A preface.
All friends met in Columbia University in the city of New York.
Two of the five are from California (S is from the south, T reps the north - any Cali resident can tell the difference), J grew up in St. Louis, M is from Illinois, and G is a Jersey native. Four of the five friends are now working professionals in New York, fresh off the shipwreck that is college.
All five have, at one time, lived in New York City for three or more years although not one has used the various transportation services at Grand Central; four have never even stepped foot inside.
The friends are traveling to Beacon, NY, a small town by the Hudson River one hour and 20 minutes north of Manhattan to explore Dia:Beacon, a contemporary art museum randomly located in one of the smallest (and most uncontemporary) towns I've had the pleasure of touring.
Our experience there was an interesting one. I can't speak for the others, but a large percentage of the reason I ventured more than an hour away to suburbanville was for the company... what a bunch we were. Given our various backgrounds, the most obvious common thread was our time spent at Columbia; we are all pretentious Ivy yuppies from the city of New York, self-righteous and fully expecting certain services so easily accessible in the city that never sleeps. (Common misconceptions for simple services include, for instance, waiting a max of five minutes for a cup of coffee, getting creamer and sugar with your coffee when it is finally placed on your table, sides with sandwiches (an anomaly, I know), and glasses that hold more than two sips of drinkage, to name a few.) So we got to thinking... is the city mindset really so different?
The obvious answer is yes. Oh, yes it is.
Time spent in my hometown in New Jersey is always bittersweet. I have lived here for the majority of my formative years and some of my best friends are, thankfully, still here as well. Every time I step foot onto Perth Amboy soil, a mixture of feelings consume me - love for family and friends, nostalgia for the past (high school naivete, family traditions, and just plain ole stupid decisions...), and bittersweet memories of first love and the heartbreak thereafter. They are all here, intertwined in a tangled (and confusing) web that compose me as a person - physically, mentally, and spiritually. With that said, I understand the influence my hometown has had on me, and my closest friends who have not been raised in Perth Amboy often acknowledge "strange" mannerisms I thought completely normal around my high school friends.
AND YET, there is just something about the city. Something alive, something soulful, something breathtaking. The sights, the sounds, the smells (ew) equally contribute to the magic that is New York City, but without culture, fashion, and the people, we might as well be in Tokyo. New Yorkers have a certain swagger. Although not born and raised in this beautiful city, I have had the privilege of living in it and bathing in the glory of Manhattan for four+ years. In this short amount of time, I have learned the ins and outs of the city, polishing myself in every aspect of the word to smoothly adapt to such as fast-paced and energetic environment.
So I wonder, how different would I be if I had spent the last four years cultivating my development elsewhere? Would I be cultured? Would I have balls of steel? Would I be sympathetic to others' opinions and beliefs? Would I not care about what other people thought?
Truth? Not nearly as much. New Yorkers always seem to get a bad rep. "Ya'll are always rushing. Ya'll are so rude! Ya'll don't know a good beer because ya'll are too busy drinking your stiff martinis." I obviously disagree. Onto my list of the best aspects of New Yorkers. (The list, of course, is a general one. I cannot account for NY tourists and just plain beat people.)
1. RUSH RUSH RUSH: No, it's not because we are work-obsessed, tech-reliant savages whose lives are based solely on non-committal digital relationships. Okay, fine. Maybe. But is it so bad that we value our time? We value the work in which we divulge ourselves. We value every step we take, every breath inhaled because in all sincerity, one wrong step and that yellow taxi may cut our lives shorter than we had expected. BUT, and a big one at that, just because we may be running everywhere in a hurried pace (and probably on empty) this doesn't mean we are impatient with one-on-one relationships. If anything, it should reflect the importance of them, since we are all too eager to get from place to place in the expectation of seeing people we care about. Personally, I often find myself wasting money on that swerving yellow deathtrap when I have important functions to attend, believing an extra half an hour with friends is worth $15. Time is money, but friends are priceless.
