Email From NOLA IIz
NY City. At a Deli near Central Park I paid $17 for a few small bags of ice so we could keep beverages cold at the little get together we were having off of 5th Ave. Across the street from this large 5th floor apartment is, well, every damn thing, it's NY what do you think?, but notably, there is a bodega that sells the cheapest damn corkscrew you could ever imagine, and upon every use a piece would break off of it until yesterday, the day after the party, I was reduced to using the blunt end of what was formerly the sharp screw part of the device, to push the damn cork into a bottle of wine.
As I double parked in Jersey City the afternoon of the party, waiting for Otis's most delicious, delivered vegetarian chili, I was witness to a twenty minute sidewalk cell phone tirade by a young woman who informed me, her man, and every available ear on the block about what a complete low-life shit he, her baby's daddy, was.
I do not approach NY these days with the relative gusto of my youth, and so yesterday, the day after the party, I took advantage of this large space, with steam heat so ample that the windows are always open, and laid around, watching the miserable Saints, and then the miserable Cowboys, on TV. The small two person elevator opens right into the apartment and I would go down periodically to smoke a cigarette and wander no farther than the immediate block or two, and every time would see a restaurant or shop or notable building that, I swear to God, wasn't there two hours previous.
An affluent looking man, with grey burr-cut hair and an ear ring and an overcoat looking like it might cost close to what I've spent as down payment on New Orleans ghetto property, was mad at a bus driver double parked in front of his vehicle, inside of which sat his grandson, and this man in the truest tradition of the holiday season, went so totally ballistic, foaming at the mouth, red-faced, veins popping, that the young gangbanger walking in front of me turned around a couple of times with a look of shock, or maybe it was train-wreck anticipation.
I went around the corner after that and stood out front of the grocery store and listened to hip-hop coming from a vehicle across the street. Two teenagers were dancing and then all of a sudden they started to beat the shit out of a homeless person, throwing him to the ground and then kicking him in the kidneys and side of the head. The homeless person lay apparently dead on the sidewalk while passersby stepped around him. After two full minutes laying motionless the homeless person jumped up, danced in place, and then ran off around the next corner, following his friends who had pretended to beat up his pretended homelessness.
I could have gone to Starbucks for coffee this morning but I prefer not to shop at coffee houses where they blank stare you if you go in and order, "coffee." So I went to the Dunkin' Donuts across the street and stood queued behind a few morning commuters and right after I ordered ( by saying, I would like a large coffee), the woman beside me said, at full volume, (and as far as I knew, apropos of nothing)--You owe me an apology. And then she reiterated several times that one of us owed her a damn apology. All five of the workers behind the counter and the five of us queued up glanced at each other to see which one of us was shitheel of the moment. It was one of the workers who had inadvertently taken someone else's order before hers. There was profusely sincere and soothing apology, from every one of the workers, and then a heartfelt--you have a nice day--and the woman almost cried, and said, thank you so very much. Apparently because she was so happy to be even in the proximity of the merest insinuation of the possibility of actually having a nice day.
Seasons Greetings from NYC, woohoo.
i found a single latex glove and a small pool of half dried blood on that block early one sunday morning about a month ago.
Some New Yorkers thrive on searching out micro-slights and demanding macro-apologies. It takes a lot of everybody's energy but for those few minutes the person making the demand is someone.
Years ago I was visiting the mini-storage unit I used to have in Queens. A few units down I heard the sound of hunt and peck typing and realized someone was using their storage as a study. Later I heard a woman's voice saying to the guard, "You won't turn me in, will you?"
The guard, whose accident was heavy Caribbean, proceeded to get deeply, deeply offended that she, who knew him well, or at least had seen him many, many, many times, would ever insinuate that he, a man of honor and deep fairness, would ever do such a heinous thing as to "turn in" someone (even though it was supposed to be his job). No really, he just couldn't believe it, he was shocked and rattled to the inner core of his being, that such words could even leave her lips. I mean, how could she say that, no, really, how could she say that?
It went on like that for minutes, and the woman finally said. "OK, honey, I'm sorry, but if you'll excuse me I've got to get some work done." And went back to hunting and pecking.
Hey, what do expect if you're going to stay uptown?
I had no idea. Is this uptown or midtown?
It ain't downtown. Actually, you've got to go to Brooklyn to get downtown these days, or maybe Jersey.
Newark.
I actually find that an interesting question. It really is in the border area. In one way, if you wanted to draw strict lines, I guess you would say that above 59th street is "uptown" and thus the apartment is in midtown. The southern border is more difficult. I put it at 14th, but that's probably the prejudice of having lived downtown. 23rd would be reasonable as well. Especially now that Union Square has become so important (the greenmarket seems like a "downtown" thing to me.)
But 55th and 5th is hard to peg. If it was on the east side, like between 1st and Lex, I would be more tempted to say it was "uptown", since that area feels like the upper east side. But being right in the middle I have to go with midtown. Although it is clearly a very upscale midtown address - random beatings of potentially homeless persons aside.
that all sounds about right. lower border could be 23rd or 34th and upper boarder 57th or 59th. upper east and west sides start at 59th. lower east side at 14th st and includes the EV.
we heckeled jim mercilessly for wanting to leave before the midnight strike deadline. despite what we were seeing on cable ch1 manhattan strike news. it wont happen we said no way. my brother and i bailed at 5:30 am beating it the hell out of there in a zone fared yellow cab. jim was sposed to be right behind us. fifth avenue closed down like the new york state turnpike at woodstock one man. far fuckin out. hope you got back to va ok.
The brown a*id is not necessarily very good. And the New York State thruway is closed man!
Got out good. Left on 7th Ave. alll the way, Rappahannock by noon. Thanks all.
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NY City. At a Deli near Central Park I paid $17 for a few small bags of ice so we could keep beverages cold at the little get together we were having off of 5th Ave. Across the street from this large 5th floor apartment is, well, every damn thing, it's NY what do you think?, but notably, there is a bodega that sells the cheapest damn corkscrew you could ever imagine, and upon every use a piece would break off of it until yesterday, the day after the party, I was reduced to using the blunt end of what was formerly the sharp screw part of the device, to push the damn cork into a bottle of wine.
As I double parked in Jersey City the afternoon of the party, waiting for Otis's most delicious, delivered vegetarian chili, I was witness to a twenty minute sidewalk cell phone tirade by a young woman who informed me, her man, and every available ear on the block about what a complete low-life shit he, her baby's daddy, was.
I do not approach NY these days with the relative gusto of my youth, and so yesterday, the day after the party, I took advantage of this large space, with steam heat so ample that the windows are always open, and laid around, watching the miserable Saints, and then the miserable Cowboys, on TV. The small two person elevator opens right into the apartment and I would go down periodically to smoke a cigarette and wander no farther than the immediate block or two, and every time would see a restaurant or shop or notable building that, I swear to God, wasn't there two hours previous.
An affluent looking man, with grey burr-cut hair and an ear ring and an overcoat looking like it might cost close to what I've spent as down payment on New Orleans ghetto property, was mad at a bus driver double parked in front of his vehicle, inside of which sat his grandson, and this man in the truest tradition of the holiday season, went so totally ballistic, foaming at the mouth, red-faced, veins popping, that the young gangbanger walking in front of me turned around a couple of times with a look of shock, or maybe it was train-wreck anticipation.
I went around the corner after that and stood out front of the grocery store and listened to hip-hop coming from a vehicle across the street. Two teenagers were dancing and then all of a sudden they started to beat the shit out of a homeless person, throwing him to the ground and then kicking him in the kidneys and side of the head. The homeless person lay apparently dead on the sidewalk while passersby stepped around him. After two full minutes laying motionless the homeless person jumped up, danced in place, and then ran off around the next corner, following his friends who had pretended to beat up his pretended homelessness.
I could have gone to Starbucks for coffee this morning but I prefer not to shop at coffee houses where they blank stare you if you go in and order, "coffee." So I went to the Dunkin' Donuts across the street and stood queued behind a few morning commuters and right after I ordered ( by saying, I would like a large coffee), the woman beside me said, at full volume, (and as far as I knew, apropos of nothing)--You owe me an apology. And then she reiterated several times that one of us owed her a damn apology. All five of the workers behind the counter and the five of us queued up glanced at each other to see which one of us was shitheel of the moment. It was one of the workers who had inadvertently taken someone else's order before hers. There was profusely sincere and soothing apology, from every one of the workers, and then a heartfelt--you have a nice day--and the woman almost cried, and said, thank you so very much. Apparently because she was so happy to be even in the proximity of the merest insinuation of the possibility of actually having a nice day.
Seasons Greetings from NYC, woohoo.
- jimlouis 12-19-2005 6:50 pm
i found a single latex glove and a small pool of half dried blood on that block early one sunday morning about a month ago.
- bill 12-19-2005 7:22 pm [add a comment]
Some New Yorkers thrive on searching out micro-slights and demanding macro-apologies. It takes a lot of everybody's energy but for those few minutes the person making the demand is someone.
Years ago I was visiting the mini-storage unit I used to have in Queens. A few units down I heard the sound of hunt and peck typing and realized someone was using their storage as a study. Later I heard a woman's voice saying to the guard, "You won't turn me in, will you?"
The guard, whose accident was heavy Caribbean, proceeded to get deeply, deeply offended that she, who knew him well, or at least had seen him many, many, many times, would ever insinuate that he, a man of honor and deep fairness, would ever do such a heinous thing as to "turn in" someone (even though it was supposed to be his job). No really, he just couldn't believe it, he was shocked and rattled to the inner core of his being, that such words could even leave her lips. I mean, how could she say that, no, really, how could she say that?
It went on like that for minutes, and the woman finally said. "OK, honey, I'm sorry, but if you'll excuse me I've got to get some work done." And went back to hunting and pecking.
- tom moody 12-19-2005 7:34 pm [add a comment]
Hey, what do expect if you're going to stay uptown?
- alex 12-20-2005 4:28 am [add a comment]
I had no idea. Is this uptown or midtown?
- jimlouis 12-20-2005 4:31 am [add a comment]
It ain't downtown. Actually, you've got to go to Brooklyn to get downtown these days, or maybe Jersey.
- alex 12-20-2005 4:37 am [add a comment]
Newark.
- tom moody 12-20-2005 4:42 am [add a comment]
I actually find that an interesting question. It really is in the border area. In one way, if you wanted to draw strict lines, I guess you would say that above 59th street is "uptown" and thus the apartment is in midtown. The southern border is more difficult. I put it at 14th, but that's probably the prejudice of having lived downtown. 23rd would be reasonable as well. Especially now that Union Square has become so important (the greenmarket seems like a "downtown" thing to me.)
But 55th and 5th is hard to peg. If it was on the east side, like between 1st and Lex, I would be more tempted to say it was "uptown", since that area feels like the upper east side. But being right in the middle I have to go with midtown. Although it is clearly a very upscale midtown address - random beatings of potentially homeless persons aside.
- jim 12-20-2005 7:02 am [add a comment]
that all sounds about right. lower border could be 23rd or 34th and upper boarder 57th or 59th. upper east and west sides start at 59th. lower east side at 14th st and includes the EV.
- bill 12-20-2005 7:36 pm [add a comment]
we heckeled jim mercilessly for wanting to leave before the midnight strike deadline. despite what we were seeing on cable ch1 manhattan strike news. it wont happen we said no way. my brother and i bailed at 5:30 am beating it the hell out of there in a zone fared yellow cab. jim was sposed to be right behind us. fifth avenue closed down like the new york state turnpike at woodstock one man. far fuckin out. hope you got back to va ok.
- bill 12-21-2005 2:30 am [add a comment]
The brown a*id is not necessarily very good. And the New York State thruway is closed man!
- jim 12-21-2005 5:07 am [add a comment]
Got out good. Left on 7th Ave. alll the way, Rappahannock by noon. Thanks all.
- jimlouis 12-21-2005 6:53 am [add a comment]