Why I Love New York: #2,596,442

Last night we took Aiven for his first Passover Seder.  We had never been to this synagogue before and at first glance it seemed like senior's bridge night.  We almost turned around and left but are so glad we decided to stay.  The folks seated at our table were fascinating and enjoyable to talk to.  The cast of characters included:

Alex, Aiven and myself:  The redhead trifecta

• Jolly Old Saint Nate:  Occupation is that of Santa at Macy's and an evil claims adjuster on Spanish television
• Bert & Ernie:  A gay ensemble together for over 15 years who profess that although they experience daily doses of doubt have reached the point of tenure
• Debi, Evi & Fabio:  A former army brat who now writes children books for army brats; a southern belle who converted to Judaism before she ever met her Israeli husband of 16 years.  Since she was the mother of a 2 year old daughter, we talked quite a bit.  I sense her journey to motherhood was long, arduous...and miraculous.
  

And the Rabbi -- whom I immediately recognized but could not place -- hailed from L.A. where I lived for a decade and a half.  We played Hollywood Squares to figure out how we crossed paths in our past lives and I will have to stalk him on Facebook to unravel the mystery.

What an enchanting evening.  I <3 NYC.