Happy Monday!
I hope you're all sitting in an easy chair because I feel as if this is going to be a VERY long post. Maybe take a break in the middle, stretch your legs, get a refill on your wine or water, and enjoy the events of the last four days...
(Apologies: I tried repeatedly to upload pictures that I took, but technology sucks and so this post will be sans pictures. I'll try again another time. Sorry.)
ACT 1
Friday: October 30, 2009
Like any day on which I work, I began my morning with a plain, dry bagel and bottle of Power-C Vitamin Water (P-CVW). Let's face it: in this city, you need all the Vitamin C you can get! After peeling apart each warm, chewy bite of my bagel, I sipped at my P-CVW and continue reading my newest book, Await Your Reply by Dan Chaon. (Side note: I'm going to be writing about this book when I'm done. Look forward to that next week.) When the N train reached the Times Square-42nd Street stop, I exited the train cattle-style along with the hundreds of other passengers making their way to work. Basically, everything was very typical and didn't cause me to believe this day would be any different. Before you get ahead of yourself, nothing terrible happens. There is NOT a monster at the end of this post, nor at the end of this day.
Work was, as expected, slightly overstaffed and oh-so-painfully under-tipping. Thankfully, there are things that can be done about the latter; we're working on remedies to the former. All-in-all it was a very typical lunch, on a very typical day, in a very typical American restaurant in Times Square. I was the closer that day, so eventually the entire floor was cut and it was just me left to serve anyone that entered. AWESOME! I've become very accustomed to having a lot on my plate at work and I find I do my best work when I have a lot to do. Never in my left have I felt that to be the case. Maybe that's small victory in my corner? Anywho, I ended up walking with a nice roll of cash in my pocket and I realized I didn't have any plans for that evening. What could I do to spend my time? I didn't want to spend the money I just made, so what could I do that would be fun and interesting, while also capping off my very typical Friday in a way that could give me something to write about in my blog?
I HAD AN ADVENTURE!!!
When: (Date above), dusk
Where: the Brooklyn Bridge
Who: Nick
After leaving work I jumped on the N train towards downtown and transferred to the 6 at Union Square-14th Street and took that to the Brooklyn Bridge station. I hadn't been this far south on Manhattan since I moved, and I got slightly turned around in this station. First off, its like a hub for transportation on the south end of the island. This one station has so many different names and extends like a hatch on LOST. (Side note: I'm getting antsy waiting for the 6th and final season of LOST to get here...) Eventually, I found my way and emerged from the NYC underground to find myself right at the base of the pedestrian walkway for the Brooklyn Bridge. I knew there was going to be something special about walking across this bridge,I just didn't know what. As I said last week, is it the fear of the unknown that drives us forward, or does it hold us back? This was driving me forward. I found myself almost racing the other pedestrians as I put each foot in front of the other in anticipation to be on the bridge.
Why was I so excited?
I DON'T KNOW!
Within the first few minutes I had to tell myself to slow down and not waste the little bit of energy I had left after a long day at work on walking across this bridge. So I stopped and allowed my head to make use of the magic hinge it was put on that provides my sightline with at least 250 degrees of horizontal view without turning my body. At this point, I didn't consider myself to actually be on the bridge, but I most definitely wasn't street-level anymore. I could see streets running underneath me and saw them stretch for countless blocks, with thousands of people making their way to their own Friday night adventure. For some reason this was so thrilling to me! The buildings shot out of nowhere. Naturally, this is the way this city is constructed. But I was seeing these buildings start at the shore of the East River. Before long, the hard concrete underneath my feet had changed to a softer paneling of wood that had been laid straight out in front of me. I could feel the change in the terrain because it felt like carpeting compared to the concrete I had been walking up--on an incline, no less. Upon this realization, I stopped. And looked.
It's the little things about this city that get me going. I remember walking through the Central Park and seeing all these things that I've seen before, but mostly only in movies. Now, these are sights that are in the same city I live in. Maybe I'm still adjusting to the idea that this is where I live now? Maybe I'll never get over all the great symbols of NYC? Maybe I'm going to be one of those people that am constantly astounded by this city's greatness and even when I'm old and gray, it will still take my breath away.
But I was only 1/4 of the way across the bridge...
