First Week Commuting

A Journal.

Day 1: Did you know that it's dark out at 6am? 

yeah, I was really tired but that's a window 
(with a Christmas candle in it because my mom thinks they're for year-round)

"The first day isn't that bad. It's the second day that makes you want to die..." Alice warns.

Evening - get a ride home with Daddy. Would have been faster to take the train.

Day 2: Did you know it's cold and rainy at 6am? (sometimes)

Umbrella? Check. Coat and boots? Packed: whereabouts unknown.

Evening - resist the urge to buy beer on the platform.

Queens hotspot

Day 3: Did you know that it's even darker at 5:30am? 

Leave the house at 6:35 to be at work at 8:30.

Evening - train home smells like a urinal cake, which is preferable to alternatives.

Day 4: Snoozed 3 times.

Complete thought: Penn Station is bad for your mental and physical health.

Evening - take the 7 train the wrong way one stop. Sounds about right.

Day 5: Don't act like your'e doing me any favors, Friday.

Just can't get excited about Friday today; it was too hard-earned.

Evening - train cancelled. Do not resist the urge to buy a beer.

But first have to go to this ATM that will definitely not steal my identity.

watch the happy dancing guy :) nothing shady

You heard it here first: the cheapest beer in NYC is at the Hunters Point LIRR station.

I sprung for an imported

these are my people now

Upshot: I survived the week.

The Cast

In case you don't think like me for some reason (weird), you should know that I think of my life as a sitcom. Before I get any further into the story arc of this season, allow me to present the characters.

Main Characters

Jill (me) - Typical 20-something professional. I lost my burning desire to climb the corporate ladder a couple years ago but I work in a semi-important job to pay the bills. Like most people of my generation, I spend most of my time at work fantasizing about going back to college.

Tom (my husband) - A disillusioned chiropractor that actually is going back to college. But not in the fun way. Before he goes to PA school, he has to retake some of his prereqs from college because his credits expired (already? seriously?) so he's the "old" freshman on campus. He goes to school 4 days a week and works 3 days so I should just stop complaining right now. But I won't.

Daddy (my dad) - There is no need to give my dad a name other than Daddy because that is what he calls himself. Confused? You know the way a young father might talk to his two year old? "Daddy doesn't like it when you bite me." That's how my dad still talks to me. "You know Daddy's not big on birthdays." But you gotta love a guy that loves his little girls that much. 

His house is a mess but he's working on getting it cleaned up for us (at the last minute - wonder where I get it from).

Secondary Characters

Amy (my sister) - Amy has lived with us for the last 2 years in the city. She's renting a room from a girl in Queens for the time being. I'm going to miss having her around but Tom will not miss her cat Frosty and her constant shedding.

How could anyone be mad at this face?

credit: Rae

Gail (my mom) - Pretty awesome mom. Retired, lives about one mile from my dad. It's no secret that I wish we could live with her, but her house is smaller and fuller than my dad's.

Cutie (my stepdad-to-be) - Ok, his real name is Ron but my mom calls him Cutie and then my sister and I started calling him Cutie too because, I don't know, it's cute. He and my dad kind of have an Ashton-Bruce-8-years-ago thing going on, in that they get along and both cook (occasionally together) for family dinners. As a divorced kid, this is the most one can hope for.

Recurring Characters

I don't really know yet... my sister's boyfriend Ben? My mom's friend Aunt Kath that lives with her half the time? Maybe.

My friend Alice, who is also stuck living with her dad in Huntington? Definitely.

My in-laws, various Long Island friends of both Tom and me, my desperate alter-ego that attempts to manipulate a move back into the city? Probably.

Meet the Neighbors, Part II

As I was saying, we moved ...our stuff.

First we had to drop my sister's stuff off at her new place in Bayside... or Flushing? eh, Queens, anyway. Speaking of neighbors, Tom mentioned more than once that he's jealous that Amy lives so close to Dunkin' Donuts.

On our way to Huntington, we made a quick bagel stop and by the time we got to my dad's, our Super-Movers had unloaded almost all of our stuff.

As they finished up, we (re-)met the neighbors.

Bill, from next door on the left just said a warm hello and welcomed us.

I have to admit that the first "welcome back to the neighborhood" kind of sent a shiver of panic (is that a thing?) down my spine... or up it? Spine idioms are hard.

Then Jay, from across the street, who is my age and was just visiting for the weekend ...because he's doing enough with his life not to live with his parents.

Oh and hey! Running into someone from high school! So glad that I had decided that it was pointless to shower on moving day, that I'd rock my holey Bearcats sweatpants and my Jen's Pink Lady Bachelorette Party "NOT too pure to be pink!" t-shirt*, and that I'd throw my greasy hair back in some claw-clip/bendy-clip monstrosity.

I'm starting to get a glimpse of the awkwardness that awaits me.

Next was Jay's dad Andrew, who offered to help my dad clean up the house (which my dad refused, sigh).

And finally, Jean, from next door on the right. Her daughter Alex, a photographer/filmmaker, used to take photos of Amy and me. Alex also happened to be home because she was using her parents' house as a set for her latest project for the LA Film Festival (doing something with her life).

Also, Jean informed us that Alex is pregnant with twins at the age of 42 (go girl!) and that she's considered a geriatric obstetrics patient... ugh, I better get on this whole "kids" thing, one of these days...

and I'm gonna be 40! ...someday!

...ok maybe I have a few good years left.

*No offense, Shea, that shirt is awesome.