This Fish Needs A Bicycle

sweet

Boston-bound trains leave Penn Station roughly every half hour. I’ve stopped checking Amtrak schedules and instead just show up, check the board and buy a ticket. If I’m feeling impatient and relatively wealthy, I’ll take the next available train, which always happens to be the Express. But today I waited for the Regional. I was in no hurry.

I’ve logged a fair amount of time at Penn Station in the last, oh, six months or so, reluctantly waiting to shuffle back to Boston. I sit in eateries or Amtrak waiting areas eating, reading, making lists. Men in suits attempt to make polite conversation. I answer in short, close-ended sentences, trying with some amount of grace, to convey that I’d simply rather be left alone. I watch homeless and other afflicted folk stumble in, asking for change, food, help. This afternoon, one man, a cup of change in his hand, stopped briefly only to say, “You’re the prettiest girl of the day” and then wander off again, having asked me for nothing. Though, I’d have given whatever change I had on me. A compliment like that deserves a buck or two.

This afternoon’s train ride marked another (and yet, probably my last) less-than-24-hour stay in New York City. Tuesday morning, I rode back to Boston in Business class, with a new job offer and worries in my head. Today, I came back (this time with an unreserved coach ticket. It’s starting to ad up!) having more or less secured an apartment. I left New York feeling very relaxed and extremely lucky (even more lucky when it turned out that my unreserved coach fare had gotten me a business class seat on an Express train).

In two weeks, I’ll head back to start the New Job and then soon after, move into my new place. I’m positively thrilled. Oh, and did I mention I already know one of my neighbors? Yup. She’s close enough to borrow sugar.

Life is sweet and pleasantly surprising. Kinda like having vanilla ice cream in your coffee.

Posted by This Fish at March 7, 2004 06:47 PM