A few more stellas were blooming on Friday.  Along the path, a wood anemone, also known as windflower, poked through the underbrush, laden with buds.  Another stand of wood anemone, under the pin oak across the road from Daniel Webster, was in full flower, with buds sufficient to last the rest of the summer.

I stood up when Colin sat down.  Before long, a woman from Munich came by with a dollar.  We talked auf Deutsch, until my German faltered, and I reverted to Hawaiian.  “Aloha.”

A mother of 2 walked by.  “Have you got time for a hula today?”  Mom consulted with her kids; the 5-year-old girl was game, but the 8-year-old boy would have nothing to do with the hula.  While the girl struggled to keep her arms up and moving, her brother called out instructions.  He grabbed a handful of leis off the back of my case and put them over his sister’s head, one by one by one.  Never flinching, the girl concluded her dance with a twirl and a curtsey.  Her mom gave me $2.

A teen-aged boy in long black pants and a sleeveless T-shirt strutted by.  “S’up,” he said, tossing a dime and a penny into my case.  When I broke for a long swallow of water after playing for 30 minutes, I’d already made my carfare.

The rain started lightly, carried by a cold wet wind blowing in from the west.  People started scrambling as it rained more heavily.  I threw everything into my case and carried it into the arcade, where I found a seat along the wall.  A do-wop group, accompanied by a bass viol, entertained the crowd.

Dominic, the big bubble man, carrying his bucket of soapy water and netting, found a spot to sit down near me.  “No bubbles in the rain?”

“Are you kidding?” he said.  “Every raindrop falls like a rock.”

“I’m not sure I have the patience to wait this out,” I said.

“It won’t last,” said Dominic.  “Look, it’s clearing already.”  Indeed, there were small patches of blue amid the dark clouds moving toward us from Central Park West.

“Ok,” I said, “you convinced me.”

After a rain delay of 15 minutes, I ventured forth and set up again.  I played for the next hour, yet despite the return of the crowds, $3.16 was all there would be.