prior vs present

Prior Neighborhood Present Neighborhood

abundance of healthy food options /abundance of crap/fried food
fun bars/my watering hole /I don't go out after dark
Ready, willing, & able street cleaning /trash? just throw it on the ground
lots of nanny pushing strollers /lots of pregnant minorities
blocks from Madison Avenue /99 cent stores on every corner
dropped off my laundry /people asking me for money while I do laundry
I could be somewhere in 15 minutes /have to leave at least an hour
sounds of cabs honking /loud latino music and car alarms
fresh flowers at delis /people selling bodywash and watches from tables
fast paced/get there /all the time in the world and taking up the whole sidewalk
Post office and post box /have yet to see anyplace to send mail
movie theaters /99 cent stores
starbucks /fried chicken (that they insist you eat with ketchup)
taste-d-lite /unconditioned bodegas with freeze dried popsicles

lotto

I bought my first NY lottery ticket today, the jackpot is $132M, with the thought that if I win I could move back into Manhattan. I am not saying my apartment is not great, it is, once you get to it. My roommates are very kind and have once saved my ass when I was running late for work. As a 31 year old it is odd to have to return to sharing a space and not really feeling like it is my own. I am considerably homesick and this is attributing to my thoughts of my fantastic large loft in which George feels at home as well. I am sure that my impending trip home is aiding in this longing I have.
I changed my bedding today to brand new sheets and duvet cover after getting my duvet from the dry cleaner since this cat (which is about to get shipped home in a box) decided to take her homesickness out on my bed. Suffice to say, it is miracle she is still alive right now. We are now working on tough love in which she is not allowed in my bedroom unless I am here. Luckily the roomies are very loving to her while I am away on trips and such. I am not sure how long it will take to get her adjusted and what to do if she doesn't.
While I am ranting on, I also have to say that it is a pain in the ass just to run home to change or just grab something so I wander around the city like a nomad sometimes when I have multiple things happening in one day. I am sure Chris loves that I always bring my shopping bags over!
I realize that is has only been a month and there are adjustment periods for everything so I am going to be patient with ol' Brooklyn and remember that I am saving half in rent. Plus my new bed is fantastically making me smile at the moment.

what the hell?

Explain to me this: I am usually the one who text/calls Chris to figure out how to fit him in my week. Granted I am never worried about can I call and all the bullshit that goes along with dating, it just doesn’t apply to us. He always gets back to me and usually within minutes of contact. So after our great date Monday I just haven’t called him mostly because I don’t have a day next week to give him yet. Plus, I wanted to see if he would call me. Well Wednesday night after getting off work and looking at my phone on my way up the stairs, the bouncer tells me there is a guy here to see me. I immediately thought it was Chris since he knew I was working that night. It was the St Patty’s guy, Dave and you’ll never guess who I missed a call from twenty minutes earlier. The message was that he took his softball team to the new store (where he thought I was working) and was sorry to have missed me. I asked my manager whom I love, what the fuck? He told me guys seem to have a sixth sense when they should make a move. My response was, so you guys are smarter than we give you credit for? Nah, just enough to mess with you girls, was his response.

my week...

