Monthly Archives: September 2014

Keep Spinning, World- Reactions to LTGWS

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It’s kind of intriguing to see how the World Trade Center has such an effect on people in the last half of the century. From the time construction started in 1968, to its opening in 1973, to its tragic incident in 2001, and even extending to now in 2014, and to the future, World Trade Center is and will always be a symbolic representation of New York. This thought really hit me while I was on the E train today, one that was bound for none other than World Trade Center.

My Japanese class made 1000 cranes and attached it to one of the trees in the 9/11 Memorial. The 1000 cranes symbolizes hope. (March 8th, 2014)

Upon finishing Let The Great World Spin, I’m really disappointed- disappointed at the fact that it had to end. I started off with an indifferent attitude to it, since it just felt like a lost piece of novel. I didn’t understand what anybody had to do with each other. It was like a puzzle, with pieces fitting in as the novel progresses, jumping between different people’s viewpoint. It really shows what a small world we live in. I guess the whole “Six Degrees of Separation” thing is true!

In the story, World Trade Center acted as a reference point for everything. So does our lives today as New Yorkers. It symbolizes that even though we were attacked in 2001, we didn’t give up. We get up, rebuild, and are stronger than before. I guess the “world” can mean the World Trade Center in Let the Great World Spin (play on words, doesn’t mean that of course).

~Christopher Chong

On Mannahatta

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After reading “Mannahatta,” by Walt Whitman, one thing really stood out to me. The overall mood and flow of the poem completely relates to the theme of the stereotypical Manhattan. Not once in this poem does Whitman come to a full stop, that is until the end. This matches the “hustle and bustle” that many people use to describe the fast-paced life that is demanded by Manhattan. He describes scenes separately, yet he is able to create a single picture. His word choice, even, causes the reader to keep the images of speed and grandness in their minds. He uses words such as “swift,” “ample,” “numberless,” and “countless.” Even in his descriptions of the seasons, he ignores spring and autumn, causing the readers mind to simply jump forward in time, adding to the element of speed. Overall, I generally enjoyed reading this poem, as it reveals how true the Manhattan culture has remained since the late 1800s.

The D(ance) Train

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On the way back from what was an unfortunate failed trip to Smorgasburg at Central Park, (we arrived, but police wouldn’t let us in due to “too many people” at the event) me and several friends took the D train back to the towers at around 9:30 pm or so and I witnessed something out of the ordinary to me for the first time on the subway.

Between the long 59th Street/Columbus Circle and the 125th street station stop, a group of 8 or so guys provided entertainment during the ride that otherwise would have been a normal NYC train ride. In the middle of the train car, they blasted music and one by one, each of them break danced with their own particular style as well as humor. They cheered one another on and brought the train car to life, eliciting quite an applause and earning what seemed to be a decent amount of money.

I was extremely impressed and they for sure earned my respect as well as a couple dollars for their performance. As a group they had such energy and synergy together and I admired their talent and courage to perform publicly without fear of failure or being judged especially on a moving train car. I’m glad I was able to see this group do what they were passionate about, and I hope and look forward to seeing more things like this and what else this city has to offer.

~Pun

My Memories of 9/11

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It was late at night in Busan, South Korea. I am not sure exactly, but what I do know for sure is that it was way past my bedtime. I was thirsty, so I went to the kitchen to grab a cup of water. However, the television was on in the living room and I see my dad all alone, sitting on the couch, quietly looking at the television. “Why..are you here, dad?” I asked. I looked the screen, and I see a tall tower with black smoke coming out. “What is happening….” My dad calmly replied.. “America is under attack.” At that time, I was too young, and to be honest, I did not know what America even was. I was way too tired, I just got my cup of water and went to bed.

 

When it comes to 9/11, that short moment was the only thing that is still in my mind. Who would have thought that I would immigrate to America three years later? When I immigrated to America and started school here, every year they would talk to the class about the 9/11 and I would just sit there and blank out because not only did I have no idea what it was, it did not affect me at all. However, when I read about it and saw some clips, I realized how tragic this event was and how it changed not only America, but the entire world.

