Friday, April 15, 2011

Crazy New Yorker?

One month after losing my job, I have the good fortune of doing a short-term freelance assignment at what appears to be a pretty cool agency.  I’m working on an interesting project with a great team of really smart and fun women.

I hate working out, refuse to go to a gym, and can’t run anymore because my knees aren’t cooperating, so my punishment  reward is that I walk just about everywhere I go.  I gotta fit exercise in somehow and walking is a great way to experience New York City.  Building in extra time and carrying an extra pair of shoes has become part of my daily routine. 

This new assignment is 1.75 miles from my home, so I’m getting in 3-1/2 miles round trip  every day.  My walk takes me through some of the busiest and most populated parts of New York City.  Twice a day I pass by Penn Station (a major hub for train and subway commuters), Times Square (the center of the universe, some say) and the Theater
District (where all the Broadway shows do their thing).   It’s like being in a really big,  poorly-organized parade. 


There’s all kinds of people along the way:  tourists who are wonderful for the City’s economy but are kind of just standing around and looking, hustlers doing whatever it is they do, teenagers who might be on their way to school but maybe not, and people scurrying to their jobs.  Actually I should say trying to scurry because it’s impossible to move at a decent pace with all these people.

I usually look for a tall businessman in a suit and let him run interference for me.  He’s  focused on getting to work so I follow him just closely enough that I don’t look like a stalker and he kinda moves the people out of the way for me.  It works, but I don’t want to have to always do that.

And this is why I’m about to become a Crazy New Yorker.  I want to pass legislation that designates a sidewalk or street lane for People on a Mission…my mission being I’m trying to get somewhere.  I don’t ever want to be the kind of person that yells at a group of tourists to get outta my way, but I would like to say in the friendliest voice I can "Excuse me, but you’re in the Mission lane, would you mind stepping to the side?"

Anybody want to sign my petition?


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2 comments:

Josie said...

I'm totally with you here, elenore even though I live 35km from Melbourne. At our busy school with far too small corridors and over 1000 people trying to move around them at any one time we have a keep to the left rule.
You just need to get the mayor to implement that, except, would keep to the right make more sense to you in the States?
But I do like your clever use of tall business in a hurry!
Good luck with the new job, and getting there.
Josie x

Cham said...

If you put on a sporty outfit can you walk really fast on the bike path (assuming you have a designated bike path) . Use a backpack for your stuff and then make it look like you are exercising. Change when you get to where your going. That's what I do and it works really really well. The bike path also gives you a right to yell loudly at anyone in it that isn't moving really fast. Just stay very far to the right so you don't interfere with the bikes.