Subway Memoirs sure had a memorable day today – meeting so many interesting characters around Chelsea that is was hard to stop and capture everyone.
From transsexuals selling magazines and paintings, to buff gym boys leaving the gym all had a story to tell and most definitely all were characters.
So it was a pair of BRIGHT purple shoes that made me stop and ask the ever so lovely Ramono Martelli (Originally from Atlantic City) but now so very uniquely New York and ask him some Subway Memoir moments.
His overall attitude and bright persona had us in stitches and the fact he ended the memoir with a little dance definitely showed me that what I am doing is a good thing – and something that will live on with people who live, have lived or are interested in New York – Subway Memoirs is your one stop shop for the real New York and it’s inhabits.
So without further ardue I give it over to Ramono to share his story,
Just wanted to post a little tale that the City shared with me recently – and show how progress is really happening all the time in this city!
Yankee Stadium is as iconic as the city itself and when a friend from Australia recently visited we decided to head to the Bronx to check out the New Stadium. Now I had visited the Stadium in September with my Mother and across the road from the New Stadium was the Old Stadium still in all of it’s past glory.
So my shock to jump off at at Yankee Stadium Station and see an empty land mass with construction totally caught me off guard and in this instance I let the City share it’s memoir – what was once old is now new….
So enthralling to think that just a few months ago that history stood in all it’s glory.
Even the city has it’s own Subway Memoir – take a minute and be apart of history.
So New York City weather has been doing it’s best to greet Spring 2010 with as much gusto as possible but sometime mother nature gets her way and we have 4 seasons in one day. So for the last week Subway Memoirs has been quiet (let’s call it as it is BED RIDDEN) but no longer – I am back in full health and ready to share the stories thick and fast with everyone.
I guess not sharing my sickness with the city’s people was my good deed for the week (hehehe) and now I am back into Memoirs mode and so excited to bring you the first of two memoirs for today.
Meet Russell Lewis, an up and coming Actor who lives in New York and is pursuing his dream of performance – with his warm and american boy next door nature we sure think this is one young man destined for great heights and it was a privilege to get to hear Russell’s little story and now I share it with you.
Yet again no matter how long the story or short a prevailing theme throughout is that the little things can bring the toughest (New Yorker’s tend to be tough nuts – a good thing trust me) of people together and in this case laughter really is the best medicine. In this particular memoir laughter saw a situation that can be extremely tense turn into a light hearted and sweet smelling affair!
So enjoy this memoir and keep spreading the word, the Subway Memoirs project is picking up pace and we want to bring more exciting stories to you daily and share them with as many people across the world as possible.
So last night Subway Memoirs decided to see what the nightlife brought and we headed up to the Upper West Side.
As we approached 86th St Station we met a gorgeous girl, Allie Rudnick – so we decided to do a Subway Memoir with her and boy did she share a quality story about a Subway Car full of strangers playing The Movie Game.
Imagine a car full of strangers uniting over a game about film stars and the films they have been in – only in New York City can complete strangers find solace late in the evening over a simple game.
Again this story drives home the ever present theme in all the stories that the little things in life an bring together a diverse group of people and show that unity is possible among a group of random and unique characters.
Enjoy this Friday special – and have a wonderful weekend Subway Goers – if you see me on the Subway say hello – don’t be afraid!!
What a day I had today in New York City – I hit the Subway to Brooklyn on the L and hopped off at Bogart Street after striking up a conversation with a totally inspiring young man Kevin Bracken.
If the name doesn’t ring a bell a short biography follows but he is responsible for the pillow fights across New York and now the world that bring people of all races, nationality etc together in a scene right out of a film – but more than just a pillow fight this public display is the basis to show that again the simple things in life can bring people from all walks of life together.
Imagine if the powers that be in politics took a time out and undertook a pillow fight – sometimes people forget the inner child within them and it’s important never to let that child light fade.
Kevin Bracken is originally from Long Island, New York and co-founded Newmindspace during his 5-year studies in Toronto, Canada, where he contributed to numerous projects aimed at improving public life such as the TRIP! Project and the Toronto Public Space Committee. In January of 2009, he returned to New York to work on Refuge, a multi-purpose center for the arts in Brooklyn, where Newmindspace is now headquartered.
He delights in late-night techno dance parties, blowing large volumes of bubbles with brightly-colored machines, website design and technology, public infrastructure and transit, tall buildings, big cities, boardwalks, electronic music, the earth, beauty, and adventures of all kinds.
Meeting someone so young but yet so motivated and driven in what he wants to do makes me proud to be sharing the story with you – if we all took just one quality from this young man the city of NYC and the world over would certainly move forward a thousand paces.
Hope you enjoy and more to come this week – it’s an exciting week for Subway Memoirs,
So it’s with some reservation and sadness that I write this last post for tonight – we at Subway Memoirs have a little announcement to make.
Monica who joined the team from the beginning will no longer be coming along as part of the Subway Memoirs journey (well as apart of it’s creation that is I hope she still watches from afar).
Monica is an up and coming actress and has decided she wants to focus her efforts here and didn’t want this to affect Subway Memoirs as it was and still remains close to her heart.
Thing is guy’s I too am working full time and this city has so many stories to tell – it takes a lot of time and dedication to seek them out – but rest assured this is not only a passion but a goal to complete the project and have at least 2-3 new memoirs up on the site for you each week – so keep coming on and viewing (which I know you have we have hit 15,000 hits which brings a smile to my face).
