16 Sep 06

Time:

?

Money:

$71, groceries (which I had to drag myself through purchasing at Gristede's), beer, and deodorant for the gym (I mean, it's FOR me, but to be USED at the gym. I hated the scent of the one I had before.)
$20, half-olive, half-cheese pizza from Ray's - nice and salty with the olives. (And I get half that money back.)

More interesting things:

Found myself perplexed as a lady came ambling up to the conductor's door in my car, which he opened as she moved near. They talked for so long, and the conductor seemed so unsurprised, that I figured they were related or something. But no - the lady just wanted to know how to get somewhere, I don't know where, but I found out a few minutes later that it definitely involved the Q. I got that information because she kept repeating the directions silently to herself, and then she stopped all of a sudden, so I felt compelled to ask if she knew where she was headed (like, maybe she had confused herself as I have done on many, many occasions. And furthermore, as if, on finding out it required the Q, I would have been able to do anything more helpful than knock on the conductor's door for her.) She laughed, and said, "Oh, I just have to take the Q... I'm not used to this side!" Of course, I agreed - said something about getting all confused with the 1 and the 2 and the 3 and the A and the C and the E - and she laughed and agreed back and thanked me. Then - and this is what really started my day off right - she added something about, "But it's always good when you get to talk to nice people on the train." And I thought: that's right, because we're New Yorkers, and we ARE nice.

Learned a useful and potentially embarrassment-thwarting piece of information: to quote the guy at Mister Wright's Fine Wines and Spirits, "In New York you either get a license for wine and the hard stuff, or beer - not both. The markets and grocery stores get all the beer licenses." Weird, but whatever.

Found out a few minutes later that he should have added pharmacies to the list - well, at least those associated with grocery stores. The Gristede's drug store had more refrigerated beer and stuff than the notsupermarket part did! I mean, so much the better for me, because as noted above I did need deodorant - but I still want to know how they're going to have like 63 different varieties of one brand of English stout and no diet lime Pepsi.

Enjoyed a 21-20 smack on Tennessee, particularly as there was pizza, readings, Woodchuck cider, and joking around with Anne and Ben to carry me through the scary parts.

Got drawn into at least the occasional trip to Trader Joe's after Anne brought over this yogurt dip that tastes exactly like Alouette but is, needless to say, much better for you.