Soooo, I have been away for quite a while. But, I have an excuse... I wasn't dating New York, I was dating a man:) But, alas, the man and I are no longer dating, which means, I'm back to dating New York. And I gotta tell ya, I like coming back to a place that tells it like it is, no hidden agenda, accepts me as I am, gives unconditional love, says what it means and means what it says, and even when it grows and changes the core remains the same, (sigh) since I can't find a man like that, perhaps I'll just continue to dateNY.
Anywho, enough lamenting, I went out last night! My night unfolded unexpectedly, but when I look back on it, nah, it was a typical Megan-Brette night, I just have been gone for so long. I spent most of my day cleaning my apartment, washing clothes, and studying for the GREs (on my way back to school for the good ole PhD). I was listening to music all day and realized I was craving to listen to some live music; more specifically Jazz. I looked up jazz clubs and saw a whole bunch listed uptown, Harlem, places I was too lazy to venture out to. So, I decided to just go to the West Village and figure it all out when I got there.
I got off at West 4th street and the first pleasant surprise of the night appears, my coworker from one of my schools, MF. He saw me texting (my mother) on the street and attempted to surprise/scare me but I'm too quick and street savvy ;) so I looked up in time to see him approaching me. He was out and about in his old neighborhood so we ended up walking and talking for about a good 1/2 hour; about our students, summer vacation, his 80 year old mother, dating at the senior citizen level a very eclectic conversation, as we do. It was nice, gave me time to decide what I felt like eating before I looked for the musical portion of the night.
We left each other and on my way to find food I heard "it"!! Jazz, right around the corner at a place called Zinc Bar (West 3rd street and Sullivan street). Went in, asked if they had a kitchen, no, so I said I'd be back to listen to a set. Once I leave there, I pass by a man that looked familiar (I really feel like I'm one of those people that recognizes everyone else but no one recognizes me) and to my surprise he said I looked familiar to him. It was JA! He used to do security at my favorite place in the Village, Groove. I remembered how nice he was to me every time I visited Groove, made me feel like family there. JA recognized me, I'm assuming as a frequent guest of Groove. We then end up talking for a good 1/2 hour, catching up on where he works currently, changes in the night life of the West Village, the music scene, a performer I used to love (and still do). It was nice catching up with a familiar stranger.
I then made a decision that was solely based on food and finances, which, I have to admit, I need to rethink next time. I forgot that I was in the West Village, on a Tuesday night, at about 10pm. I decided to go to 1849 for inexpensive bar food and ended up sitting between two groups of generation ??? Whatever the call the generation of people born in the mid 80s. Sheesh!! I'm old! The conversations that I heard!! OMG, "I think she is CRAZY...soo f-in drunk...thanks for being my wing man....did you at least get her number...she's always busy during the day...I think she's only going to want a short-term relationship....(sarcasm) awwww, man, that "sucks" for you...it'll be a quick hit and quit...why is she such a crazy chick..." Unfortunately, if you DO go out by yourself, THAT may end up being your lovely dinner conversation. I should've known better, but I was craving 6 dollar chicken fingers.
Off to Zinc Bar, I got a great cocktail and listened to the Rasheed Ali band for a set. It was nice, exactly what I wanted. That's the joy of being an adult, more often than not, you CAN satisfy your cravings when you so choose. So much power, just have to always remember the consequences. About an hour into the set, two men I had seen earlier come to the bar to pay their bill. That's when I heard them speaking French, so of course my curiosity got the better of me and I found out they were from Cote D'Ivoire and Cameroon. They invited me to go to the "next" place, Madame X, with them and their 3 other friends (2 girls and another guy). Hmmm, opportunity to practice my French, but of course:) And no worries, I surveyed the situation, I was good. Come to find out, the man from Cameroon, MA, was not only a jazz musician, but has his own African music band, his PhD in History, and is a professor at a local university. I'm telling you, the people you meet when you are open to it are fascinating:) I had such a great time with them.
On my way home, I run into yet another familiar face, my "see-him-every-so-often" friend G, who happens to be a pretty famous comedian. I hadn't seen him in years and again, he recognized me as well (I was on a roll last night:)! I end up meeting one of his friends, the singer from Living Colour, and we talk for...yes a good 1/2/ hour (seems to be just the right amount of "update time"). We spoke of the "business", Black people, education, New York, etc. Then, we parted ways, I got on the train (where I did meet ONE more person, T from Ethiopia) and I was home on my cozy couch (never did end up folding those clothes on my bed) by 4am. A very fulfilling, enjoyable NY night.
As I said in the beginning, I'm back! I did the dating-a-man thing again, and sadly I was disappointed with the results. I never seem to be disappointed when I go out with New York. Perhaps it's because I know what to expect. Perhaps, it's because I can create what I want from a plethora of choices. You can't do that with people; they come already assembled. I guess I'll continue to be with NY until I'm ready to go back to the unexpected again.
~Megan-Brette
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