As I made my way under the arches, I reminisced with myself about this structure and what significance it has held in movies or TV shows. For those of you that saw the "Sex and the City" movie, you'll remember that this is the very bridge Miranda and Steve agreed to meet on if they both decided to rededicate themselves to their marriage and let their problems be their past and start a new future. This was where they decided their relationship could reach a compromise because it represents the connection of Manhattan and Brooklyn. As you'll recall (or not, if you didn't see either the movie or the original series), Miranda had always been a Manhattan girl through and through. However, Miranda and Steve decided the best place to raise Brady was a place with a backyard so he may have a normal childhood. Brooklyn was their compromise. Brooklyn became home and I have always wanted to go find the neighborhood they lived in in Brooklyn. It was after remembering that scene on the bridge when Miranda and Steve saw each other that I realized why I was so excited to walk across this bridge: it represents one of many ways all these boroughs of New York City are connected. All these millions of people that live off this blessed island of Manhattan and we all find our way back to this island each day. Even though we're all from different places, we consider ourselves New Yorkers. In our world in which people decide to accent differences and dwell on what makes us all different, in this city, we're all New Yorkers; a secret, unspoken bond that makes this an fantastic place to live.
Anyway, back to the walk.
I continued and found myself just enjoying the fact that I was in the middle of a bridge, between two islands, on a beautiful night, having the time of my life…walking…
I made my way back home and caught some Chicken Shack “Arroz con pollo” on the way. For those that don’t know Astoria too well: Chicken Shack is a very simple restaurant that has a large variety of chicken meals. My favorite, or at least the only one I’ve ordered, is Arroz con pollo, which in English means rice and chicken. It’s delicious. Come visit me and we’ll get some.
INTERMISSION—Please take a bathroom break, refill your glass, stretch your legs, and return in ten minutes time…
ACT 2
Saturday, October 31, 2009: HALLOWEEN!
I GOT CALLED INTO WORK!
::blank stare::
Once again, a long day of work. However, we weren’t terribly busy for dinner, so I was cut fairly early which meant I actually had the opportunity to do something that night. Recently, a couple Neil Simon plays were revived on Broadway, but had announced they would close on November 1, just one week after opening. They were intended to eventually have two shows running in repertory, but they hadn’t even begun previews of the second. After I had read reviews of the first, I decided I really wanted to see it. The play is called Brighton Beach Memoirs and tells the story of a 15-year-old Jewish boy named Eugene Morris Jerome living in the Brooklyn neighborhood of Brighton Beach with his family during the 1930s. The boy narrates the action of the play and is a simple story with a lot of heart. The young man playing Eugene was absolutely brilliant in his role and carries the weight and pacing of the show on his shoulders. Laurie Metcalf, of Roseanne-fame, plays his mother and she was hysterical and heart breaking all at the same time. It really is a travesty that more people didn’t see this show because it was truly wonderful. There aren’t big revelations or surprises around every corner; it’s just a good story about a family and their ability to relate to each other on different levels and for different reasons.
To be honest, I wasn’t sure about paying full price for the show, since it was more than I usually pay, but I would rather pay than regret not seeing it. Pleasantly, I do NOT regret paying full price. It wasn’t by any means the most spectacular production I’ve ever seen, but it got me thinking about my family and how I relate to them and how they would all react in similar situations. It got me wanting to write again; specifically, writing the play I want to write about my family and our dealing with ailing grandparents. Since I was here with my mom in January, I had a show planned out in my head that surrounded the (at the time, eventual) death of my grandmother. Maybe I’ll tell you all about it sometime, but not now. Like the under-heading of my blog reads, “Everything happens for a reason.” In my mind, I was supposed to go see this show so that I get back to writing, because I do miss it.
Sunday, November 1, 2009
The 40th Annual New York City Marathon!
A friend of mine from my kickball team informed out team via e-mail that he wouldn’t be able to play this Sunday because he was running a project for the NYC Marathon and if any of us were interested in some extra cash, he was needing people to work. EXTRA CASH?!?! COUNT ME IN!!!
So, all day yesterday, I spent my day in Central Park on West Dr. handing checked baggage to runners after they finished. Let me tell you: this was one of the least impressive odd jobs I’ve ever done, but definitely one of the most fun and inspiring. There were 40,000+ runners in the marathon and you wouldn’t believe the range of people that came through after finishing: different races, different nationalities, different shapes and sizes. HOLY COW! There were some people I couldn’t believe they just ran 26.2 miles looking less in shape than I do!
It got me thinking of setting a long-term goal of running the marathon within the next five years. Maybe work up to a 5K by this time next year? A half-marathon three years from now? The marathon five years from now? We’ll see what happens. At this point, I’m running 3.5 miles on the elliptical at the gym in about 30-35 minutes. My goal is to be running outside when spring comes around. I tried running to the gym the other day, but the air is too cold right now to start. Goals. Goals. Goals.
Well, you’ve made it through another novel. CONGRATS! You’ve read the Nick Blog-athon! Be sure to stretch and replenish your carbs. See you all next week.
Happy Adventures!
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