D Train Memoirs

These were written on scraps of paper during my first two weeks here -

It’s hard to get a chance to collect your thoughts here. Scratch that – it’s hard to get a chance to collect your thoughts when sharing room with MRL. He’s wonderful but we do a lot of talking and laughing and singing so it’s hard to stop and take a moment. So where as last summer I did all of my writing late at night alone in my room, here I find I do most of it waiting for the D train, which has become my new best friend.

It also makes it hard because I end up writing it all down in these mini notebooks instead of in my big journal or directly onto my computer.

Currently I’m waiting to go to the East Village. Ashley Lewis is living there for the moment and I said I’d go out to visit her so I could explore this new part of town (well new to me) and if it wasn’t so late (9:35) I would be taking the directions that Hop Stop gave me and gotten on a bus for the last leg of the journey. I’m not brave enough to try the bus yet. Not this late at night.
Also, as I just got on the train there is a strange noise being admitted from the train itself and the man behind me is listening to his IPOD loud enough for the whole train to hear.

So, let’s review. Mom left a week ago today (feels like longer somehow). After she left MRL went to work and then – magically Holly came over. That was wonderful. She helped me clean some things up and then she and I went to the Pizza place down the street, and then off to a different part of Brooklyn to watch Adam Patterson’s open rehearsal. It was my 1st time on the subway as a resident. We found the place all right, hot as Hades and air conditioning (nobody has air conditioning here). It was a very interesting show. A movement based piece about Elephant psychology. That’s right I said elephant psychology. The movement part was awesome – Anne Bogart and Tina Landau would be proud. But I feel the music often didn’t fit well w/the work being done (which Adam says was the point). Adam was of course, amazing.

We went and had a beer with Adam and the people from his show and then Holly and I went back to my place for a sleep over with MRL.

Wednesday night MRL took me to see Julie and Julia midnight showing and I made it into the city for the first time by myself. Wait – that doesn’t track. I don’t know what we did Wed. night. That must have been – yes – Wed. I had my job interview and then I think that’s when we got our wireless router – so all 4 roommates were home and we all sat around like great lumps and stared at out computer screens. Ah – the wonder of technology.

THURDAY night Matty took me to see Julie and Julia at midnight. The next night I went into the city late again to have drinks with MRL and Saturday night was my Welcome to NYC party at Greg’s where I got to meet all of Kat’s friends that she’s been talking about forever but the only people of mine who came were MRL and my new roommate Ray. However we had a great time playing apples to apples and trivial pursuit. We managed to break my camera when Greg broke a bottle of sweet tea vodka he had bought especially for the occasion.

That’s the end of that scrap of paper.

Next scrap of paper

This morning I woke up disgruntled and un-amused. I got on the train worrying about being late and was lost in thought until we went over the bridge, back into gorgeous sunlight and I saw those rays hit the city and all I could think is “another beautiful day in the city” and it is beautiful – despite the heat. I was looking over it thinking how it felt like one giant amusement park or a circus – and it was with this thought of circuses in my head that my eyes landed on a billboard on the side of a tall building across from the bridge with nothing but the word DUMBO written in large colorful letters. I’ll take that, I thought. I’ll take that.

Would have given myself a dollar to call number under it, too. But then we were back underground and in the dark.

And then it pleases me to know that no matter how disgruntled and un-amused I am when I get on the train back to Brooklyn at night there will always be a moment when I can look across the bridge and see the city all lit up and spread out in front of me – and that thought makes me smile.

Next scrap of paper -

I went to Kat's fundraiser for her fringe show - then left early and went to hang out with Matty at Rock of Ages for the 2nd act. First night there.

"What a releif to end the night in the theatre. A feeling of home no matter how many people I do or don't know.It would have been better had they put me to work at Kat's thing. I must have a purpose."