So I have been working my tail end off lately even with the dog walking taking the month off as any good New York does. I have picking up shift with the waitress/hostess gig. On Sunday after surviving the day but in much need of a hug, I worked 1700 til 0100 at the new store and then met the roomie for after work drink and to split a cab home.
Monday I did nothing all day and met up with Chris for dinner. We went to an excellent tapas place and then I introduced him to Laurant. And there was a moment as he poured me another glass of Sangria that I thought, “I could defiantly do this for a while”. We even got into a heated discussion about the politics of cultures agreeing to disagree.
Tuesday I was back at my favorite store on the Westside playing the part of hostess. Getting off at 2300, changing and then hiting a friends birthday party at Mansion. I was showing a new flight attendant friend the in’s and outs of nightlife in the city as she just had moved. After hanging at Mansion for a bit, we headed over to Marquee and then Bungalow 8 finishing, of course, at my favorite Cafeteria.
Five hours of sleep was rewarded with pressed coffee and conversation with Laurant the next morning. I dinked around the house and spent some q.t. with Jorge who is still adjusting but getting better with her three roommates. Finally I drug myself up and back into the city. Since I never spent any real amount of time on the Westside, the plethora of trains is a bit of a mystery but according to hopstop.com I was to take the j to the f transfer at 14th to the 1 and walk a couple of blocks. Simple enough if I was paying attention at 14th and had more patience at 66th I finally got into work and ordered up a burger to curb the hangover I knew would be arriving soon. We spent the first hour of my hostess then waitress shift trying new shots. I swapped shirts and shoes and then hit the floor to wait. We had a good amount of people and I didn’t feel as overwhelmed this time. I sat a couple of guys out of my section just so I didn’t get too swamped and then ended up staying forever. Since they were a table I passed by a bunch I stopped and bantered a bit every once and a while.
I had no tables so I went back to talk to these guys and one of them asked me what I would give him if he could guess my last name. Not wanting to explain to my manager that I had to comp a drink because I lost a bet. So I told him that I would give him a kiss. He took the offer which must have surprised him and then said it. I looked down to see if I was wearing a nametag. And then I really looked at him and with wide eyed surprise figured out who his was. The guys Yoder and I were hanging out with on St Patty’s Day! I immediately blurted out, wow you fell off the face of the earth. We texted for about a month and never seemed to meet up. So with advice from Craytie and a bruised ego, I stopped trying. He thought the same about me. So some quick apologizes proceeded catching up.
Friday I headed out to LHR after meeting the lady I met on the flight home from NRT (Bali) in SoHo for lunch. I worked the first class galley on the 777 for the first time and rocked the hell out of it! My aisle girls are absolute idiots but that’s ok because it just makes me look better! Headed home tomorrow and then picked up the closing waitress shift at the Westside. Currently dancing around my hotel room to the new Rihanna, great song!

the ride

The 15th of this month held the answer to whether or not I would have a job still, whether or not I could walk away from this crazy world of going, gong, going but wait, there is a weather delay or we are totally full, or aren't you too new to know what you are doing?
Added to all of this day to day bullshit that people don't consider when you are "glamorously" walking through the airport in uniform with luggage, is when you are stuck working with a person you don't like. I was assigned this trip and immediately cringed when I saw the ISM. I hadn't worked with her before but I knew that she was friends with the ex. I went to work with that on my mind and who do you think got on the bus at Port Authority? I can't begin to tell you how uncomfortable it made me. The trip was fine and I kept to myself most the time intentional dodging the personal questions expect to relay that I am fantastically happy now. She will her "power" to tell me how unprofessional I was to be playing cards with some of my passengers. I intern told the customers the message and they wrote in three letters of compliments. And to top off the trip she along with the ex were on the bus home gossiping away. It was sure a trip I would like to forget and hope doesn't occur for quite some time if ever.


It occurred to me while walking around Edinburgh, a city transformed by annual festivals, that this ride I am currently on is not over, nor is it stopping to let me off. Like it or not.

next wave of boarding

So last night was the first night I was on the floor as a waitress. I took the shift at the store mostly because I was excited to work but also because the golf outing (which Chris participated in) and I wanted to check it out. Well, I could have picked a better store to throw myself into the action. Mind you, besides the two private parties, the store just opened so for four solid hours I ran around with my head cut off. My 11 tables would all be sat at once, and then they wanted to order at once, then they wanted their check at the same time. Finally I just went from one table to the next taking orders and then dropping off drinks. I didn't have time to be overly friendly and to be the waitress that I would like to be. I didn't even have time to pee. I would take my deep breaths while standing at the computer inputting 11 orders at a time. I had the thought that being a flight attendant and waitress...pretty much the same thing with 35,000 feet difference. Well, here is the main difference: once people are served that's it, the doors don't open and reseat people.
I made it back home at 0130 with my cab driver telling me how bad my neighborhood was and that I should move to Staton Island. How bout you mind your business and just drive motherfucker...the Brooklyn is rubbing off! ; )
So today, I am doing nothing. My legs hurt from working, I bathed then in the sunshine and they are about to get a pedicure. I have no plans to leave the hood today. The roomies are home as well and the four cats, yes I said four are trying desperately to get along. Organized chaos, right here in Brooklyn.

bella roma

Even though the other aisle gal was the New Yorker that I hope to never end up like, the ISM hated me, the other reserve under minded me and told everyone that I was new and didn't know what I was doing, I had a great layover which erased the bullshit of the flight. I got to go Rome!!! The first officer and my galley gal set off and saw everything you are supposed to while in Rome while finding time for gelato, pizza, and Italian beer. We even hit the supermarket and picked up wine coffee, chocolate, and stuff to make Chris dinner. I even got a tan while checking out the sights.
These are the trips I live for and pay the dues of UK flights for months on end, crazy crews, and rude passengers. Yes, this is my silver lining for the summer.
Love, love Italy and can't wait to go back!

sending out an s.o.s.

