http://www.nytimes.com/2016/09/26/nyregion/metropolitan-diary-talking-parades-with-the-police.html 2016-09-27 02:53:16 Talking Parades With the Police Recalling a first Halloween in New York, and an unexpected chat with three friendly officers. === Dear Diary: On my first Halloween in Gotham City, an old boyfriend and I retreated to the warmth of a deli on 50th Street. We had tried to go to the parade, but I was too cold in my flowy, black, not-meant-for-New-York-autumn skirt. We were dressed as Batman and Batwoman. I had spent hours perfecting a Batwoman mask painted onto my forehead and cheeks. Two bites into my deli cheeseburger, three police officers approached the section where we were seated. One of the officers nonchalantly invited himself to our table, pulling up a chair. He asked us what seemed like 20,000 questions: how old we were, how we met, our plans for the night and so on. I felt confused, nervous and slightly ridiculous in my costume. The officer’s female partner, sitting a few tables away, laughed. She eventually yelled at him to leave us alone. The tension broken, we talked with the three officers for a while. We asked if they knew the best spot if we wanted to try another parade come They got a call on their radios and had to rush away. Just when I thought I had survived my first She smiled and said they would give us a call if they had any leads on good viewing spots for Thanksgiving morning. We never heard back, and left the Macy’s parade early because of the cold, too.