i thought, since i really need to be saving money, that today i would go to the place that poor people gather to be poor together: flea markets. i did some research and found a list of a couple different places to check out with the hell's kitchen flea market, according to time out new york, being the best. so, i headed to the west side of manhattan to check it out. along the way i stopped at the mexican pride parade and watched floats of wrestlers, lowriders, and strange mariachi-meets-judge-dredd-with-glitter dancers and ate a sandwich. there was also an african-american pride parade somewhere else in the city today, but, despite my initial thought, no battle occured.
the flea market, though, wasn't as big as i would have imagined it and it was lacking the confederate flag memorabilia i've come to expect at flea markets, but it was certainly worth the trip. it had all the typical tables of jewelry and furniture, as well as some great old photos of new york, a table of reflectors and hood ornaments from cars, typewriters, lots of old military coats, and the obligatory table of old video games had wave race 64. plus there was a booth that looked rather forgetful, except it had a sign that read "they call us the bad boys of 39th st." unfortunately i didn't get to ask them why. and the only bin of records i flipped through was 85% filled with barbara streisand albums. unfortunately, flea markets in new york aren't exactly cheap--the photos were ten or fifteen dollars apiece and every other price tag i looked at was at least forty bucks.
the rest of the day i spent watching bad movies and wandering through greenpoint looking for food. i eventually settled on a mexican restaurant called "vamos a tequila" for a burrito. afterwards i went back to glasslands, where i saw my roommates' band play, to see cassie ramone (of vivian girls fame) play a solo set. the openers were all subpar. the first band sounded alright, but they were horribly annoying. the second band would have been good had the singer not been sick and had their equipment worked properly. the third band was just bland, and yet the crowd was more enthusiastic about them than anyone else, which marks the second time in two trips to glasslands that the crowd loved the band i hated. cassie, though, was amazing. it was an acoustic set, which i didn't expect, but it really showed off her songwriting ability and brought an immediate comparison to paul westerberg.
but all i can really think about after today are all the moments that gave me pause, and how often i've had them here. for example, instead of signs saying "don't block intersection," there are signs that say "don't block the box," which i just can't stop laughing at. (in case you don't get the joke: http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=box). and at the show i heard someone say the strangest sentence that may have ever been uttered: "i just smoked a straight weed tampon." just unbelievable, really. there is also the fact that there are no signs advertising massages here, only "back and foot rubs." and the fact that a chinese man at the flea market tried to force me to take a "sample." there have been so many of these moments that it's been impossible for me not to be always conscience of how different the culture is between home and here. it's one of the most interesting parts about this journey.
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