Thursday August 2, 2007
12:39 p.m.
West 96th Street Subway station, New York City
Three moths ago, I graduated from college. Since then, so much has happened.—So much is about to happen.
It’s as if all my life I was in a factory being built then programed, and in May 2007, I received my certificate of completion, a Liberal Arts college degree.
Completely “made” at 22, I was ready to be shipped out (in beautiful packaging, of course). And ship out I did! Only two days after graduation, I packed up my still-dirty laundry and moved to New York City.
For the past three months, I’ve been subletting a room in Older Sister’s Upper West Side apartment. (One of her two Israeli roommates returned to the Promise Land for the summer and was more than happy to have me pay rent in their place.)
On Day 1, my parents drove me into the City and helped me to settle in. Then the four of us went out for dinner. Afterwards, Older Sister left to meet her boyfriend, and my parents walked me back to my (temporary) new home.
When we got to my building, I started to say goodbye. But of course, they wanted to come in so they could “talk to me.”
They made my mission clear: With only two-months’-rent worth of graduation money to my name, I was to get a summer job waitressing so I could support myself until I got a real job.
I got the waitressing gig right away. The 79th Street Boat Basin Cafe is the nautically themed outdoor dive bar overlooking the Hudson River marina that serves buckets of beer and baskets of burgers to an age-eclectic, attractive clientele of New Yorkers and tourists.
Before long, the cash started pouring in, the summer heating up, and the City calling out.—Within a few weeks, I forgot all about my mission to get a real job. Free to be in New York City, I was distracted…
Yesssssss! The I love when I don’t have to wait more than five minutes for the subway. Train’s rolling in. See ya later!