Just a chapter, not the story!

Hello All,

You’ll be happy to know that I’ve started my podcast. It’s called the Tammy J: It Happens show and it is on iTunes, Spreaker and YouTube. I’m very excited about this and I really hope you guys will listen, subscribe and leave reviews. :-)

iTunes people, click here and all the rest of you, click here.

Well, on to more news. Current status, I do not have a job, meaning I do not have my own apartment, meaning I’m still where I was last week. However, I received some good advice, which I’m going to take. “Stop acting like a visitor and you might fall in love with the place”. Thanks Fed! I think I will. As a result of taking this advice, I went grocery shopping. Do not ask what I have been doing the past month. Don’t. Just leave it alone. I took some more advice from a friend (thanks RJ) and bought some bread, lunch meat, snacks, cereal and milk. I just ate a sandwich and it was pretty good! As I went out to make my sandwich, my roommate offered me some Moroccan tea and bread that he made. I said yes. Well, look at that – my friends will be proud of me. :-)

Not only did I go grocery shopping, I went downstairs to the basement level of this apartment building to wash my clothes. Again, don’t ask what I’ve been doing before this. No, I haven’t been going to Maryland to wash clothes. SMH. I got all excited about facing the dungeon (I mean the basement). I scoped out the dungeon first. I saw that the machines were fairly new, I went to the bank and asked for $20 in quarters and headed to the dungeon. I get there and 1) I don’t have any detergent and 2) the machines do not take quarters, they take a card that you need cash to get. I felt awfully stupid. You should have seen me leaving the bank, like I was doing something. All excited about being proactive, well, apparently not that observant. SMH. Now that I’ve bought the detergent, I haven’t been able to get the cash to buy the card. I think I’ll go back to the bank and ask them for $20 for my two rolls of quarters. SMH

My adventures on the train, included the following:

•          One guy was playing a guitar (Christian music) and a couple of drunk ladies were dancing in their drunken way.  It was quite interesting to watch, especially since they were worship songs. LOL He just kept playing.
•         As they were dancing, these two girls were walking arm-in-arm down the platform and one of the girls just fell and brought them both down. I was like, OMG. My legs started to move towards them, because the one girl wasn’t getting back up. Before I could get there, many other people were already there and one guy scoped up the girl, grabbed his stuff and started taking her towards the nearest police officer. I thought that was very unlike New York, but was very glad to see that act of kindness.
•         After they passed me to get to the police, all I see is these two legs walking, but the guy was sitting in a wheelchair. So, his legs were doing all the movement and he was walking or scooting across the platform.  I did a double take and he looked at me like, “yeah”. I just looked back at him like, “do what you do, sir”. SMH
•         I get on the train and I see this woman with a purple shirt, purple lipstick and purple glazed eyebrows. I had to look a few more times and thought – I’ve seen it all now. These New Yorkers are taking matching to another level.

On Friday, I left work really late, probably around 8:00 pm, because I had to do a video conference for the class that I teach online and I wouldn’t have made it back to my place in time. Therefore, I stayed, but made sure the maintenance crew knew I was there. As I left the building, I tried to go out of my usual exit and there was this huge sign that said “HALT”. Just kidding, it said, STOP. Do not exit this way, between the hours of 8am and 11pm or the NYPD will take action against you. With my luck, I figured if I ignored that sign, the siren would go off, lights would come on and they would have me against the wall, talking about “spread ‘em”. So, I halted and went another way. As I was going back towards the way I came, I asked the group of people who were at the table, how to get out. They pointed in one direction, so I headed that way. Well, I get to one door and it didn’t say STOP, there were no cameras, lights or anything that said NYPD, so I went out that door. Now it is raining outside, but I have my umbrella, because I’m no longer in Kansas and I started walking towards the gate. I get closer to the gate and see that it is closed. Okay, maybe this is to deter people from coming through. No, it was locked with the biggest padlock I’ve ever seen. I’m like, great. Let me go out the other way. The distance between these gates is the distance between the side of the entire school building, which turns out to be the length of three basketball courts, side by side. I get to the other gate and it looks closed as well and the closer I get – I see that familiar HUGE pad lock. Now I’m like Good Lord! The door that I just left out of is a typical steel school door – made for crafty kids – so they could never get in or out, unless you wanted them to.

However, I did not panic yet. I’m no stranger to hopping gates or going under them. (long story) Anyway, I start to look for cuts in the gate or places where the gates have been disconnected from the base. Uh, no (in my Kevin Hart voice). All these places have been re-sealed and the places where they were holes in the gates have been patched up with thicker gate material. Then, panic hit my heart. I see a couple walk past on the other side, so I started to walk towards them and say something, but then I thought better of it. They may see that I’m trapped like a caged wildebeest and start to poke fun. I go back to the steel door and bang on it. It was like kicking bricks – barely made a sound. My hand just hurt. I’m like, OMG. Why does this stuff happen to me? Why? What did I do, Lord? Why me? Then I start pacing back and forth, like my telepathic WILL would open the gates. I think, maybe if I put my umbrella through, my purse and my other bag, I can just hop over the gate. Then I think better of that idea – I’m in East Harlem, if I stick anything through those gates with no way to get over there – they will be gone. Hello!

