In New York it is not unusual to go out right after work....to a restaurant, the ymca, a bar. It's just not worth it to trek home, then turn around and go back out again. Expensive and time consuming. Due to this web of public transportation, people bring stuff with them wherever they go. Umbrellas - just in case, jacket - just in case, map - just in case.....oh wait, don't forget the waiting list for a locker at the y that's three years long! Bring your gym bag to work, then to the y, then back home. My classroom doesn't have a computer...better bring the laptop to get stuff done at school! And lunch....and bring back the tupperware later. Travel mug? Stop and get groceries? Library books?
It's fun to carry this stuff around all night. Especially Fridays when you're in it for the long haul. And let's not forget about the whole day-to-night wear. I always thought this was so weird when I read about it in magazines - 'For a nighttime look, throw on a string of pearls and a cropped jacket!' Why not 'Just go home and change?' Well....not here.
I am a teacher. I wear sensible shoes. Sometimes I wear overalls. People in New York City do not wear overalls. People certainly don't wear sensible shoes. We're meeting your friends for drinks in the city at 7:00? I'm still at work and it's 6:00? Wearing a cardigan and khakis and a ponytail and sensible shoes? And carrying a laptop, gym bag, leftover lunch, travel mug, purse, raincoat, gourds for my class, and covered in cat hair? Jesus.
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when i moved and drove into new york, i went through the brooklyn battery tunnel and the toll guy looked into my car, which was filled with plants, and said, "it looks like you got da brooklyn bahtanic gahdens in deh!" then he saw hazel and piggie, loose, walking around amongst the plants, and laughed, "and da zoo!" i told him i just drove from chicago. he said, "say w-a-t-e-r" and when i repeated "water" in my midwest accent, he laughed and said, "you wait...that'll change!"
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