During my long absence from my beloved blog, I have been feeling guilty, uninspired and also let's not forget- down in the dumps. So I thought I'd go against my rule of only posting "happy happy joy joy " postings and wax lyrical on what exactly has been making me grow up a little lately (Oh, Ren!).
When they say that New York City can eat you alive, I kinda have a better stance on understanding this and would really like to find out who thought of this break through but menacing cliche that threatens all wannabe New Yorkians. Three weeks ago one of my best friends was mugged in Brooklyn in the neighborhood I live in. The beating left him with several head fractures, a freaked out set of parents flying the red eye from Cali and a now foggy disposition of who his friends and family were and wondering what the hell happened that rendered him secured in an ICU unable to execute the most simplest tasks such as taking headache medicine.
My once "oh I love New York and never wanna leave" colored glasses started to see it's first ugly crack. (excuse the pun). My immediate reaction- we gotta get the f outta here! (Well at least the neighborhood I live in). Ok, so I realize this is not Brooklyn's fault, and that walking down a street in Redfern, Australia at 3 in the morning on your own could probably put you in serious- where the hell is the nearest Seven Eleven so I can hang there till the creepy dudes go away dilemma also. But when it actually happens to someone your close with, this is when urban legend becomes more than, "my friends friend was mugged so be careful" scenario and wakes you up to the world where the happy go lucky Ren and Stimpy's are co-existing with the Boyz in the Hood.
I know most New York locals will not be surprised by my friends mugging and will most likely have several stories of their own or minimum, their friends that share the same chilling urban tale of an innocent walking into the wrong moment. We all like to think that it would never happen to us, but when it does, the impact that the event creates on those close to that person is reason enough for everyone to be more than aware and never too complacent.
The reason for my rant is not to throw any "New York is evil" scare tactics. What it has taught me is that friends are way more precious than we give them credit for and life is to be treasured and appreciated more than we anticipate. New York City is a place full of beauty, extremes and unique, unmistakable charm. The truth is, in a city that has too much to offer, there will always be a person that wants it more than you no matter what the price.
The positives I can salvage from my friend's attack is that the event itself will highlight the importance of never taking the simple things in life for granted and that the love of family and friends is so much more invaluable than we realize. So some growing up was done in the last month and some street wise lessons learned. I can't wait for my moment where I cheers my friend with a beer to New York City, for all it's flaws as well as it's beauty, that inspire people for lifetimes before and after us.
Check out my friends get well blog
http://adamgetwellsoon.blogspot.com/
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2 comments:
Same Vibe in London allot of the time the whole city feels very angry and hostile allot of the time. We had a suicide under a prison van and a stabbing in the markets within two days of each other recently. Add to that the "reward for information on shooting" signs that spring up like daisy’s regularly and you sometimes wonder why you live here. Then you remember because the west end is booooring.
Yeah, I guess it just makes you even more aware of what's going on around you. Take care of yourself!
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