Man on the Wire: My Reaction

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When I watched this movie, my initial reaction was “what..is happening?” They were talking about something that I had no idea what it was, talking about how they are going to die and how this is the end. And I was just really relaxed on my chair thinking…”another exaggeration in a typical documentary film.” However, I realized that as the film went on, I felt like I was actually there myself. It was the first movie in which my back has never touched the chair. I was so tense, so nervous, and so nerve-wracking the whole time, after the film, my neck started to hurt because I was so static the entire time. The fact that I did not know what the movie was about played a big part in my impression.

The most memorable part of the movie was at the end when Philippe was talking about why he did it. Throughout the entire movie, I was asking “why is he doing this? He must be crazy.” However, according to Philippe, there was no why. That was the whole point. To Philippe, it wasn’t because he wanted to do it, he just had to do it. He felt the need to so called “conquer” the top of the world because that is what he does for a living. I can say for sure that, this movie will definitely leave some kind of mark in my mind.

Reactions to Man on Wire

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Damn. If I had the talent to walk on wire/cable at even 10 floors above ground level, I wouldn’t be here composing this post right now.

Philippe Petit is probably one of those guys where you just don’t have the correct adjective to describe him. Crazy? Brave? Idiotic? Heroic? To perfectly plot this whole event, and not get caught is definitely an incredible feat. I mean, he wasn’t at the 10th floor, the 20th floor, but the 110th floor. What could’ve possibly been going through his mind?

What I probably most liked about the documentary was the fact that it seemed to made me feel like I was in the moment, especially when they were describing how they almost got caught and stuff. If Petit’s timing was not correct, August 7th, 1974 might’ve just been another ordinary day for all of us, and the prisons might just have an extra guy in there.

However, in exchange for his fame and glory, Petit lost his friends, lost the love of his life, lost everything he had had before August 7th, all because of the 45 mins on the top of the World Trade Center towers. I mean, I don’t know if that’s worth it.

~Christopher Chong

Man on the Wire – Reaction

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I am not a fan of documentaries. I just dislike them. Man on the Wire was a unique case. I actually enjoyed the documentary about Philippe Petit and his whole crew.

I have heard of stories about people who have walked across many dangerous places via tightrope, but I have never heard of Philippe Petit and his story of walking across the Twin Towers via tightrope.

I found it quite amazing that he would have the concentration and the balance to actually achieve all that. I can barely keep my balance on a 2×4! I respect Philippe for doing whatever he wanted to achieve his dream of walking the tightrope 110 stories high. This does raise many questions though.

One of the biggest issues I have with Philippe’s story is the issue with money. I don’t understand how Philippe could even go back and forth from America and Paris ever so often. Where does he get his money to do so? I thought he was only a street performer. Either he hustled a lot of money while doing so, or he acquired his funds elsewhere.

The biggest question that I would have loved to ask Philippe and his crew is this: What did you guys do after the event? I have absolutely no idea how one would feel when a dream is achieved. Where would you go afterwards? What would you do? Will there be anything else in life that will ever feel better than when the dream was achieved?

I am so curious as to what the crew did after the heist was over. Is the ending like the usual ending to a dream? Was it a sad awakening to reality?

Books of Q88

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Over the past few weeks, I feel as if I’m more aware of the diversity around me when I commute.

1.5 hour of daily commuting to class has tamed me to bring a book–any book, to spare myself from mental torture. Usually, I finish my homework between classes (4 hours. more than enough time), so I am almost always in dire need of brain stimulation. I carry around 2~3 books at a time, not because I enjoy reading, but because subway rides can become unbearable for someone like me.

When 7 train closed down on Saturday of the Macaulay museum meeting, I was forced to take Q88 to Woodhaven for the first time in my life. As soon as I claimed my seat on the back of the bus, I found my self sitting in front (because the seats of the bus allowed 4 people to face each other) of a hispanic man holding red “Sacra Biblia.” He had quite a tranquil look on him, as if he was going for a church meeting, or as if he is a deacon or an acolyte, giving a heavy impression of piety, not according to the definition of Euthyphro and Socrates, but by the definition engraved in our natural human-ness, in that one can imagine that the man is having a relationship with God on his ride to wherever he was going.

Next to him set an elderly lady, murmuring at a volume inaudible, holding a small crimson book. As she mouthed each word, I became curious to see the contents of the book, as the title written on the spine of the book was too faded out to be legible. Luckily, I was able to see the chapter title of the page, which read: “Sanctuary Spell.” That was a great brain stimulant. I started to think: is the “spell” the “spell” that I know? Like… Witchcraft? Sorcery? Magic? I hate to be rude, and if anyone is offended by this post, I will gladly apologize, but I just have to say: I loved the irony that the lady had to sit next to the man.

