Hot town, summer in the city
Jul. 2nd, 2002 07:26 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
jlhugh, it's hot.
It's hard to think of last summer as anything other than "before." On the walk home this evening I think of U2's song "New York" and I remember seeing them in concert last June with my best galpal S___. If you want to know what it feels like to be in this city this week, just listen to that song. "Hot as a hairdryer in your face" indeed.
The subways are like the sixth circle of Hell. The trains exhaust the heat from their AC into the tunnels, which superheats the platforms. You'd think going underground would be cooler, but no such luck. On the streets, the warm air comes from the exhaust and AC from cars and buses and endless trucks zooming past you. The sun gets reflected right back at you from the cement sidewalks and the asphalt streets. No relief in midtown where I work. I walk west to my apartment and things cool down once I get to my tree-lined block. I am closer to the Hudson River here, which makes things cooler and there is a community garden next door that is a wonderful oasis of green grass and pretty flowers.
Of COURSE the elevator isn't working, so I trudge up four flights of stairs to my apartment. Thank G-d for timers on air conditioners is all I can say. My apartment is nice and cool. I eat a frozen lime pop. I get online. I am soothed.
Still, I'm getting the hell out of here for the holiday weekend. I'll be around tomorrow night after all, but Thursday morning, I'm on a train home to Maine. Nice thing about parents, you can get a bed at their place last minute on a holiday weekend. I'm sure that things will be complete madness up there with all the "people from away" or "flatlanders" as we call them: Summer people, regular tourists, what have you. Me, I'll be home, tooling around in the red convertible Mustang with its white top down, eating "Italian sandwiches" and red hot dogs and steamed clams and my mother's coleslaw and maybe baked beans and steamed brown bread and generally being a Maine girl. Perhaps I'll even bake a raspberry-rhubarb pie.
Oh, just the thought of our little house in the trees makes me feel cooler. I'll see C____ as well, and we'll go for one of our long drives, and it will be lovely. Just relaxing and calm and cool and lovely. ::sigh::
It's hard to think of last summer as anything other than "before." On the walk home this evening I think of U2's song "New York" and I remember seeing them in concert last June with my best galpal S___. If you want to know what it feels like to be in this city this week, just listen to that song. "Hot as a hairdryer in your face" indeed.
The subways are like the sixth circle of Hell. The trains exhaust the heat from their AC into the tunnels, which superheats the platforms. You'd think going underground would be cooler, but no such luck. On the streets, the warm air comes from the exhaust and AC from cars and buses and endless trucks zooming past you. The sun gets reflected right back at you from the cement sidewalks and the asphalt streets. No relief in midtown where I work. I walk west to my apartment and things cool down once I get to my tree-lined block. I am closer to the Hudson River here, which makes things cooler and there is a community garden next door that is a wonderful oasis of green grass and pretty flowers.
Of COURSE the elevator isn't working, so I trudge up four flights of stairs to my apartment. Thank G-d for timers on air conditioners is all I can say. My apartment is nice and cool. I eat a frozen lime pop. I get online. I am soothed.
Still, I'm getting the hell out of here for the holiday weekend. I'll be around tomorrow night after all, but Thursday morning, I'm on a train home to Maine. Nice thing about parents, you can get a bed at their place last minute on a holiday weekend. I'm sure that things will be complete madness up there with all the "people from away" or "flatlanders" as we call them: Summer people, regular tourists, what have you. Me, I'll be home, tooling around in the red convertible Mustang with its white top down, eating "Italian sandwiches" and red hot dogs and steamed clams and my mother's coleslaw and maybe baked beans and steamed brown bread and generally being a Maine girl. Perhaps I'll even bake a raspberry-rhubarb pie.
Oh, just the thought of our little house in the trees makes me feel cooler. I'll see C____ as well, and we'll go for one of our long drives, and it will be lovely. Just relaxing and calm and cool and lovely. ::sigh::
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no subject
Date: 2002-07-02 08:26 pm (UTC)But I just had to say your description of the NY subways at this time of the year is spot-on perfect. When my semester out at Barnard starts up each summer, I dread the return to the oven subways and the smelly streets.
Must get back to watching my Diamondbacks play...
no subject
Date: 2002-07-03 04:05 pm (UTC)Wow, your description of home sounds wonderful. I wish I was there too! Enjoy your weekend and leave all your problems in New York for a few days. They'll wait.
::glomps J__:: Have fun!
no subject
Date: 2002-07-03 04:22 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2002-07-03 04:24 pm (UTC)I plan to. I'm going to concentrate on finishing my writing, and the beginnings of the structure for the next story. Although I might pick up a technique book or two, if I can deal.
Thanks again, Luna!