Shit has BEEN tough in NYC for a long, long time.
Between the hike in rent but no raise in pay checks. People getting kicked out on the streets because the place they called home since the 70’s wants to become a condo. Columbia rich bastards want to control all of Harlem leaving nothing behind but the project stairs. And while were on the topic of low income housing, yeah that doesn’t even exist anymore. You face the fears everyday in the projects or low income housing not only of the neighborhood, or how you’ll make it to the next day but will Mr. Suit and Tie come and sell my home to create a dorm or put a new building in its place. Walking the streets is sad. Stores you grew up with are gone. Replaced by corporate America. I mean seriously, how many pharmacies and Starbucks do you need in a radius of two blocks? Local independent businesses are all fluttering away. Hikes in tuition leave students, who weren’t lucky enough to get a scholarship, housing and all those other lovely perks, wondering, like myself one time, groceries or tuition…hmm that’s a hard one. If you really pay attention to the local news the violence has grown too. People are angry, broke and some of them actually have jobs. MTA transit is a joke. Everyone knows you pay more for limited service on the weekends, delays and cut train lines. There is no living in NYC. Only struggle. I can only speak for NY. I’m sure other states are feeling the burden to. My New York is not the New York that is there now. Its going to get worse but I can’t say that needs to come first before it gets better.
-l.
The Trip Of A Lifetime.
I am going to New York City. Well, maybe.
Amanda, Christina, and I have planned a trip to go to New York for spring break. Whether it really happens or not, I don’t know but we are trying. Most of our parents have agreed, or at least, the mothers have. All of our fathers are very iffy on the whole trip but, I think with a little persuasion, this could actually happen. We are all saving up our money and hopefully, before we know it, we’ll be in New York City at the beginning of April.
Honestly, of course, I am a little nervous. Although I have traveled without my parents before and I’m comfortable going without them, New York is a scary, big place and you never really know what could happen.
I think this is something I need to do though. My last, final ‘hoorah’ with my friends. Soon, we will be going off to college and, most likely, will not see each other on a daily basis. I think this trip is the thing that we all need. One of those trips we can always look back on when we are older.
I don’t know if we will actually get there, but I am keeping my head high and hoping for the best. I have even gone on a book buying ban, which is completely unlike me, but it’s really important that I save money for this trip. If I could save at least one hundred dollars every two weeks, by April, I should have enough money to do whatever I want. And, if we end up not going, then I’ll just have a lot of money in my checking account, which wouldn’t be so bad.
If we do go though, which, hopefully, we do, I plan on bring a lot of pepper spray.
