Thursday, October 4, 2007
Waning Moon
Hot and humid
Okay, here’s enough to make me reach for the nearest bottle of single malt: 152 people have signed up for my workshop next week. Actually, I’m pretty excited and happy about it. I think it’ll be a great time, and knowing the group is large, I can adjust what I do to make sure everyone gets the personal attention he or she deserves.
Got two articles polished and out yesterday morning, and a follow-up for an interview. Got it together and walked down to Gramercy Park. Now, if you don’t know the geography of Manhattan, I am on 9th Avenue (the west side) close to 40th St. Gramercy Park is on 21st Street east of Lexington Avenue on the East Side. It’s a bit of a hike.
I walked across east across 40th Street to Park Avenue, then south down Park Avenue until it turned into Park Avenue South, then east on 22nd Street and a little south again to hit the park. The park is locked, and only people who live around it get a key. The lock is changed every few months and new keys are issued, so that “others” don’t get keys. The National Arts Club and The Players Club are both on Gramercy Park South. I remember in college, I always thought I’d be a member of one or both clubs, but I never got around to it. I’m not really much of a club person anyway. I think they’re great to be a place to stay when you’re in town, and a place to hang out between gigs to keep connected to other artists and not get glum –but, really, when am I NOT working?
I took a lot of photos and found the building I’ll use at least as my inspiration for Althea’s townhouse. I will research the history of the actual building I want to use – I might have to wedge in a fictional one next to it or something, if that actual one has too much traceable history.
I considered wandering all the way east and a bit north, up to Bide-A-Wee. Olivia, Felicia, and Maude were all adopted out of Bide-A-Wee, and I think their vet clinic is one of the best in the city. But, let’s face it – there is no way in heck I can walk into a shelter and walk out without adopting another critter. Right now, I’m staying in someone else’s home, and my own home situation is unstable, so now is not the time to bring in a new family member.
I walked down Irving Place –beautiful architecture and Pete’s Tavern, which existed under a different name (which escapes me at the moment) during the time of my novel. In fact, Althea’s younger, card-sharp brother Wesley hangs out there. Walked west to Union Square and wandered the Green Market. It’s one of the first that came to the city and is still fantastic.
I read all these articles in the past two months about how the area around Union Square has gone all healthy, holistic, yogic, great OM vibe, etc., etc., etc., so I was excited to visit. It’s been awhile since I was there.
Um, obviously the writers haven’t spent much time in Manhattan, or are familiar with Union Square. The vibe’s exactly the same as it’s been in the 80’s when I went to college and in the 90’s when I lived in the city. It’s been a political gathering place for decades, but everyone is as stressed, cranky, and frantic there as they’ve ever been.
Also, in this midtown neighborhood, I’ve noticed a decline in the past few months. Over the past few years, shortly after I left my abode one block off Times Square, 8th Avenue in the mid-40s has gotten exceptionally sleazy. And, I noticed last night, 42nd Street itself is worse now than it was in the 1980’s before the clean-up. They might sweep it clear for the tourist commercials, but it is BAAAAAD. And if I think it’s bad, after the 13 years I spent living on the Deuce –it’s bad. The homeless situation in just the past months in this neighborhood has tripled –since I last stayed here a few months ago. I have to keep cleaning people off the stoop to get in and out of the building. I mean, there was that homeless mariachi band that used to play under the window that I always joke about, but it’s much worse than that.
The developers are to blame for a lot of it. They’re shoveling people out of their apartments to convert them into luxury condominiums or co-ops – and dozens of these buildings are standing empty because people can’t afford them. And people who work in the city have to commute from farther and farther away, because even in the outer boroughs, it’s too expensive. The developers don’t care, because they made their money and left – they don’t have to deal with the fallout in the neighborhoods. When studio apartments go for $2200-$3500/month – there’s a problem. People can’t afford to live in those apartments, and realtors don’t want to rent to people without high paying, white collar jobs. A solid percentage of the people in shelters HAVE full-time jobs – and not minimum wage jobs, but white-collar, salaried jobs. And they can’t afford an apartment. Something is seriously wrong here. But the city is run be realtors, developers, and corporations – as long as the execs get their multi-millions, they don’t care if the city burns around them.
New York’s headed down the path of ancient Rome. It’s going to implode from greed. When you’re commuting, you notice the stresses; when you walk the streets and LOOK at what’s happening, you see the causes.
Anyway, back to Union Square:
I was hot, tired, and hungry by then, but didn’t want to spend $40 on lunch. I headed further down towards NYU, and found, on the corner of University and 13th, a fairly new Vietnamese restaurant called L’annam. They were so nice, the lunch special was very inexpensive ($7) and the food was outstanding. I had the sautéed chicken with lemongrass and chili sauce, served over brown rice. The portion was huge and the tastes were exquisite. Absolutely perfectly prepared. It was busy, but I never felt like I was being rushed – something that’s important to me, and rare in NYC restaurants. I eavesdropped on the conversations around me – um, the ones in English, since I don’t know enough words in any Asian language to follow the conversation. So that was fun. And I felt like a new person.
Since I was only two blocks from Strand, of course, I had to go in. I spent an hour there and didn’t buy a thing. I wondered if I was coming down with something. I just couldn’t find what I wanted. I wanted a volume of diaries or letters or something, but it had to be the right one, and I couldn’t find it. Too bad for me.
Walked back up to Union Square, jumped the N express back uptown – it took only 5 minutes to get from 14th Street to 42nd St. Walked over to 9th Avenue, to the market, picked up a few things, and back to the apartment. I walked about 40 blocks today – figure 10 blocks equals a mile, so 4 miles. When I lived in the city, it was normal. I thought I still walked a lot out in the ‘burbs, but obviously not, because I was exhausted!
Come home, caught up on email, read the paper, played with the cats. I saw some jobs on the boards to which I might pitch, but a few of them sound a little squirrelly, so I have to make sure I ask the right questions. There’s one that would be really cool, totally out of my comfort zone that sounds legit – if I can write a pitch well enough for them to take a chance on me. Gotta keep pushing that comfort zone, right?
Got the workshop materials out to the rest of the list, but spent most of the evening relaxing. Did a yoga workout last night and this morning.
So many arguments happened out in the street last night and this morning that I hoped no one would start pulling out guns.
Good morning’s work on both Prince Paisley’s Chintz and Revenge Tangents rewrite this morning. Now it’s off to work on some more articles, and see what else the day brings.
Devon
Revenge Tangents Typed Draft 1A – 1,845 words out of est. 25,000
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1 / 25 |
Prince Paisley’s Chintz – 2,000 words out of est. 25,000
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2 / 25 |