I land from my long ass trip with the slow crew of the year and do the exact opposite to get into the city. The guys I met on St Patty's Day while waiting for Yoder have come into town and invited me to a tv taping. I changed in the back of a cab, dropped my luggage off at their hotel, and hopped another cab up to Harlem. I arrived at the Apollo just in time to meet the guys and walk in before the door shut. None of us really knew what was going on but sitting twenty feet from the stage, we learned this was tv taping for a new show on Sundance. Elvis Costello is interviewing musicians while adding in his music and stories. Mind you I knew who he was and I knew his songs but I never linked them prior. We were instructed to clap on clue although the performances required no fakeness what so ever. So the band....THE POLICE in their very last appearance of television together. First interview was Andy then Stewart, and then Sting, and then all together. After the amazing, intimate conversations, with a few versus of chorus between Elvis and Sting their bands got together and started jamming.
Definitely one of those, Holy Shit moments in life.

my role model

I was given trip to EDI and was super excited first to return to one of my favorite cities but also to see Pam Ann. She is a comedian who makes fun of flight attendants. We were a poor showing compared to Zoom and Easy Jet but still got pulled up on stage to end the show with a dance. It pretty much consisted of us with our arms out like airplanes "flying around". Good fun with the only two people on the crew I could handle to be around voluntarily. The crew in the back, the ones I had to work with because I signed myself up for the purser position, I was about to kill them because of their slowness and unnecessary drama. Old goodie-to-shoes in the back convinced an anorexic girl that she needed an ambulance to meet the aircraft. I asked her why she didn't just give her something to eat? Thank goodness the day got better....

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ge_x1U2rYBo&feature=related

toto (george), i don't think we are on the upper east side anymore

I seem to pick the hottest days on record to do my moving but this time I spent the best $170 ever by hiring movers. The day prior I was blessed with getting a personal drop so I could spend the whole day packing and cleaning. The movers came at the bright early time of 0800 and I greeted them with donuts and water. Within 45 minutes they had my life loaded and I hopped in the truck with them and their absolutely looney boss. We drove to my new home in Brooklyn. Even though I had been here once to check the place out and knew that I would be "down grading" from the UES, it was still funny to see how much different my neighborhoods were. No Starbucks in sight, it was throw back to ol' Kearny but luckily within five minutes of the city, the city is within viewing of the rooftop.
I unpacked a bunch of stuff and then went home to finish cleaning up and get the rest of my stuff which snowballed into five damn bags plus George. I called a car because I couldn't begin to tell a cab where the hell I moved to and I didn't want any fuss about the other passenger. So we drove in style to the new neighborhood, leaving the strollers, nannies, and jews behind. I now live in raw Brooklyn with two French guy roommates and three other cats.
Should have some good stories coming up....

i have to go where?

