Being New York about It
halal sauce, new yorkers speakin' my language
The end of the year left room for longing. Some last wishes before 2023 zipped itself up into a time capsule. In the last weeks of December, I missed New York and New Yorkers.
I went to bed one night reading about the history of the halal cart, and I’ve been dreaming of the white sauce and red sauce ever since. The Halal Guys are in Boston, but chains are never as good as any cart. Plus, my wish is for even closer proximity because right now my craving is at an all-time high. I’ve sourced a recipe for it and will see whether it can compare to the real deal.
A friend from New York visited for a night, and it was beyond refreshing to finally be out with someone whose experiences and intellect are more in tune with my own. Whenever I feel homesick (for a specific place or time in the past) it’s because I feel like no one gets me or gets it. Like I’m too far from center to resonate with anyone near me (here, in the sticks). So, getting to have my friend there to share in my perspective of the local bar patrons, to people watch and be amused by the same people for the same reasons, was genuinely the best feeling I’ve had recently.
On a FaceTime with another friend, a native New Yorker, I felt comforted and satisfied, joking back and forth in NYC slang. “Tawk to me nice or don’t tawk to me at all,” he said while tawking about someone who annoyed him. We discussed mutual acquaintances from the past, and when he name dropped certain bars, even neighborhoods—“What was that karaoke bar in the East Village we used to go to?”—it lit up a sector of my soul that needed lighting up. I needed to connect to myself and another person in that way. Wooo! The familiar comfort of being New York about it with a New Yorker. Getting affectionately nostalgic for spots that no longer exist, and flexing one’s NYC history and personal memories all in one. Our hearts get to retain memories of a city we once shared. He left the city years ago. Now that I did, it’s nice to be in the same club, both of us so different from who we were when we met 10+ years ago. Removed from the mentality of a NY state of mind.
I say that, but I’m starting to notice the personality quirks I have that are nothing but New York. Like, how my aggressive teasing is occasionally misread by small town Massachusetts (it’s all the more surprising given that MA is known for their own cynical, aggro attitudes). Or how little patience I have when waiting dumb long for a food order, or how much opinion I have about pedestrian traffic flows in any public space. I’m grateful to be this way, since these qualities have sharpened me into me. It’s grounding to recognize that no matter where I’m at, I function with a certain New York-ness in my blood. It means that not all was lost. It means lessons were learned. It means living there was still worth it (I know it was because of the few people from then that I still call friends).
That was then. As for now, and as for 2024 overall, I’ll be thinking of how else to progress as a person and how to continue to shape my experiences in my (old but new again) surroundings to get what I need out of it. And who do I need in my life that isn’t in my life currently, or who is sort of in it but should be in it more? I need more people locally that I can learn valuable life lessons from and that I can exchange ideas with. Comment if you have ideas on how to go about creating more community or taking on 2024!
HAPPY NEW YEAR, NEW JOY, NEW LIFESTYLE ADJUSTMENTS. XX
Have you been to https://www.ninewinters.com/ - A Korean American bakery in 1 Bow Market Way, Somerville, MA? My daughter just told me about it. If I ever visit Cambridge/Boston I'm looking for good places to appreciate Korean food. [This is what Marissa Ferola - Founder, baker has to say about her endeavor - "Marissa began exploring her Korean culture as an adult with her children. As a Korean adoptee, Nine Winters was created as a journey of identity demonstrated through Korean cuisine while maintaining an appreciation of growing up in Massachusetts."