Tis' The Season: Day 20
Today's Topic: Whether Rain, Sleet, Or Snow....
The holidays are peak travel times. People travel, gifts travel, Christmas cards travel, even the three wisemen travelled back in the day at Christmas Episode I. Things get around.
Today, there was a transit strike in Manhattan. At 5:00 AM this morning, after failed overnight negotiations with the Metropolitan Transit Authority and city officials, the Transit Workers' Union threw down the gauntlet and transit workers all over the city walked off the job. No subways, no buses.
Get ready to lose a few pounds and walk a few miles
I awoke at 6:30 AM (after a strange dream about a pit bull showing up at a party at a public park and setting everyone on edge because we all knew that pit bull would attack us at any moment) to my alarm blasting out the radio. It is set to a spanish radio station. I checked the New York Times' website and saw that the strike went down. Then I went back to bed hitting snooze every 9 minutes for 2 hours. After the ninth time my alarm went off, I decided it'd be smart to change the channel to an English speaking station I could understand to hear what was going on with the strike and the morning commute.
I got a voicemail from my roommate: "Put on your walking shoes and don't plan on taking a cab to work...there's crazy traffic out here. And you may want to bring a camera."
Fellow Walkers - Note the news trucks in the picture
I live at 108th St. on the west side of town. I usually take the subway to work...no, ALWAYS take the subway to work. Because I don't want to walk to 42nd St. on the east side of town, where I work. But not this morning. Like all other New Yorkers, I was walking.
The last time there was a strike was 1980. People got to work however they could. I love this picture taken during that strike, it's a guy in a business suit rollerskating through traffic to get to work (I can't find it, if anyone can let me know).
So I got dressed and got ready to go, and then realized, "This is kinda fun. I get to go in late to work and get to walk all through the city." I thought of the picture of Rollerskate Businessman. In proud tribute, I grabbed my skateboard headed downtown. There were tons of people everywhere and police directing traffic. Cars couldn't go further downtown than 96th St. unless they had no less than four people in them.
I skated and walked on my 66ish block commute, and it was awesome. I skated down sidestreets, through Central Park, and down Park Avenue. I even managed to do a little ollie (read: 2 inches high) over a cable in the street as I was en route. Best of all, I got to live a fantasy of being in Manhattan, going to work in the busy rush, and getting to skateboard there through the streets. My fellow commuters watched as I rode by down the streets. I only wish I could've done a kickflip boardslide down a fifteen stair rail on the way and kept going, right past a coffee stand where I'd hold out my hand and snatch a coffee and bagel and throw some money on the cart's counter yelling, "Keep the change bro!" and then turn and flash a smile at the camera as Christian Slater rolled up beside me and said "Man you really gleam the cube!".
The morning even made my office job seem cooler, coming in to hang up my coat and put my skateboard in the coat closet. I am the new Michael J. Fox.
Strike Commute Transportation
In the midst of all this, one man, without a skateboard or rollerskates also remained faithful. When I was washing dishes about to leave my apartment, I heard the doorbell ring. "Coming!" I yelled, to which it rang about four more times. "The postman always rings twice" - in our neighborhood, he rings 7 or more times regardless if you acknowledge you're there or not. I opened the door and saw him there - the faithful postman, out early to do his job, handing me a package. I thanked him and he flew off, his cape in the wind - wait, no he just walked down the stairs - and I opened the box to see a bow and small present from my aunt and uncle, my first one of Christmas '05 so far. Whether rain, sleet, snow, or transit strike, the postman delivers Christmas.
The holidays are peak travel times. People travel, gifts travel, Christmas cards travel, even the three wisemen travelled back in the day at Christmas Episode I. Things get around.
Today, there was a transit strike in Manhattan. At 5:00 AM this morning, after failed overnight negotiations with the Metropolitan Transit Authority and city officials, the Transit Workers' Union threw down the gauntlet and transit workers all over the city walked off the job. No subways, no buses.
Get ready to lose a few pounds and walk a few miles
I awoke at 6:30 AM (after a strange dream about a pit bull showing up at a party at a public park and setting everyone on edge because we all knew that pit bull would attack us at any moment) to my alarm blasting out the radio. It is set to a spanish radio station. I checked the New York Times' website and saw that the strike went down. Then I went back to bed hitting snooze every 9 minutes for 2 hours. After the ninth time my alarm went off, I decided it'd be smart to change the channel to an English speaking station I could understand to hear what was going on with the strike and the morning commute.
I got a voicemail from my roommate: "Put on your walking shoes and don't plan on taking a cab to work...there's crazy traffic out here. And you may want to bring a camera."
Fellow Walkers - Note the news trucks in the picture
I live at 108th St. on the west side of town. I usually take the subway to work...no, ALWAYS take the subway to work. Because I don't want to walk to 42nd St. on the east side of town, where I work. But not this morning. Like all other New Yorkers, I was walking.
The last time there was a strike was 1980. People got to work however they could. I love this picture taken during that strike, it's a guy in a business suit rollerskating through traffic to get to work (I can't find it, if anyone can let me know).
So I got dressed and got ready to go, and then realized, "This is kinda fun. I get to go in late to work and get to walk all through the city." I thought of the picture of Rollerskate Businessman. In proud tribute, I grabbed my skateboard headed downtown. There were tons of people everywhere and police directing traffic. Cars couldn't go further downtown than 96th St. unless they had no less than four people in them.
I skated and walked on my 66ish block commute, and it was awesome. I skated down sidestreets, through Central Park, and down Park Avenue. I even managed to do a little ollie (read: 2 inches high) over a cable in the street as I was en route. Best of all, I got to live a fantasy of being in Manhattan, going to work in the busy rush, and getting to skateboard there through the streets. My fellow commuters watched as I rode by down the streets. I only wish I could've done a kickflip boardslide down a fifteen stair rail on the way and kept going, right past a coffee stand where I'd hold out my hand and snatch a coffee and bagel and throw some money on the cart's counter yelling, "Keep the change bro!" and then turn and flash a smile at the camera as Christian Slater rolled up beside me and said "Man you really gleam the cube!".
The morning even made my office job seem cooler, coming in to hang up my coat and put my skateboard in the coat closet. I am the new Michael J. Fox.
Strike Commute Transportation
In the midst of all this, one man, without a skateboard or rollerskates also remained faithful. When I was washing dishes about to leave my apartment, I heard the doorbell ring. "Coming!" I yelled, to which it rang about four more times. "The postman always rings twice" - in our neighborhood, he rings 7 or more times regardless if you acknowledge you're there or not. I opened the door and saw him there - the faithful postman, out early to do his job, handing me a package. I thanked him and he flew off, his cape in the wind - wait, no he just walked down the stairs - and I opened the box to see a bow and small present from my aunt and uncle, my first one of Christmas '05 so far. Whether rain, sleet, snow, or transit strike, the postman delivers Christmas.
posted by cory cavin @ 5:19 PM
2 Comments:
At 8:26 AM,
Marshall said…
Your picture of the 1980 strike did not post. Also, I think you are strecthing a bit to make this one a seasonal post - I think you owe us at least one extra one!
At 12:13 PM,
cory cavin said…
Marsh,
I re-edited some stuff, couldn't find the picture of the strike roller skater, and accepted your plea for a new post in addtion to yesterday. I thought the strike was worthy because it affected a lot up here (namely my feet from walking so much). But i see your point...but if you're slandering the mailman or saying he's not a huge part of Christmas, beware...you may get a box full of fury from the USPS this Christmas.
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