Tales & Trails of a Traveling Wiseguy

As I was preparing for my trip to New York City a little over a week ago one thing I considered was, Gosh, how long has it been since I've been to NYC? I used to travel there every month or two for work. Back then I knew things like which trains to take to/from each of the area airports to various locations such as Midtown, Downtown, and Jersey City. For the trip a week ago I had to pull up maps to double check. And the reason was because the last time I was in NYC, frequently, was... 2012.

Oh, I've been to New York a few times since 2012. Like, three times, I think. 😅 Not really a lot. And the last time I was there, in 2021, was just passing through as I flew to JFK, picked up a rental car, drove out to Westchester County, and drove back 3 days later to return the car and fly out.

Thinking about how I used to travel to New York frequently brought back memories of a pivotal moment, a time when I had a revelation while standing on a train platform.

This was even further back than 2012. It was back in 2007, I believe. Late February 2007. It was cold. I was reminded of this again when I landed in NYC eight nights ago and it was cold out— though not as cold as this memorable night 18 years ago.

I remember the night being cold because I was standing on a platform waiting for a train late the night I arrived. You don't realize how cold it is outside until you stand in it, in the open, for 10+ minutes. Not only was the air cold, but the wind was gusty. It felt like it blew right through me, stripping my warmth out from beneath my jacket.

As I stood on that train platform, in the bitter cold, I remember thinking to myself, "I'm standing here [in this sub-freezing cold] to earn money to pay the mortgage on a home where it was 72° today." I don't think I need to prompt you with, "Do you see what's wrong with this picture?"

It was a revelatory moment because the bitter cold was both literal and metaphorical. The literal meaning was obvious. The metaphor of bitter cold is was that I was working my heart out in an environment where I felt undervalued, not listened to, and poorly treated.

In that moment I decided I would insist on a better environment. No, that didn't mean "Refuse to go to New York in the winter." 😅 It meant advocating for myself at work. Though it did also mean insisting on a bit more comfort when traveling for business. For example, on last week's trip to NYC, when it was cold on Sunday night I hailed an Uber instead of waiting for buses and trains in the cold.