So goodbye Monica – thanks for your time and efforts thus far and keep checking in – things are only going to get better (well the Video’s have a ways to go yet – I am a novice at this but doing my best)!!!
Another Subway Memoir goes up tomorrow from someone very well known in New York City – think Pillow Fights ….. you’ll see!
It’s days like this that we truly appreciate what it is we are aiming to do with Subway Memoirs – both the book and this site will be a testement to the people of New York – it’s stories and people will live on in history (this may sound like we are getting big heads too soon – on the contrary – think & live large is the motto and it is our hope that as many people read the memoirs & take away what they will - so let’s spread the word).
Today we met Jonathan James, a young man who just moved to the city with his new wife. What makes this story truly beautiful is that he came to allow her to pursue the dream of crackin’ the theatre world – Big Ol’ BROADWAY. This city is filled with people here to achieve personal dreams and the love Jonathan shows for his new wife brings a warmth to my heart – true love is rare and this is one case love prevails strong - so blessed to be able to share his story with you.
From love to a little tic-tac story (had me in stitches) that will show you it really is the little things (no pun intended) that can bring people together – watch the video and see for yourself.
So much more to come on this journey and what a thrilling experience it continues to be,
Travelling to Brooklyn to capture some Subway Memoirs today we jump off at Morgan Avenue Station in Brooklyn and are met with what at first seems like very little…. where is the Starbucks? Building after brick building and in need of a restroom ASAP – this turned out to be one of the best days for Subway Memoirs ever – as things revealed themselves – and the area came ALIVE.
The buildings literally revealed a diverse group of people (Brooklyn runs to it’s own drum but still makes up NYC as we know it), all of whom are going to be major additions on this journey – we are excited to share the stories with you all week – starting tomorrow morning – we just have to edit the video’s – so be patient and get ready for a BIG week….
Oh and BTW …. I made the restroom barely – sometimes getting the memoirs can be tough (tongue in cheek).
Meet Aremis Slake – whose tale is told against the backdrop of the New York City Subway System – the book Slake’s Limbo by Felice Holman is a tale of finding beauty within and in the surroundings you may find solace in.
This book is an amazing book for children and adults alike and has become somewhat of an unofficial Subway Memoir for us – we are finding beauty every day undertaking this project in the sometimes grittiest of places.
Beauty most defintely is in the eye of the beholder.
Book Synopsis:
His only friend has just been killed in an accident when Aremis Slake is chased into the subways by a gang of kids. Since his life above ground is hazardous and without love, Slake moves into an abandoned room adjacent to the subways. Jeered at in his surface life as a clumsy, worthless individual, Slake’s subterranean solitary existence proves him to be clever, competent and creative. He learns to survive in the depths of the city and in the subway terminals for four months.
When his hideaway is discovered and destroyed, both Slake and the reader are ready for life above ground. This is an inner city survival story which makes an interesting contrast to the more usual wilderness survival stories.
The characters of Slake’s world make an interesting study. First, of course, there is Slake himself: small, poor vision, lousy self- concept, but with the soul of an artist. We see glimpses of that artistic soul even before he leaves the surface when he ties leaves to the tree. Within the cave, he uses trash to make beauty. How does such an individual, so mistreated by others, discover the beauty within himself?
Minor characters in the book are worth investigating. Some of them are never named. There’s the lunch counter waitress whose name we never learns but who hands out extra food and the lead to a job, the “red-faced lady” who brings him clothing. Those with names, of course, include Joe, the nearest thing Slake had to a friend, and Willie Joe Whinny, the subway motorman who wanted to be a sheepherder. The skill of Holman is such that these characters are not merely cardboard vehicles to help Slake survive. They have some depth and implied lives apart from the book’s action.
There is some symbolism in the book, as well, or at least recurring images: the bird, for instance, appears three times: Slake dreams of swallowing a bird; one flutters in his chest when he is afraid and he identifies himself with the bird he sees when leaving the hospital. Willie Joe’s parallel plot of “On Another Track” is, at least, a double entendre, if not a symbol. The very locale of most of the book, the underground world of Slake, is a symbol for the unseen, even surreptious existence of many disenfranchised existences and the title of the book invokes the image of a limbo, being a nothing in a nothing existence.
As our journey continues the stories we share grow in meaning, depth and ultimately we hope that the eyes of the city will open one more time and take in what surrounds them; the people, the places, the beauty.
When we set out to bring you the people of New York we expected to meet a variety, from all walks of life. Yesterday was no different when at 28th Street Station we met one of the most entertaining people thus far; Patricia Angelin. Having lived in the city for over 25 years Patricia is tough as nails in approach and sassy by nature. She had both Monica and I laughing as she recounted several things about the city. An all round performer who has worked all over Broadway and beyond - this animated character definitely warms the soul.
The little grab for you below really brought a smile to our face, both candid and raw it shows how two polar opposite nationalities and races can appreciate what one has to offer – and in this case – the story has ‘BALLS’.
We are constantly amazed at the various stories that each individual we meet shares with us. Each person has let down their guard for us and has reached deep into their stored memory box. And when they pick out the shiniest memory that represents their New York – it is never what we expect, but it’s exactly what we are after. It’s fascinating. We learn as much as everyone does watching it on screen. We learn more about today’s New York and the New York that once was.
It really is a very exciting process to get out amongst New York, the subway and approach people that stand out; but what makes it thrilling is when we meet people like Patricia and Omar. Their stories resonate on a deeper level and we know that all of you will be able to relate in some way or another.
So with excitement we bring to you our second refreshing Subway Memoir.
