BY LINCOLN ANDERSON | Deziree Lengal, Randy Guzman and their pigeon pal, Lucia Lengal, make a terrific team. Last Thursday afternoon, they were getting a snack at the Quick Stop Deli, at the corner of Sixth Ave. and Bedford St.
Deziree, 17, and Randy, 22, met as students at Julia Richman Educational Complex on the Upper East Side eight years ago.
“We’re best friends,” Randy said.
“We’re both autistic,” added Deziree.
He’s from Soundview, in the Bronx. She’s from the East Village.
Lucia, 8 months old — who was calmly perched on Deziree’s shoulder — came along more recently. They found her on South St., abandoned by her mother. She was dehydrated, starved, squealing. They took her to a vet. Now she just coos a lot.
The two youths are the only family she knows. They take her to Washington Square Park where she likes to stretch her wings and go for a spin, literally.
“She’s neutralized, so she flies in a circle,” Randy said, adding, “She’s legally blind.”
Lucia’s right eye is sightless, the unfortunate result of flying into a branch in Washington Square. That’s why she usually spirals when she flies, Randy said. But she also had paramyxovirus, which short-circuits the nervous system, and probably also contributed to the problem, said Deziree, who used to raise pigeons. Even so, sometimes Lucia still flies straight.
Also, Lucia is more than just a city pigeon, she’s technically a dove, they stressed.
Randy said he graduated from Pace. Deziree trained as a veterinarian for the Marines.
“They won’t let me go out because of my disability,” she said, meaning she can’t serve in combat. “But I know how to use a gun.”
Asked what they do now, they said they enjoy hanging out together.
“We just chilling,” Deziree said.
“We just like exploring,” said Randy. “We go to parks, the ferry. We explore.”
And wherever they go, Lucia is along for the ride.
