Central Park Film Festival.

Last night made me feel like a real New Yorker.

I went to the final evening of the 2010 Central Park Film Festival last night with my girlfriends Gillian and Charity. It was such a great event! They set up a giant screen at Mineral Springs (just north of the Sheep's Meadow) on a field that is sort of a natural amphitheater, all downward sloping to create a perfect viewing situation. It's fenced off, and they open the gates at 6:30 for the 8 p.m. movie.

We arrived around 6:15 to find a line already 100 people long at least, and at 6:30 people were practically running to stake out their spots with blankets and picnic baskets. It was wild!

We had our own great little picnic, but part of the fun was checking out what the other movie-goers brought for their dinners - a great range of Chinese takeout, Central Park hot dogs, Whole Foods takeout salads, homemade sandwiches . . . it's funny to see New Yorkers do "picnic" food. Fabulous.

Yesterday was the last night of the 5-day film festival punctuated with a showing of Woody Allen's 1979 Manhattan. I had never seen it, but I'm glad I did! It featured really iconic images of New York, and every time one of these images came across the screen, the entire field of picnicking New Yorkers cheered and clapped.

Walking home from the park last night, I believe, I felt like a young, social, happy, pretty, single New York girl more than any other time in the past 9 months.