"I've gone local."
These words rang through my head while taking the Q train to work at 4:45 in the morning, and to a lot of you, they mean nothing. To the millions of people who take MTA transport, however, it means that whatever "express" train you thought you got on, is actually making every stop (a "scenic route", of sorts) instead of the minimal stops an express train makes on its regular run.
I don't have a problem with a longer train ride, to be honest. I just wish I knew when to expect them. A reasonable person might retort, "Why not look at a schedule!", and that would be a proper response in any other city. While there are schedules available here, however, no one seems to make use of them. Trains arrive and depart at will, which is about every 5 to 10 minutes during normal business hours - so I have no complaints on that, however they also get delayed or re-routed at will as well.
A lot of trains actually have signs clarifying any misgivings about the route or routes that stop on that track. For example, at Church Avenue, the B train says where it goes and when - late nites and weekends have exclusions. At the same stop, however, the Q train placard tells riders that it's an express to Manhattan at "all times." I don't pretend to know the inner workings of the MTA, however in the month I've been in this city, I've "gone local" twice when I shouldn't have, have been told my train is delayed because of "an investigation" at another station twice, and have once been informed that my Q train was becoming an N train and that instead of waiting on the same track for the following Q, I'd have to walk up the stairs, to the right, down the ramp, to the left and then back down some stairs to catch another Q - which ended up being late.
Announcements on board or in the train stations are a normal expectation as well, however, half the time the announcements on board are inaudible due to a problem with volume control, and when an announcement inside the station is made my a human instead of a machine, it's inaudible because of speed of delivery or the sounds of thousands of overlapping footsteps and conversations.
A lot of times things go right on the MTA trains, however, and without them I wouldn't get to play my movie making game, nor would I have had half the conversations I had in my first week of being here. Still, it's not unheard of to have to deal with crazy women on ecstasy shouting "those ain't my niggas, them's white fingas on the triggas", foul smells, mystery goops and liquids, litter, and plain old assholes. For all of that, it's not unreasonable to ask to be informed about which route my train is going and when.
5.31.2007
Mini Meta Post (Day 29)
It finally happened.
I'm failing my mission. I started this blog in an attempt to write a little bit each day on my first year in New York. I the past week, however, I've been writing more like very other day - sometimes every third.
It's all my fault, I suppose. No one to blame but myself. I'm the one who found a job within a week of arriving here, and I'm the one working 40 uneven hours of work a week and losing the energy to write every nite.
Likewise, I'm the one who came to New York with no place to live other than on my friend's couch, thus forcing me to spend what time I have to peruse the internet on craigslist looking for sublets so as not to overstay my welcome.
So this is an apology to you the reader albeit an empty one. A promise that "I'll never do it again", isn't following, nor is any real guilt towards you.
The guilt I feel is from feeling as though I've failed my writing experiment within the first month of taking it on. I can tell myself (and you) that I'll try to do better, or that I'll be more diligent, but in the end all I can do is write a post that sounds apologetic but isn't in order to decrease the number of posts I have backed up.
I'm failing my mission. I started this blog in an attempt to write a little bit each day on my first year in New York. I the past week, however, I've been writing more like very other day - sometimes every third.
It's all my fault, I suppose. No one to blame but myself. I'm the one who found a job within a week of arriving here, and I'm the one working 40 uneven hours of work a week and losing the energy to write every nite.
Likewise, I'm the one who came to New York with no place to live other than on my friend's couch, thus forcing me to spend what time I have to peruse the internet on craigslist looking for sublets so as not to overstay my welcome.
So this is an apology to you the reader albeit an empty one. A promise that "I'll never do it again", isn't following, nor is any real guilt towards you.
The guilt I feel is from feeling as though I've failed my writing experiment within the first month of taking it on. I can tell myself (and you) that I'll try to do better, or that I'll be more diligent, but in the end all I can do is write a post that sounds apologetic but isn't in order to decrease the number of posts I have backed up.
5.27.2007
Holidays In The Sun (Day 26-28)
This weekend saw me not doing anything new, so much as relaxing on my days off when I could, as well as helping to show some of New York to Josh's parents.
