The Mayor of the Upper East Side

I'm a NYC introvert. That means extra. :) I'm polite and give a nod or smile, but generally, I don't communicate much with my neighbors, whether they're down the hall or down the block.

Walter was the absolute opposite. He loved all people. If an unsuspecting person walking by gave him a glance for just a nanosecond, Walter locked on like a smart bomb and considered it a red carpet invitation to nuzzle them and get scritches. Luckily, for both Walter and me, he was so damn cute that his demanding over-confidence was typically welcomed or, at least, tolerated. He did surprise a number of people with a wet nose boop to the hand coming up from behind as he walked by. I learned to keep him on a shorter leash on narrow sidewalks.

Walter with one of the friends he made down the block

It was love at first sight for Walter and my own building's doormen. In addition to a smile and pat on the head, they gave out cookies. Celebrating Halloween just once a year is for chumps. Walter learned each doormen's M.O. Some would give out cookies both in and out of the building. Some were "strict" with cookies only on the way back in - explaining to Walter he had to "earn it". One of my day shift doorman would see us coming on the elevator camera, and would lay out a "cookie trail" from the elevator to the edge of the carpet that led to the sidewalk for Walter to follow (and pull me from behind). And yet another doorman taught Walter to sit and wait (and drool) as he sprinkled 7 or 8 treats all around Walter. Walter would be eager, but wait for the release command of, "Ok!" and would gobble up the cookies around him.

Walter's love of doormen was quickly established. He had a thing for men in the uniform. Every time we'd walk by a doorman hanging out near their entryway, which in NYC, is every 200 feet, Walter would steer us to them to say hello. A few would typically pull cookies covered in lint from their pockets, but most would just give Walter some pets. Walter would melt into them, sometimes looking back at me, seemingly to share in the moment. Suffice it to say, a "quick walk" around the block could take at least a half hour.

One doorman down the block, who typically gave Walter treats, didn't always have some on hand. He would speak directly to Walter, I might as well have not been there, telling Walter that he would, "get him on the way back." Walter and I would go for a couple of hours walk through Central Park. We would both be tired, and by the time I was just a few blocks from the apartment, I was thinking about getting home, grabbing a drink, and putting my feet up. Walter, however, would never forget the promise he was made. He would make a beeline to the building that he was owed a treat. In classic Walter fashion, he calmly sat by the door and waited for what was promised. He would have made a great loan shark.

After losing Walter, I had to tell his friends. I went building to building. I could barely get the words out, but I didn't have to. They rarely, if ever, saw me without my sidekick (though I think I was Walter's sidekick) and my face said it all.

Walter dressed up for Halloween as his hero, a Doorman

I hugged doormen and porters. We cried, reminisced and laughed. In true NY fashion, we introduced ourselves, sharing with one another our names for the very first time after waving hello and chit chatting for 7 years.