Friday night I attended the PS 321 school auction and dance at the Brooklyn Museum of Art. I went to enjoy myself, to bid on some silent auction items, and to hang out with my school friends.

I could not help but reflect on last year’s auction when I wrote a Smartmom article about the fact that Forest City Ratner contributed money last year.  Many parents were angry about that. Some refused to come to the auction.

I wasn’t sure how I felt about it but people got mad at me for even bringing up the contentious issue in my Smartmom column in the Brooklyn Paper.

I felt unloved in the school that I love.

This year, the auction was much less fraught. Forest City Ratner did donate money again. But no one made a big deal about it. Or maybe I just didn’t hear about it. It’s a fact of life now that FCR is here to stay, I guess. And if they’re doling out the cash…

The event was very nice. I didn’t know a lot of the younger parents: parents of kids in kindergarten and first grade. People were dressed very nicely. This was definitely NOT a frumpy crowd.

What could be nicer than a party in the Beaux Arts Court of the Brooklyn Museum with so many people that I like to talk to, to socialize with. The food, catered by Restaurant Associates, was quite good. The room and the tables looked beautiful (decorated by PS 321’s talented Dede Kavanaugh). So did the plants and flowers. The Cosmos and Mojito’s were plentiful. 

So was the conversation. During one conversation (I forget now what the topic was) someone turned to me and said, DON’T BLOG ABOUT THAT. I will, of course, respect her wishes. But I don’t even have a clue about what we were talking about.

Like I said, those Cosmos and Mojitos were plentiful.

Most of the conversations I had were not blog-worthy anyway. I told everyone — I’m not blogging any of this. You are off the record.

I was bidding for myself and a friend. Hepcat and I came home with a Chiliwich rug and a box set of Velvet Underground recordings. Happy to contribute to our great school.

The event is a laborious labor of love by members of the PTA, who work for months and months to bring it about. Thanks to them. It’s one of the school’s biggest fundraisers.