When I and Sam went to Book Culture to buy the required reading, I noticed that there were several sellers of books around the block.

How much longer would such things exist?

What if books become like scrolls; what if archaeologists in the years to come take my journals and notebooks and infer that humans of 21st century actually wrote things on a bundle of bound papers with ink and graphite?

 

Books are cool. We should love them.

Macaulay Media Arts Workshop

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So today was the Monet Workshop at the Macaulay Center and I was told to take a part in it.

What we did, in a nutshell, was to get back together with our groups when we were at the Brooklyn Museum and make a video with the audio file and pictures that we acquired.

What my group did was to split the work. Three of us would work on the slides and pictures and set them up beforehand while the other three would work on the audio file. I was working on the audio file as I did not have high quality pictures to use.

My experience today was stressful. On the day of recording, I thought that my group recorded everything flawlessly. Now when I was editing the audio, I realized that certain ideas and thoughts about the painting were unfinished. All of those issues made me edit the audio for about an hour, which was obviously not fun.

When the video was finished and played back, I recognized how one should analyze artwork more often. This is because in the video, there were many assumptions about John Singer Sargent’s An Out of Doors Study. For example, there was an assumption that the line behind the man was a fishing pole. Later in the video one person stated that the line may just be an umbrella instead.
Although today was somewhat stressful for me, all in all, it was fun.

Man on Wire Reaction

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While reading Let the Great World Spin, I didn’t know that the story of the man walking between the Twin Towers was true, nor did I find it easy to believe once I was told that it was. I’m sure that this is an understandable reaction, as Philippe Petit’s feat was seemingly impossible, even to himself at times. I really admire the determination that Petit had, as if there was nothing in the world that could have stood between him and his dream. Honestly, I believe that if everyone lived like that, the world would be a much better place. I like what Sharouk said, that Petit really lived. He didn’t just go through the motions of daily life, he truly took every day as a dare to accomplish whatever it is that he wants.

However, as Sharouk and Chloe both mentioned, there was great sacrifice that had to be made in order for this dream to be realized. Yes, he did lose many relationships with other people that he supposedly cared about, but I think that the real sacrifice that he made was much more deep-seated. Petit was so absorbed in his art, that it didn’t seem as if he truly cared at all about any of the people around him were hurt by his actions. It was unfortunate that he lost many of these relationships, but it was even more unfortunate to me that the viewers likely care more about the end of these relationships than he did.

This complete self-indulgence and complete focus that defined Petit’s work makes me question if that’s where “true” art comes from. Do professional artists, the ones that truly earn fame for their work, all have this common theme of seclusion from actual, real-life, healthy relationships with other people? If yes, this is the biggest sacrifice that artists have to make for their work to be realized, and it’s a price that I don’t think I would ever be able to pay.

My reaction to “Man on Wire”

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It occurs to me that Phillipe really enjoys walking on cables.

He says it’s “illegal but not hurtful” but he was said to have done it because it was like a bank robbery.

Also, when he was taken down from Notre Dame he snatched an officer’s watch.

To me, the art here lies in his fine control of his body’s position down to the hands.

On Man on a Wire

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 Man on a Wire was a incredible documentary! In fact, at some points in the movie, I totally forgot that I was a watching a documentary. Some scenes were so intense, engaging, and emotional, that it might as well have been a drama. The documentary gave us a deep look into the walker, Philippe Petit. Through the interviews, and through various home-videos, we were able to realize the type of person he is. He is a dreamer, a man who is incredibly passionate about his hopes and goals. I believe that is one lesson that one should take away from watching this documentary. While I would not advise going about and breaking the law, I believe each and every one of us should have a goal or passion in life.

I truly admired the cinematography of the documentary. The mixture of black and white footage with colored footage was visually engaging and pleasing. Old footage from France and New York, provided me with a sense of what the world was like in the late 70s. Seeing footage of Petit, from his early days of tightrope walking through his grand display at the Twin Towers, caused me to feel as if i knew him his entire life. I felt as if  I grew along side him. The various interviews with all those involved with the Twin Towers project were able to provide me with multiple point of views, while still maintaining the theme that it may take a team in order to achieve one person’s dream.

