Despite the stormy forecast, the weather remained fine, so I ventured out for the third day in a row. It was much cooler than earlier in the week, and the humidity was tolerable. A breeze blew in off the lake. Wispy mares\u2019 tail clouds floated high in a bleached blue sky. The mood in the park was slow, sedate; bicycle riders stopped at red lights.<\/p>\n
Two young siblings from Timmins, Ontario, Canada, stopped to dance despite their dad\u2019s saying \u201cno, no, no,\u201d when I asked if they had time for a hula. Mom took video, then put $2 in my case. <\/p>\n
For another hour, no one paid any attention to me. Near closing time, an overweight boy in wire-rimmed glasses peeled away from his friends and dropped 16 cents. \u201cThanks, kid.\u201d<\/p>\n
I felt myself circling the drain all week, yet every day so far I managed to escape the insult of a zero-dollar day. Next week, like most New Yorkers, I\u2019m leaving town. Perhaps September will see the return of the free-spending ukulele lovers. Until then, \u201cAloha.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"