January 3rd, 2016: Two Points

Well - here's what I have learned so far:  

Point #1: The kindness of strangers can be almost overwhelming.

 Point #2: There is a shitload of people in NYC.

I had my first train adventure today - this on my second day in Yonkers.  I took the Metro North Line (a commuter train) to Grand Central Station.  Two young women showed me how to work the ticket machine.  From there, I snagged a 4, 5 line (where two other people got me pointed in the right direction, and showed me how to purchase a subway ticket) to Trinity Wall Street church where I attended a Renaissance Opera (perhaps the first known opera) in which one of my good friends performed.  

(my daughter Maya was quick to point out that this is THE Trinity Wall Street Church under which the "goodies" were buried in the movie National Treasure, and in which adjoining cemetery Alexander Hamilton and Angelica Schuyler are buried - see Hamilton: The Musical for more details.)  I don't know much about National Treasure, but the performance itself was stunning, and a treasure unto itself. 

 After the show, my friend took me to a Cuban Diner - Coppelia (http://coppelianyc.com) where the food was absolutely wonderful, as was the service.  A Cuban tuna salad sandwich is NOTHING like the tuna salad I've eaten in La Crosse.  However, the chicken soup did not even hold a candle to the soup from Fiesta Mexicana.  While we ate, we were asked to move down one seat so that there were three open seats for a trio of friends that came in.  The waiter gave us a free dessert for moving down a seat...stranger and kindness #4. 

Afterwards, I walked down 14th street to Union Square where I needed to catch the train back Uptown to Grand

Central Station, where I would transfer to the Metro North Hudson Line.  Total cost of the day's travel: $23.75.  This seemed reasonable to me, given that I believe the parking alone would have cost me that much had I driven - plus I wouldn't have known where the hell I was going. 


At Union Square, I saw a Whole Foods, and thought I would "bop" in and grab a few things to get me through the next few days....and this is where I learned that there is a shitload of people in NYC.  In keeping with Point #2, I don't believe that "bopping in and out" of a store is part of reality here.  Visualize this: 7 lanes, each with an assigned color of the rainbow.  At the head of the lanes, just before entering the section where the cashiers are located, is a video screen mounted from the ceiling.  The screen has stripes of color that are arranged from left to right - again corresponding to the colors of the rainbow - and also, magically enough - to the lanes in which people are lined up to pay for their groceries. Here's the best pic of the lanes I could find on the web.  However, it is minus all of the people. 

 The picture below better reflects the number of people that were in line.

I landed in the purple lane.  As I watched, I saw that the number of the next empty cashier would appear in each stripe of color - moving through all seven colors in turn, from left to right on the screen.  When I got to the head of the purple line, I watched the open cashier numbers move across the stripes of color, and when a yellow circle with the number "30" appeared on the purple stripe on the video

screen - it was my job to move to cashier number 30.  As I moved, I realized that there were two long aisles of cashiers (better viewed in the second pic above), and I needed to jog to my left, and then my right, and then past cashier #29 - who whose number was not all that visible.  People were helpful, though, and helped me move past #29 to #30.  (Whew!  Another for Point #1.)

It actually was fairly quick.  However - think about this: there were approximately 6-8 people per lane - multiplied by 14 lanes: 7 for people with 10 or less items in their basket, and 7 for people who had 11 or more. This does not take into account the crowded aisles where people took things off the shelves and put them in their baskets.  Yes - Point #2.

The ride home was pleasant.  I watched two young girls and their mother yuk it up - they were having a blast!  So full of life.  The walk home from the subway only took about 10 minutes, and Daisy (my land lady) was orienting a new boarder.  She said, "Oh - and here's Deborah!  Now everyone is home."  That felt nice.  Another score for Point #1.

I've come to realize that my new job may be the easy part.  What will be more difficult is finding the local stores that stock organic foods, and then learning the aisles in those stores.  It will be the daily habits and routines that I don't have yet.  And there will be no more "bopping," at least not in the city.  Whether or not Yonkers is "boppable" remains to be seen.  

Here's what will consume my time: 

ordinary, everyday things.

• establishing my routine for carrying my things to and from the bathroom; 
• figuring out a routine that will support going two floors down to the kitchen only once during a meal; 
• figuring out what I can cook with the resources that are here, and establishing my daily meals; 
• learning to label my food I keep in the shared refrigerator; 
• finding the best route to get to work - bus? train? drive myself?

The simple.  The ordinary.  These, in the end, are what make up a life, yes?  And I am in a position where I must rely on the kindness of strangers.  My best guess is that Point #1 will help me navigate Point #2.  Quite honestly, in relation to Point #1, life has never let me down.  I can't imagine it doing so now. 

