The wind was very cold this morning when i got out of the train downtown. It was early, Christmas day, the streets were empty. I walked to ground zero to just say hello. There are still the signed banners and the little objects across church street, but the new fence around the site itself is clean and there are boards for tourists explaining various facts of the site. The design is very information focused. On one of the buildings by the site is a gigantic declaration of patriotism and photoshop layers. There are guards at the entrance to the site. The transportation hub is being restored. There are machines down in the site. Only the tips of the large heavy cranes are visible.
I took the train back uptown. Went to the 24 hour dunkin� donuts across the street for the first time. The seating in the back is limited to thirty minutes since 1976? The place was empty. My two glazed donuts were gone before I even crossed Broadway. The first gulp of coffee tasted like America, or at least as I remember it from my very first visit here. The rest of the coffee tasted like not sweet enough. Until I hit the sweet lump of not dissolved sugar on the bottom of the styrofoam cup.
I know this sounds like a very strange composition of events. They somehow paint the wrong picture. But I saw my love this morning. I saw New York before sunrise, through the cold rain. I saw the top of the Chrysler building as a group of floating arrows pointing towards the sky, I saw trains and dirt and I was cursed at, and I saw a dog being happy and a tiny graffiti on a subway platform that made me smile. It is all so much more than I can put into words. I love New York, more than ever. Merry Christmas home.
indeed merry christmas new york--and now the sky is red and there's a storm trying its hardest to be a little snow blizzard!
Posted by: em!ly on December 25, 2002 06:08 PMbeautiful :)
Posted by: shauna on December 26, 2002 01:23 AMoh, a beautiful morning indeed. : )
Posted by: Witold on December 26, 2002 01:31 AMOut of curiosity, what does America taste like?
I've got another semester of school left before I move up to Chicago agian -- I got a great job lined up and everything, I'm pretty excited. Reading this blog is my medicine in the mean time. It's nice to be reminded of the massive awe and simple joys of bustling city life.. Keep me posted till May, when I can feel it first hand again.
Posted by: Jim Lindstrom on December 26, 2002 01:31 AMWow...you've managed to make me feel homesick for a place I haven't left. :)
Posted by: Anna on December 26, 2002 09:17 AMBoy, do I want to go back to NYC. You paint a great picture, Happy New Year Witold.
Posted by: Pat on December 26, 2002 05:29 PMI don't know how you survived the ups and downs of losing your e-mail on your computer, I just lost mine, such a sense of loss, and I it's a very sad feeling indeed. Very sad.
Posted by: on December 27, 2002 03:25 AMOh, who lost their email? Very sad indeed. We will make sure to write you new emails, just leave your email address here.
Thank you for the compliments Pat.
I am homesick for New York every morning, Anna. We are pretty lucky to live here, I think.
To answer your question, Jim... America tastes sweeter than sweet when drunk from a supersized cup freshly poured and paid for with a major credit card out of a big car with the engine running. But I think there are as many tastes of America as there are not only Americans, but people on the planet. Some love the taste, some truly hate it. Some try to translate it, recreate it, process it, hide it, find it.
I should probably not post comments after having drunk a large coffee... hmm...
I visited the WTC site for the first time since 9/11 as I made my trip to 50 Park place for my first "check in" with the unemployment folks can you say: Valdalay Industries?).
I stood at the corner of Barclay and Church and was amazed at what I saw. I guess you just can not fathom the enormity of what happened until you actually see such a massive void in person.
It actually looked like a new place, as it appeared there were new buildings everywhere (they were the buildings that were normally obscured from view before 9-11). anyhow, I couldn't stay long.
I went to see if Vito (the barber) was still working in the woolworth building. Thankfully, he was. I'm very happy he is still employed. A very good man with a kind soul.
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