{"id":91,"date":"2011-08-14T11:24:00","date_gmt":"2011-08-14T11:24:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lidaprypchan.org\/?p=91"},"modified":"2015-07-19T20:27:45","modified_gmt":"2015-07-19T20:27:45","slug":"a-daily-dose-of-tolerance","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lidaprypchan.org\/?p=91","title":{"rendered":"A Daily Dose of Tolerance"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\n<\/b>By Carol Daly<\/b><\/p>\n

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If you\u2019ve never lived in or visited New York City and experienced the subway you have missed an entire culture made up of many cultures existing for the most part underground and underneath New York City and its boroughs. \u00a0It\u2019s one of the largest and complex systems in the world. \u00a0The NYC subway system is constantly being repaired, renovated, upgraded, downgraded, changed, rerouted, advertised \u2013all to the incredible inconvenience of the \u201cstraphangers\u201d as we riders are called. \u00a0Announcements on the train are automated with a female voice calling out the stops and a male voice giving commands such as \u201cstand clear of the closing doors please, if you see something say something\u201d and my favorite \u201ca crowded subway car is no excuse for sexual misconduct and unlawful behavior.\u201d \u00a0 How come the male voice gives all the commands? When the voices are \u2018live\u2019 they are often inaudible and everyone looks at each other in wonderment trying to figure out what had been said.<\/span><\/div>\n
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No where can you find such a diversity of age, culture, dress, smells, languages, conversations, new acquaintances, spectacles, entertainment and annoyances, rudeness, filth, sweat, freezing and unbearably hot temperatures all in the same place travelling back and forth to various destinations for $2.50 per ride. \u00a0On any given day you will find a variety of musicians strolling though the cars. There is blind man playing a pleasing though somewhat rote violin, an old woman playing the recorder quite poorly but sincerely, a team of guys pleasantly singing harmonies from 1950\u2019s tunes and Latino trios with sombreros and accordions singing the same songs over and over again. \u00a0There are also young boys doing fairly intrusive acrobats down the subways aisles in their hip hop routines demanding your attention. A kid reciting poetry he\u2019d written said that his name was Poet and both he and his poetry were very nice. I once met a guy from Haiti in his 20\u2019s who was an artist. \u00a0On the ride to work I was astonished by his incredible art and sculpture that he showed me from his portfolio. \u00a0There are beggars with every possible story concocted or true and some who are well dressed and seem to be making out well with their panhandling.\u00a0<\/span><\/div>\n
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Since cell phones don\u2019t work underground, the moment the train hits the lights and the airwaves, phones activate, beep, siren, play and conversations begin like a set of dominos swift in the current of their trail. And because New York, especially Queens, has over 250 nationalities of people, when everyone is speaking it sounds like a traffic jam symphony or an uncontrollable cacophony of sounds. \u00a0Often there are cultures that speak loudly, almost shouting regardless of the time of day. \u00a0Once a young man remarked to me that \u201cthey seem to be always yelling at each other and it\u2019s annoying.\u201d \u00a0I found it ironic that he was able to comment unabashedly about members of his own culture. \u00a0Other cultures consume strong spices for breakfast and their bodies take on a perfume of these spices. It\u2019s rarely a dull ride.<\/span><\/div>\n
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After a long winter, one beautiful day this spring seemed to come out of nowhere –warm, dry and fully embraced by New Yorkers. The chatter on the train was elevated and there was a palpable excitement and freedom released that broke the usual winter silence and gloom. In summer when it gets really hot, the bare underarms and sweaty bodies can be tough to handle and everyone gets a little cranky from being a little too close. Smiles given are often returned to help ease the tension and discomfort.\u00a0<\/span><\/div>\n
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Then there are the seats. I\u2019d heard many of the \u201cKawasaki\u201d cars were modeled after the Japanese versions or made in Japan. \u00a0If you\u2019ve been to Japan you know that on average they are about 5.8th\u2019s our size. I remember going to my room in The New Takanawa Prince Hotel and looking at the bed that seemed a little smaller in length than me. \u00a0Everything is a bit smaller in Japan and the subway cars were made for the average Japanese behind. The tiny petite person can choose and fit into any seat. \u00a0No problem. The so called average American squeezes into the seat and the rest, and not a small percentage, take two seats leaving a sliver for someone the size of a Miss Piggy doll. \u00a0Can you just figure out what happens next? There are some who will argue for the sliver and force the larger person to squeeze it in or leave the seat altogether. \u00a0There are men whose upbringing drilled it into them that they SHOULD NEVER KEEP THEIR LEGS CLOSED. \u00a0Some of these men actually take up three seats!! \u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/div>\n
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There are substances in the trains as well and so you must check the seats before sitting down for liquid and smells. \u00a0A friend of mine had an interesting combination small-seat\/liquid-on-the-seat experience. \u00a0She is very petite, well dressed and polite. She kindly asked two people to make a little more room for her so that she could sit down. \u00a0When she sat she felt a liquid on her derriere (butt). \u00a0After she sat the women next to her said \u201cOh the seat is wet.\u201d My friend smelled pickles and onions and asked the woman what had spilled on the seat and needless to say it was a pickled delicacy that had made its way to my friends behind and into the office where she works. \u00a0That day she had a pickled butt!<\/span><\/div>\n
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We certainly get a live cultural education and lesson in tolerance living in New York and especially riding the subway. I\u2019ve had so many interesting encounters and experiences. When I worked in corporate America, our home office in California, the car driving Californians could not believe the level of closeness and interaction required of New Yorkers!<\/span><\/div>\n
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All in all I appreciate having the subway system and I love New York in all its pain and glory! \u00a0The song by Vernon Duke says it all:<\/span><\/div>\n
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\u201cAutumn in New York, Why does it seem so inviting?<\/span><\/div>\n
Autumn in New York, its spells the thrill of first nighting,<\/span><\/div>\n
Glittering crowds and shimmering clouds in canyons of steel,<\/span><\/div>\n
They\u2019re making me feel, I\u2019m home.<\/span><\/div>\n
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Autumn in New York, transforms the slums into Mayfair<\/span><\/div>\n
Autumn in New York, you\u2019ll need no castles in Spain!<\/span><\/div>\n
Lovers that bless the dark, on benches in Central Park<\/span><\/div>\n
Greet Autumn in New York,<\/span><\/div>\n
It\u2019s good to live it again!\u201d<\/span><\/div>\n
\u00a0<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Carol Daly \u00a0 If you\u2019ve never lived in or visited New York City and experienced the subway you have missed an entire culture made up of many cultures existing for the most part underground and underneath New York City and its boroughs. \u00a0It\u2019s one of the largest and complex systems in the world. \u00a0The … <\/p>\n

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