My dumb luck doesn’t seem to extend to work. I was good for one day and was assigned airport alert at 1055, which means I was covering NRT, PEK, etc. Well, genius here who does not operate well in the mornings left my blackberry home by accident. This wouldn’t have been a big deal if I would have brought my second phone or my computer but I left them because if I were sent to Central or South America they would be taken. So I get a call around 1130 to monitor a flight, I am sorry, do what? So I go up to the gate to find out the flight to LAX isn’t leaving until 1400. So I walk back down to the crew room and pass the domestic reserve that came in right after me. I asked her what she got and almost strangled her when she replied, Honolulu. I call back to scheduling to pick up an AMS and figure out what the hell I am really supposed to be doing. They put the LAX trip on my line so I had to work domestic. LAX wouldn’t have been the worse thing to happen to me as I have a plethora of men to choose from, however I didn’t have anyone’s numbers. So I am on the pay phone to Carol almost crying at the clusterfuck of my day when my name is announced over the pa. I call and go back to the crew room. I was the second to be called again and this time they gave me a flight that left at 1600 to PHX. I flipped out once more and cursed my fortune. Well the ol’ flight didn’t end up leaving until 1900. At least the crew, minus the fat-ass working first calls was cool.
It was our FO’s birthday so we made him some crew juice and ordered up some apps for our quick overnight. I knew it was time to leave when the quite, shy FO ended up telling all of us that he was a swinger. Weirdness aside we started our three-leg day with sit time in IAH and AUS. Getting home at 1230, I realized how grateful I was to be international. I have no idea how I survived the year I did in domestic.
While heading for the gate in PHX and going to get a salad, I ran into my good friend Chris whom we have done a couple of trips together and had an absolute blast. I ran and jumped on him declaring he just made my day so much better. As we were chatting, he says hello to people passing. Then he tells me that it was Steffi Graff and Andre Agassi. We set off to hunt them down and say hello. We found them at the Brookstone store and finally I walked up and introduced myself.
“I was such a huge fan growing up”
A: “of me or Steffi?”
“Both, your both great but I had you plastered all over my walls”
A: “I am sorry bout that” he said with a grin
“I am not, you are hot” to the amusement of his wife
Small chitchat and a couple more handshakes later, we walked away. I was shaking from the experience of meeting one of my childhood idols.

cdg to man

Sitting here in Manchester, glad to have a familiar place which I can rest and get caught up on my sanity. The trip prior was Paris and it was awesome because I worked first class galley, the crew was awesome, and I didn't have to deal with any passengers. Ended up shopping on the Champs Ellysses and hanging out in the crew room drinking wine till the late hours. The flight home was fun and the relief pilot was super hot so the aisle guy and I spent our time staring at his body and taking photos of him while he slept. Lucky for me, wine gave me enough courage to kiss him the night prior! No one to kiss here in jolly ol' England so I think I will call it a night and hit the hay.

three plus volunteering please

As if having two jobs isn't enough for me, I added volunteering to my life this month as well as getting a job at my favorite watering hole. During my week off "work" I walked pooches in the day and in between trained or volunteered in the morning with the opposing during the evening. All this and finding time for a date with Chris. It was sort of a relief to go back to flying and just have to hang out in Paris all day shopping!
So, Brother Jimmy's...well I am officially the fill-in girl since my schedule is so damn sporadic. I feel in love with the Westside Jimmys during my six day training period. I will be able to be either a hostess or waitress but that whole seating table bit throws me for a loop. My niche is defiantly with people and serving, shocking! The very first day of waitress training, one of the tables was three guys interning for the summer in NYC from U of O.
I haven't worked a shift yet but imagine as soon as I can tell someone what is happening in my life tomorrow and the new store opens up that I will be busy working away.
I am honestly getting tired of flying, the not knowing, the supervisor up my ass all the time, and the feeling of being held captive.
I am really hoping to be granted the leave of absence and be able to enjoy NYC fully, just as I did during my crazy, wonderful week of last.

my all-star week

I had planned my whole summer around volunteering for the All-Star week with landed at Yankee Stadium this year. Months ago I put in my application, then went to an interview, and finally got the letter of acceptance. I was assigned to work FanFest in the Javits Center which many have proclaimed (myself included) to be baseball heaven on Earth. We were given a tour the evening prior to the opening and it was amazing. Our uniform consisted of a red baseball hat, bright yellow polo, and the ultimate topper of a MLB fannie pack...yes, you read correctly! No worries because all of us looked like dorks. I accented my outfit with khaki shorts and red velvet tinnies. My assignment was to work the You Call the Play booth where you could make a dvd with your favorite play and your voice doing the announcing. Instead I got stuck at the Cover Photo which was broke for the first hour so I spent the time watching the Home Run derby and eating free Taco Bell from the neighboring booth.
The next day Chris and I went to enjoy as baseball fans and spent some time actually playing. The Home Run Derby was fun but the damn ball dropped too fast and made me look like an idiot while ol' softball man was hitting them out of the park. On Monday I worked a private party and thus had to decline tickets to the actually Home Run Derby but I did get to work my assigned booth and we had loads of fun goofing around. The last day was Tuesday and I got to work the main attraction The Diamond where legends came out to do clinics with kids and give autographs. Even though I was a day off from Jeter and Bernie Williams, it was sure great to see David Wright, hottie!!
So the perks to this giving of my time included the cool uniform, tickets to Fan Fest, the ability to volunteer next year in St. Louis, a commemorative baseball, the joy of hanging out in such a cool venue, and getting to go to a party and the game.
I was invited to Tao' by my friend Reach to a private party and while trying to grab his attention in the dj booth to thank him, I look to the left and see Shaq. I met him later in the evening and his hand enveloped mine plus half my arm. Amazing party!! Can't even describe how fortunate I feel with my dumb luck.
Even more dumb luck...you remember the guy who ticket I inadvertently scalped a while back? Well he stopped by Fan Fest to see me and offered me a ticket to the All-Star game. I jumped on the chance and come Tuesday around 2000, I was standing in Yankee Stadium watching in awe as baseball greats walked onto the field. Hands down, one of THE BEST MOMENTS in my life Even though the game was the longest all-star game in history, I survived thanks to 2 seventh inning stretches, a beer, and my absolute love for the game.

