Seen & Heard

Head’s Up: Welcome to the debut of “Seen & Heard." It is to be a compilation of incidents – quirky, tender, shocking, telling, surprising, funny, etc. – that Yours Truly witnesses or experiences. Expect to read “Seen & Heard" a couple of times a month or so, usually during the weekend. Drumroll please …


A woman is walking along First Avenue in the 70s with two boys who may be her sons. The boys, about 12 and 10, respectively are walking on either side of her. She and the 10-year-old are holding hands until she frees her hand to adjust something in front of her. When she returns it to her side, the boy takes it in his … In two year’s time, will he rather be found dead than holding the hand of a woman who may be his mother? …

One minute we’re standing in the checkout line at CVS, the next we are watching a fistfight between two women. Two middle-aged women: Woman #1 and Woman #2. It started, methinks, when the cashier calls for the next person in line. Woman #1 is still collecting her purchases when Woman #2 pushes her, presumably out of her way. Woman #1 doesn’t take kindly to it. Words that I cannot hear are exchanged. Then Woman #2 pushes Woman #1 again. Woman #1 answers with a right hook to the face of Woman #2 who retreats, demanding that someone call the police. More words are exchanged, then spit when Woman #2 sprays the face of Woman #1 who responds with a flurry of objections and punches. At this point several CVS employees materialize and stop the brawl. Woman #1 has some parting words and leaves in a hurry. Meanwhile, “You’re an animal; you’re an animal,” the guy standing in front of me is chanting loudly and repeatedly to Woman #2 who clashes with him verbally while the flustered clerk rings up her purchases. Out Woman # 2 rushes, and a CVS employee informs no one in particular that she is in hot pursuit of Woman #1 who has reached the next intersection. The police are called, then called off when it is determined that there is going to be no further altercation ... This incident taught me two things. First, eyewitness testimony can be unreliable. It’s one thing to hear this from defense attorneys and their clients; it’s quite another to experience it one’s self as a witness. Almost immediately afterward, I was having difficulty recalling the sequence of events. Did Woman #2 actually push Woman #1; did Woman #2 spit at Woman #1 or on her? Second, I learned that shock (and fear) has the power to immobilize. My instincts were to stop the fight, but I could not move. I could not believe my eyes. One now has a lot more sympathy for victims in horror movies …

A dog is wearing a Fanny Pack. It looks like a horse saddle. Hats, socks, sweaters, strollers, umbrellas – sure. But a Fanny Pack? Do dogs have that much gear? ...

Outside at Luke’ Bar and Grill on East 79th Street and Third Avenue, Téa Leoni (pictured above) is speaking baby talk to a newborn. Not her own. … Digging those crocskin cowboy boots, T ...

It’s raining when I come out of the metro at Herald Square en route to Eighth Avenue. To stay dry and avoid being stabbed in the eye by an errant umbrella, I detour through Macy’s. Whew! One has to run a gantlet of Father’s Day shoppers (the sale is on!) to get to the next avenue. There are far more people herein than there are on the sidewalk … Anecdotal evidence that the Great Recession appears to be receding, if only for a day.