One part of the movie that stood out to me was the end. I could not help but find disgust with Petit, as he allowed short lived fame to interfere with those who supported him along the way, with his friends. I felt sympathy for the one man (John I cannot remember his last name), who cried during the interview. We discussed that he cried twice for possibly two distinct reasons. The first may have been for the sheer beauty of Petit’s act, and the second may have been for losing Petit as a dear friend.

 

Broadway Boogie Woogie

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We seem to talk a lot about New York City poetry and writing. I would like to focus my attention on art for a moment.

“Broadway Boogie Woogie” (1942), Piet Mondrian 

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Piet Modrian, Broadway Boogie Woogie. (1942)

What does this painting seem to depict? (Think about this question before reading any further.)

I visited the MOMA in the late spring and discovered “Broadway Boogie Woogie” by Piet Mondrian. This painting displays NYC in a very distinct way. Mondrian created abstract art, yet this particular painting is based on a real world example. This painting represents the city grid of Manhattan. The artist illuminates the streets with a bright yellow grid of intersecting lines. The intersections between the lines are blocks of different colors as well. In fact, “Broadway Boogie Woogie” depicts NYC streets and traffic lights. Mondrian demonstrates the movement and dynamics of the city through the use of this particular palette of colors. The city seems to immediately illuminate and it becomes alive. NYC is just like the Boogie Woogie, it is filled with energy and shining lights.

My friends and I initially through that “Broadway Boogie Woogie” is displaying the NYC subway system. The subway, however, is an essential component in the dynamics of the city. Therefore, we weren’t far off in understanding Piet Mondrian’s idea for the painting.

What do you think about this painting? Does it depict New York City accurately? Were you able to immediately realize that the painting is depicting NYC? 

My experience at the Macaulay Workshop

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I have been at the Macaulay Rembrant workshop at Macaulay central yesterday.

I worked together with students that I met at the Brooklyn Museum on Sept. 3. We had made recordings on that day about pieces of art we liked in the museum. During the workshop, we worked with one of these recordings to make a video. We were provided instructions on how to make these videos. Someone in my group worked on editing the recording, while another person worked on gathering the right photographs for the video. I was just motivating my peers to get the job done well, and trying to get familiar with the software we were supposed to use to make the video.

In the end, my group and I were happy that we completed the video.

Just watched Man On Wire….

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..and all I have to say is: Wow. Just wow. That movie was absolutely brilliant. From beginning to end, “Man On Wire” held my attention. I was absolutely smitten with Petit’s rebellious view of his high-wire walk and the notion of “illegal but not inherently wicked or harmful.” As I said in my previous post about Let the Great World Spin, the walker, who is Phillipe Petit, truly lived. He was not bound by the laws imposed on him by society; rather, he lived his life as he saw fit and was a source of immense inspiration to those who witnessed his feat. The sense of inspiration I got from this movie was absolutely incredible.

The ending, however, was also a tad depressing; Petit’s dream was not achieved without sacrifice and that sacrifice came in the form of his friendships and his relationship. Petit’s sole focus throughout this endeavor was to fulfill his dream; he didn’t show any regard for what his friends or even his girlfriend wanted to do with their lives. His friends lived his dream and did their utmost to help him. This is especially seen in Jean-Louis, who stayed by Petit’s side even when all hope seemed lost and when Albert had abandoned him. It was sad to find out that they fell apart after the event, especially after such a show of love and dedication. Petit’s disregard for his companions is also shown in his treatment of Annie; as soon as he is released from prison, Petit sees it fit to cheat on her, because of his celebrity. I felt that was rather cruel of him, especially since she had dedicated her life to him.

All in all,  a great movie about a truly legendary feat but with the moral that there is no achievement without sacrifice.

A Reflection On The Book

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During our discussion this past Monday, there was a general consensus around the table that “Let The Great World Spin” was a book very much concerned with death and how different people perceive death differently. While each of the main chapters (especially in the first book) deal with death (J.A Corrigan’s death, Jazzlyn’s death, Joshua being killed in ‘Nam, Tillie’s hinted-at suicide), the “walker sections” in between the books provide a stark contrast.

