How Going to New York Changed My Life
Of course, you saw tons of pictures I took from the State Fair. The truth is I was nearly depressed that day at the Fair that I asked my friend if I should reach out to the counseling center on campus. Standing in a huge crowd where everyone was having fun either eating turkey legs or waiting in line to hop on the skywheel, I felt lost. I was with my friend A. I had company. But it was something else that was bothering me. The same thing happened back in 2016 when I was in L.A. traveling by myself.
"Why I hold the door for that girl and she didn't say 'thank you'?"
"Why did people in class talk to me without a smile?"
"I meant to say hello to that guy but he just acts like he doesn't want to talk to me."
... ...
I guess my two years at UNCC as a communications major have taught me to really pay attention to the details. They can be fun to discover, but when you "decipher" them, things start to get depressing. I didn't understand that people who express their verbal cues or certain countenances don't have the same context as I do. And I overthink about everything of my life.
I planned my Fall break to New York with Yvonne, whom I hadn't had a chance to see for almost a year. She's probably the funniest person I know. My time with her is always flooded with dirty jokes and endless laughters. So before I ever took off to New York, I flew to Penn State, where she goes school to, just to spend more time with her. Then we took an overnight megabus that drop us off in front of F.I.T.
We lyted everywhere. But our first destination was the hotel room we booked near Wall Street. We took a power nap and decided to spend our very first afternoon at SOHO.
We shopped for almost two hours at SOHO after getting brunch. I was tired already even though I didn't feel like we did anything. We stopped at a Starbucks. It was crowded like every other Starbucks in Manhattan. I got into the line just to get a bottled water for us. The baristas really caught my eye. They were all hyped up. The girl who took my water had such a cheerful voice and a bright smile. As the music switched to an energetic song, the whole crew, behind the counter, started to dance to the song and sing along with it.
That was the moment that hit me. It was a Friday afternoon. Everyone who has to work would be somewhat exhausted and can't wait for the weekends to come. But this kind of energy, this positivity, wasn't expected at all. They might not be paid the highest in the city, but they were the happiest I had seen so far. Every non-New Yorker keeps telling me how cold and indifferent the city is. But if I were a barista in a Starbucks in North Carolina, I wouldn't be dancing to and singing along with the song. At least I would feel awkward.
But here in New York City, I guess you can; actually, you can almost do everything legal, and almost nobody will judge you.
The bottled water really got me refreshed.
The couple more days and nights were spent with two other friends, Harry and Hao, who go to different school in the city. We met up and had all-you-can-eat hotpot in East Village together. We then ubered to Brooklyn Bridge just because Yvonne and I wanted to do the tourist thing: take pictures on the bridge. We walked on the bridge in the howling cold wind. It was so strong that I almost lost my scarf.
We kept walking until we reached Brooklyn. We saw the city from the other side of East River. Jane's Carousel was all lightened up, looking like a surreal fairytale scene in the darkness far away from the city lights. Unfortunately, my camera died and so did my phone, so I couldn't get any pictures of the carousel.
We spotted an Italian restaurant that looks high-end, so we decided to sit down and take the calories game to the next level: we didn't get anything but desserts! They all got different sorts of ice creams and gelatos, and I ordered a plate of Tiramisu. We shared everything, kept talking and talking, and bursted into loud laughters like we were all tipsy. But we were really not. We were just happy to see each other. But nobody cared. Nobody turned around to look at us like we're idiots.
You really can do crazy things in New York that you can't do in any other places.
Now that the final exams are over, I have the time once again to finish this piece. It was moments like those I encountered in New York City that made me believe there is a group of people somewhere on this planet who are always upbeat and lively, and who are always excited to try something new.
A New York lover once told me, "New York is indifferent enough for you to live on your own without being judged, but it is also intimate enough for you to bond together with other lonely plants in the city through endless fun activities."
That says about everything I feel about New York.
