Fevers

One of my fevers broke two weeks ago. It was a food related fever. I had been having the same dish, a veggie burger, at the same restaurant almost everyday. It's not that I've never had a veggie burger before, but I liked the taste and somehow it had become comfort food. The fever broke in Whole Foods when I discovered that somewhat healthy packaged Indian and Thai meals only require a five minute boil. In aisle 2, I started to put some distance between myself and the veggie burger. Now I have a fever for prepared Indian and Thai food that comes in a silver pouch. (Full disclosure- I am still eating veggie burgers but less often than I did two weeks ago.)

I am usually running multiple fevers. Food, music, and tv are constants. Some fevers don't last very long. My tv related fever (Scrubs) back in January came and went. Yesterday I had an NFL draft fever that only lasted a couple of hours. I'm running a climate change related fever. I've had that one for the past four months. Attending an Al Gore talk back in March didn't help. I usually run a music related fever. At present, if I don't hear Modest Mouse and Fountains of Wayne each day, then the fever worsens. There are other fevers, usually people related, that linger. These fevers feel much different than the others.

Competing with Rockefeller

When I'm at my desk at home I can look out the window and see the Rockefeller Research Laboratory on 67th. For the past seven months I have been working at home, until the wee hours, on two projects. No matter how late I work there are always lights on in the Rockefeller Lab. Some nights it feels like I'm collaborating with the scientists on a project that will save lives. Other nights I feel like I'm competing with the scientists for a Nobel prize. When I'm waiting at the bus stop I see the scientists with their shiny white coats walk purposefully into the building. Last night, around midnight, I saw a building cleaner peer out one of the windows. I'm starting to think that the scientists have not been working late hours. They haven't been competing or collaborating. For the past seven months I've been collaborating and competing with people that clean the building. This means that I might have to start working on the project at home during the day and cleaning my apartment at night. I love to compete.

Tuesday in NYC

Tuesday was beautiful. The high was around 80F. I took a break from work and sat in Central Park. After a half hour I took a break from the hot sun and went back to work. It's hard to work on days like that. I had to wait for the bus Tuesday morning but didn't mind. It just meant more time in the sun. I currently have a deep 'New York in April' tan.

Nor'easter

I just did an informal poll with a sample size of three. Poll results: Only one New Yorker is worried about the Nor'easter that's supposed to hit NYC sometime after midnight tonight. The other two polled were unconcerned about the weather and were not planning on doing anything to prepare for the storm. I'm the one worried about the storm. I did the poll when I was out buying an umbrella. (I would have purchased a poncho, but the store only had pink and lime colors.) I don't have much experience with tropical storms. I once slept through a cyclone in Japan. I woke to a nice day. School was canceled, so I didn't have to work. Nobody was hurt, so I didn't have to feel guilty about enjoying the day off. Maybe I'll sleep in tomorrow.

Neighbors

I've never seen any of my neighbors on the M66. Of course, I have yet to meet most of my neighbors so I might have sat next to a neighbor on the bus today. I met the guy who lives across the hall from me twice in a thirty minute time span this evening. The first time I was carrying laundry that had been washed and dried by someone else. The second time I was carrying dinner that was made by someone else. I told my neighbor that I had forgotten how to cook and how to do my laundry. He said that he thought that I was a good cook. He liked the smell of onions that sometimes came from my apartment. My last girlfriend said that this wasn't the case. She repeatedly told me that I didn't know how to cook onions. Too impatient, she said. She used to praise my dish washing skills, though. I am a good dishwasher. Thorough and uncomplaining. It was nice of my neighbor to pay me a compliment. It was a compliment, wasn't it?

M66 Crosstown

This blog is about my non-linear thoughts on a linear bus route. The M66 Crosstown takes me across Central Park and then back home again. I usually ride it five days a week. Travel time is about 40 minutes each way. The first day of work I walked. Since then I've taken the bus. I like the M66 Crosstown. I smile when I see it. I sometimes run after it when it leaves and am disappointed when it's late. Of course, I've been on other buses. One bus picked me up in Guatemala City, fed me a McDonald's pancake breakfast, showed me Getting Even With Dad, and took me up and around a mountainous landscape. I threw up 16 times on that trip. One woman tried to give me dramamine after the 10th heave. Very thoughtful. I've been quite taken with other buses. Buses have gotten me around Latin America, Japan, Cuba, and the U.S. I have a lot of memories tied to buses. Don't get wrong I prefer to fly and take trains but it seems like I've spent a lot of time on buses. And on long bus rides your mind has time to wander.