So anyway. I wake up feeling... like I was at one of those damn turning points.[Story Index] [Discussion Thread] [The Asylum]
PMG's trip to NYC
By Postmodgirl
2001-05-16
Ok
Friday I wake up at 5 am. For some reason for the past month I have gotten up before the alarm, & it doesn’t matter when I go to sleep. The 1st thing I remember is that I don’t have to go to work today. I had received a call while I was at work the day before from my Temporary employment agency telling me that Bank One (the company I was working for at the time) wanted to thank me for my services but I my services were no longer required. She then gave me some info about another assignment that I had been to before (data entry, I HATE data entry) and to be there on Monday. I got off the phone and told my supervisor who sits next to me. We get along quite famously, he cracks me up. He was not thrilled because nobody had told him about this decision & he thought it was unfair (and was as surprised as I was that I had gotten the call while I was a work, you usual get calls like this when you get off work and come home and viola’ msg that sez ‘don't come to work tomorrow. buh bye’. He told me don’t bother coming to work tomorrow and then let me make a bunch of personal phone calls So anyway. I wake up feeling... like I was at one of those damn turning points.
So I pack, and I farted around on the computer, and I wait till Mom comes and she takes me to the airport. I had only a backpack that had an extra pair of pants, some underwear, and extra bra and t-shirt. I also bring my small portfolio case with 2 filled recent sketchbooks, some examples of flash done on macromedia freehand, and some slides (I brought this not knowing what to expect, I figure it’s best to be prepared for anything). So I checked no bags & I waited to board the plane.
The plane was very small, very very small. There was one seat on the left, the isle, and then 2 seats on the right. I got the window seat with nobody next to me. The flight both ways was a little over an hour or so.
And Boom, I’m in La Guardia airport, and now the fun begins.
my plan was: get on bus that takes me to Jamaica Station (Jamaica is this town on Long Island, most of this takes place on Long Island), get on the Long Island Rail Road (LIRR) and go to Hicksville. Walk to shop (very close to the station thank god). There I was going to talk to shop owner, who I had chatted with 3 days prior and was expecting me. He said that he, or someone else, would then drop me off at the hotel that he suggested & that I made reservations at. & that would be Friday. Saturday I was gonna wing it.
So. I get on the bus to Jamaica. The bus STANK like ASS. I mean that in a literal sense. It smelled like ass and disinfectant. I had forgotten, but to me, everywhere in this area has a foul aroma. I think it has to do with so many people packed together. Anyway, I ride this stank ass bus to Jamaica, watching the scenery. Trees like what we have in Ohio, small houses and apartments packed close together (I wondered how much they paid for those dinky houses) lotsa trash, lots and lots of graveyards that are just huge, and jerky stop and go traffic. I have decided that honking your horn is a kind of art form in New York, they are certainly creative with it. So I get to Jamaica, which is some kind of Hispanic neighborhood. A friend of mine warned me not to wander around there, not very safe for white girls from Ohio. With that noted I bought a ticket to Hicksville, and got to experience rush hour on the train (it was about around 5-6pm). That was ... interesting. Good thing I had packed light. The view from the train reminded me of areas in downtown Columbus. Little houses with little yards, strip malls, schools, playgrounds, I was told I wasn’t in for a typical New York City experience. I also noted that the towns just ran together, there was no dividing line between the neighborhoods except for the skin color of the people who lived there.
So anyway, Hicksville.
