Isn't it amazing what you can see in NYC

Well this is my last post for my class writing for convergent media. It has been a tough semester in some ways and not so bad in others. I am near the end of my journey at school, I will graduate in the fall and then on to newer things and brighter days I hope.
I find it amazing what you can see in New York City. Today for example, a woman had fallen out of her wheelchair in front of the school, no one seemed to want to help her, she seemed hurt and no one seemed to know what to do about it.
I don't know why but certain things disturb you more in the city than others. I won't go into the grim details of all the things i've seen. Be that as it may, the city is always bombarding us with sites, sounds, images, noise, etc. imagine walking down a country road and then being thrust onto broadway and 42nd street at rush hour. It would probably be shocking at the least. It just seems like things come at you hard and fast here, if you walk through crowded areas, you have to be adept at dodging people and making your way through obstacles. Everyone is on the move, trying to get somewhere. Every event sets off a chain reaction of other events. You just hope that at the end of the day, this reaction ends with you getting home alive. I mean lets face it, the city is safer but its by no means safe. While crime is down, if you watch the local news every night, it usually opens with a murder, it's usually somewhere far from you or maybe not, in an outer borough or sometimes Manhattan too. The point is, it happens and this place isn't safe. But where is safe? Columbine seemed safe until one day two kids came into school with guns and started shooting people. I think it's all relative. Stuff like that doesn't happen in big cities. I wonder why that is. I don't think it's possible to really fully see New York City in a life time even. I just think it's too vast with too many areas for it to ever be truly known. Maybe that's the magic of it, wherever you live in the city, you're in your own little melting pot somewhere in the big one. Your bombarded by cultures, languages, scents, sounds, sites and so much more and in a sense you become a part of the place you are in. The city becomes a part of you and the energy of it gets into your soul. I think the real mystery of New York City is the vastness of possibility, the sheer size of the city and all it offers. People enjoy getting lost here. I hope I will continue this blog with new stories, it has been fun writing it so far, the city has come alive again, spring has finally shown up a bit. I hope to write more about the city and what it has to offer and some of its stories that include me in them. Thanks for reading.

The Problem with drinking is (A New York Tale)

Ok in this post, I want to briefly talk about a weird night I had and maybe the problem with drinking is, etc. etc. I recently went out and hung out with a friend. This friend is a legendary drinker, he can drink huge amounts of alcohol and not appear drunk in the slightest. The problem with hanging out with this friend is that he likes to view drinking as a contest. Not something enjoyable you do at your own pace. Instead, every time your beer consumption gets low he's on you in your ear saying things like, "Cmon stop nursing it." After a while these taunts begin to work and you increase your consumption accordingly. I don't know where the night really started to go wrong. I know we were on Bleecker Street, when it all started to come crashing down on me. The bitter and actually horrific knowledge that you shouldn't have had that second shot of Grey Goose vodka and yes you will pay for that at some later time. I don't know what happened, except that I tipped the bartender quite well and the second shot was bigger. I had an issue with the juke box which was too soft, I asked for it to be turned up since I had put 15 tracks in. Anyway, don't consume a lot of shots close together, bad idea. The night degenerated from there into a stumbling, struggle through the streets, trying to get my blood alcohol level to drop uncuccesfully I might add. Now I know this may sound strange, but it is possible for a bar to be posessed, or have some sort of demonic undertones to it. The next bar we ended up in was called Mars. It has been there a while but I have never been in there. As we entered, the first thing you notice is how slim and long the bar is. There's hardly any room to walk or move around. If you don't have a bar seat your screwed. As we entered a creepy Lou Reed song was playing, which made one feel as if they had just done Heroin or something. I don't and never have but I can only imagine that this would be somewhat of the feeling if I had ever tried it. The bartender was a long lanky sort of punk rock mod guy gone wrong. He was skeletal and creepy. I immediately started to have an overwhelming feeling of dread and horror at this bar. I had to get out, the people and everything about this place screamed to me to run, run and don't look back. After moving some people out of my way I exited the bar and tried to keep walking down the block. My friend caught up with me and wondered why I had left an almost full beer at the bar (this of course is a sin). I am not preaching here, not telling anyone what to do, just everything in moderation as the old cliche goes. Well I will spare you the details of the rest of my night. Le'ts just say it wasn't my finest hour, but as we all know, everything has its downside. Was it the alcohol or was the mars bar posessed of some evil spirit, I guess it's one of those mysterious tales of NYC that you never quite figure out. More to come, the semester is almost over now, and this has been a fun process, I hope that these blogs, mostly about New York City and life here have been fun to read if anyone is in fact reading this. More to come.