i'll have a third please

As if having two jobs is not enough, I have just started a third. My local watering hole is opening a new joint and I have been hired to be a waitress/hostess. My training began today followed by orientation for the new place.

a kiss

Aries
March 20 - April 19
Unfortunately you can't measure love the way you would the stock market, dear Aries. And it's all right if that scares you a little, because you know that you have to work at something if you want to make it happen in your life. We all need to have the courage to try new things. So, yes you will find love in your life, but as to whom you will 'invest' with and how much you will 'invest,' you won't find out until the big day. Be patient, you won't be disappointed.

Given my history with blind dates and bad dates in general I was willing to try it once again when my local bartender and friend Larry asked to set me up with his friend. I didn't ask any questions about my upcoming date, I just said yes. He called me and we set up a date and then he actually called me later in the week when he said he was going to. We met at an Irish pub on Mother's day after my flight from OSL. I was nervous at first but then fell into talking to him over Guinness about work, movies, and sports. I called it a night after a couple hours due to exhaustion. He left for Mexico and took over the pooch patrol. We made plans for dinner prior to my departure for Turkey but I had to change it to coffee.
I've got to tell you, he isn't my type and there was no fireworks. But I am realizing that "my type" is no good for me and who have I actually had a relationship with in five years? No one. So I stuck with it. About a month after our first meeting we had our third date bowling and an irish bar. Something that night shifted for me, I became comfortable and less pre-occupied. While we were at the pub, Guinness in hand, Yankee game to the right, Celtic game ahead, live band to the right, I told him that I was pretty close to heaven. Then he kissed me. I was like, oh...OH!
Come to find out, he had the same reservations about me during our first two dates. But he admitted to feel the shift as well that evening.
We ended up spending the fourth of July together first at his softball game, lunch, and then I took him to Lance's party. And then last night I took him on a date to an outdoor cafe and then to a bar with board games. We spend hours playing connect four, checkers, and jenga. Hands down one of my best dates. And the thing is that I am myself around him, no front, no games, me. I have no idea what to think about it, I know that I am not sick to my stomach or worried about whether I can call him or any of the usual bullshit that goes with dating.
I guess a kiss can change everything.

cph

With my crazy schedule lately, I have been unable to find 15 minutes to hit the tanning bed, sometimes the thought of it overwhelms me. Luckily I have been building a nice tan thanks to open roof busses in London, a glorious day at Wimbledon, gay softball tournament in Central Park, dog walking, and today in Copenhagen.
I had my fingers crossed for a good trip knowing that people would call in sick for the holiday weekend. And low and behold, here I am in Scandinavia! Although it was an early check-in I was able to nurse my hang over from the evening prior where I celebrated the 4th of July in my new tradition of a penthouse party. I actually brought friends along this time and was able to enjoy the fireworks with Chris, who is slowly finding a way to my heart.
Besides the back galley gal who wore driving gloves the whole time, the loud ISM, and the other gal who I schooled on the beverage cart, it has been a great trip. We even got to take a nap on the way over (which helped out the hang-over as well). My room is right up against the bank of the river and boast fantastic views of Christiana.
I can’t begin to tell you how beautiful this city is. Gorgeous buildings everywhere you turn and gorgeous people to boot. I wandered for hours before setting off to find the statue of the Little Mermaid. After a wrong turn and thirty minutes of walking, I found the damn thing and got my photo with it. I headed back to go to the Tivoli gardens that were featured in my 501 MSD book. It was a prettier version of Disneyland with outrages prices so I just wandered about and then said what the hell and rode a giant swing set.
Back in my room and looking forward to my bed while across the bank Copenhagen Jazz Fest is playing live. I can’t begin to tell you how much I love this job when trips like this occur!

