Look at these bright eyed youths. These young men who somehow, after the long, drunken night described in my last post, were still able to get up early-ish the next day, during BREAKFAST time, and spend the day walking around New York City. And THEN, somehow unencumbered by devastating day-long hangovers, start drinking AGAIN. And then, the morning after the second night of drinking, these intrepid compatriots were somehow functional enough to line up and take this picture before half of them left to drive back to Ohio.
Anthony, looking like he's late for a poetry reading. Me, slightly FOBby and unaware that the crooked hat looks ridiculous. Maynard and Mike looking like they're in a goddamn band. Ryan, the K-Pop star, and Rudie, the catalog model for Urban Outfitters.
When friends are in town nowadays they get a different New York from me than they did then. I'm no longer on a constant search for the bars with the cheapest drinks, or the most free stuff. I have my favorite places at this point, and while they certainly aren't the priciest spots, I pick them for the best experience, and not just the fastest buzz. I feel like visits are less adventuresome because I'm just generally not looking for adventures here anymore. At some point my constant searches for new experiences began yielding mostly just a lighter wallet, and early mornings after late nights started to become too much of a bother.
For the kid in this photo, though, with the baby face and the suspect choice in headwear, The City was still mostly a question mark. He was heading into an invincible time when he could stay out until the small hours of the morning, and still be up and functioning (mostly) at work the next day. He will go on to make random friends at bars and follow them to random rooftop barbecues, and never see them again. He didn't know other neighborhoods yet, or how to travel between them. New York was so unimaginably large that even Williamsburg itself seemed huge. The best days in this town are still ahead of this kid, and he knows it, and he is going to spend a lot of time and effort and money seeking out each and every one.
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