The walker’s dream of walking across the Twin Towers on a tightrope, and what some might perceive as his recklessness with his life, is not born of a desire to die, but of his desire to express the thrill of living.  The insane amount of effort the walker puts into the completion of his goal and his eventual accomplishment of it express the purest form of living there is. While he was practicing, and when he eventually performed the feat, the walker was free; free of all the shackles of an everyday life, free of all worries, and, perhaps most importantly, free of any fear of dying. In those 45 minutes on the wire, in the skies of New York City, he was truly alive.

It was this stark contrast of life/death that really fascinated me about the book and why the walker sections were particularly exciting for me to read. And with that, I leave you all with a quote that I feel applies to the walker.

An encounter with New York City Transit

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Hey all, Joshua here.

I’ve been loudly escorted out of the 1 train station by an MTA officer for holding the train doors, four hours ago.

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A group of Towers people were going food shopping, and I decided to tag along. When we got to the station, a few of us had to put money on their MetroCards. So, they did, and we waited.

The train arrives.

There is doubt, a split between waiting for those who were still transacting at the kiosk and getting on the train. I led the charge onto the train, and most of the group followed—except for two people still waiting at the kiosk. I held the doors for them; they were coming.

An MTA officer yells out. “Let go of that door!” I wait for those two, swiping through the turnstile now, one by one.

Again he yells, the very same thing. They are walking towards the door.

“Alright. You. You. Get out. Let’s go.” I walk away from the doors towards the turnstiles. The doors close.

I hesitate. “Get out!”. Through the turnstile. Again I pause. “OUT!”

And I go.

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http://transittrax.mta.info/audio/ttx_transcpts/ClosingDoors.htm

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“The edge of the world here,” (McCann 37)

I was thinking about this quotation, and it inspired me in a way that this can be looked as a intercultural pun. I’m sure most of you heard about the fairy tale regarding Tir na Nog (or some variation of it) which is from Ireland (*cough Corrigans).

A quick refresher, according to what I remember: it’s a story about an old man who sailed westward from Erinn (Ireland) and reached a land of the youth (Tir na Nog), in which no one aged (practically a paradise). After years, he misses his hometown and pleads the tir-na-nog-ians to help him go back, but many advised against it, since returning to Erinn meant instant aging and death for the man. As a solution, they prepared the soil (tir = land) from the land of the youth, and asked of the man to never set his foot off the soil on his journey; that once he sets his foot off, he will most certainly die. Some version tells of his safe arrival back to tir na nog, while others end with the man violating the promise and becoming ashes and dust. Look up the actual story for more information, because my memory may have betrayed me on several details.

In a way, America does resemble the “edge” of the world, especially New York. There is a layer of eternal youth with the inevitability of death (both terms used figuratively, not in a literal sense).

I do not know if the author intended this or if he meant something totally different. However, I do think it is interesting how the stories intertwine in this city like the way the snakes wrap around the caduceus, facing the opposite direction but stemming from one root; our root is the humanity and new york is the top of the caduceus.

Man on Wire- Reaction

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I knew about Philippe Petit walking between the Twin Towers from reading the children’s book, The Man Who Walked Between the Towers by Mordicai Gerstein back in 3rd grade. But after reading Let the Great World Spin by Colum McCann, I was again immensely curious to see how this man accomplished his walk on a wire between the Twin Towers. I was specifically interested on how he managed to tie his cable between the towers. I don’t know why but I imagined that this was a one-man feat, which made it seem even more amazing to me. Contrary to my original thought, this was hardly a one-man feat. Philippe had all his friends on board to help him accomplish his dream, and at some point in the movie I really began to see why the feat had a deeper impact, more than the media had portrayed it to be.

The amount of time, money, and risk Philippe was taking with his relationships and physical body was crazy to think about. All of his friends were postponing their own lives and journey to join Philippe. They supported him and really cared about him, but I couldn’t see an inkling of concern Philippe had for his friends. To blatantly put it, he was quite selfish. When each of his friends were interviewed, his best friend Jean-Louis constantly spoke about Philippe’s safety and their relationship. But Philippe was so caught up describing how he accomplished sneaking past the guards, anchoring his cables and the excitement of it all. He was blind to see that it wasn’t just as simple as getting the job done, but there were major consequences bound to happen. What shocked me the most was when Philippe abandoned his friends after his walk and put them on hold when all this time they had put their lives on hold for his. It really was amazing to see the behind story and all the effort Philippe and his friends put into this once in a lifetime show, but heartbreaking to see what it was actually worth.

