So I’m sitting on my soon-to-be-roomie’s fire-escape, smoking a cigarette, holding a bag of ice to my face , in my bra and sweatpants.
Fire-escape? She’s at work and I’m staying with her til I can go back to DC and move my shit into my brand-spankin’ new apartment.
Smoking? To deal with the ridiculous stress that was today.
Ice? No, not because of the two black guys I flipped off (more on that later), but to de-swell the rest of my face, which is almost back to normal. Joy!
Last night I took an inordinately long bus ride to NYC, and due to a layover in PA, it took about six hours. Not fun. This morning, Dannie and I went to sign the lease and make the deposit on our loft. Mel, one of our other two roomies, was supposed to meet us there with she and Sarah Jean’s half of the payment. But, as we learned while we were waiting for her, their was a problem with getting all of her money because her bank account is foreign (English) and she could only withdrew a certain amount. After about five hours of much stressing and phone call-making, we learned that Dannie and I would have to come up with about $850 of the deposit. We were supposed to have it all in by 3:30, which is when our landlord, Alex, was supposed to leave and deliver the deposit for Sunday, when our lease starts. Well, at about 3:30, we realize the only way we can get the last of it was for me to go to a Commerce, my bank, and withdraw what my dad transferred. Mel managed to get part of it, so I needed about $700. Thus started the Great Trek Across Brooklyn.
I set off, already sweating in the glaring afternoon sun, and after about three blocks, finally manage to get a cab. Upon asking the driver, I discover the Commerce was farther than I thought, but I figure, fuck it, I have to get there. So we make our way through Atlantic Ave traffic, all the while Dannie calling me every couple minutes to see where I’m at. We finally make it to the bank, I tell the driver to wait, and I bolt in, a hot mess of sweat and anxiety. I have to wait in line for a teller, and when I finally do get up there, the transaction takes a couple of minutes. People must have thought someone was chasing me.
“I need to withdraw a large sum of cash.”
“Ok, please wait in line.”
You can imagine the thrill. So I bolt out of there with a fat envelope, hop in the cab, and race back to the loft. I tipped the guy well; this older Asian man who managed to get me there rather quickly, through rush hour. I felt a bit like I was in some kind of gangster movie; a wad of cash, repeatedly on the phone saying “I’ll be there in ten, I’ll be there in five, et.c” Over-active imagination, you see.
I literally run the next block, until I come into view, where Dannie, Mel, Alex and our super are outside. I hear Dannie yell “stop running!” and they all seemed very amused by my dehydrated and exhausted state. I imagine I did look rather funny, the red bandana around my neck flapping against my face as my heavy work boots clobbered the sidewalk, my arms pumping, red-face and breathing hard. I do what I can.
So it all worked out, and Alex wasn’t pissed. I think we managed to avoid having our reputation with our landlord completely tarnished. Let’s just say we’ll be amazingly on-time with rent from here on out.
And ah yes, the black guys. In the middle of our financial crisis, Dannie and I are sitting on the side walk, both trying to stay calm. These two guys, both fairly short, walk by saying shit like “Oh, that’s nice, baby, yeah.” You know, the usual Sidewalk Caveman communication. I just look up, pissed and stressed beyond belief, and just give them a very definitive bird. They pause, and say something to the effect of “Oh, that’s bad, she’s bad” while Dannie just kind of cordially implored them to fuck off, we were having a rough day. They did. BUT wait, there’s more. A little while later, I’m on the phone with my dad and they walk by again (apparently they don’t have anything better to do than harass young women). One of them, as they walk by, start telling Dannie over and over again that her friend had an attitude, and she should change it. Dannie just kind of “Okay’d” them until they were out of earshot. This resulted in Dannie, as we were heading home, uttering the title quote. And she’s right of course, but mighty zeus, what I’d have given to beat someone up right then, and they were spared only because A) I was too exhausted, B)I have a bit of temper when I want to, but I’m not an IDIOT, and C)I didn’t want to have to explain to the police why two grown men were on the ground screaming in pain from the mace-pepperspray I just used on them. Take too much time. Just kidding.
Sort of.
And now, food.
Peace,
Bean
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