ENG2150: Writing New York

For the ART-A-THON I attended the piano playing event as I already have experience with music and was very curious as to how to play piano. The program was lead by a very sweet woman whose name I don’t want to misspell. She taught us how to play a blues song on the piano. It was an extremely easy song and she also proceeded to teach us the which notes were which on the piano. There were different people in the room, some experienced, others not. After practicing the song for a bit the instructor then invited a man named Gordon to join us playing. He was absolutely fantastic and I played alongside the instructor and Gordon at the same time. It was extremely fun, and I definitely enjoyed much more than I thought I would. After this I went to the single piano rooms and stayed there for hours playing not knowing time passed. I’m extremely grateful to have learned of this room and event because I go to the piano room often at least twice a week. I’m currently learning to play the “Corpse’s Bride” duet. The single rooms tend to be empty and they aren’t bad in any way. I came to this event at first mostly because of the extra credit opportunity, so the fact that I was able to pick up a very relaxing and entertaining hobby was a great shock to me. I enjoyed it much more than I thought I would. This event was magnificent and I definitely encourage everyone to participate in any event like this as I had a great time.

This picture was taken when I was crossing the Brooklyn Bridge a few months ago. It was my first time walking the bridge with my cousin. It was quite a walk, longer than I had expected it to be, but I managed to cross it eventually. As everyone knows, the Brooklyn Bridge is a popular tourist site. When walking everyone was taking photos like myself as you can see below. Yes I added a filter to it to make it look better in my opinion. When crossing the bridge, there were many different locks that were locked on the cables of the bridge. I didn’t know what they were, but according to my cousin who I was with, he said that couples tend to put locks on the cables and write down their initial on the lock as a display of their love. I do not know if this is true or not, but it made the cables look colorful. Also I had a really good mango while walking the bridge so it made the experience even more better. I recommend everyone to have a chance to experience the walk with friends or family and it will be worth it.

I decide to attend the Ballez-inspired gender exclusive partner dancing. it was fun to experience something new and I have always wanted to take some dancing classes and even if this was just for a day I still got to enjoy it and experience what it required to be in a dance class. in this class I learn a few dance moves like how to spin without getting dizzy and we also did some partner dancing which was really fun. I took a picture with the class and realized that this was a theater class and me and my friends were the only two outsiders, I also made some new friends in the little time that we spend there and I saw one of my coworkers there too, overall this workshop was really fun and I learned that ballet is for more then just dancing but it’s to build connections and its not about who can dance it or what to dance its about how each individual expresses themselves.

The Art-A-Thon event I decided to go to was the wax seal making event. Jasmine, Marcia and I were together at the time and we were looking through the list of events that worked best with our schedules and we ended up picking the seal making station. We went up to the third floor and found the classroom it was in. There were a few students in the room when we walked in. To my left was a little toaster oven filled up with little white clay seals. The coordinator of the seal station greeted us and pointed over to a desk that had fresh balls of soft clay. We each picked up a clay ball and sat down at desks. The coordinator picked up on of the pieces of clay and showed us how to mold it into the correct shape. After a few minutes of molding my little clay seal I walked back over to the main table. We each got to use little carving tools to create a design for the seal. After I made my design I handed the coordinator my seal and she stuck it in the toaster oven for about 20 minutes. After it had hardened we were able to melt any color wax onto a little piece of paper and stick our seal onto it to test it out. The wax was pretty cheap so it was difficult to actually have the seal come out correctly but overall it was a very interesting process.

On Sunday April 15,  I was given the opportunity to work at a show at the Playstation Theater. I work under the Cleaver Co. as a waiter in their catering division. The company was scheduled to cater the Shorty Awards. The Shorty Awards is a show that honors social media influencers across most platforms. These platforms include Youtube, Twitter, Instagram and more. My call time was 11AM. I woke up at 7AM because I was nervous about being late. I got ready and waited for my dad to pick me up. He knew where the theater was located and I did not so we agreed to go together. We got off the train and arrived at the theater around 10:30 AM. When I arrived to the theater I had to empty my pockets and give the security guard my backpack so that he could be inspect it. I signed in. I wrote down my name, time of arrival and scribbled gibberish in the position column. The security guard gave me directions to where my company was located. I only got that I had to go down the stairs and nodded as a sign of my “understanding”. The theater was dark and didn’t seem too exciting, it was sort of a letdown for me. I was expecting the theater to be grand and extravagant. After signing in I walked down the stairs since the escalators were not on at that time. When I get to the bottom I turn around and begin to walk until I am met with a split path. I continue to walk the path in front of me but then find myself with two suspicious looking doors. I decide to turn around and circle around the split path section. I walk again to the end of the suspicious doors but immediately go back to where the path splits again. When I went back I decided to ask someone for help. I asked this stocky looking man if he had any idea where I could find the Cleaver Co. and his response was no. I then looked around in frustration and walked to the door which led to a stage. I went back again and decided to ask a lady. She turned around and immediately answered my question. She was clear in her instruction. She told me to walk to the end of the suspicious looking doors past the freight elevators and then to make a right. I did as I was told and was relieved to have spotted my supervisor. (Attached is a link with a map of my complicated journey.) split path