strawberries and cream please

For the second time in three days, Carol and I were off to London. This time on the 777 headed to LHR. We ended up taking the Tube into the city (which is way more complex than it needs to be) and then after a quick catnap headed on the tube once more to Wimbledon. A couple other crewmembers joined us as we sat on the Hill and watched Venus play on the big screen and then checked out the grounds were legends once walked, played, and won championships.
Although we had a three hour bus ride back to the airport, ground delay because the police shutdown all departures at Heathrow, it was a pretty great trip, especially for Carol who sipped champagne and enjoyed first class. She has become quite spoiled lately!

trip from hell

Good thing the crew was so great. And I was glad Carol was there to actually witness some of the stories, which happen to me. To start off we were four hours delayed due to hydraulics and a plane swap. The crew just sat together and made the most of our time joking around. Well once we boarded the plane, the pain in the ass people started. Everyone on that flight was mad at us and so rude that after our service we just ignored them. Horrible, horrible people. One lady told me I missed her meal on purpose and had a shit fit when all the was left was chicken, She yelled at me, then the lead and then the other guy until the back galley (straight from Harlem) went and straightened her out. The other lady we hated was 14F who tried to take another seat then bitched about it not reclining then was mad because we didn’t know about her connection on another carrier. Another guy refused to put his elbow in for the carts so we made it a game to hit him every single time. Because Carol was with me I had to go through regular customs. I was taking off my sweater and breathing a sigh of relief when ol’ 14F came marching up to me and asked if I was still working. “I am finished working” I said. “That’s been everyone’s attitude the whole flight, the other girl told me that you have been working for 12 hours and got paid for 6” “She is right and I am done working and ma'am a crew’s attitude is a reflection of how passengers treat us” “Well I am going to write a letter” “Knock yourself out lady!” All the while Carol is telling me to stop and I went and told customs that they need to hold that lady because she was mean. What a bitch!!!
And oh, on the way home I had to break up a fight between two grown men one of which (the instigator) was wearing a "Holy Ghost" tee-shirt. Real godly of you jackass!

time is running out

I am sad today because it feels like a deadline is looming over me. I am embracing this summer as if my current life will end when the leaves change and begin to fall. The news about work is getting worse and the chance to keep seeing the world grows shorter with each passing day. I have been extremely disappointed not to be as busy as I thought I should be this month. I am also disappointed that there are amazing trips in open time and I don't get to go because I picked up LGW just to work and now there are dream places that someone else gets to experience. I was able to change my trip to Manchester but it is definitely not Madrid or Berlin or Geneva. Time is running out and luck doesn't seem to be in my corner with work right now. It is sad to think of my comfortable, fantastic life changing without my say or knowledge of what the next season will bring to me.
This I do know for sure, I am moving to a less expensive place out in Brooklyn, formally know as BK for further blogging purposes. I am excited to move to another borough and see what else NY has to offer. Change in any form is always a hesitation for me even though good things usually do eventually happen.
My friend Jim has been in town and takes me to do NY stuff with him because he likes the company. I like that he realizes I am broke and drags me out of the house anyway. We went to Curtains on Wednesday and then out for cheesecake. The show was amazing!! Yesterday with my day off, I embraced the sunshine and headed out to Yankee Stadium. I had to scalp a ticket but ended up sitting with some guys who bought my beers and kept me entertained. I was even offered tickets to the All-Star game. Yes, I got his number just in case! : ) An afternoon nap followed my afternoon ballpark buzz and then we headed off to a comedy show in the village. Good stuff! I enjoy hanging out with Jim because he calls me out on all my bullshit neuroses and asks me the tough questions. We have figured out that I smitten with a boy who lives way too far away. But isn't that me? Wanting what I can't have easily?