped out from behind one of the columns at the far end of the platform and was applauding.

I was embarrassed but smiled gamely.

“Thanks,” I called out.

One evening sometime after that, I was standing on a long line with some friends outside an Upper East Side movie theater when a man behind me tapped me on the shoulder.

I turned around.

“Excuse me,” he said, “but did you do a tap dance one night at the Christopher Street PATH station a bunch of years ago?”

I was absolutely flabbergasted.

“Oh no,” I said. “Were you watching the monitors that night?”

“No,” he said. “I was the guy at the end of the platform. I clapped for you.”

— Francesca Rizzo

A Madman’s Parting

Dear Diary:

The leaves are like birds
Tossed downwind
On Madison Ave.,
When the spirit
Of the copywriter
Flew with the breeze
Upon his departure,
As October closed in
And the congregation turned
Red and gold.

— Kathryn Anne Sweeney-James

Seen on the F

Dear Diary:

When my husband and I were first dating, I invited him to “cabaret night” at the new restaurant some college friends had opened on the Lower East Side.

We were on a comfortably full F train when a youngish guy in a letterman jacket recognized my future spouse and broke into a grin.

“Dude,” the young guy said, beaming, “you were so great as that detective in ‘The Mask’!”

My future spouse smiled and thanked him.

We pulled into the Delancey Street-Essex Street station and lost the guy in the crowd as people surged off the train and up the stairs.

We reached the curb above just as the “Don’t Walk” sign began the countdown to “Walk” — a blessed moment to catch our breath.

I gave my future husband’s hand a squeeze.

“Guess he was a little young to realize you were also the Pickle Man,” I said.

He laughed, the light changed and we crossed Delancey.

— Cornelia Read Riegert

Delicious

Dear Diary:

Some years ago, I took a cab to Second Avenue and Eighth Street. The cabby told me it was where the egg cream had been invented. Then he parked his cab, took me inside and treated me to that delicious drink.

— Karen Allison

Lexington Avenue Express

Dear Diary:

I was in New York for a job interview in March 1966. After waking up early in my hotel across from Grand Central, I asked the concierge whether I should take a taxi to Wall Street.

He told me the Lexington Avenue express would be faster and directed me to the terminal.

Allowing plenty of time to get to my 10 a.m. appointment, I entered Grand Central at about 8:45 a.m. I was stunned at the mass of people moving in every direction.

After trying politely to ask several people where to catch the Lexington Avenue express, someone finally pointed to the information booth below the clock. From there, I was directed into the bowels of the terminal.

I finally found the right track and watched as trains rushed by in both directions. After a few minutes, I realized that the crush of people had subsided. Standing near me was a man in a three-piece suit who was reading The Wall Street Journal.

Thinking he looked like someone on his way to Wall Street, I asked for him for directions. He said he was going that way and suggested I accompany him.

After we got on the train, we sat next to each other and chatted. After a few minutes, he said I sounded like I was from Texas.

After a couple of more questions, we introduced ourselves. He repeated my last name, and I confirmed that he had it right. Then he asked if I had a sister named Selma. I confirmed that as well.