I believe I left off at Saturday morning shortly after I caught a cold bus ride back to my brothers. We had breakfast again (Me, Brandon, and Sophie - his wife) as a small family. An hour or two later Brandon and I headed to the Bedford-Stuyvesant YMCA for a chest and triceps workout. If it weren't for the no-xplode supplement I swear I would have been falling asleep on the bench. Surprisingly I did quite well. Working out with my brother is fun until the point where you feel like vomiting. He doesn't take many breaks in between sets. His idea for a healthy workout routine is "lift til' you puke." On the way home we grabbed some take out Indian food that was possibly one of my favorite meals so far in New York.
Later Saturday evening I met up with Karla (the girlfriend from the first blog) to talk about our relationship so we both have a clear understanding on us. After she had changed her outfit twice we left her apartment to go shop for some head gear to keep my ears warm. We were both starving so halfway through the train ride into town we got off to grab dinner at Juniors diner. Soup for her, Turkey sandwich for me, and Irish coffee's for the both of us. I didn't have much of an appetite so I only ate half. The sandwich was stacked with turkey with a dab of mayonnaise which made the sandwich dry and hard to eat. Every bite was chased with another sip of my alcoholic beverage. The experience was completely worth it because of our waiter. He was the nicest guy I have ever met. He made it a point to make sure we were well taken care of. He even wiped the sticky whipped cream off of my glass, and cleaned up my area half way through our dinner. I made sure he knew how we felt, and also his manager. That is probably the first time I have gone out of my way for somebody to make it a point of their service. Perhaps I was into the Christmas spirit that evening too with the holiday playlist, and the restaurant overflown with decorations.
Back to the train platform, and onward we went to our original destination to Dave's New York. Dave's has a collection of Carhartt winter clothing. Turns out Dave's was closed. 6 p.m. is last call on Saturday's. DAMNIT! The night didn't end there. So we walked to Union Square to look around the stores in that area. We got stopped by a bald black man in an overcoat. "My god you are pretty, what is your name?" he said. "Don't beat me up, I'm just being friendly. Is this your girlfriend?" With sarcasm I replied "No. She wishes she could be." as well as many other witty and rather sly comments thrown her way. Turns out he was a salesman for a hair salon, and a comedian on the side. We received 2 free tickets to any one of his shows after that conversation. Those went in to the nearest trash can. It was at that point Karla was holding on to my arm, and holding my hand finally showing me the affection I have been looking for. So we headed across the street to whole foods because I wanted to pick up some Dr. Bronner's hemp soap. That stuff goes a long way you know? I grabbed what I needed and took her back home so she could prepare for her night shift at her coat checking job. I rode the train halfway back with her on my way home before leaving her behind. I kissed her, wished her good luck and headed on. I got back to my brothers and was confused as to what just happened that evening. I made some phone calls, and texted a few close friends for advice. Leading me on? Still into me? Wants her cake and wants to eat it too? Fucking women.
Sunday. I headed back to Dave's New York to find what I needed. A fleece cap with a wind-resistant pull-down face mask. Its purpose is for winter cycling when I eventually find myself a bike. Karla called me first thing in the morning. This can only mean one thing, right? She's misses me. She wants me back! Not quite. I told her my plans for the day, and invited her to a show that evening. My friend Kyle was in town from Orlando and was tour managing for Automatic Love Letter. I was guest listed with a +1 for her. I met with Kyle at 8th and 16th street mid-town Manhattan and we headed back down to see the production on the freedom tower. It was exciting for a total of 10 seconds. We grabbed a slice of pizza, and some beers right after - closer to where we had met. I made my way back home after about 1 1/2 hours to drop my things off. I headed to target and grabbed some new socks from there, and then got a text from my newest friend Lisa telling me she's home from Philadelphia and to head over. Lisa and I had met back in October at Fest in Gainesville while she was selling merchandise for Mix-tapes. She heard about my band through other mutual friends in a band called Captain We're Sinking! They are good friends of mine who played on tour in Orlando with us, and are on Lisa's record label (Kind of like records.) So she heard good things about us, and her and I had bonded at that point. I told her about my plans to move to Brooklyn, and she told me to hit her up once I got there - which I did.
