Weekends in New York
Posted by i.i. on October 11th, 2009 . Filed under: Brooklyn, UES, empire state of mind, i like this, so let me force it on you! hush!, masochism/running, packing my idealism in a box, they call me teacher .I’m sitting on the couch in my apartment, wrapped in a plush blanket and watching the Twins. I’m such a fair-weather fan; I only watch when they’re on the brink of something exciting.
But, the joy of it is all part of another weekend in New York. Weekends are very important here. Not for rest and relaxation, but for rejuvenation through activity that isn’t related to school or lesson plans or Brooklyn.
I don’t have to powerwalk through the dingy subways, sitting too close to people and quickly becoming desensitized and oblivious to the other lives happening around me. I don’t have to try so hard to keep myself on a schedule in order to get some sleep at night.
I still run on caffeine, but drink Skim Vanilla Lattes instead of alternating between home-brewed black coffee and Diet Cokes to supplement the lunch of oatmeal I’m bound to steal from my school because I forgot my own lunch again. I get to meet new people - something that is truly easy and natural here - and see new places. My runs through Central Park still radiate a teensy bit of glamour.
I’m experiencing New York as though it isn’t my own. There’s still room for experimentation in my new routine and in what and who I want to be in this new setting.
The beautiful thing, though, is that the weekends offer the time to contemplate all the above. In the exploration, there is peace.