I go down to street level and check my directions, and start walking north. I’m dead tired, and very bemused at the fact that here I was, completely alone in another area of the world, with only a vague idea of where I am going. Then I see the sigh for Utopia, the name of the shop. I go in and introduce myself & ask for Mark, the shop co-owner. & guess what, HE WASN’T THERE. Only one guy knew I was coming, and he received about 24 hour notice. They didn’t know when, and they weren’t even sure of the day that I was coming. The shop by the way, is a huge head shop. It sells, goth and raver clothes, hippie crap (sculptures with mushrooms, incense, candles and the like), new age crap, jewelry, bongs & other smoking toys, dildos, music, knives, swords, posters, shoes, jewelry, and a ton of other crap including the piercing jewelry of course. it was like some big altera-culture super store. As one of the guys called around to locate the owner I hang out with the girl who was in charge of body jewelry. Nice girl, had braids in her hair, & was quite informative. I was then told by the guy calling around that the owner was at the other shop setting up display cases and wont be in tonight. I then met the head piercer who was in the back, and him, an apprentice piercer, and myself went to sit down to talk. Rather it was them talking at me. Keep in mind I had been on the move since 2 pm, and it was now 9 pm, I was very very very tired, and now they wanted to interview me (if you could call it that). The head piercer told me that he was basically concerned that since I started out looking for a tattoo apprenticeship & that he wasn’t getting paid to train me (keep in mind that he said that) that is major concern was that he didn’t want to start training me and then have me leave 3 months into it. Also apprenticing would require 30-40 hrs of my time a week, + I’d need a full time job because I would not be paid to be an apprentice (because for the 1st 3 months all I’d be doing was watching and learning). & there was no openings at the shop. At this point I was about to state my side of things, but the food for everyone arrived and he went to go eat. It was that point when someone asked me where I was staying that night. I told them the hotel name & nobody had heard of it. I had the address and phone of course, I knew it was about 2 miles away. Someone asked me how I was gonna get there, I said walk. Well apparently it was across a major highway & that wasn’t an option. Someone suggested that I called a cab. Mind you the owner said he’d arrange transport when I got to the shop. So I call the cab company that they suggested, guy on the phone said he’d be able to send someone out in about 2 hours. it was almost 10 by that point, shop was gonna close, and nobody seemed inclined to give me a ride. then this older guy, who had been hanging out in the back, seemed to work there but didn’t actually do anything, asked me where I was going to stay. I told him the situation & he said “look, you go call that cab company and tell them not to bother. I’ll take you to the hotel, make sure you’re set up ok. I’ll also give you my phone number and Mark’s number, & I’ll have him pick you up tomorrow.”
thank god!
He told me on the ride over that he used to own the shop and was retiring. (BTW he looked very normal looking, and drove a nice SUV). He thought the way the new owners were treating me was bull shit, and also stated that what I was considering as far as moving out there was very difficult. He said he wasn’t trying to dissuade me, but wanted to let me know what I was in for. I did appreciate that.
So we get to the hotel. I check in and go to my room. Kinda shitty, but cheap. I got to watch The Outer Limits on tv, that was cool. and so I went to sleep.
and got up again at 5 am. Damnit.
at around 9 I walked next door to McDonalds for breakfast. Before me was this guy who wanted extra eggs and no ham on some kind of value meal he was getting, and he and the manager discussed this for about what felt like 3 hours. I get my food and go watch cartoons, debating what to do.
I knew they were blowing me off. This was complete horse shit and they were wasting my time. I did have to go back there because I had left my portfolio there, but I didn’t feel obligated to stay. What I wanted to do was visit a tattoo artist I have been corresponding with for a while and say hello, & then figure out what to do from there. But since I had the owner’s # and I did need a ride back to the shop, I called him. He said he’d be there in 10 minutes.
I was planning to spend 2 nights at the hotel, but in light of the current goings on, and the fact that I couldn’t get from the hotel to the station on my own (flight left at 9 am on Sunday and I was paranoid that I would miss it), I decided to check out & told them I may be back. And then the owner shows up (also driving a nice SUV, they must be popular out there).
What struck me about him is that he was in his mid 30’s, kinda small, and had no tattoos or piercings what so ever. Kinda odd for a head shop owner, especially one that had piercings and was trying to branch out into tattooing. Well I thought it was odd. He tells me why he wasn’t at the shop (I was wondering why he didn’t give everyone some kind of notice if he wasn’t gonna be there, he knew 2 weeks in advance when I was coming, when the plane landed and around the time I would get there). He was also telling me about other tattoo shops that I may check out, One was some local shop that had a bad reputation for producing off center piercings and shitty tattoos, but I may want to go check them out he says (WTF? yah I want to work for some shitty shop. BAH!). He says when we get back to the shop he, the head piercer, and I can talk, but the shop gets really busy around 2 or so, so I may want to go check out some other opportunities. I figure since I am already there, I’ll wait around for an hour and see what’s doing & get to state my case. I have been and am a very dedicated person. All I need is an opportunity. I am very interested in all of this (piercing and tattooing). I’d be a good asset to the shop because of the skills that I have. They are planning on expanding into tattooing. I happen to be very good at what I do. I don’t know tattooing now, granted. But I can paint, and assist with the shops flash and prep the customers. Hell all I need is one opportunity!