Friday started early as my plans for later that evening were canceled and Josh started inviting me along to show his parents around New York as we went about tidying up his apartment. Our later excursion to the post office was a confusing one as a local drug store advertised postal service but then referred us up the street to the crowded and un air conditioned post office. Upon finishing our business there Josh and I headed back to his apartment, but then separated soon thereafter as I headed into Manhattan to pick up my paycheck.
Once in Manhattan, I spent some time at my store saying hi to co-workers before heading out to decide what to do with my day. Deciding once again to make my way into Times Square to check out novelty T-Shirt prices for family members as well as to track down the MTV store to see what it was all about, I deposited my check and headed into headed up 7th Ave.
The trip was an ultimate disappointment, however, not only because I hate Times Square enough to begin with, but also in that the MTV store was nothing like I expected it to be. It was small, had only a meager selection of T-Shirts and housed a minimal selection of stickers at the front counter. To be honest, if any company or corporation had a market to advertise to, I figured MTV would be it. On a personal note, I was hoping for a vintage room featuring Liquid Television and Remote Control T-Shirts, a wall of nothing but Unplugged CD's and DVD's, and maybe even Duff's leather jacket or Kennedy's glasses encased in glass.
To be honest, the rest of my Friday nite was boring. My initial plan after my, er, initial plans got canceled, was to try to track down Joe and go get drunk with him. As it happened, however, he tried to call me around 8pm when I was napping and my phone was on silent. I woke up around 10pm as Josh and his parents walked in from their sightseeing and dinner.
On Saturday I decided to join Cait, along with Josh, his parents and two of their friends in more sightseeing. I'll be gin by saying that Josh's parents and their friends are in their late 40's or early 50's, hail from a suburb of Pittsburgh, and have never seen New York before. So their list of sights to see included the following:
1) Statue of Liberty
2) Ground Zero
3) Times Square
4) Eat at a "real" New York Deli
Instead of taking a ferry to get up close and personal with Lady Liberty in 90 degree weather, we decided to take the train into Battery Park which offers a fine view of the statue. The first to get frustrated with the pace we had to keep with Josh's parents, I saw Cait giving the same eye roll I was and found comfort and kinship in it. Still, Josh' parents (and now their friends) had been nothing but nice to me, and there I was saying to myself that these were the people I hate in New York - the slow walkers, the eons who take up the entire sidewalk, the ones who move with no purpose and take pictures in the middle of the street - I couldn't help but be frustrated, but I felt like a terrible person at the same time.
In perspective, however, seeing Ground Zero and Lady Liberty wound's be things I would go and do on my own, so I was glad ot see them, even if at my own pace our list of stops would've taken me two hours as opposed to a whole day. That evening, after Josh's parents made their way back to Pennsylvania, the three of us had a mini-bitchfest for a few minutes and then decided it was time to buy a twelve pack of beer and watch House re-runs.
My workday today was my making of amends for hating our tourist tagalongs yesterday I suppose. The store wasn't busy in the slightest due to the Memorial Day weekend, but what customers we did have all seemed to be tourists from out of the country. I was pleasant to all of them while still finding it odd that these fok would be taking a long weekend over Memorial Day weekend, an American holiday. One British woman told me she expected the city to not be as busy which I sort of chuckled at because A) it's New York, and B) I had actually thought it was a slow weekend int eh city from teh previous ones I had seen.
Friday started early as my plans for later that evening were canceled and Josh started inviting me along to show his parents around New York as we went about tidying up his apartment. Our later excursion to the post office was a confusing one as a local drug store advertised postal service but then referred us up the street to the crowded and un air conditioned post office. Upon finishing our business there Josh and I headed back to his apartment, but then separated soon thereafter as I headed into Manhattan to pick up my paycheck.
Once in Manhattan, I spent some time at my store saying hi to co-workers before heading out to decide what to do with my day. Deciding once again to make my way into Times Square to check out novelty T-Shirt prices for family members as well as to track down the MTV store to see what it was all about, I deposited my check and headed into headed up 7th Ave.
The trip was an ultimate disappointment, however, not only because I hate Times Square enough to begin with, but also in that the MTV store was nothing like I expected it to be. It was small, had only a meager selection of T-Shirts and housed a minimal selection of stickers at the front counter. To be honest, if any company or corporation had a market to advertise to, I figured MTV would be it. On a personal note, I was hoping for a vintage room featuring Liquid Television and Remote Control T-Shirts, a wall of nothing but Unplugged CD's and DVD's, and maybe even Duff's leather jacket or Kennedy's glasses encased in glass.
