More players, more moves

It's been a busy couple of past days.

Last Friday, I went to see a show in Gowanus with a friend, RH, who had won free tickets through twitter. RH has a music blog and writes reviews for other websites, so it goes without saying that she answer a trivia question and win tickets to one of the best bands currently on the face of the planet.

Dungen is a Swedish group with incredibly skilled musicians. It's a psychedelic and yet completely serious Rock and Roll sound. They've got a great sense of harmonies and their overall musicality is quite fresh. I've been listening to them for some time now, ever since a friend recommended their latest album, 4. Check them out.

Saturday, I went to the MET (finally!) with my friend PC. We hit up the Egyptian wing, the sculpture garden and wandered a bit through European art. We looked at Michelangelo's first painting, The Torment of St. Anthony. It was small, but it was breathtaking.

I imagined finding a similar sketch on a some middle schooler's notebook. The painting is a copy of an earlier sketch, but there's definitely something magical in the paint.

PC and I also checked out the Asian art room, where these ancient avatars from Japan are on display. It was a guided tour of sorts, as PC pointed out the countless similarities between Hindu traditions and Japanese Buddhism. The mandalas on display were intricate avatars of leaders who were balanced in compassion and wisdom.

We didn't go to every floor, but we hit up the roof, and pretty much got to each wing on the 1st and 2nd floor before heading back downtown to Brooklyn. Our friends' band was playing a show in Williamsburg, so we had to make a loyal appearance.

Sunday, Summer Stage (an organization that puts on mostly free concerts, shows, etc. in Central Park) was having it's final show of the summer. I hopped on the 2 a few blocks away from here in Lefferts Gardens and rode it all the way up to the West Side. I got to the summer stage around 3:30, and listened to a few bands play before the headlining act, DINOSAUR JR. played.

I had to suffer through my second live performance with The Walkmen, which is not a band that I dislike. I'd be lying if I said I didn't have Walkmen songs in my iTunes library, but they pretty much blow at live performance. No stage presence + no understanding of their sound in a large venue= BORING.

Dinosaur Jr. finally went on at around 5 and played for about 2 hours. It was incredible. J Mascis, the lead guitarist, is an inspiration to anyone who has ever wanted to play air guitar. These musicians know how to rock out. And it was free! I had gone to the show by myself, since most of my other friends were lazy and full of lame excuses (e.g., "the sound will probably not be good." except you'd think that after 24 years of putting on shows in Central Park, someone would have figured out how to make it sound amazing--which it did.)

PC's coworker and former fellow NYU school mate, actually ended up going, so I hung out with some new friends for a bit. After the show, I hopped back on the 2 and took it to the L to go to a friend's rooftop BBQ in Williamsburg again. It was stunning, watching the sun go down behind the most famous skyline in the world.

I didn't stay out too late though, because Monday morning I had an interview at a new bookstore that will be opening up in Fort Greene (in Brooklyn). The Greenlight Bookstore looks like it's going to be a really cool local bookstore. There's apparently a bit of a Frenchie ex-pat community in Fort Greene, so the lovely lady who interviewed me was excited to learn I "habla francaise."

Bookstore wages are comparable to teaching wages, but it's a job to hold the water budget over while I find something more "career" oriented.
I have been working more and more on organizing my journaled thoughts and polishing verses of poetry, too.

Yesterday, I had no internet all afternoon, which was super frustrating, but it gave me a chance to think about more free stuff in Brooklyn that I won't be able to do when I'm working. Tuesdays, for example, are free at the Brooklyn Botanical Gardens. Also, I'm planning a route to the Brooklyn Bridge, and maybe even a stroll around Coney Island, they might even be hiring carnies.

The Players, the Moves.

Given some of the e-mails, I suppose I should take some time to introduce the main players here. MB is my awesome roommate. She's very saavy and very kind. Before we agreed to live together, we worked out a list of 100 or so qualities that we look for in a roommate.

Me: I love to vacuum and sweep.
MB: I hate to vacuum, but love to mop.

