Yesterday, at the rowdy Bloomsday celebration that I have attended since its inception, some dude walked by me wearing this Tshirt, and I saw him coming at me and snapped my phone – at the very same moment that 5 people, arms around each other (including Joe Hurley – who was such a memorable presence the second time I attended this particular Bloomsday – friends for life after a party like that, we still reference it – as well as my friend Therese and our wonderful emcee, author Colum McCann, who does such a great job keeping the ship of the lunatic event afloat) were on the little stage bellowing out “The Old Triangle”, with the whole audience singing along at top volume in the middle of Wall Street. I was singing as I took this picture.
And the old triangle
Went jingle-jangle
All along the banks
Of the Royal Canal!
It was almost too much awesome at one moment.
The Guinness coming at me.
The tough-guy with the “Yes I said yes I will” T-shirt.
The rowdy voices on the stage.
The crowds at the picnic tables in the alley singing along.
The fact that everyone there knew all the lyrics.
The soft grey Irish weather.
You know when you are with your tribe.
S. There are days I miss NYC, and this was one of them.
NYC certainly has its moments, doesn’t it?
I’m so glad I basically tripped over this Bloomsday celebration in 2003 – I’ve been to them before and they can be pretty snooty affairs. This one is a hoot.
Also, it’s OUTSIDE – in this old alley that obviously used to be a street – wide enough – right near Fraunces Tavern (where George Washington made a famous speech to his command staff) – so there are bars that have tables out in the wide alley. So there’s something about being outside, with a microphone blaring people’s voices reading their excerpts from Ulysses into that alley, as waitresses go by with beers and burgers and all the rest … It’s so much fun.
I so rarely go down to Wall Street and I really like it down there. Totally different vibe.
Oh, and my favorite part of the day is when the celebration starts to wind down (around 5:30, 6:00) – so the Happy Hour non-Bloomsday night can start – and of course that is all Wall Street and Stock Exchange people – so for about an hour there’s this weird mix of Bloomsday maniacs and finance guys, all hanging out together. And there’s still some random person declaiming from their copy of Ulysses at the podium, with a rapt Bloomsday audience sitting around them, and guys in blue suits hold their beers on the sidelines, staring at the scene like “What the hell is … going … on … ” Not hostile but it’s like a foreign invasion. Worlds colliding.
and that is always the best part of being in NYC – the sheer amount of people and how sometimes, sometimes, we can work it out.
Sheila, thanks for this! I’m so happy up here in NH, even after almost 30 years in NYC, but there are still things one can’t find anywhere else on earth. Wall Street used to terrify me. I kept getting lost. Then I did a play down there (had to be all the way back in 1975, maybe?) somewhere down there … and actually got to wander around and started to love it. Then after 9/11, without the Towers as a beacon, I started getting lost again…..
I just love your “love” for it. Reminds me of the me I was a long time ago……..