Jessica's Year Away From Smith: Walter's 90th Birthday

Last night I met up with Anne and Bob Kolber at 6th Ave. and West 3rd Street to take the subway to Brooklyn. It was great seeing familiar faces from home. I let them lead the way because they know their way around much better than I do. Anyway, we got on the subway and after getting on the wrong train and ending up back in Manhattan, we finally made it to Brooklyn and were on our way to Kings Highway. (Clearly they didn't know their way around as well as I thought they did. haha.) After arriving at Kings Highway we got a car service to take us to the restaurant where Walter and Adele were hosting the party. The party was in the back of the restaurant in a private room and there were so many people there. I really had no idea what to expect at this party. I knew I would see Linda and Armelle and the other Kesslers, but I had no idea I would see all of my New York family! It was very emotional for me because it made me realize how much family I have that I never get to see. I even met family I never knew I had.

I was sitting next to Armelle at the table and there was a woman sitting across from me. She asked me who I was and I said, "Walter's Great Niece" and she responded with a quick, "Who is your father?" I said "Richard Pollack" and she said, "I'm Phyllis!" I couldn't believe that I had been sitting across from Phyllis for 10 minutes and had no idea. The last time I really remember seeing her is when we stayed at her house in New York for Grandma Molly's funeral. It got me very emotional and I started tearing up, but I held it in. I just really couldn't believe all of the people I was seeing at this party. There were so many Pollacks!

Me with Phyllis and Janet.

Everyone said they wished my parents were there. (Mom and Dad, we really did miss you and I hope there is another occasion where everyone is together and we can get the big Pollack family together again.) Dinner probably started around 8 and we had the choice of 3 things to order. Then all the waiters brought appetizer plates for every person. I could have just eaten that for dinner, there was so much food. Then a plate full of pasta came out and I realized it wasn't a mistake, it was just another course before our main meal. After the pasta we were given a full plate of salad. And then after the salad we were FINALLY given our main course. Nobody could finish their main course because we were all so stuffed. In between all of these courses, people gave speeches and the things people were saying about Uncle Walter were hilarious. Everyone was cracking up the entire night. (Dad, you were mentioned in Bob's speech when he talked about the San Francisco Chapter of F.E.O.R.D., Former Employees of Royal Drugs!) By the time cake came and we were done with our meal, it was around 11pm. When the party was ending and everyone was heading home, I said goodbye to Uncle Walter and Aunt Adele and to the rest of my family that I saw throughout the night. It was really such a special night. Anne, Bob, Mel, and I took a car service back to Manhattan. (Mel is Linda's friend who lives in the East Village and wants to give me a tour of everything since he has been living here for 28 years.) Mel and I were dropped off in front of my apartment on St. Mark's, but decided to walk around for 10 minutes while Mel showed me some hot spots in the East Village. When I finally got back to my apartment, my roommates were having a few friends over so I hung out with them a little bit. Everyone was going to a party in Brooklyn, but since I had just been there and really didn't have the energy, I decided to stay home.

Today I woke up around noon and now I'm about to make myself something to eat and then start my homework (because I have a lot of it). Here are some pictures from last night: