Cattle Car

I will never understand why people pack into overcrowded subway cars. Why not just wait for the next one instead of wedging your body against a stranger and having the doors close on your bag? And what happens if the train stops or gets stuck or some other disaster? You're stuck in a packed train car with nowhere to go and no room to breathe. People were shoving themselves onto the A train this morning while I watched in horror. I hoped for their sake that their train made it to the next station. Otherwise, they're screwed. No thank you. I'll wait for the next train.

Crasians

There are these trees on my street. I'm not sure what kind of trees they are. But at this time of year, they drop what I call "stinkberries" all over the sidewalk. They are these little pinkish balls that are smashed by people walking on them. And they give off a very distinctive odor that smells like a cross between really stinky cheese and dirty socks. It's gross and I can't wait until they are swept away by the rain or covered up by the snow. So the other day I was walking down the street and I saw a Chinese(?) lady(?) sitting on the ground with a bag picking through all of the smashed berries to find the good ones. I couldn't believe that anyone would want to get that close to the foul little things, let alone touch them, let alone save them! I would love to know what he/she is planning on doing with them when he/she gets them home. Stinkberry Pie? Stinkberry jam? Yuck.

Miles of Piles

Look at all that trash! This is a building by P.O.'s apartment that apparently only has garbage service once every 5 years.

Is The End In Sight?

As I was listening to the news this morning, I had a thought. All this talk of banks foreclosing on people's houses and companies in financial ruin made me wonder if this is indeed the beginning of the end. I starting thinking about all of the people who are losing their jobs and their homes, and wondered if this is how it starts. People become destitute and homeless and angry. Crime soars. Disease starts to spread. Hospitals shut down. There's rioting, looting, lawlessness. The government loses control and there is anarchy. It seems far fetched at the moment, when things are still somewhat normal. But you have to wonder, if things keep getting worse, are we headed for the apocalypse?

I Feel Dirty

So I finally hired a cleaning lady. I have been thinking about it for a while, and my friend N.P. finally talked me into in. Plus when I was back in Chicago a couple of weeks ago, my sister's cleaning lady came before we left the house one morning, and when we got back, the place was sparkling and gorgeous and smelled like clean. It made me envious. And it made me start my search as soon as I got back to NY. There was a flyer up at the grocery store by my house, so I took the number and made the call. On Monday, L. came to my house so I could meet her and show her my filth. And then today, she came to clean! I gave her my keys and $70 and bid her farewell and left for work. I'm pretty nervous about a stranger having my keys and wandering around unsupervised in my apartment, but I'm hoping to come home to a clean and good smelling place after work. Stay tuned.

Fall Has Fallen

My street looks beautiful right now. Fall has finally come. I am going to enjoy all 3 days of it before winter arrives.

Marathon Man

My friends and I went to watch the marathon Sunday morning because our friend A.A. and her husband were running. I wasn't that excited about going to Williamsburg at 9:30 on a Sunday morning, but it wasn't bad because all of the hipsters were still in bed, sleeping off their Red Bull and vodka hangovers. So I got a container of red swedish fish and found a nice sunny spot on Bedford Avenue. The first runners to come by were the wheelchair folks. And I have to say, as they whizzed by with their arm muscles rippling, there wasn't a dry eye in the crowd. It was so amazing that these people, some with no legs, some with little useless looking ones, were able to achieve such an amazing feat. MY arms got tired from having to open and close my plastic swedish fish tub. THESE people were rolling 26 miles through New York. It was truly remarkable and inspiring. By the time the other people ran by, my hands were stinging from clapping and my voice was hoarse from yelling. So my friends and I went to Beacon's Closet to shop for used clothes and then called it a day.

Hitting Is Never Okay

So I came out of the train this morning and felt a whack on my arm. I looked up and this crazy old black dude was standing there, flashing gang symbols at me. I couldn't tell if he was trying to get money, or just saying good morning. But either way, it scared the shit out of me. So I stood there for a minute and watched him, and he did the same thing to others who were coming out of the train. And every person had the same look on their face afterwards. Like, "what the fuck just happened?!" I don't think he was trying to hurt anybody. I think he was just trying to get attention or money or maybe just human contact. I felt bad for him. So when a police car drove by, I told the officer that there was a crazy black dude standing at the entrance to the train station hitting people. I felt it was the least I could do.

Finally

For the first time, I feel proud to live in America.