January 3rd, 2016: Two Points

Well - here's what I have learned so far:  

Point #1: The kindness of strangers can be almost overwhelming.

 Point #2: There is a shitload of people in NYC.

I had my first train adventure today - this on my second day in Yonkers.  I took the Metro North Line (a commuter train) to Grand Central Station.  Two young women showed me how to work the ticket machine.  From there, I snagged a 4, 5 line (where two other people got me pointed in the right direction, and showed me how to purchase a subway ticket) to Trinity Wall Street church where I attended a Renaissance Opera (perhaps the first known opera) in which one of my good friends performed.  

(my daughter Maya was quick to point out that this is THE Trinity Wall Street Church under which the "goodies" were buried in the movie National Treasure, and in which adjoining cemetery Alexander Hamilton and Angelica Schuyler are buried - see Hamilton: The Musical for more details.)  I don't know much about National Treasure, but the performance itself was stunning, and a treasure unto itself. 

 After the show, my friend took me to a Cuban Diner - Coppelia (http://coppelianyc.com) where the food was absolutely wonderful, as was the service.  A Cuban tuna salad sandwich is NOTHING like the tuna salad I've eaten in La Crosse.  However, the chicken soup did not even hold a candle to the soup from Fiesta Mexicana.  While we ate, we were asked to move down one seat so that there were three open seats for a trio of friends that came in.  The waiter gave us a free dessert for moving down a seat...stranger and kindness #4. 

Afterwards, I walked down 14th street to Union Square where I needed to catch the train back Uptown to Grand

Central Station, where I would transfer to the Metro North Hudson Line.  Total cost of the day's travel: $23.75.  This seemed reasonable to me, given that I believe the parking alone would have cost me that much had I driven - plus I wouldn't have known where the hell I was going. 


At Union Square, I saw a Whole Foods, and thought I would "bop" in and grab a few things to get me through the next few days....and this is where I learned that there is a shitload of people in NYC.  In keeping with Point #2, I don't believe that "bopping in and out" of a store is part of reality here.  Visualize this: 7 lanes, each with an assigned color of the rainbow.  At the head of the lanes, just before entering the section where the cashiers are located, is a video screen mounted from the ceiling.  The screen has stripes of color that are arranged from left to right - again corresponding to the colors of the rainbow - and also, magically enough - to the lanes in which people are lined up to pay for their groceries. Here's the best pic of the lanes I could find on the web.  However, it is minus all of the people. 

 The picture below better reflects the number of people that were in line.

I landed in the purple lane.  As I watched, I saw that the number of the next empty cashier would appear in each stripe of color - moving through all seven colors in turn, from left to right on the screen.  When I got to the head of the purple line, I watched the open cashier numbers move across the stripes of color, and when a yellow circle with the number "30" appeared on the purple stripe on the video

screen - it was my job to move to cashier number 30.  As I moved, I realized that there were two long aisles of cashiers (better viewed in the second pic above), and I needed to jog to my left, and then my right, and then past cashier #29 - who whose number was not all that visible.  People were helpful, though, and helped me move past #29 to #30.  (Whew!  Another for Point #1.)

It actually was fairly quick.  However - think about this: there were approximately 6-8 people per lane - multiplied by 14 lanes: 7 for people with 10 or less items in their basket, and 7 for people who had 11 or more. This does not take into account the crowded aisles where people took things off the shelves and put them in their baskets.  Yes - Point #2.

The ride home was pleasant.  I watched two young girls and their mother yuk it up - they were having a blast!  So full of life.  The walk home from the subway only took about 10 minutes, and Daisy (my land lady) was orienting a new boarder.  She said, "Oh - and here's Deborah!  Now everyone is home."  That felt nice.  Another score for Point #1.

I've come to realize that my new job may be the easy part.  What will be more difficult is finding the local stores that stock organic foods, and then learning the aisles in those stores.  It will be the daily habits and routines that I don't have yet.  And there will be no more "bopping," at least not in the city.  Whether or not Yonkers is "boppable" remains to be seen.  

Here's what will consume my time: 

ordinary, everyday things.

• establishing my routine for carrying my things to and from the bathroom; 
• figuring out a routine that will support going two floors down to the kitchen only once during a meal; 
• figuring out what I can cook with the resources that are here, and establishing my daily meals; 
• learning to label my food I keep in the shared refrigerator; 
• finding the best route to get to work - bus? train? drive myself?

The simple.  The ordinary.  These, in the end, are what make up a life, yes?  And I am in a position where I must rely on the kindness of strangers.  My best guess is that Point #1 will help me navigate Point #2.  Quite honestly, in relation to Point #1, life has never let me down.  I can't imagine it doing so now.