Going out in NYC

As most of you know, going out in the city for a night of drinking or to a club is a hefty burden on your wallet. I have recently hooked back up with some old friends and started going out again. I hadn't for some time and I am pretty shocked at the cost of things. New York imposes some of the heftiest taxes on alcohol and cigarettes in the country, making it expensive to smoke and drink. Two of my favorite pasttimes. I had quit smoking but took it back up again. I stupidly thought I could be a "weekend smoker" umm no, I was wrong and now i'm an addict again. With cigarettes now costing over 10 dollars a pack, (the most expensive in the nation) it is quite an expensive habit. Many things under Bloombergs administration have gone up, the price of a parking ticket is now 110 dollars which to me is a sin. I can't stand Mayor Bloomberg and think that his running again for a third term, which by the way was voted down by voters is close to a criminal bid for power. Anyway, moving on, if you're going to go out you have to either have some rich friends, buy a bottle of something and pound down a few shots before hand or hit the happy hours hard and then pace yourself until later. Of course your tolerance can dictate how much you will spend. I can drink a bit so it's not uncommon for me to have four or five beers and three to five shots in a night although that is a lot for me. I recently was in a bar and ordered a shot of grey goose vodka which is my favorite. It is considered a top shelf drink meaning they gouge you for more money. When the bartender gave me my shot, which wasn't even three fingers, I was pissed to find out she charged me 9 dollars! Do you expect a tip for that too? I drank through the night and never even got a free round, which is what most bartenders would do if your dropping some money in the place. Maybe it's due to the recession but no one wants to give anything away anymore. When I asked the bartender in my drunken slurring voice what was up with a free round, she said they aren't allowed to give out free rounds. I asked to speak with the owner who wasn't there of course so I just took my medicine with a grain of salt. Back in the day when I was more flush with cash I would always tip the bartender well, sometimes overtipping with the knowledge that later I would get a free round or two. Not anymore, apparently. It is easy to drop 100 dollars in an evening in New York going out, I have realized I can't go out as often as I usually do. If your going to a club, bank on paying 20 dollars just to walk in and paying close to ten dollars or more for a mixed drink that is probably watered down. There are some cheaper alternatives. If you hit the happy hours hard, go to local bars that usually have cheaper prices or buy yourself a bottle of something and pound down a few shooters before meeting your friends. You can always drink on an empty stomach to get drunker faster but then you run the risk of puking on your shoes or in the street later which is never fun. I could tell you many drunk stories of almost not getting home or throwing up but what fun would that be? Everything in moderation that's what they say and pacing while drinking is obviously smart. Water is the key, a glass or two in between shots is smart, but who is thinking clearly after a few shots and a few beers? Not many people. New York is expensive, plain and simple, but there are some places where you can actually drink for not as much money, they might be a bit seedy, or not your cup of tea but hey we have to do what we have to do in these tough times to get wasted right? I am not telling anyone to drink, you can do what you want of course and it is a drug like anything, but it is America's favorite past time no? Maybe the country would be better off having all drugs legal, the government could tax them and make a profit, people are going to do what they are going to do regardless. I enjoy going out downtown, it's my area and I don't like to stray above 42nd street too often if I can help it. Last night I stuipdly decided to try to ride my friend home on the subway, he lives in Inwood way the heck uptown on the A train line, the last stop in fact. He tried to talk me out of it of course but I was drunk and hey I like an adventure and had never really been up to Inwood area. We slogged along the C train line going local which took forever. By the time we got to 125th street I felt like I had been on the train for an hour. All of a sudden the idea didn't seem so great and the people on the train had grown tired of us clowning around and making some noise. So I got off at 125th street and tried to make my way home. A D train came and I just jumped on it even though I needed the A or C, it went express and in between bouts of sleep I somehow got off at West Fourth street and got an E train home. Note to self, if riding the train drunk, try not to fall asleep, this is how you get "rolled" or mugged which of course is never fun. I am lucky in that I am told I look like a cop and the police do have a program where they have pretend drunks that ride the trains and fall asleep to catch people who prey on these unfortunate souls. It wasn't too late and I made it home safely, had a slice of pizza from the fridge, took the two aspirin before bed, which is key to surviving a night of drinkin and woke up feeling ok.
Going out in New York can be really fun if not expensive, you just have to pace yourself and find creative ways to save money, maybe the flask will become popular again, I think it would be cool to have a flask but most clubs frisk you now before entering, I wonder if they would take a flask from you if you had one so you have to drink in the club. I guess so but it's worth a try. I guess living in New York City is a privelege, one you have to pay for but I think everything here is way overpriced or at least some things are. It is always good to go out with a few friends, don't let them cheap out on buying a round, at least that way you can share the burden of paying for things, a drinking tip from a friend of mine, drink some milk before going out, it coats your stomach a bit and you won't get drunk as fast. I don't get the idea of this, why else would you drink? I want to get drunk and faster is better, but know your limits and of course don't drive drunk. New York is great for drinking, you don't need to drive, take a cab or the train or walk a bit to clear your mind. Most of all, know your limits and be responsible. More to come soon.