My supervisor gave me a tour of the entire floor and introduced me to another supervisor for the event. I was ready to learn and to make zero mistakes. I was greeted with a warm smile and then quickly bombarded with information on the table set up. The event was going to be set in a family style dinner. I was verbally told the dimensions of each of the tables on three individual floors. The main floor had 60 inch tables, the mezzanine 54 inches in diameter and the balcony 50 inches. The tables first needed to be covered with styrofoam liners so as to prevent the tablecloth from slipping. Then the cloth was to be placed with a seam facing front. After that it was time to set the table. The table was set with a dinner fork, salad fork, dinner knife, plate, napkin, wine glass, and then lastly water glass. Before the napkins could be placed they had to be folded. Approximately 500 napkins were needed. I and six other people folded napkins for two hours straight. After folding all of the waiters were called to a pre-meeting and were told to change. I was already dressed in all black so I did not need to change. We placed our items in a coat check room and were then given a company meal. I ate herb grilled chicken with tapenade pasta and pita bread. Around 4PM after our meal we were called to the general meeting and told which groups we belonged to and what our duties were. I was assigned hor d’oeuvres, team P-A. When the time came I had to memorize the names of five of the appetizers being served. It was 5PM and time to serve and I was indifferent but also a little nervous. I had a good time passing through the crowd until it got unbearably full. The only people who made my night were this couple that always grabbed three hor d’oeuvres at a time and Keke Palmer who was funny and extremely humble. I urged her to take three of the mini pot pies. I served the Backpack Kid however, it was after the event that I realized who he was.

After serving hors d’oeuvres my feet were really sore. I took a folding chair, opened it and sat on it. I contemplated life and imagined doing exactly what I did today for the rest of my life. I got really scared opened my eyes. I thought about school, my family and friends. Although some of the people who I served were generally nice some of them were not and that stuck with me. It reminded me of an article I read about amusement park mascots. People would think it acceptable to disrespect them, to hit them and ridicule them just because they could not see the person behind the costume. I felt like my uniform was also an agent that represented my position among the members of the party. The rest of night went by quickly and I was sent home early. I appreciated my experience and was glad I learned something from it. I learned that I did not want to work like that for the rest of my life and that I wanted to find a passion to pursue. This day motivated me to become better not only for my own sake and then for the sake of the ones I love. Hopefully this motivation last enough to get me through the semester. Thank you for reading until the end.

Johanny Sanchez Landron

New York is known for its fabulous cuisine. This is one place in the world where you can get a dollar slice pizza walk a couple blocks and find one that cost up to 6.50. With so many options at any price range the places to dine in new york are endless. Every year for my birthday I try to find a new restaurant. This year for my birthday I decided to attend a different area. I usually go to dyckman or somewhere in upper Manhattan. I decided that it would be pointless for me to go to the same areas I normally do. My uncle always said if you visited a new restaurant every day in New York it would take you more than a couple of years. That being said I wanted to broaden my horizons and try what New York has to offer.
This year on my birthday I decided to go to a restaurant named vandals. I had previously heard of it and had seen there infamous bunny on everyone’s Instagram. The bunny is a dope sculpture in which it is turned over upside down. It’s is purple with contrast of a black and white background. As soon as you get to the restaurant there is a group of people crowding around the bunny. Everyone waiting for a chance to get their picture. Taking a picture with this bunny proves that you actually attended vandals. If you don’t have that picture don’t even bother mentioning you’ve been there. As soon as you arrive the music is on point. They played every song that is hot at the moment. It had a great ambience. There was a club next door where the music transfers into the restaurant which kinda gives it a club feel.
When I got there I realized by the sign it’s actually called vandal instead of vandals. I looked this word up and found that it meant someone who deliberately destroys private property. This goes with the theme of the restaurant because the art is pretty chaotic. It resembles street style graffiti art. The colors are vibrant and contrast well with the dark lighting of the restaurant. It is located in soho on browrey street. It’s a perfect location for this restaurant . With all artistic people that live in this area this the perfect place for them to congregate.
When we got there we got seated and immediately we looked into the menu there were New York inspired entrees and main dishes. All while we sang along to cardi b songs. When the food arrived we weren’t surprised to see the small portions on our plate. It is surprising to see expensive restaurants give a lot of food. The prices of the plates equally matched that of an expensive restaurant. I got my own personal pizza as did the other girls. We were hungry and knew it be the only thing in the menu to fill us up.

