Yesterday I stumbled out into the world in my pre-caf haze and headed down into the underground oven of the West 4th Street subway stop. I was thrilled to see that the train was just pulling in as I reached the bottom of the stairway. I entered the cool, air-conditioned haven and buried my head in a magazine. The stops rattled off, until suddenly I heard "59th Street, Columbus Circle. Stand clear of the closing doors" What?! Shit. With my magazine splayed open and my bag dangling precariously from my elbow, I dashed off the train. Apparently I had hopped on the C train rather than the E and ended up clear on the wrong side of town. So it was up the stairs and down the other side, back onto the C, but going downtown this time. After that I somehow managed to skip 42nd Street and didn’t turn around until 34th Street (still not sure about that one), down the stairs and back up, then finally made it back to the E going uptown.
When I arrived at work, my computer had somehow dislodged itself from the network, so it was essentially useless to me. At that point, I wanted nothing more than to turn around, go home, get back in bed and go back to sleep. Sigh. Luckily I could caffeinate myself as I waited for the tech guys to fix the large paperweight on my desk. It definitely got better from there, as a few hours later I had a power lunch at Lever House. The food was a little too heavily salted for my taste (even the house salad was liberally dosed), but dessert, a light and crumbly lemon-almond cake topped with toasted almond ice cream, roasted stone fruits, and peanut brittle, made up for it in spades.
I’m dragging my friend Jenn out to the beach this weekend — my only scheduled trip out this month. Have a good weekend, all! And by the way, I finally wrote up my story for Gothamist on pickling with Rick of Rick’s Picks. I’m looking forward to tasting those ramps!
Comments
10 responses
Hope you have an unlimited use Metro card.
Hope you have an unlimited use Metro card.
Coffee is good. I must admit going without it is like being a zombie.
Coffee is good. I must admit going without it is like being a zombie.
Laren,
I must admit that I laughted out loud upon reading about your adventures on the subway. As a newcomer to this country, I constantly find myself struggling with the intricacies of the subway. It is no Metro, you know.
But please, you have such an uncanny way of capturing the flavor of the everyday — have you considered a career on television or radio? Your brand of humor and writing would certainly find an eager audience in my home country.
And, I too am a caffeine addict. A good cup of Colombian coffee in the morning — c’est magnifique!
Regards,
Jean-Paul
Laren,
I must admit that I laughted out loud upon reading about your adventures on the subway. As a newcomer to this country, I constantly find myself struggling with the intricacies of the subway. It is no Metro, you know.
But please, you have such an uncanny way of capturing the flavor of the everyday — have you considered a career on television or radio? Your brand of humor and writing would certainly find an eager audience in my home country.
And, I too am a caffeine addict. A good cup of Colombian coffee in the morning — c’est magnifique!
Regards,
Jean-Paul
I forgot to mention — I have told my Parisian friends Claudette and Devon about your blog and they in turn have passed the word widely among the French community here in the States. You are quite the hit!
I forgot to mention — I have told my Parisian friends Claudette and Devon about your blog and they in turn have passed the word widely among the French community here in the States. You are quite the hit!
I’d certainly need to brush up on my high school French (and would be happy to spend a month or so over there, if it would help) in order to become a Parisian TV or radio personality! Thank you so much for the compliment and for spreading the word — merci!
I’d certainly need to brush up on my high school French (and would be happy to spend a month or so over there, if it would help) in order to become a Parisian TV or radio personality! Thank you so much for the compliment and for spreading the word — merci!