I had not heard from Karla until after we had arrived to the show. She was not feeling well so she bailed. This gave me opportunity to get to know my new friend Lisa. She was also guest listed that night because she did some work for one of the bands playing that evening. We found Kyle and he gave us a couple All Access passes. Most of the evening was spent hanging out backstage with the other bands and drinking the free Heineken. I was surprised to find one of the bands was ex-members of the legendary Taking Back Sunday. I never got into them, but I have friends who are so I was free to brag about it. Legends? No. Just normal musicians bored in between cities. Just like anyone else.
From the show Lisa took me to a bar back near her neighborhood. It was a Sunday holiday party. The bartender had a 'No Friends' shirt on which are some good friends of mine from Orlando. I was introduced to a few of her friends which a couple had moved up from Orlando. Small world. They asked me if I go to BBQ-bar. I said I hated that place but was unfortunately sucked in. They were friendly. We got some beers, and the free pizza that came along with it. That's right. Free pizza with purchase of beer. We headed up stairs and a Christmas rock and roll cover band started playing. It was perfect. The music was horrible, the sound was horrible, and the vocals had too much treble and not enough bass. But it was at that point my sadness was broken and suddenly my spirit was lifted. It was too perfect. 5 drunk amateurs on stage having a blast. They were surrounded and everybody was smiling. The Christmas spirit was back. Even one of the workers who barely spoke English was forced onto the stage to sing Feliz Navidad. He was off by a half measure the whole time. Everyone hooted and applauded regardless. It was all about fun, not performance. We took a cab back to Lisa's and she let me crash on the small mattress that was dragged inside. After watching about 15 minutes of Love Actually I had passed out. I was done.
This morning I was up around 8:30, put on my boots, said thank you and goodbye to Lisa. I came home and immediately got ready to leave again. Today was job hunting day. Shirt, tie, slacks, and fancy shoes and I was on my way back to Manhattan. I had pulled an ad off craigslist for a valet position and went to the location. As I was making my way towards the door I walked away realizing I had forgotten to bring a pen with me. Bought my pens and headed back. I walked inside and realized what a shit hole the place was. The guy was a dick, and the other applicants were more than likely not eligible to work in the U.S. Not for me. Karla texted me and told me to come visit her. I made my way over to her restaurant. After a few bitter and immature comments towards her I told her we should probably not talk anymore. She fills me with false-hope, digs my emotions into the ground, and just brings me down as a person altogether. It's not worth it to me. I moved to New York for myself. For school, change, partially family, and opportunity. Those were my original intentions. All she did was ruin my experience if anything. Once I had walked out that restaurant door I put on Pacemaker, by Teenage Bottlerocket, and smiled.
I sent Lisa a text to let her know what was up. She invited me to lunch, so I took the 6 to her office. I told her that suddenly I woke up. I feel great. It was over and I could go back to being me again. Selfish and drunk. Just kidding. After we each had a bowl of soup, we left and she pointed at a restaurant with no name across the street. She said they just opened and I should pop in. I did just that. I got an immediate interview, and should be hearing from the GM by tomorrow. The manager was real nice and from Florida which probably helped my case. That, and he was gay. I am often approached by homosexual men so it only makes sense. That's fine though. I'll let him dream about me if he can give me a job.
I am mostly excited about my new friend Lisa. She's a very sweet person with a wonderful list of contacts. And she gives a shit. Getting to know her has been one of my best experiences so far. It has not been a total of 24 hours since our reuniting and I already feel like she's a close friend. Tonight I am heading to Mike Lewis's house and staying with him for a few days. The 23rd, if the offer still stands, I will have my new apartment to myself while the girls are out of town. Goodnight everyone. I'm heading back to the YMCA with Brandon now. It's time for me to get nauseous again.
"I'M BACK BABY!" - George Costanza
Excelent. Cool.
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