2. SELECTIVE APATHY: One of the BEST things I love about New Yorkers is the air of absolute blunt regard for anything that crosses their path. It's refreshing, it's real. I wouldn't label it rude. Rather, I'd call this honesty. And honesty is always the best policy, no? I term this portion "selective apathy" because New Yorkers just don't give a f--- when it comes to certain things, ie other people's opinions/thoughts about say...their hair. However, given the right platform (ie politics, religion, cultural differences) impassioned sympathy replaces the "don't-give-a-f---" attitude, after which an educated and aroused conversation takes place. New York is undebatably the most diverse city in the world, allowing its inhabitants to expose themselves to new cultures, perspectives, and arguments daily. The exposure surely breeds individuals who are able to cultivate their own opinions about certain topics but understand and appreciate others' views. AMEN.
AND YET, there is just something about the city. Something alive, something soulful, something breathtaking. The sights, the sounds, the smells (ew) equally contribute to the magic that is New York City, but without culture, fashion, and the people, we might as well be in Tokyo. New Yorkers have a certain swagger. Although not born and raised in this beautiful city, I have had the privilege of living in it and bathing in the glory of Manhattan for four+ years. In this short amount of time, I have learned the ins and outs of the city, polishing myself in every aspect of the word to smoothly adapt to such as fast-paced and energetic environment.
So I wonder, how different would I be if I had spent the last four years cultivating my development elsewhere? Would I be cultured? Would I have balls of steel? Would I be sympathetic to others' opinions and beliefs? Would I not care about what other people thought?
Truth? Not nearly as much. New Yorkers always seem to get a bad rep. "Ya'll are always rushing. Ya'll are so rude! Ya'll don't know a good beer because ya'll are too busy drinking your stiff martinis." I obviously disagree. Onto my list of the best aspects of New Yorkers. (The list, of course, is a general one. I cannot account for NY tourists and just plain beat people.)
1. RUSH RUSH RUSH: No, it's not because we are work-obsessed, tech-reliant savages whose lives are based solely on non-committal digital relationships. Okay, fine. Maybe. But is it so bad that we value our time? We value the work in which we divulge ourselves. We value every step we take, every breath inhaled because in all sincerity, one wrong step and that yellow taxi may cut our lives shorter than we had expected. BUT, and a big one at that, just because we may be running everywhere in a hurried pace (and probably on empty) this doesn't mean we are impatient with one-on-one relationships. If anything, it should reflect the importance of them, since we are all too eager to get from place to place in the expectation of seeing people we care about. Personally, I often find myself wasting money on that swerving yellow deathtrap when I have important functions to attend, believing an extra half an hour with friends is worth $15. Time is money, but friends are priceless.
2. SELECTIVE APATHY: One of the BEST things I love about New Yorkers is the air of absolute blunt regard for anything that crosses their path. It's refreshing, it's real. I wouldn't label it rude. Rather, I'd call this honesty. And honesty is always the best policy, no? I term this portion "selective apathy" because New Yorkers just don't give a f--- when it comes to certain things, ie other people's opinions/thoughts about say...their hair. However, given the right platform (ie politics, religion, cultural differences) impassioned sympathy replaces the "don't-give-a-f---" attitude, after which an educated and aroused conversation takes place. New York is undebatably the most diverse city in the world, allowing its inhabitants to expose themselves to new cultures, perspectives, and arguments daily. The exposure surely breeds individuals who are able to cultivate their own opinions about certain topics but understand and appreciate others' views. AMEN.
3. FOODIES!!! Food and wine, wine and food. There is never a dull moment in New York City when it comes to restaurants. It is only in New York City that people will argue incessantly over which falafel food cart/coffee house/hot dog stand serves the best of their specialty. It is only to New York City that people will drive 45 minutes only to wait another 45 minutes in line in the wee hours of the morning to enjoy their favorite Halal. (Can you say 53rd and 6th?) It is only in New York City that the opening of a Trader Joe's brings out food lovers in droves, consequentially leading to a queue of hungry yet excited New Yorkers demanding their ::insert organic, wheat-based food product difficult to come by at the local Morton Williams:: long enough to circle the avenue. I personally believe food is a serious business- I am blessed to have found a place crawling with people who sympathize with my obsession.
With that said, my favorite quote from our journey outside of Manhattan may be this:
G: "Ha, I wonder if people think we're pretentious assholes."
J: "We ARE pretentious assholes."
1 comment:
I would agree. I acknowledge my pretentiousness, but I've made it a charm of mine.
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