so I wait. and wait, and wait. I talk to the other employees. I am able to plot a course to my tattoo artist friend so I can visit him later. The piercer is constantly busy. It’s just him and a small room which I was not allowed to see. It was locked when the piercer wasn’t there. I noticed that customers were taken right in after jewelry options were discussed. I was wondering how they had time to autoclave. I did find that btw, it was in the bathroom, away from the piercing station. I don’t recall the piercer going in there. The people who were pierced did sign a form stating that everything was sterilized, and they were of age or had a parent present, and that needles were only used once.
Finally I sit down with the owner (the head piercer guy was busy). He stated all of the things that he told me before, that I would have to be there 40+ hrs a week, and that the piercer demanded 150.00 a week for the apprenticeship (note that the piercer never said that he was getting paid to train me). Owner said apprenticeships take about 6 months, so that’s 600.00 a month, and for 6 months I would be paying 3600.00 to learn how to pierce with out being guaranteed a job. Hell I may as well take a course and be charged less. I know this isn’t unheard of, but they should have stated all of this up front.
He also mentioned that the reason why he didn’t have any tattoos or piercings himself is that it was against his religion (I think that means that he is Jewish). I thought that to be really weird, especially a shop like that. It would be like me owning a Christian book store. He was quite proud of it though (he and his partner, who I think is the head piercer but I am not sure, have owned it less than a year).
Why didn’t they just tell me they weren’t interested? All they had to do was say, I’m sorry you’re not what we’re looking for. Instead what they told me is that they were kinda iffy, but I could still come out to prove my dedication and talked to them in person if I wished. I really want to do this, so I bought the ticket. The owner sounded very surprised when I told him I was coming out, but never said “ya know, I know you’re going to a lot of effort, but we’re not interested.” So Instead I waste my time with them when I could have been doing a number of interesting things.
Cocksuckers.
So I leave, and begin the second phase of my journey....
I traveled by LIRR to Bellmore, where I meet up with my friend (not gonna mention his name, cos I know a lot of tattoo artist have a problem with guys who give info to people who are not tattoo artists themselves, & I have no desire to damage his reputation. He and I exchanged portfolios, he does good work. He told me that he really enjoyed mine & wanted to buy one of my paintings, so perhaps I could break even on this whole adventure. We had pizza, and then it was time for him to go work. This guy was having a tattoo covered, a heart with an ex’s name on it to be covered by a black and grey piece of an angel showing T&A. I stayed to watch. The shop was nice, had lotsa old fashioned flash on the walls, Old memorabilia pictures, & was quite clean and had a great atmosphere. I watched him work, looking at how he prepared the tattoo machine, the order in which he put in the inks, & the techniques he used to create various effects. I knew then that despite all my misadventures so far in trying to obtain an apprenticeship, that this was still something I want to do.
Later we had a chance to talk. He told me I was crazy for coming out there like that. He also gave me some suggestions on people to contact and web sites to check out, and told me again that he really enjoyed and respected my work. It was real nice meeting him.
So it was getting late, and it was time for me to go.
On to part 3.