Photograph from September 11th-Wislawa Szymborska

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This poem is describing the infamous photo of an unidentified man who jumped from the Twin Towers before they collapsed. What hits a chord is the third stanza that says:

“Each is still complete

with a particular face

and blood well-hidden.”

I just can’t imagine what a body looks like after falling that many stories. Szymborska is describing the body that is falling using what it looks like after it has hit the ground. She uses the negative to create an image of both the before and after-math of the jump. The 4th stanza elongates the time frame of the jump and really puts into perspective how long it took for the man to fall,

“There’s enough time

for hair to come loose,

for keys and coins

to fall from pockets.”

I can’t imagine what the man is thinking to himself, his death was definitely not a swift one, there must have been so many thoughts racing through his mind. The poet also exudes hopeless and wishes she could have done more. Szymborska wants to leave the ending unsaid for these jumpers, she only wants to describe this flight. Szymborska wants to keep them in flight, to keep their memories alive. Flight is usually used to describe a plane ready for take-off, but not in this case. The jumpers are in flight, however, it is a descending flight to their deaths, and the use is not describing a plane but rather a person. The plane in this scenario has ended its flight but the person is just in the midst of theirs.

 

Sophia Ebanks – Yet, Another Introduction

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I’m Sophia Ebanks.

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I was born and raised in the Bronx, New York. I’m the youngest of 3 sisters. My family is from Jamaica but sadly, I have never been there myself. One day, hopefully.

City College is the first public school I have ever attended. Before this, I went an all-girls Catholic high school in the Throggs Neck area of the Bronx. Prior to that, a Lutheran school in Morris Park. While in high school, I became involved in step, an African-American form of dance. I also enjoyed singing as part of a Gospel Choir. I sort of miss people singing randoms bits of our songs or stopping me to show me part of a step they learned from watching our performances as I walked through the halls.

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After competing for first time in 10 years, our Step Team placed 3rd in the “Break the Stage” competition.

In my spare time, I usually try to read a few books. My favorite author ever is Toni Morrison. Recently, I have been trying to read more books about meditation and spirituality, and I feel that it is a very interesting world of its own. I also try to keep up with my blog posts. I write on a site I created called Wielded Power, a blog I made after the George Zimmerman case two summers ago. And another one called Relics of Truth where I like to post some of my poetry. If you want to take a look at them, here they are:

Wielded Power
Relics of Truth
(That’s the end of my shameless plug)

When I’m not doing that I’m either taking long naps, trying to make several different styles with my hair, or traveling around the city to find places to eat and attend events with friends.

After a long day walking through the Village and over the Brooklyn Bridge, I was so glad someone could capture this money shot

After a long day walking through the Village and over the Brooklyn Bridge, I was so glad someone could capture this money shot.

I’m majoring in Anthropology, and I hope to double minor in public policy and journalism. I hope to travel the world with my camera soon and honestly just write about what I see, mainly race, class, gender, culture, and politics. Anything that catches my attention really. But my dream is really to get involved with young women in urban areas, especially teenage girls, and set up recreational centers for them in their own neighborhoods; maybe even get involved in bettering the public education system of New York at the high school level.

Let the Great World Spin Reflection

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In class we talked about how this novel relates to death and how different people can deal with it very differently. The chapter that I feel best demonstrates how differently people can react to death is “A Fear of Love”.

The two main characters, Lara and Blaine, react drastically differently from each other, despite being very similar individuals. Lara struggles to forget about the events that led to them killing two people. Whereas, Blaine quickly rationalizes his part in the accident by explaining that it was Corrigan’s fault because he did not know how to drive.

It is not surprising to see contrasting reactions to death; however, I find it interesting because both Lara and Blaine are so similar. They are both artists and enjoyed the party lifestyle with many drugs and few concerns. Yet, their reactions to death were complete opposites, which show how influential death can be and how difficult it is to come to terms with. At the end of the chapter we can even see that it is driving the couple apart, as each cannot understand the other’s response.

“The Worst Day of My Life is Now New York’s Hottest Tourist Attraction”

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If anybody is interested in checking it out, this is the article to which I was referring during our last class. The idea of public vs. private grieving and remembrance really stuck with me. I hope you enjoy it!

http://www.buzzfeed.com/stevekandell/the-worst-day-of-my-life-is-now-new-yorks-hottest-tourist-at#1o5futg