Parting Shots

Direct from the streets of my neighborhood tonight, a Nanny joke and a Brooklyn joke.
Note: if you have no experience with children or Brooklyn, you will find neither of these funny.

Walking home from the subway, I saw a little girl and her au pair emerge from Little Miss Muffin. I noticed the girl because she was wearing one of those stuffed animal backpacks- a bear in a hot pink tutu. It was kind of rad. I walked behind them for a while.

"Will you carry me on your back like a horse?" the little girl asked her babysitter.

"No," said the young au pair, Italian I think.

"Why?"

"Because my back it hurts."

They walked in silence for a few beats before the au pair, perhaps trying to make up for skipping the horsie ride, began to sing:

"There was a dog and he had a farm and Bingo was his name-o, D-I-N-G-O...."

("That's not it!" said the little girl)



Then, when I was walking to Medusa's house to babysit I came upon four young guys just a few doors down from Medusa's place. They had a car parked on the street blaring music, bass jumping. One of the guys had a dog and they we all kind of playing with the dog. A girl sat on the stoop. A police cruiser came by with its window rolled down. The cop didn't even say anything, just made a motion with his hand.

"What? Turn it down?" said one kid. As I walked by the sidewalk was practically trembling from the sound. I thought about BabyMedusa asleep nearby.

"Turn it off," said the cop.

"Aw come on," said another kid. And then he yelled after the retreating cop car, "This ain't Park Slope, man!"

Have a good weekend.