Duck a l'Orange and Katy

There was a point in my life where I thought I should give New York a second chance. After I met Andy and we started traveling together, Andy got an apartment on the Lower East side of Manhattan. We lived at 1st and 1st which was always comical to us because there was a Seinfeld episode that was written around this block. 1st and 1st was known as the nexus of the universe on the episode, so we liked telling people that we lived there.

I picked up a part time job at the Barnes & Noble in Union Square, which I shamefully recall now, because I favor the independent bookseller opposed to the chains. In my own defense, I worked in the Music Department and not the Book Department. When I worked there, I was fortunate enough to meet a few celebrities- Tracee Ross (Diana Ross' daughter) when she was on Broadway in Ragtime, Sade (with child), and James Spader all come to mind. Other than that, it was a pretty regular job and I enjoyed alphabetizing the music and putting out the new releases.

Because I had the job, I couldn't always go with Andy when he was traveling and instead I would take mini-vacations to Brooklyn to visit my friend Katy. I had a section of her closet there where I kept a lot of my things and I could just pick up the phone, get on the subway and be at her Park Slope apartment in a jiffy. We would hang out together for a few days, reading stacks and stacks of magazines and watching random things on TV.

Park Slope was an up and coming neighborhood, so there were a few nice restaurants and bars around that we used to frequent. There was a deli across the street for incidentals and cigarettes, but to get to the actual grocery, it was a couple of blocks away, I remember. I never really bought that much at the grocery because you had to carry it home and then up the stairs to her apartment. Sometimes we would go together if we were cooking something, that way we could help each other carry all of the ingredients.

Sometimes I would be sitting with Katy in her living room and decide that I wanted something random. Usually it was chocolate and/or cheese. I would have to make the long trek to the grocery and back. I remember doing this in the winter too. I would ask Katy, "Doll, is there anything you need from the store?" She would answer, "Oh, please, Doll, everything. I have to make my own trip." I would offer to pick up whatever she needed and she would say, "No, really, it's not like I'm making Duck a l'Orange and forgot the oranges." It always made me laugh when she said this.

I will never forget that she said that and I say it all the time now, even if it's just to myself. It's such an easy way of saying- I don't even have salt and pepper in the pantry right now- I have a huge list and it would take you all day to shop for me. I always wanted to make Duck a l'Orange, though. I'm sure the Julia Child recipe is the way to go. Katy probably has made it before- and if she ever invited me for Duck a l'Orange, I would bring the oranges even if she didn't need them.