Me: I need a clean bathroom.
MB: Me too, every week.

We worked out dish washing, food in the fridge, expenses we want to pay for, etc.

I met MB through my friends, it's a rather sprawling network of close ties. We hit it off like old pals. MB majored in Art and is currently doing marketing for a wine company. She's staying with family in Long Island until my sublet is up (end of August.)

I'm currently in Lefferts Gardens, an appropriated name for a neighborhood around Flatbush in Brooklyn. Flatbush runs mostly North and South through Brooklyn, into Queens, parallel to Bedford Avenue for a ways, until Flatbush veers out towards Coney Island.

I'm about a 15 minute hike from the most "convenient" trains.
I have an arsenal of three or four transfer stops, and I'd say about four or five trains I use regularly.
The most common right now is the Q train. Unfortunately, the Q only runs every 15 minutes, so missing one train means one will most likely lose employment. It's about a 30 minute commute into Manhattan, accounting for stops along the way. One nice thing about the Q is it runs on the Manhattan bridge, so there's a good view of the city if you're not too wrapped up in a book or the opportunity to check your phone on the moving train.
I usually take the Q into Union Square, and hop on the L, which is a short track, it runs along 14th St until 8 ave (West of Broadway) and deep into North Brooklyn, a neighborhood called Bushwick that may as well be in Queens county. The nice thing about the L is it is very reliable, since it pretty much only takes Brooklynites into Manhattan and vice versa.
You can get on the L and ride it east out to Broadway junction and then get on the A to JFK. Or you can ride it west to Union Square, get on some yellow trains, or maybe take the 4,5, or 6 (green) up to the Met, in the Upper West side. If you wanted to go to the Upper East side, you could take the L all the way to 8th Ave and get on the A or the C (blue) and ride up to the Museum of Natural History, or even more north (Harlem, Washington Heights).

Another stop in my arsenal is West 4th, which is a train junction in the Village. If I get on the B at my stop here, it'll take me about 25 minutes to get to West 4th, where I can walk to a lot of trains, or transfer to a different line back into Brooklyn.

One of the annoying aspects of living off the Q, is that most transfers to different trains in Brooklyn are only available in Manhattan, so I have to figure at least two hours traveling time into any visit.

The L is much easier in this aspect, because you can ride the L to Lorimer and just get on the G (a lime green). The G never goes into Manhattan, but it runs like a curl into Brooklyn from Queens. The G is hardly reliable. Sometimes it's every 7 minutes, but I've waited almost 20 minutes for a G train. It's also a short train, meaning there aren't very many cars, so if you are relying on the G to get to work during rush-hour, you're in for an interesting commute.
The Q does not have any transfers to the G, but there is an option of taking the Q to Atlantic, another important junction, getting off the Subway and walking to the G stop at Fulton, a few blocks away. Of course, it's $2.25 to get down into the subway, so if you don't have an unlimited Metro Card, you've got to think about the expense.

I'm still jobless, but I sent one letter out today for a job. There was another opening at the Alliance Francaise, so maybe I have a second chance at that organization.

Now, while I have the chance to take the day for myself, I'm going to hop on the Q, ride it to Union, get on the 6 and go see this, and this, and most likely the Egyptian Wing.

Today is moody, looks like rain, which should inspire some prose through the glass windows. I've written a few pieces that feel substantial enough to polish further and send to some lit. mags.
That's all I have right now, or I'll only have a little under two hours to look at the art.


EDIT:: Scratch that. I'll go to the MET tomorrow, at an earlier time. The Paley Center for Media is open until 8, and I can just take the B up to Rockefeller. Sweet. I love New York.

Magic Hours, Migrant labor

A week in, and still unemployed but hopeful.
Since MB and I looked at and agreed upon apartments (read: not actual lease-signage, but looking at places together) this weekend, I can throw myself into Job Season, full force.
I submitted a number of resumes and cover letters last week. Vigilantly checking my inbox for replies seems to be keeping that lucky e-mail away, so in the meantime I'm focusing on looking at more and more job listings.

