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| My favorite picture of me on the 'scape. Summer 2009. |
As our second heat wave of the summer rolls in, so do warm memories of evenings on my fire escape and stoop of my former Upper East Side abode. When I moved to the 81st Street apartment, I was still relatively new to the City (just 5 months into Manhattan life), so my social events calendar was not yet fully booked. As a result, I spent many a summer night after work sipping coffee or tea at one of these prime locations. I was not yet an avid wine-lover at that point. If I had been, rest-assured those mugs would have been filled with the juice of the vine, not coffee. Regardless of the beverage of choice, I loved these moments because I knew they were uniquely New York, and could only be experienced as a city-dweller.
As for the the fire escape, I had only ever seen them in action in movies (think cheesy ending scene in "Pretty Woman" or musical numbers in "West Side Story"). Yet here I was, with my very own private terrace (rusty thought it may have been) where I could people-watch with the best of 'em. Sometimes these solitary moments would make me a bit sad, though, because I would see so many couples and groups of friends walk by, chatting and laughing happily, making me keenly aware that I did not yet have either a circle of close friends or a boyfriend. But despite this sometimes-sadness, I still savored having this special bird's eye view from my own private nest. It enabled me to be a part of the City without being fully immersed in it until I was ready.
On occasions when I was feeling a bit more social, I would sit on the stoop rather than my fire escape. Sometimes crazies would walk by and yell at me or talk to themselves in their seeming paranoia, but mostly normal people out and about enjoying the evening would smile and say "hi" as they passed. Often some of the older women in the neighboring buildings would sit outside and chat with me and each other. These women, who, like the fire escapes and stoops were almost a permanent fixture of their dwellings, would gossip about other neighbors, discuss their latest health issues, or ask about each other's pets. It felt like my very own small community deep in the heart of this huge City.
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| My first day on the escape. |
Although I have now upgraded to a fancy-pants apartment in a high-rise building, and have the luxury of a fabulous balcony, it is not quite the same as my private fire escape and stoop retreats. Here are a few journal clips describing these uniquely New York moments...
Sunday, 6/8/2008, 8:30PM: "I'm sitting on the stoop of my new apartment on 81st Street between 1st and 2nd Aves. It's an interesting feeling being here right now. It's new and I'm mostly comfortable and I feel at home, but there's a little apprehension in me. Like I need to observe and just feel it out. Anyway, I feel much cozier and brighter and more functional in this apartment and hood. So many people walking by. Almost everyone who walks by has a dog. There are lots of young people and people with friends and boyfriends. I can't believe Starbucks is right on my street corner!" Apparently coffee gets me very excited. As if you didn't know.
Tuesday, 7/29/2008, 10:30PM: "I am sitting on my stoop. It's pretty hot. Tonight I went to Barnes and Nobles and looked at a book called "New York Fashion Look Book" or something like that. It had profiles on "fashionable" New Yorkers including one woman who met her husband in Barneys. Anyway, it made me think that's where I should go to meet someone so I can get invited to a fancy party!" Two comments: 1) I thoroughly enjoy that I constantly pointed out exactly where I was located while writing. 2) Don't you admire my deep thoughts while uponst my stoop?! Ohhh, how I love my man-finding strategies!
Sunday, 8/10/08, 9:21AM: "Good morning! Today is beautiful. I'm on my fire escape and I love the sounds. It feels like I'm down the shore with the car sounds and kids laughing. It's neat." There I go again, telling my journal exactly where I am.
Sunday, 10/12/2008, 11:35AM: "Good morning Upper East Siders! Today is gorgeous fall. I was just sitting on my fire escape and I'm so glad for the 1st time someone saw me up here and smiled and waved. So fun!" Don't judge me. My journal was my friend so I had to talk nicely to it and wish it a good day!
and in the same entry...
"Yesterday I got my haircut at Michael's barber shop next door. When I got back to the apartment, Alice was outside selling baked goods near the stoop and a few young guys stopped by to chat. It felt like such a community. It's very cozy!"
Do you have any special places that, although unglamorous, have an important meaning to you? Do any places remind you of a certain time of life, maybe one of change or independence? Please share!
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