Discussion»Statements»Rosie's Corner» What is the most serendipitous experience you've had so far? Are you a fan of "coincidence" or is there no such thing?
My biggest stroke of luck was being born in America. The next was how I came to own my apartment. When the building went co-op originally, the cost for my apartment would have been $21,100, but at that time, I couldn't afford a mortgage and the monthly maintenance, so I remained as a rent-stabilized tenant. Someone then bought the shares in my apartment and I became his tenant. When I found out that he stopped paying his mortgage and the bank was foreclosing on him, I made the bank an offer, which they eventually accepted and I got my one-bedroom apartment in a very nice neighborhood, for $5,000. The value has increased immeasurably since May, 1994.
From the view of an outsider L (me) I think your biggest stroke of luck was being born SMART! Seriously. I agree that you get a leg up being born in America but bazillions are and look at what choices they make and what they do with their lives? Having a "good head on your shoulders" and knowing what to do with what you were given at birth means everything. I think no matter where you were born you would have done well simply because you seem to me to be always thoughtful logical and CALM. I put that word CALM in caps because I am not that as often as I wish I were. You can't take any credit at all for the DNA of your parents but you get all the credit for how you use it m'dear and you have used it very extremely well. Just an observation from a long-time pal. You BOUGHT where you live for $5K in New York. If I weren't sitting down I'd have fallen down. See sweetie. When you make excellent choices the outcome has got to be excellent as well. OK. Right now I know you are blushing bright red and wish I'd shut up! Thank you for sharing your serendipitous experiences and Happy Saturday! :)
Those are very kind comments - thank you. A lot also has to do with the way I was raised. My parents were sane, thoughtful people who made good choices of their own and so, led by example. My sisters and I knew what was expected of us and we worked towards those goals. Yes, $5k in New York, but that was a long time ago.
Well you know my friend I worried about you. But now I have no reason to because you are fully capable of doing THE RIGHT THING AT THE RIGHT TIME! Stating the obvious is something I'm very good at doing! I just giggled L. I don't know if I'm being sillier than my usual level of silly but it tickled me to tell you that I won't have to worry about you. That isn't true. Until New York has zero cases and zero deaths and NO RESURGENCE I have to worry. But it is less frantic and your calm communicates itself to me so that's good. You heard the latest that GAG said he was being SARCASTIC when he spoke of injecting disinfectants into our bodies? SARCASM as people get infected and are dying? Well I guess the sh** hit the fan big time and allegedly apparently there will be fewer briefings. I want DAILY BRIEFINGS by the scientists and I want GAG absent from all of them. Let him do his campaigning at hate rallies. Thank you for your reply and Happy Saturday to thee! :)
This post was edited by RosieG at April 25, 2020 6:53 AM MDT
I'm pretty good at survival. I've lived through three major total blackouts, mass transit strikes, 9/11, Hurricane Sandy. I keep my cool and figure out how to solve the dilemma, but it's nice that you care enough to worry. Thank you. :)
Trumps many misstatements are causing a backlash and his advisors have told him that his numbers are going down which is why he's cutting the briefings short. Even some of his people are beginning to weary of his constant haranguing of the press. They don't tune in to see that crap - they tune in to be informed and that isn't something Trump can do.
You're welcome. What are friends for? You kinda worry about people especially during trying times and these for certain are the most trying I've ever lived through. As a New Yorker being target on 9/11 your experiences are somewhat bigger and worser. I wish I could do something about that but at least I can be aware and say something. Silence presume assent so I can't remain silent. I'm gonna ask. Exactly. I haven't seen or heard anything about Dr. Fauci. Do you know what's going on? At that least mess Dr. Birk just sat there stonily saying nothing. How could she not talk about the dumbhead's suggestions? Injecting disinfectants in a human body? Seriously? I dunno how much absurd it will get before there is a blowout or blackout. Thank you for your reply!
I think 9/11 was the worst thing I've ever lived through. It wasn't just that the Towers went down - it was a loss of the feeling of security. The knowledge that some punkass terrorists could infiltrate our country and do this awful thing is frightening. We got complacent and cocky and they took that opportunity to expose our vulnerabilities to the maximum.
