This is one of those huge grocery stores; Brooklyn has a few of them. What’s important in this picture are the pickles. This weekend is Memorial Day, so there’s going to be a mad rush on picnic supplies starting very soon. You’ve been warned.

The song kept playing, but there were no customers while the Softee truck gassed up. The driver had to get out because the gas tank is in a secret location in the back, by the rainbow sprinkles.

It was a rather surreal sight, the waterlogged watermelon. Bits of it were scattered around the sand. I suspect people on the beach had a snack and were too lazy to tote their garbage to the boardwalk. Those *&#(*^@!.

The road is decorated with spray paint; no road work has been done, though. After Prospect Park and Windsor Terrace, Brooklyn levels out, flat as a pancake, all the way to Coney Island.

Brooklyn has tourists! They are looking at a big metal sidewalk map and the buildings on Court Street. Those of us who live here full-time are not moved by the architecture; we are more concerned with the spring weather. One minute it’s hot, the next it’s chilly.

Powerhouse Books is Dumbo’s bookstore and an exhibition and performance space as well. It’s the kind of place you might walk into thinking about one kind of book and walk out with another in your hand. Willem Dafoe was on April’s card announcing store events.

I haven’t tried out the escalator yet, but how often do you get to stand on a brand new subway platform? It’s a rare and special thing:  the Smith & Ninth Street station reopened today after  extensive renovations. Three-second rules for dropped food don’t apply, that’s how fresh and clean this station is!

This guy was giving out free hugs. Fortunately it wasn’t as icky as it sounds. He was friendly and some young people hugged him and posed for snapshots. There were a few foreign tourists on the boardwalk, but I don’t think they could make sense of what was going on. They steered clear of the hugger.

Nathan’s normal spot, on Surf Avenue by the subway station, is still being reno’ed after the hurricane damage, so this is the Coney Island location for hot dogs and assorted fried food you might be craving. Everyone goes here. This is the first fur-trimmed wrap I’ve seen on the boardwalk, though that is only because there’s no Mermaid event in cold weather.

I passed a useful sidewalk sale, down on Court Street not far from the highway. I don’t need a baseball mitt, but I’m sure there’s an audience for these. The gloves are in good condition, but I don’t know about the prices. What would a good price be?