I go back to the door and start to bang and kick. Now with a vengeance. Almost in hysterics – because I was trapped. All of a sudden the door opens! I said, “Thank you Jesus!” The maintenance guy who I notified that I was in the building, when we were on the fifth floor opens the door and asked me where was I going? I told him, apparently nowhere. Then I said, I’m trying to get home! He is laughing at me by this point, because I’m sure he sees the hysteria in my eyes. I said, “I’m glad you think it’s funny.” He could barely talk, because he was laughing so much. I just stalked off and went out a door I knew I wouldn’t be trapped like a caged animal. SMH

Last Sunday, I went to the movies to see Superman. It was okay, the movie seemed rushed, but okay. I drove to the theatre and when I came back – it was around midnight and there was nowhere to park. I finally found a place to park. BTW: The parking here is crazy. Nowhere to park in a 5 block radius. So, the next Sunday, a few days ago, I saw a closer parking spot, so I went to go get my car and move near where I am staying. I quickly walk the five blocks, excited that there were a few spaces available and they were closer to my place. The closer I get to where I think my car is located, I realize I do not see my car. I was not alarmed at first, because all the blocks look alike. I see a man sitting outside his house and I ask him if there was a car here and are you allowed to park here? He starts to explain in a very thick Italian accent – “no car here”. I’m like, sir, I think I parked my car here last Sunday.” He said, “I hope not, it says no standing”. I said, “Right, but it doesn’t say no parking”. He says, “Standing is parking”. I’m like, what? So, I go to the next block, convinced that my car is there. Uh, no. (Kevin Hart voice and then the Kevin Hart cry). Because this is not HAPPENING TO ME! Everybody was trying to be helpful, but at that point – I was done. I was just done. I didn’t want to hear nothing, because, REALLY? My car is gone. It’s either stolen or has been towed. I return to my place and I didn’t call the cops for a while, because I was just done. People are urging me to find out – I’m like – I will – One day. I’ll find out. I was so done, it didn’t make any sense. I’m catching the train, holding my neck, grasping my bag, blotting my face because it’s hot as HADES 'out this mickity flick', wearing shorts under my skirts, sneakers to keep my stride, get locked in a cage, have to share an apt, can’t cook, no full-time job, no prospects of a job, have to keep the air conditioning and fan running in my room and only when I’m there, and now my car is gone. Done!

Well, after I gathered myself, I called the cops, whose system was down and they couldn’t tell me if my car had been towed. Oh, wonderful! The Bronx pound was closed on Sunday and I must wait until Monday. On Monday morning, I did not feel too well, so I called out. I then called the pound, who after 10 minutes of searching their system said my car was there. It had been towed on Tuesday and I just realized this on Sunday. Whoopee!

I found out how to get to the pound on the train that also included a 15 minute walk in the HOT SUN. At one point, I pulled out my trusty umbrella and did not CARE who looked at me like I was not from around there. I finally reached the pound and after $245 in tow fees and $345 in tickets (apparently it cost $115 per ticket to park in a “no standing zone”), which I did not have to pay at that moment (thank God). To date, I have 3 tickets – one for being 9 ft. near a hydrant ($115) that I received a few weeks ago and two from last week. I may need to start a TJ Move to New York Charity! I drove off with my car, but not before the old police officer that ‘needed’ to harass me about why “God gave him eyes to see the pretty woman and he assured me with a ring on his ring finger that he would use his eyes to just that.” As he eyed me up and down. I asked him “how his wife felt about that?” and then I was like, “can you please take me to my car”. I have no time for this foolishness. I’m already hotter than fish grease!

New York, New York – oh how I love thee. :-)

To top off this experience, I did receive an email from one school, stating that they received my resume from the Head Hunters and wanted to know if I would be interested in a position that was not on my radar. I looked at the job description and thought it might not be a bad idea, considering what I want to do and said, “Sure”. I have to apply, but we’ll see what happens. That’s the first lead in a few weeks and honestly, I needed some good news.

TODAY, around 4pm, my vision started to blur and I knew a migraine was coming. I immediately took my migraine medicine, but it kept coming. I couldn’t concentrate, so I left work at 4:45pm. I am feeling nauseous the whole walk to the train station and of course, the sun is out, people are shouting and the trains seemed extra loud. I’m praying I can get a seat, because I felt like I was about to go down at any point. I make it to my second train and sat down on the platform bench, which I never do. However, it was either I sat down or would have laid down, like the guy that I saw outside last week. That is how I felt. As soon as I sit down, I think to myself - I need some water. Don’t you know, one of the guys that sells stuff on the train starts yelling, “Ice-cold water, only two left”. I weakly raised my hand as he went to pass me and found the $2 that I keep in my purse. I gave him a dollar for the water and then asked him if he had any candy? HAHA. That’s what I get. I tell you, that man saved my life today. I think he knew it, because he gave me another pack of fruit snacks and started talking about how he likes to help his people, because he knows it’s hot. I said, “Well, I thank you. Because I was about to pass out in this station”. He said that the job is hard work and he’s been out here since 9 am. I asked him “Is it good money” and he said, about $100 a day. I said, well that’s not bad then. As he was talking, I CRUSHED that candy. I mean by the handful. It was crazy. I had lunch, so I’m not sure what was wrong, but my hands were shaking like I hadn’t eaten a thing. Without that water and candy, I would not have made it home. I was walking as slow as a turtle, but I finally made it back to my place and crashed!

I felt much better when I woke up, but I thought to myself – even though these New York ways seem foreign to me – I need to stop acting like a visitor, because I just might need them. :-)