To be honest, the rest of my Friday nite was boring. My initial plan after my, er, initial plans got canceled, was to try to track down Joe and go get drunk with him. As it happened, however, he tried to call me around 8pm when I was napping and my phone was on silent. I woke up around 10pm as Josh and his parents walked in from their sightseeing and dinner.
On Saturday I decided to join Cait, along with Josh, his parents and two of their friends in more sightseeing. I'll be gin by saying that Josh's parents and their friends are in their late 40's or early 50's, hail from a suburb of Pittsburgh, and have never seen New York before. So their list of sights to see included the following:
1) Statue of Liberty
2) Ground Zero
3) Times Square
4) Eat at a "real" New York Deli
Instead of taking a ferry to get up close and personal with Lady Liberty in 90 degree weather, we decided to take the train into Battery Park which offers a fine view of the statue. The first to get frustrated with the pace we had to keep with Josh's parents, I saw Cait giving the same eye roll I was and found comfort and kinship in it. Still, Josh' parents (and now their friends) had been nothing but nice to me, and there I was saying to myself that these were the people I hate in New York - the slow walkers, the eons who take up the entire sidewalk, the ones who move with no purpose and take pictures in the middle of the street - I couldn't help but be frustrated, but I felt like a terrible person at the same time.
In perspective, however, seeing Ground Zero and Lady Liberty wound's be things I would go and do on my own, so I was glad ot see them, even if at my own pace our list of stops would've taken me two hours as opposed to a whole day. That evening, after Josh's parents made their way back to Pennsylvania, the three of us had a mini-bitchfest for a few minutes and then decided it was time to buy a twelve pack of beer and watch House re-runs.
My workday today was my making of amends for hating our tourist tagalongs yesterday I suppose. The store wasn't busy in the slightest due to the Memorial Day weekend, but what customers we did have all seemed to be tourists from out of the country. I was pleasant to all of them while still finding it odd that these fok would be taking a long weekend over Memorial Day weekend, an American holiday. One British woman told me she expected the city to not be as busy which I sort of chuckled at because A) it's New York, and B) I had actually thought it was a slow weekend int eh city from teh previous ones I had seen.
5.25.2007
Good Little Children (Night 25)
It's infrequent, anymore, that I see what the world would refer to as "good" children anymore. While I admit to being not only crotchety, but also a misanthrope, that doesn't change the fact that many parents today don't appear to be there for their children in any sense other than to pay their cell phone bill, buy them a venti frappucino at Starbuck's, and take them shopping. Simple values like picking up after oneself, saying "please" and "thank you", and being respectful of others seem to have fallen by the wayside as today's parents are busier and busier with their own lives.
So tonite I was shocked when at around 10:30pm a boy around seven years old offered to hold his mother's bag in his lap while he sat and she stood for the duration of their ride on the Q train. Not only that, but on crowded train car, the mother took the time to give a mini-lesson in geography and subtraction to the child when he asked where they were and how many more stops they had. Not once did the mother ignore the boy, and not once did she raise her voice or degrade the child. Ina world (or city) more accepting, I would've like to have talked to the boy and his mother to tell the child how nice he was to her, see what kind of things he's interested in, and to tell his mother that I liked how curly her hair was.
I found myself continuing to look over and watch the mother and child throughout the train ride in awe of all that was going on inside their immediate nucleus. What I was even more in awe of, by juxtaposition, was that when a seat net to the child freed up on the car, a man took it instead of pointing it out to the mother. It seems some people just haven't been raised right.
So tonite I was shocked when at around 10:30pm a boy around seven years old offered to hold his mother's bag in his lap while he sat and she stood for the duration of their ride on the Q train. Not only that, but on crowded train car, the mother took the time to give a mini-lesson in geography and subtraction to the child when he asked where they were and how many more stops they had. Not once did the mother ignore the boy, and not once did she raise her voice or degrade the child. Ina world (or city) more accepting, I would've like to have talked to the boy and his mother to tell the child how nice he was to her, see what kind of things he's interested in, and to tell his mother that I liked how curly her hair was.
