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May 07, 2006
New Yorkistan, Part 1
I was waiting for the local C train when I saw Amanda near me on the platform. It's not that I wasn't ecstatic to see her; it's just that it was extremely unexpected. I don't know why I don't expect it. New York City is the smallest village in the world. Next time I'm on the subway, I expect to bump into the first girl I ever kissed (Jennifer McKinney) or the Alaskan guy I first messed around with. Preferably the guy, now that I think about it.
Back to Amanda and this specific subway station at this specific point in time. I think the last time I saw her was after the Uzbekistan evacuation. We chatted for a few minutes, talked on the subway, and agreed to get together with a few other RPCV's in NYC.
It's been five years since I was medically evacuated from Uzbekistan, less for Amanda and the others who were evacuated after 9/11. It doesn't seem like that long ago, but that's how time flies. Five years ago I weighed only 130 pounds due to bad diet. Five years ago my left leg was a shredded mess. Five years ago I was relatively fluent in five languages. Five years ago I was abruptly returned to the US with no real clue what to do.
This afternoon I'll be seeing other volunteers, friends with whom I've lost touch. Peace Corps was like a summer camp, but a summer camp with terrorists, giardia, incompetent directors, lots of vodka, and mistaking birthday parties with circumcision parties. I wonder how it changed them, since I know it changed me.
Posted by G at May 7, 2006 03:05 PM
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Comments
We should drink more, I need to hear these stories.
Posted by: Andy at May 8, 2006 03:14 PM
G, you should talk with the Bent Collective blog guys, who also just came back from Uzbekistan.
It's great that you went to into the Peace Corps, what a nice thing to do! Welcome home. I guess after dealing with Uzbeks, Pashtuns and Tajiks, bratty New Yorker kids are a piece of cake to deal with.
Posted by: MikeProv1 at May 8, 2006 07:25 PM
I was equally as shocked to see you Glen. And for the record, there was one other time I have seen you since we both moved to New York. Remember I met you after a concert in Prospect Park and a random bar in Park Slope with an ex-boyfriend of mine who looked straight out of the movie "Animal House"??? Anyway, I'm sure you will have another story about the bbq or a photo that I will wait to rebutt. In the meantime, I think you failed to mention the beauty of the moment we ran into each other in the subway. I'm 99% sure that without saying any words, we each did a double take and approached each other and hugged. Only after a moment did we say, "how are you?" It was nice, one of my better and favorite NYC moments. Yes, we live in small village, but unexpectful hugs from long lost friends are a rarity...opposed to running into that guy from the bar that you never wanted to see again. :)
Posted by: Amanda at May 9, 2006 04:32 PM