You know the opening credits of Sex in the City where Carrie is walking the streets of Manhattan as happy as Larry to only be drenched in disgusting street water by an oncoming bus, well that happened to me this morning.
On Tuesdays I leave my apartment to go to physical therapy as a result of being hit by a car four years ago. Now don’t cry for me Argentina – the injuries I incurred were minor, with all things taken into consideration (being knocked over by a ton of metal). Unfortunately, I still to this day suffer with niggling pain that needs some help as a result.
I can’t walk or run to PT as it’s across and downtown making going there redundant in the first place. I have no desire to dress up as a Cumberland sausage like those cyclists who love to reenact Top Gun- feeling the need for speed, whenever they take to the streets with their two-wheelie best friend. And as I lost work in both of the industries I earned a living in, Ubers are not an option. The only way to get to PT, is by taking the subway. So off I pop, onto the one train during the life and times of corona.
Every time I embark on an underground journey during the pandemic, I am met with the same type of circus characters. There’s the usual hobo who’s just taken a massive dump on the platform before boarding. The guy with his bike blasting out Cardi B (unmasked of course). Then there’s the old lady with elephant feet that hobbles on at the next stop. And finally, there’s an old man who’s half wearing a mask saying to himself;
“I dare you to enter my body CoronaVirus. I daaaaaare you. I will defeat you and laugh in your face. You’ll see”.
These New Yorkers – I can deal with, but the junkies that seem to be dotted all over the place these days in honesty really freak my the fudge out. I’m not sure if it’s because they are missing most of their teeth making their faces one hollow canvas or whether it’s the unsterile needles they are carrying with such abundant love. Thinking about it, It’s probably for both reasons that I find them unsettling.
Once you are off the subway and in midtown trying to walk East, you then meet hoards of middle aged white guys, on scooters or some kind of hoverboard device as a result of a Back to the Future fetish (yes the one that involves inappropriate behavior with their mothers). These men couldn’t give a toad from toad hall’s bottom about anyone else apart from themselves. So they won’t wear a mask, they will run you down and of course they spit in the street (yes, I too thought the point of the majority of the first world wearing masks was to stop the unnecessary over sharing of bodily fluid, but try telling that to these dingbats…).
Then you look around the city itself. And it’s well… sad. Uncared for. It’s as if anyone responsible for it, including its inhabitants, has given up on it. Sure the Empire State Building is still a marvel and Grand Central looks regal, but you have to look up to see those things. Eye level, it appears as if the city is a rotting corpse (and yes I’ve seen one of those too so I stand by my comparison).
It’s days like this when I’m ready to leave the city and call it quits. I feel as if I can wave a sparkly flag in defeat and move to the countryside for a quiet life without any regrets.
I love New York but I do not want to remember the city this way. Yes it has always had its colorful characters that gave us wonderful stories to share. I just can’t help but feel the narrative of these tales is no more (for now). It’s no longer chapter after chapter of unexpected adventures giving thrills and laughter to the audience. Instead, it seems as if it is just one long never ending depressing spiel with no ‘happy’ ending in sight.
A part of me does feel as if I am giving up on someone I love, but another part of me is ready to end this relationship that feels like it is a vampire that’s draining my blood (and money with rent!). So who knows, I may be saying Auf Wiedersehen sooner than originally planned. Lastly, I give major props to those of you who are in it until the end. You have my utmost admiration.
As always…
Live with Love,
The Bimbo in Limbo xxxx
“Sure the Empire State Building is still a marvel and Grand Central looks regal, but you have to look up to see those things.”