snobbery

the two women in front of me are talking about lunch. one of them is trying to describe falafel to the other. im always surprised when i find someone who lives or works in new york who doesnt know what a falafel is. whats worse is that the women describing falafel (and hummus)is doing a such a terrible job at it.

I was returning some items at a local chain electronics store.. you know, the shack of radios, and over heard this conversation:

employee 1: Hey, what's that bird that brings the babies?
employee 2: A stork!
employee 1: A what?
employee 2: A stork! S-T-O-R-C-K!

I've seen flooding in Mumbai during the monsoons, but this is unbelieveable! I got an email from my cousin who said my dad was stranded at the airport. He works in the area and thought the airport would be a safe place to get shelter. His car ran out of gas and there was no way to fill it up, so he stayed in his car for a while but eventually decided to walk to his brother's place in Bandra where he spent the night. It took him 2.5 hours to get there. What freaks me out the most is this line from the BBC article:

Those killed in the city were crushed by falling walls, trapped in cars or electrocuted.

My mom knew that my dad had left work, but with the phone and power outages, had no idea where he was or where he spent the night. she slept in the living room so that she would be able to hear him come home since the elevators and doorbells wouldnt work with no power. Thankfully, she wasnt alone. My aunts were visiting and couldnt get back to their homes in the floods.

My cousin walked from Worli to Bandra and also stayed there and then walked to Andheri the next day. The total distance is somewhere between 6-9 miles. and through flooded streets!

My brother was able to call them this morning. Dad was finally able to get his car and drive home and he seemed fine. After about 36 hours of craziness, the rain has slowed down now. As I read other accounts of it I still cant imagine what people must have gone through.

In case you didnt know...

when it comes to zombie movies set in england, Shaun of the Dead is waaaay funnier than 28 Days Later.

Spoilers

Ive been to 3 shows since Ive been back in NY and it seems like every show has those one or two tools that will spoil it for everybody else. These people are on my shitlist:

Spoon at Webster Hall
The three girls right behind us who decided to have a screaming contest between songs...oh yeah, and the Phantom Farter.

Feist at the Bowery Ballroom
The guy standing next to me who took about 50-75 pictures of Feist for EVERY SONG! It might not sound so bad, but try enjoying a show when you have *click* *click* *click* *click* *click* *click* *click* *click* *click* *click* *click* *click* *click* *click* *click* *click* *click* *click* *click* *click* *click* *click* *click* *click* *click* *click* *click* *click* *click* *click* *click* *click* *click* *click* *click* *click* *click* *click* filling up your ears.

and most recently at the Esthero show yesterday at Irving Plaza. There were these three girls standing next to me who were yapping through every song she played. But between every song, the one that looked like Angelina Jolie kept shouting a request for the same song, Superheroes. Maybe I shouldnt bitch because I actually really like the song, but there should be a point when you realize "hmmm, the singer on stage really isnt taking audience requests from the 20th row, so maybe i should just shut the hell up".

This list makes me feel like such a hater. But when I think about it, Im sure people think the same thing about me. There's probably some blog out there where someone's talking about that tall motherfucker that stood in front of them and blocked their view of the show.

But besides that the show was pretty damn great. Esthero and her band were awesome. and Prince Paul DJ'd between the opening acts. He first came on between opening act I and opening act II. Before he started spinning, he introduced himself and then proceeded to give everyone his resume. Almost like Troy McLure's, "you might know me from other musical acts like..." and I thought it sucked that he had to do that. People should know. or atleast the type of people who go to Esthero should know.

she started talking as soon as she got on the train at jay st. or maybe she was talking before and just continued once she was on. she was definitely not talking to herself but wasnt really talking to anyone in particular, at least not in the beginning. she went on about someone pressing charges, how they have been after her and wouldnt leave her alone, how she has no food, no money, how she had been in a battered women's shelter, but they still came after her, how other women were after husband, how jamaicans had put voodoo curses on her husband, but her husband wouldnt leave her. it wasnt a sob story by any means, she wasnt doing it to ask for money or any handouts.

i looked around, avoiding eye contact as people are generally accustomed to do in these situations. the others did the same, occasionally glancing her way, trying to avoid any confrontation. especially in an enclosed space like a subway car, during rush hour, going through a tunnel underwater.

at times, it almost felt like a spoken-word performance, like something you'd see on def poetry jam - loud, passionate, real. i wanted to look at her. not to stare, but because i was really listening. at some point she started talking about being a nurses aide. and i wasnt quite sure how it all fit into the picture until I saw the woman sitting down in front of her in light blue srcubs reading a book on sonography. she had started addressing her directly, calling her a west african whore - "like the ones that were trying to steal her husband". the other woman kept a "yeah whatever" expression on her face and looked away and around, trying to ignore the verbal assault that she was now enduring.

I was standing near the door when the train stopped at broadway/nassau, i pushed myself towards the side to let people off. the woman in scrubs started walking out while the insults kept on coming. when she got a few feet away from the train she turned around, knowing that there was enough space between her and the passengers inside the train and started to defend herself. "im no nurses aide!, i TEACH nurses aides!" she said as she started walking away. the doors stayed open and 5 seconds a police officer strolled up to the side of the subway car door.

she got a little quiet when she noticed the officer standing outside the train. he stood outside the train, next to the door and gave her a come here motion with his hand. "can i talk to you for a second?" he asked her. she replied saying that she was just riding the train to go see her father, there was a nervous tremble in her voice. he stood there, and a few seconds later was joined by another officer, and then another one some more seconds later. I was still standing next to the door and moved inward and to the side. Two officers then stepped into the train and walked towards her. they asked her to step off the train, she maintained that she was just trying to visit her father but soon gave in and walked off the train. As one of the officers walked off the train, he turned to me and asked, "Was she being loud? was she making a lot of noise?

"She was just talking", I said, but as the words came out of my mouth, I nodded and I think that was all the officer needed to see. The officers deboarded, the doors closed and the train started moving again. but I felt guilty, like I had just ratted her out like she was someone who had made my ride unpleasant which was the furthest thing from the truth.

Looking good Billy Ray!

I finally remembered Dan Akroyd's character's first name...Louis!

The painting job was a huge success - But with the crew I had working, it's no surprise. I forgot to take some pictures on sunday when all the tape was peeled off, but I will upload the ones I have that will give you an idea. The floors need a good cleaning, but other than that, im ready and excited to move in.. just have to wait a few weeks. As Cesar kept remarking throughout the day, it's "Looking Good!"

I cant believe it's already May - where is all the time going? I have just 4 more weeks left here and Im going to try to make the most of them. Ive been in a bit of a rut the last week or two. I have so many things I want to do but I keep telling myself that they would have to wait until after I move - and that's a load of procrasticrap. So im going to make these 4 weeks as eventful as I possibly can: go out more, take more pictures, see more bands, watch more movies and hike the Old Rag.

'splainin

a little bit of explaining is in order. the short story is that due to some miscommunications and ass-umptions, my move date has been postponed by a month.

i freaked out a little because while i was dealing with the all the who-said-whats, i had my apartment broker trying to reach me to confirm a lease signing for the weekend. cancelling the appointment would have probably meant that i would lose my deposit and would have to go through the apartment search process all over again.

but things have a way of working out and the lease signing will proceed as planned. the apartment will be vacant for a short while, allowing me to move gradually if i need to. and im being compensated for the month.

i dont mind another month here. all i ever wanted was a fixed date that i could plan by. order has been restored.