I found myself continuing to look over and watch the mother and child throughout the train ride in awe of all that was going on inside their immediate nucleus. What I was even more in awe of, by juxtaposition, was that when a seat net to the child freed up on the car, a man took it instead of pointing it out to the mother. It seems some people just haven't been raised right.
Eight Months (Night 24)
Apologies for not posting this earlier. In all honesty, my last few days have been taken up by thoughts of what at was the impending LOST season finale. A few days back I found a summary of the episode online and read it without knowing if it was accurate or not. In the day or so that followed, I literally lost sleep over what I had read wondering if it were true and what would happen in that case. As it turned out, what I read was true, yet, knowing the outcome of the episode as it was unfolding didn't stop the roller coaster ride of emotions I was put through.
I realize that to most people it sounds insane to lose sleep over what's going to happen inside the lives of fictional characters, but at the moment, LOST is one of two shows I regularly watch (the other being the always enjoyable, yet formulaic House, MD). It's been a show full of good sotry telling with one (maybe two) not so good episodes in it's three season long history, and personally as it holds a place in my heart as the show I've watched with friends, called my sister afterwards to discuss plot points, and even had a relationship end after one season finale, I feel connected to it in some way. I am compelled to see this show through to the end.
Last nite's season finale was jarring, and left me with the feeling that I should call the person responsible for introducing me to the show and say, "So, I know we don't talk anymore, and I hated you for a long time, but this is important - this is LOST." I refrained, however, and am now in the beginning stages of an eight month wait for next season to begin. This got me thinking about eight things that will have happend in eight months:
1) In eight months I'll have experienced Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Years in New York.
2) In eight months at least one friend will have given birth to her second child.
3) In eight months I'll have gone back to Pittsburgh for my first visit since I've left.
4) In eight months I'll have gone to Boston to see two close friends who will return from Europe.
5) In eight months I'll be 27.
6) In eight months I'll have been living in New York for nine.
7) In eight months it will have been a little over 19 since I'll have taken a college class.
8) In eight months it will have been over a year since I "left" working for a bank.
There are events coming up in my life, then, that will no doubt distract me from next season's start. Still, you can bet I'll be checking spoiler sites and message boards, and contemplating picking up the phone to rekindle a - ahem - lost friendship.
I realize that to most people it sounds insane to lose sleep over what's going to happen inside the lives of fictional characters, but at the moment, LOST is one of two shows I regularly watch (the other being the always enjoyable, yet formulaic House, MD). It's been a show full of good sotry telling with one (maybe two) not so good episodes in it's three season long history, and personally as it holds a place in my heart as the show I've watched with friends, called my sister afterwards to discuss plot points, and even had a relationship end after one season finale, I feel connected to it in some way. I am compelled to see this show through to the end.
Last nite's season finale was jarring, and left me with the feeling that I should call the person responsible for introducing me to the show and say, "So, I know we don't talk anymore, and I hated you for a long time, but this is important - this is LOST." I refrained, however, and am now in the beginning stages of an eight month wait for next season to begin. This got me thinking about eight things that will have happend in eight months:
1) In eight months I'll have experienced Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Years in New York.
2) In eight months at least one friend will have given birth to her second child.
3) In eight months I'll have gone back to Pittsburgh for my first visit since I've left.
4) In eight months I'll have gone to Boston to see two close friends who will return from Europe.
5) In eight months I'll be 27.
6) In eight months I'll have been living in New York for nine.
7) In eight months it will have been a little over 19 since I'll have taken a college class.
8) In eight months it will have been over a year since I "left" working for a bank.
There are events coming up in my life, then, that will no doubt distract me from next season's start. Still, you can bet I'll be checking spoiler sites and message boards, and contemplating picking up the phone to rekindle a - ahem - lost friendship.
5.22.2007
Batman, Groceries, Apartments and My Bad Attitude (Day 23)
First, I'm sure you'll all notice that the featured picture this week is not of my standard black and white variety. As I wrote about the other day, one of the few comic book heroes I do get geeky over is Batman, and in case you hadn't heard, the sequel to 2005 Batman Begins entitled The Dark Knight comes out next July (2008). This time around the Joker is being portrayed by Heath (yes, Brokeback Mountain) Ledger, and it appears from the photo I'm featuring - which is legit, I assure you - that director Christoper Nolan is giving the fans what they want: a more violent, and sinister looking Joker with a cut-smile look about him.
