This story has been published and is available in the book WHAT HAPPENED TO VICKY LEE? A COLLECTION OF STORIES By Ara Hagopian.
The softcover, which features 23 fiction and non-fiction short stories can be purchased here:
This story has been published and is available in the book WHAT HAPPENED TO VICKY LEE? A COLLECTION OF STORIES By Ara Hagopian.
The softcover, which features 23 fiction and non-fiction short stories can be purchased here:
I was in NYC last weekend – I love the city, and while I haven’t spent a ton of time there, I’ve been there enough over the years that I feel comfortable there, and can navigate my way around pretty handily. One of the only regrets I’ve ever had in my life is not taking the time to live and work there when I was younger.
I agree – one of the fun parts of visiting for me is seeing the individuals and families who are there for the first or second time, and they’re not used to it. Sometimes I see obviously foreign families there, doing all of the ‘touristy’ stuff, and wonder what it took for them to get there – how much money, time, planning went into their trip?
I was visiting a friend in Hell’s Kitchen while I was there; it’s definitely become a neighborhood for young(er) professionals – full of restaurants and bars and nightlife. One night while heading out to a later dinner, we passed an elderly woman, pushing a little wheeled cart full of groceries, presumably returning home from shopping. I wondered how long she’d lived there – I concocted this fantasy in my head that she settled there as a younger person herself – and marveled at the changes she must have seen over the years. I think it’d be fun to get her perspective on the city, too.
Hi Branden, what a thoughtful response–thank you. Great story about the elderly resident. Imagine living that way in that city… with its fast pace, speeding cars, parades etc. all around her. And she’s quietly living her modest life.