So I went to Brooklyn on Tuesday and stayed there until early Saturday morning. Unlike my last trip to Brooklyn that made me miss Smalltown, this vacation made me hate Smalltown much more than I did before.
I would like to say that I took pictures of all the places I went to, but I didn’t. It’s tough to take pictures when I spent the days either sleeping, watching Star Trek Voyager, or eating Thai and Chinese food. That’s all Brooklyn Mike and I did. His sister Monet tried to hang out with me but, to be honest, I had very little interest in her after she stole that money from her older brother. I had a crush on this girl for a decade, and there was a time when the very thought of being alone with her would make me go crazy with excitement and anticipation. But a thief is a thief, and I have no respect for people who have that… sickness to steal from those who work hard for every dollar. So I avoided her the entire time and spent the rest of my time relaxing with Brooklyn Mike.
Speaking of Mike, I don’t really know what’s gonna happen with him. He gets money from his mom’s pension when she died, and that runs out in 2016. They all plan to move out of their house into a new home, and then the oldest brother will renovate it into a “rooms for rent” property due to its proximity to Brooklyn College. So Mike will move into his aunt’s condo and pay $700 a month for the mortgage. The problem is that he isn’t working, and doesn’t seem to want work. He would much rather spend his time studying to be a PHP developer and pay the monthly $700 with the pension money. That doesn’t make much sense to me. A weekend job can pay $700 a month, so why not do that while studying instead of using the money his mom practically died for? Monet seems to be on a fast track to nowhere, and his little 19-year-old brother keeps bongs in his room. I talked to his brother because he wanted my advice on what he should do now that he graduated high school. I tried to give him the best advice I could. He seemed to have his head on straight, but I really can’t tell anymore. I never grew up in that kind of environment, so I really can’t say whether everything will work out for them. But it would be nice if it did.
As I drove back to Smalltown, the feeling of hatred for this place seemed to lessen. Sure, I hate the people here. I hate the looks and the stares. I hate the fact that it’s not as fast paced as Brooklyn is. Nino took me out on Thursday night to hang out in Williamsburg, and just seeing all the people out having a good time talking about subjects that didn’t have to do with how to get that extra $25 a month from welfare was… it was a nice feeling. But I came to realize that I don’t have to love Smalltown. I don’t even have to like it here. Smalltown is where I make my money. And, even though I don’t like the people here, I love the peace and quiet. Now that I have an almost finished apartment, I can really start making a plan that can have me live in multiple places. I can buy an apartment in Brooklyn to rent it to college students, and then stay there when the semester’s over and they leave. Kind of like a timeshare sort of thing, you know?
I would consider buying an apartment in another state, but Brooklyn is home. I understand Brooklyn so much more than here or anywhere else. That feeling I had when I visited was as if I’d never left. And the women were… just perfect! Everyone is doing something, busy as can be. From the taxi cab driver up at 5am to work his shift to make money to bring more of his family to America, to the different cultures intermingling and learning from each other… I love NYC. I love home, and this trip made me see that I’ll always want to live there. Maybe someday I’ll find a way. Until then, it’s back to work…
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