The Ivy Has Landed

I am here.

First, the train ride was extremely long. I left Toronto at about 9:30 and got to New York around 10:30. The train was an hour and a half late. Mostly this was due to us spending 2 hours at the border, where various people of Indian descent were grilled (and one Iranian) and one guy with a turban was kicked off. I sat next to a lovely Cornell PhD student and we nattered away for most of the trip. She got off at Syracuse, and I was extremely tempted to get off with her and spend the week with novembersnow instead. I had had enough of the train by 5:30pm when we made it there.

After that I hacked and snorted a lot and hoped no one would want to sit with me, but a lovely young lady from Philly was forced next to me by sheer lack of space. That turned out very well. She is a Muslim lesbian so we talked about religion and homosexuality a lot. That was cool. And then the guy in front of us turned around and we talked politics and Queer as Folk. He's an inner city school teacher here in New York. It was non-stop natter on the train. There were email exchanges and hugs all around when we finally made it to Penn station.

And then I realized that I had no idea where epicylical was going to meet me. Like, we hadn't gotten that far, it was like, Penn station, yeah, we'll meet you, no problem! And I thought, great! Last year when they picked me up at the bus station they were standing right there when I got off the bus so it never occurred to me. I wandered around aimless like a little cloud for a while, nearly passing out from the wicked flu I'm fighting and coughing on random passersby. I mean, do I even have phone numbers? Addresses? Oh no. That would be way too prepared. The train was so late, I had no idea where everyone was. I had a moment of panic. What would I do next? Here I am in New York City, and I have no idea where to go.

I do in fact have Cassie's cell number, buried deep in the bowels of my email program, so I sat down by the escalators, right next to the second sleeping homeless man on the right, and pulled out my computer. I pulled out a pen and as I write this I still have Cassie's cell number written on my hand.

Went to phones. Called Cassie. I left a message that went like this: (imagine this in a really cough-sick voice, all crackly and gravelly) "Hi, Cassie. It's Ivy. I'm here, at the train station, by this place that has lots of, like, departures and stuff on it, and there's a police thing. Uh...I don't really know what to do. Should I go somewhere? Uh....well, hopefully I'll see you soon. If not, well...uh...I don't really know what I'll do, actually." I pondered bursting into tears. I get lost very often, you see, and my usual response is to eventually burst into tears, normally in front of a police officer. ("I'm lost! I'm from Canada!")

As I limped back to the escalators, lo and behold, there they are! epicylical, tromboneborges, and jlh! I was so relieved I nearly did cry right then and there! I hugged everyone, we squeed, then I hugged everyone again.

Since being here, I have gone through a lot of oranges, most of a box of kleenex, and several doses of dayquil. Today we went shopping and found the world's most perfect outfit for tromboneborges, but he said it was two sizes too small. My heart is broken. I mean, everyone looks better in a silver embroidered blazer, don't you think? There was bubble tea, there were tea eggs, (TEA EGGS), there was impromptu a capella singing in the subway station. Tonight we are leaving the avocado and heading for the sunny shores of New Jersey, where we will puppy pile on top of blackholly. Then we will all moan and groan about our various states of illness until everyone passes out.

So that's what's happened so far. Lovely weather, really. The total and utter lack of snow makes me forget what time of year it actually is.

bonibaru, you watch yourself. INCOMING!