If the newest Batman saga interests you, I suggest the following links:
Batman On Film (News)
The Dark Knight
I Believe In Harvey Dent
I Believe in Harvey Dent Too (not down, click and drag over the entire page).
On to more things about New York...
I went grocery shopping yesterday and ended up spending about $45 which got me one steak, four pork chops, a bunch of asparagus, a 12 pack of diet coke, a four pack of sugar free Red Bull, one roll of paper towels, one frozen pizza, one carton of Breyer's ice cream, and one bottle of store brand chocolate syrup (sometimes when I'm feeling like a ten year old, I crave chocolate milk - it's so good.)
I suppose meat generally costs a bit, and the four pack of Red Bull was around eight bucks, but yesterday was the first time I left the grocery store feeling like I had gotten ripped off. I had three bags of groceries and had spent $45 without even really putting a full, normal meal together. I shouldn't complain too much, though, as my job affords me the opportunity to take home a variety of leftover lunch items. Still, it's hard getting used to how quickly money can be spent in this city.
Another thing I'm getting used to is apartment hunting. Today a girl from work invited me to take a look at a room she's vacating in her apartment. We set up a time, cleared it with her other roommate (with whom I'd be living with) and by the time I was leaving work to check out the apartment, someone else had beaten me to it. It seems like the best way to get a place around here is to either A) use a broker, who will charge you service fees, or B) know someone who knows someone who knows someone... I've been looking on craigslist, and have some feelers out with other friends, but if anyone in the New York area knows of anything, please let me know.
I'm also starting to wonder if maybe my "inner New Yorker" is starting to come out. Over the weekend I vented to Josh and Cait about my pet peeve of people walking with no sense of speed or purpose and they commented in the same way my mother had last week. At work I've also started to notice that I have no patience for customers who are rude to myself, other employees or other customers.
Just today I was taking an order form someone and a woman behind me kept interrupting saying "excuse me" over and over. I turned to her and told her that I was helping someone else and would be right with her. She then complained that she had been given the "wrong kind of lid" (flat lid instead of a bubbled sip lid) and would now spill her coffee everywhere. I explained that we had run out of the kinds of lids she was referring to, and that a new order was coming soon. To be honest though, I learned how to drink a drink without spilling it when I was a child - I feel bad for people whose life experience was such that it didn't lend them an opportunity to learn such a basic fucking life skill. From the way my original customer rolled his eyes towards Miss Can't-Drink-A-Drink, I can see I'm not the only one feeling bad for her.
Finally, I was given a free pair of Yankees tickets by Bank of America for reopening my accounts in New York (no Mom, this doesn't mean you don't have to send me my debit card - please send it quickly!) I debated the reopening process for a few minutes but then decided I can always close one set of accounts, and the free Yankees tix were worth it, as I feel I should see Yankee Stadium. It's bleacher seats, but I'll probably have the opportunity to move to better seats. If anyone wants to go see the Yanks play the Blue Jays in late September, I've got an extra ticket.
If the newest Batman saga interests you, I suggest the following links:
Batman On Film (News)
The Dark Knight
I Believe In Harvey Dent
I Believe in Harvey Dent Too (not down, click and drag over the entire page).
On to more things about New York...
I went grocery shopping yesterday and ended up spending about $45 which got me one steak, four pork chops, a bunch of asparagus, a 12 pack of diet coke, a four pack of sugar free Red Bull, one roll of paper towels, one frozen pizza, one carton of Breyer's ice cream, and one bottle of store brand chocolate syrup (sometimes when I'm feeling like a ten year old, I crave chocolate milk - it's so good.)
I suppose meat generally costs a bit, and the four pack of Red Bull was around eight bucks, but yesterday was the first time I left the grocery store feeling like I had gotten ripped off. I had three bags of groceries and had spent $45 without even really putting a full, normal meal together. I shouldn't complain too much, though, as my job affords me the opportunity to take home a variety of leftover lunch items. Still, it's hard getting used to how quickly money can be spent in this city.