As is true of others we were in California watching the morning news when we saw with horror the first plane going into a tower! A TERRIBLE HORRIBLE ACCIDENT or so we thought. Until the second plane hit. That is when we knew something was very wrong and we were under attack. We were terrified and we were 3000 miles away but we thought other large cities would be targeted as well. Being there? I cannot imagine what that would be like L. We watched the devastation as it was happening in real time and still could not believe it. And then when the two towers started crumbling down to the ground it seemed as if we were watching a scifi movie. Sadly though it was really so. I guess with the glory that comes from worldwide fame comes danger. We don't know what lies ahead. We hope the worst is behind us. Fingers crossed we are heading toward the light! Thank you for your reply L! here's to better times and better memories! OOYAH!
When the first tower was hit, we thought it was an accident Like you, when the second happened, we knew it was no accident. We all ran to a conference room where they had the news on and we stood there horrified by what was taking place before our eyes. Every way in and out of the city was closed. I had no idea how, if at all, I would get home. I suspected I would have to walk the ten miles, but then someone who had started out texted us that we couldn't even walk home over the bridge into Queens. Eventually, when the dust settled hours later, they opened some points going out of the City. A co-worker had driven to work that day and when they opened the bridge, she gave me a ride home. She lived in Brooklyn, but was not allowed to cross the Brooklyn Bridge so she had to swing through Queens, dropped me off at home, and went to Brooklyn via another road. As we reached the center of the bridge span, I looked to my left and saw this huge plume of thick black smoke from the jet fuel burning. It's an image that will forever be etched in my mind. We have become more careful now, our innocence has been shattered and, so far, our government has been able to ward off any further attacks.
Oh my goodness L. The images we saw on TV were so bad. LIving through all of that must have been far far worse. Truth be known L it's stlll too big for me to comprehend. But it happened and well I expect something like that could happen again. SIGH. When evil takes over everyone who isn't evil too suffers. Stating the obvious again. Thank you for the first-person experience sharing. It happened many years ago but the immediacy of your description makes it seem as if it happened yesterday. For you it probably always will. :(
The images and the aftermath would be difficult for anyone who lived in New York to forget - nor should we. We cannot afford to let down out guard whether it's new York or anywhere else. The thing that lingers is that it was the brightest of sunny days. There wasn't a cloud in the robin's egg blue sky and the next day, all I kept thinking was, "How could such a horrific thing happen on such a glorious day?"
As if tragedy only happens on rainy dark miserable days. The counterpoint to the terribly awful was the environment in which it happened. The dark and the light. Evil and good. Yin and yang. Sigh. What next? We never expected an evil like GAG yet it happened. Imagine that? Thank you for your reply! :)
This post was edited by RosieG at April 25, 2020 8:09 AM MDT
From your lips to the Universe my friend. Once is quite enough. Thank you for your reply L! :) So how far do you plan to walk today? Do you stroll or walk briskly or meander or lollygag? Do you stop to smell the roses (if flower gardens there be)? Inquiring minds want to know these things! :)
I'm not planning on walking too far. I'm going to drive to the supermarket, walk around there with my mask on, and then I'll stop at a deli for cold cuts and come home. If no one is sitting out on the benches in front of our buildings, I'll hang out there for a bit and catch some Vitamin D.
Sounds like a plan. Do you have a portable shopping cart with wheels L? Years ago we lived about 3/4 of a mile way from a nice small shopping center with a Ralph's market. If the weather were good and I didn't have a bazillion things to get I'd just walk up, shop, come home. In that small collection of shops was a salon called "HEADHUNTER'S". It was there I met Jim! Anyway we still have that shopping cart somewhere in the garage. I think New York is MADE FOR WALKERS. I see videos of them walking jauntily and purposefully here there and everywhere. Oh have you ever been to Central Park? It looks AMAZING to me that such a huge park could exist in the middle of a very busy city! Thank you for your reply L! :)
Yes, I do have a shopping cart with wheels. I didn't get a driver's license until I was 40, so all of my shopping was done on foot. I couldn't carry all those bags home, so I pulled the shopping cart. My cart is 49 years old. Looks like dreck, but it still works, so I'm not trading it in. Now, I use it to take laundry to the laundry room and I put it in the car when I go shopping so I can get all my things out of the trunk in one trip.
NYC is for walking although we do have a serious car congestion issue. One of the reasons we walk is because there is because parking is so expensive in Manhattan and there's virtually no on-street parking unless you park somewhere in the middle of the night (and I'm not sure even then).
Yes, I've been to Central Park many times. It's huge and a great place to spend a lunch hour if you work nearby. I was closer before my firm moved further downtown. I used to go into the park to the Zoo and watch the seals play. Then I would walk the couple of blocks back to work.
SpunkySenior 