I had decided that what I would do is go back to La Gauardia. I’d then either find a hotel there, or hang out in a diner until it was time for my flight. What I was going to do was go back to Jamaica Station and catch a bus back to the airport. So I go, and I wait, and wait, and wait. As I waited there was this guy with a trachomotomey (sp) tube in his throat (it’s a hole in his neck, created because he cant breath through his mouth and nose anymore, usually the result of throat cancer or something like). He kept going up to every bus and cab with his note pad that had scrawled on it ‘La Guardia’. I noticed how he was coughing and putting his hand up to his throat underneath the bandages, and how his hands were smeared with blood, and how his note pad was smeared with blood. and how he touched everything. I watched an old woman pick her nose and wipe it on the front of her shirt. I saw lots of unfriendly people. I then went back into the main part of the station. I asked the ticket officer when does the bus come for the airport. He said every hour on the hour, & it was 10:50, so I go back out and wait and wait and wait. 11:15 I go back in, and the ticket officer tells me that the last bus comes at 11. he gives me change for a 20 and I buy a ticket to Penn Station. I figured that it was safer than Jamaica station, & If I was going to be stuck I’d rather be stuck in a place with more people. I get there and I was relieved to see a food court and lots of people. I get some food (nasty hot dog and fries that was overpriced) and eat slowly. After waiting around a bit, I see that there’s no line to the ticket window, and so I go and ask where does the airport bus arrive at. The woman told me that it wasn’t her job to know and that I go walk around and look for myself.
So I figured it was time for plan B
In researching this trip, I noticed that there was a bus that went from the airport to the N line (subway) and that it connected near Penn Station. What I would do is wait for a reasonable hour & walk there & take the subway to the bus stop and then on to La Guardia. But what it meant was that I’d have to wait at Penn Station for a while. It was then 11:45. I wanted to wait till sunrise, I left at around 5am.
I just sat around and waited. I saw many homeless people, I saw 2 people puke, watched a crazy man yell into the phone without making any noise, about ten people passing through talking to themselves, a few punks, a few goths, a few trendy folk who looked like the just stepped out of a GQ magazine (I noticed that most of the young people were either very thin or very buff, Kinda strange to me cos people aren’t like that so much here. Columbus is one of the ‘heaviest’ cities in the US, and hey, I do my part! ). Several people came up to me and asked me for directions to this or that train or to such and such street, I thought that was pretty funny. & the pinnacle of my evening, (and I think summed up the trip nicely) as I was studying a map of the subway system and comparing it to my street map a bum walks by me and blows a wet raspberry on the side of my face.
I hadn’t slept for 24 hours, I was tired, a little chilled, and a bum spits on me.
I was so shocked I couldn’t react. I just went to the bathroom and washed my face off.
Finally 5 am, I go up to 34th street and walk to 42nd street. The streets were quiet, with light traffic. As I was walking I saw the airport shuttle bus pass me. I get to 42nd and I see Time Square, most of the lights were off. I go down to the subway and hop on the N line. & then realized I had to pee really bad. Right before I left Penn Station I got a huge cup of coffee to wake me up, and it hit me at just the wrong time. I get to the stop ( think it was in Astoria), and buy a bus token. I see a Burger King on the corner and relieve myself. MAN I never had to go so bad in my entire life! Bus comes, I get on and off to the airport. Got there at 7:30, perfect timing. A bit of a wait and and I get on another dinky plane that was at the same terminal I got off on. The flight attendant was a older Japanese woman who kept getting in my face. As I was putting on my seat belt she asks me real loudly if I would like and extender and that I had to wear my seat belt. I know I’m a big girl but COME ON SHUT UP YOU BITCH! she really got on my nerves. As we were leaving and she was doing her flight attendant speel I was amused to notice that she was reading from a script and was getting the order all screwed up. I also noticed that the pilot was driving the plane in a rather jerky fashion. I figured we were all gonna die. So we fly home. the flight attendant bitch stole my drink before I could finish it because we were landing soon. and about 10 minutes before we were gonna land there was a lot of turburlance. I thought to myself “Oh great, we get back and now we crash and die” but no we landed ok, and 30 minutes early.
I call my brother, he picks me up and takes me home.
Before I went to pass out I checked my messages. Turned out that the job my temp agency had lined up for me canceled. I was now without income.
What a trip.
Epilogue:
today (Monday) I was able to get another assignment through the agency, so I should have work on Thursday if all goes well. As far as the trip goes and everything, I decided I’m not gonna move, at all, anywhere. No more of these trips, I’ve had it! I still want to tattoo, but I gotta tell you I am extremely discouraged.
Yah damn turning points... Too bad I don’t know which direction to go.
But at least I know what I don’t want.