All in all the restaurant was a pleasant experince. It was great backdrop for my birthday pictures. I highly suggest you check it out.

I chose to do my New York Minute on Baisley Pond Park. It is located in Queens. I choose this park because I Have been their many times. It is a very beautiful park. Their is many things that you can do while at this park. You can go kayaking, bike riding, skateboarding and many more. It is best to go during the summer because it is very beautiful at this time around and you can do many of these activities only during the summer. I have been going to this park for over 5 years. During the summer their are many family reunions that take place at this park. I think that is why I fell in love with this park. Every time I go to this park I am meeting up with my family that I have not seen in a while.

This Saturday I attended my first broadway play, “the Bands visit”, the play was about a band that went to the wrong city from where they were suppose to go to preform, in this town there is no hotels or buses going out for the rest of the night. the band had to stay with Dina (the restaurant owner) and with the families of her two workers. the play takes play in one night but during this night a lot happens, friendships form and so does relationships, Egyptians and Israelis find a way to overcome ethical boundaries through music, by helping each other with the smallest things like offering food to something big like helping them gain courage to speak with a girl and their common ways of acting . I have always wanted to attend a broadway play and I’m glad I finally had the chance to go to one. I was sitting at the mezzanine area and although the view was not the best because I’m short and tall people where sitting in from of me almost Half of the lower part off the stage was covered. I still managed to enjoy it.

I think watching a play in one of the broadways theater is a different experience than attending one in like a school or off-broadway. the feeling you get when watching a live performance will never compare to watching a movie, reading or listening to a play. being there in person allows you to experience not only your excitement but also others reactions. There was this one girl sitting behind me that had the best reactions to when something was funny or sad, she would laugh so loud that some make think its annoying and disturbing but at the same time seeing how much she was enjoying made the people around her feel the excitement too and everyone could relate as to why it was so funny. Also watching a live play can allow you to see mistakes or other things that you will to noticed if it was playing on a screen, this small details can give you more of an feeling as if you are actually part of the show and the actors make sure that they make their audience feel included, and I did I felt included I could feel and relate to the characters heart break and emotions. and there were some parts of the story line that other people might relate to, like this one character was struggling to talk to a girl he liked I felt as if we all experience that not being able to or not have the confidence of talking to the person you like and if or when you do you’re afraid to make a mistake so sometimes we stop being ourselves and all this the character was able to portray.

The play was better than I initially though it was gonna be, at the beginning I though it would be boring or something that did not suit my taste and I will fall sleep but instead the actors, the way they got so into their character and the atmosphere in the theater made it impossible for me to not put my full attention to the play because if I did not I though I would miss something that could be very important in the story line. although it was freezing in that theater and it sometimes made it hard to focused I still managed to pay attention to every details that was visible to me. overall the experience of watching something live has always given me a better experience than when I go see a movie, the feelings you get are indescribable and they are on a different level. I will recommend to people if you have not attended a live play or a concert to try to attend one sometime in your life, the experience will forever be one of the best things you can do. I will like to go see some of the other plays shown in broadway like Wicked or Frozen, but we will see because they can be expensive specially if I want to see from a better view than the mezzanine.

For my New York minute I chose a dead end spot around my neighborhood where I used to go to and just hang out with friends. This spot was surrounded by large houses and it was next to a train track although you weren’t able to go on the train tracks and there was a security guard that would drive around making sure that no one would try to go on the tracks. During the summer you could see people who would have picnics there because the scenery is beautiful and there weren’t many cars driving by there. I chose this place because I remember being filled with anxiety the day before my first day of high school and my friend brought me there in order to calm me down.

I decided to do my New York minute on Washington square. I was over in the park the other day waiting to meet with a friend and as I was sitting there I noticed there was a lot going on at once. Singers performing in different parts of the park, someone making art on the floor with nothing but bags of powdered chalk by their side. Many people strolled through the park, whether it be tourists or young students. I’ve been to Washington square quite a few times but I think it’s a really great place to stop by if you’ve never been to it. Especially if you go in the summertime, there is a large fountain in the center of the park that gets turned on and keeps everyone cool during the hot summer days. Within the park there is many little green fields that you can sit at or have a picnic there. There’s also a dog park inside so if you have a dog of your own you’re more than welcome to go in there. The atmosphere of the park in general is very lively and you can always take a seat and people watch and just enjoy your surroundings. If you wanna check out Washington square it’s located over by West 4th st by NYU.