Christmas In New York

Sitting in a Times Square fast-food outlet, I'm being coyly flirted with by the Latino trannies sitting across the booth-divider. Yes, I'm doing fine tonight, thanks for asking. The West African staff is serving up traditional Japanese dishes, all of which come with Brooklyn cheesecake or Cuban flan, your choice. German tourists sit hunched over their meals, excitedly showing each other the screens of their digital camera and shouting to be heard over the restaurant's sound system, which is presently pumping out the bossa nova version of We Wish You A Merry Christmas. Occasionally, I can hear the steel drum band out on 42nd Street, Jingle Bells rendered through a Bahamian filter. Behind their drums, a crowd is lined up at the world's busiest movie theatre, waiting to see a movie about Mayan cannibals. I pick up my tray and survey the scene around me one more time. A holiday painting from Norman Rockwell, this is not. Cool.