Keep on keeping on

I went camping in the Catskills this weekend, a nice way to bring my first month in New York to a close.

I have at least one job now, and as soon as my shuffle finishes charging, I'll be on my way to pick up the keys to our apartment.


Last Wednesday, AJ and I went to BAM to see Cold Souls a brilliant new movie by Sophie Barthes. It stars Paul Giamatti in a Charlie Kaufmanesque role as Paul Giamatti, struggling with the gravity of his part in Chekov's Uncle Vanya. His soul is troubled, and then he hears about a new service where one can have his soul removed and stored, leaving just enough residue to give the body animation. It was very well written and the cinematography of Russia in the winter gives the film an opportunity for contemplation. On our way home, some of AJ's teacher buds invited her to go camping, and figured they could squeeze one more (yours truly).

It was steaming in New York, but also showing signs of rain. Thursday morning, AJ and I packed light, and I recalled my Girl Scouts motto so I also packed a can opener, plates, bowls, cups, silverware, cans of tuna and a can of black beans. I didn't want to bring too much, because the plan was that five of us would cram into a car with tents and sleeping bags and whatnot. Before we left the apartment I said, "I feel like I should bring jeans and a sweatshirt," but we really weren't sure where we were going, so I didn't. When the whole group met up around 2pm, it hadn't rained yet, but one of the gang looked at AJ and I like we were nuts. She told us to go home get blankets and jeans and sweatshirts, because we were going to the mountains.

We finally were able to leave NY by around 4, and pulled into our campsite about a 1/2 hour from a town called Livingston Manor off route 17 in the dusk. We set up our tents, and Amanda and I worked out sleeping on a single person air mattress, 2 pillows, 1 heavy quilt and 1 10 person tent. In the morning, it was fairly pleasant, but the sky promised rain, and did not intend to break that promise. Luckily, with the huge tent, we were able to have a nice night in the tent playing card games and telling stories around a citronella candle. Unfortunately, it also brought a lot of mud and water into our tent. I slept on a root and woke up when it finally got light. I went for a walk down a muddy foot trail, but it was right by the lake and breathtakingly beautiful.
Later, I went for a swim in the lake right in front of our campsite and felt warm all day, despite the chilly winds and cloud cover. We drove around the area, to different general stores to invest in tarps and rope to make a shelter so that we could have a fire that night.
One lady's general store was particularly fowl. She had chicken, geese, ducks, and roosters. She told us that the wood the supermarket sells in Livingston Manor is actually the worst because it holds so much water, so we bought a bunch of wood from her, and it was true, it was nice and dry and didn't spit sparks out at us.
While we set up the tarp, our Russian neighbors blared Russian techno from their car speakers, but I think it was just so that their young daughter could shake her sillies out. They seemed to be professional campers, they had a nice shelter and they moved in and out with great efficiency.

All in all, even though the weather was foul, everyone got along very well. We could tell our stories and also all sit around enjoying the quiet. I was able to work through a lot without stressing out. The last morning it was gorgeous and sunny, but it was time to face real life.

So, I've set up Gas and Electric in our new place, and MB is taking care of internet. I have to go out to Queens to get the key, but I'll stop by Target and Sleepy's on the way back here. Seeing as how I've just spent 4 nights in a tent with AJ, I'm ready to give her plenty of her own space back, but the apartment isn't quite ready for us to move in. Tomorrow, I'll clean from top to bottom, and hopefully, MB and I will have our beds delivered. I also have a staff meeting at the Greenlight Bookstore, but that should be pleasant and not take too long either.

Then, I'll rest easy.