Craigslist, mediabistro, a few staffing sites couldn't hurt and Time-Warner all offer postings.

Today's plans include more of the same: scouring listings and polishing cover letters. I'll post something selling my services in dog-walking, which, before you misunderstand and flip out, is not the ideal zenith of my career. I like walking dogs, I do it well, and I can make good money as I look for something more substantial, shall we say. Ditto retail clerking. But if there's one gem of savage wisdom we can take from John Smith, "He who works not, eats not." The gold ain't gonna show up on my stoop.

The apartment we found is super cute, super cheap and super safe. MB and I spoke with a girl living upstairs and she was looking to stay. Regardless, I'm already familiar with the neighborhood, since it's where I've always (98% of the time) stayed on trips to Manhattan/King's County.
The landlord has dropped the rent (well within a budget) and is currently renovating, so our wood floors will be shiny and finished, our gas will be coming through new pipes, and out walls will have a fresh coat of paint. There's lots of windows, it's not very wide but it's long, not quite railroad style. Laundry and Groceries across the street, extremely close to the subway. We filled out an application so hopefully it shall be ours.

Call me...Ishmael?

Well, 12 hours in the airport contributed to a very long day, but it wasn't my worst airport/airline experience ever. I once ran around the three terminals at Newark because the airline kept changing the gate, that was pretty harrowing, and that was only in the span of a few hours.

I decided instead to look at it as just another one of the many challenges that make up our lives, and instead of holding in frustration, used the time to scour the job postings on idealist (didn't see anything quite right on Saturday, but it's Monday today!)

The weather here in King's County is peculiar, if you go off the almanacs. It rained most of yesterday, and it's overcast today, but it's not exactly sweltering. (Is climate change the culprit?) The temperature should make today's job-hunting expedition all the more pleasant.
I plan on stopping by a cute little vintage shop I've been to once or twice, see if they are hiring. I don't want to be in retail for much longer, but I can do it, and it would be a good platform.

I've put an APB out among my friends and friend's friends, and continue to pore over the postings on Idealist.org and craigslist. It's exciting to start completely fresh, I know I'm young, but I feel even younger, only with much more experience.

Thanks for all your comments and e-mails, keep 'em coming. They don't fall on deaf ears, or blind eyes.

a sign or a free mojito

Perhaps it was divine intervention, perhaps it was a test in determination.

At 5:30 this morninga sideways turd "breached security" at La Guardia Airport.  The airport reacted the way they are supposed to in this day and age and shut down my airline's terminal. But of course, it took until the whole flight had boarded and buckled up for the news to reach the pilot at 7:50 or so, when he got on the intercom and informed us that the flight was cancelled. Get off the plane. That's it.

I sat in my seat thinking, "does this mean I should have taken the job at MAST?" 

The airline reps ushered a bunch of frustrated passengers (many of whom had overseas or cruise connections in New York) to the service desk (conveniently located next to the bar).

I struck up a conversation with a nice couple in line behind me. The gentlemen hypothesized that it was actually his own karma which had cancelled our flight--apparently he has the worst luck flying, last week his flight was delayed three hours. We shared a few chuckles and thought of different ways our airline could make up for the inconvenience. I said, at least a free drink in the Admiral's Lounge. He thought perhaps since there were only two agents behind the service desk, the airline could spare another agent to pass a tray of complimentary Mojitos through the long line. Either way, plying customers with a refreshing beverage would certainly make for a pleasant consumer experience. Take note, Apple.

La Guardia reopened the terminal not too long ago, and with that news, the airline managed to throw together a later flight. So I will be able to fly into New York (several hours later than I planned, but none the worse for wear), and I guess the terrorists have not won after all.

In the mean time, Miami International has been lobbying for the installation of slot machines to raise county(or is it city?) revenue. Local law prohibits slot machines unless they are located at a horse or dog track. Dave Barry has his own opinion on that. 

I'm still wondering if it was a sign from God, but for now I'll take the event as pure coincidence, or at least the nice gentleman's terrible record in commercial flight. That's enough of a gamble for me.