A Moment of Love, Before a Goodbye

Dear Diary:

I waited for you at the Bedford stop on the L train. We said we’d meet up and spend some time together. It was my birthday and you wanted to do something special with me in spite of my protests of celebrating.

I sat on a wobbly wooden pallet, waiting. You were running late and I was running early so I sat for a while staring at the crowd passing by, excited to be living another Friday night. After a while I stood up to stretch and noticed a van selling marijuana lollipops on the corner of North Seventh and Bedford.

“Hurry! Get your lollipops before we go to Philly!” one enthusiastic sales rep yelled from the front seat of the van. It was one last plea from the purveyor to partake in the product before departing to another city. I didn’t know if I would ever see that van again.

I received your phone call shortly after that scene.

“Hey. I just got off the train. I’m on Driggs and North Seventh.”

I walked in your direction and there you stood, an angelic Japanese woman who didn’t have much time left in New York. Before you disappeared to another land, I wished to partake in the warmth of your love before you became just a memory. You obliged.

I did see that van again. I hope one day I’ll see you again, too.

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New York Today: Skyward

This morning, Mayor Bloomberg will cut a ribbon and declare 4 World Trade Center open for business.

It’s the first tower completed on the original World Trade Center site â€" a big step forward in the long rebirth at ground zero.

Want a sneak preview?

Click on the video above.

It was produced by two Times reporters, David Dunlap and Stephen Farrell, who toured the building the other day.

Four World Trade Center is not to be confused with One World Trade Center, which, at 1,776 feet, was declared the nation’s tallest building on Tuesday.

Still, Four World Trade Center is nearly 1,000 feet high.

And from the inside, it’s pretty spectacular.

On the upper floors, there are no columns in the middle, so the space is wide open.

“When you step out onto a floor, with an 80-foot-wide prospect of the harbor, your socks are knocked off,” Mr. Dunlap told us.

The building, which will be home to the Port Authority and city offices, must strike a balance between commerce and commemoration.

Its lobby faces the Sept. 11 Memorial, Mr. Dunlap noted.

Here’s what else you need to know for Wednesday.

WEATHER

Bone-chilling. A high of 39, but with stiff winds, making it feel like it’s in the teens or low 20s.

The good news: temperatures should hit 60 over the weekend.

COMMUTE

Subways: Click for latest status.

Rails: Click for L.I.R.R., Metro-North or New Jersey Transit status.

Roads: Click for traffic map or radio report on the 1s.

Alternate-side parking is in effect the rest of the week.

COMING UP TODAY

- Mike Tyson signs his autobiography at Barnes and Noble in Midtown. 12:30 p.m. [Buy the book to get a wristband, then line up].

- Lifestyles of the rich, 1890s style: “Gilded New York” opens at the Museum of the City of New York.

- Liberate yourself from facial-recognition technology at a mask-making workshop at the Eyebeam Gallery in Chelsea. 6:30 p.m. [Sliding scale, click to register]

- Behold an Iatmul pigment dish from Papua New Guinea at a show of tribal art opening at Arader Gallery on the Upper East Side. [Free]

- Learn about the headstone that led to the unearthing of America’s first Yiddish cookbook, with Sam Roberts, a Times reporter, at the Lower East Side Tenement Museum. 6:30 p.m. [Free]

- For more events, see The New York Times Arts & Entertainment guide.

IN THE NEWS

- The Bloomberg Administration dropped a plan to make the East Side more skyscraper-friendly in the face of opposition. [New York Times]

- A Francis Bacon triptych sold for $142 million â€" a new record for an artwork at auction. [New York Times]

- A video appears to show clerks in a 7-Eleven in Brooklyn stripping and beating a man suspected of stealing a Snickers bar. He is suing. [New York Post]

- The last cat left at the A.S.P.C.A’s shelter for animals stranded by Hurricane Sandy has found a home. [Daily News]

Joseph Burgess contributed reporting.

New York Today is a morning roundup that stays live from 6 a.m. till about noon.

What would you like to see here to start your day? Post a comment, email us at nytoday@nytimes.com or reach us via Twitter using #NYToday.

Find us on weekdays at nytoday.com.

New York Today: Skyward

This morning, Mayor Bloomberg will cut a ribbon and declare 4 World Trade Center open for business.

It’s the first tower completed on the original World Trade Center site â€" a big step forward in the long rebirth at ground zero.

Want a sneak preview?

Click on the video above.

It was produced by two Times reporters, David Dunlap and Stephen Farrell, who toured the building the other day.

Four World Trade Center is not to be confused with One World Trade Center, which, at 1,776 feet, was declared the nation’s tallest building on Tuesday.

Still, Four World Trade Center is nearly 1,000 feet high.

And from the inside, it’s pretty spectacular.

On the upper floors, there are no columns in the middle, so the space is wide open.

“When you step out onto a floor, with an 80-foot-wide prospect of the harbor, your socks are knocked off,” Mr. Dunlap told us.

The building, which will be home to the Port Authority and city offices, must strike a balance between commerce and commemoration.

Its lobby faces the Sept. 11 Memorial, Mr. Dunlap noted.

Here’s what else you need to know for Wednesday.

WEATHER

Bone-chilling. A high of 39, but with stiff winds, making it feel like it’s in the teens or low 20s.

The good news: temperatures should hit 60 over the weekend.

COMMUTE

Subways: Click for latest status.

Rails: Click for L.I.R.R., Metro-North or New Jersey Transit status.

Roads: Click for traffic map or radio report on the 1s.

Alternate-side parking is in effect the rest of the week.

COMING UP TODAY

- Mike Tyson signs his autobiography at Barnes and Noble in Midtown. 12:30 p.m. [Buy the book to get a wristband, then line up].

- Lifestyles of the rich, 1890s style: “Gilded New York” opens at the Museum of the City of New York.

- Liberate yourself from facial-recognition technology at a mask-making workshop at the Eyebeam Gallery in Chelsea. 6:30 p.m. [Sliding scale, click to register]

- Behold an Iatmul pigment dish from Papua New Guinea at a show of tribal art opening at Arader Gallery on the Upper East Side. [Free]

- Learn about the headstone that led to the unearthing of America’s first Yiddish cookbook, with Sam Roberts, a Times reporter, at the Lower East Side Tenement Museum. 6:30 p.m. [Free]

- For more events, see The New York Times Arts & Entertainment guide.

IN THE NEWS

- The Bloomberg Administration dropped a plan to make the East Side more skyscraper-friendly in the face of opposition. [New York Times]

- A Francis Bacon triptych sold for $142 million â€" a new record for an artwork at auction. [New York Times]

- A video appears to show clerks in a 7-Eleven in Brooklyn stripping and beating a man suspected of stealing a Snickers bar. He is suing. [New York Post]

- The last cat left at the A.S.P.C.A’s shelter for animals stranded by Hurricane Sandy has found a home. [Daily News]

Joseph Burgess contributed reporting.

New York Today is a morning roundup that stays live from 6 a.m. till about noon.

What would you like to see here to start your day? Post a comment, email us at nytoday@nytimes.com or reach us via Twitter using #NYToday.

Find us on weekdays at nytoday.com.