Metropolitan Diary

Dear Diary:

While watching the Kentucky Derby at a wine bar on the Upper West Side with a friend and a handful of cheering sippers, I high-fived a stocky guy wearing a blue baseball cap and drinking a bloody mary who was sitting next to me as the gate opened.

Even though my horse, Chocolate Candy, finished fifth, he pumped his fist with a little excited sigh. What was as surprising as the 50-to-1 long shot Mine That Bird coming from behind to crush the field was my bloody mary barmate’s sheepish announcement that he had just won $1,000 on a $20 bet.

Turns out a week earlier a bird flew into his apartment. He told us how he coaxed the bird onto a towel and then carefully placed it in a tree near his apartment — and showed us the picture on his iPhone. Another example of a good deed rewarded. Oh, and he bought us a round of drinks! Stefani Jackenthal