Another thing I'm getting used to is apartment hunting. Today a girl from work invited me to take a look at a room she's vacating in her apartment. We set up a time, cleared it with her other roommate (with whom I'd be living with) and by the time I was leaving work to check out the apartment, someone else had beaten me to it. It seems like the best way to get a place around here is to either A) use a broker, who will charge you service fees, or B) know someone who knows someone who knows someone... I've been looking on craigslist, and have some feelers out with other friends, but if anyone in the New York area knows of anything, please let me know.
I'm also starting to wonder if maybe my "inner New Yorker" is starting to come out. Over the weekend I vented to Josh and Cait about my pet peeve of people walking with no sense of speed or purpose and they commented in the same way my mother had last week. At work I've also started to notice that I have no patience for customers who are rude to myself, other employees or other customers.
Just today I was taking an order form someone and a woman behind me kept interrupting saying "excuse me" over and over. I turned to her and told her that I was helping someone else and would be right with her. She then complained that she had been given the "wrong kind of lid" (flat lid instead of a bubbled sip lid) and would now spill her coffee everywhere. I explained that we had run out of the kinds of lids she was referring to, and that a new order was coming soon. To be honest though, I learned how to drink a drink without spilling it when I was a child - I feel bad for people whose life experience was such that it didn't lend them an opportunity to learn such a basic fucking life skill. From the way my original customer rolled his eyes towards Miss Can't-Drink-A-Drink, I can see I'm not the only one feeling bad for her.
Finally, I was given a free pair of Yankees tickets by Bank of America for reopening my accounts in New York (no Mom, this doesn't mean you don't have to send me my debit card - please send it quickly!) I debated the reopening process for a few minutes but then decided I can always close one set of accounts, and the free Yankees tix were worth it, as I feel I should see Yankee Stadium. It's bleacher seats, but I'll probably have the opportunity to move to better seats. If anyone wants to go see the Yanks play the Blue Jays in late September, I've got an extra ticket.
5.21.2007
Making Movies About Working On The Railroad (Day 22)
To start, I'd like ot thank all of you who have been commenting on Year One. In the three weeks I've been in New York, I've had some friends and family members comment, but in the last few days I've received comments from people I don't believe I know. Whether you've gotten the blog address from a friend, a slip of paper that was lost in NYC, or from my mother - thanks for reading and thanks for leaving feedback.
I've also decided that as I reference music a bit, I need to find out how to post mp3's on a blog. If anyone knows how to do this, please contact me so you can learn me somethin' new!
The other day I wrote about riding the subway with my mp3 player on and noticing how the visuals matched the music. Then yesterday I wrote about the gentleman who asked the train car for money. Today on my way home from work, a different gentleman than the one who boarded yesterday's train came aboard and started asking for money. While this man didn't go as in depth as yesterday's panhandling passenger, he seemed as thankful, earnest and humble about his collection.
The reason I mentioned the mp3 posting above is because the song playing on my mp3 player at the time of the man coming aboard was Coldplay's "Politik." It's hard to explain what the visuals were like without having the song accessible, but if you can, try to imagine a man coming aboard a train and asking the passengers on the car for help from anyone who can offer it as Chris Martin's ethereal, brit-pop vocals begin to sing "Look at earth from outer space/Everyone must find a place..."
If nothing else, I suppose it made me go all idealistic for a moment and gave me an idea for a video.
I've also decided that as I reference music a bit, I need to find out how to post mp3's on a blog. If anyone knows how to do this, please contact me so you can learn me somethin' new!
The other day I wrote about riding the subway with my mp3 player on and noticing how the visuals matched the music. Then yesterday I wrote about the gentleman who asked the train car for money. Today on my way home from work, a different gentleman than the one who boarded yesterday's train came aboard and started asking for money. While this man didn't go as in depth as yesterday's panhandling passenger, he seemed as thankful, earnest and humble about his collection.
The reason I mentioned the mp3 posting above is because the song playing on my mp3 player at the time of the man coming aboard was Coldplay's "Politik." It's hard to explain what the visuals were like without having the song accessible, but if you can, try to imagine a man coming aboard a train and asking the passengers on the car for help from anyone who can offer it as Chris Martin's ethereal, brit-pop vocals begin to sing "Look at earth from outer space/Everyone must find a place..."
If nothing else, I suppose it made me go all idealistic for a moment and gave me an idea for a video.
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