I know sport mania happens commonly in other cities, but it's hard to communicate how unusual it is for NYC – at this level of intensity.
Last night I was at a hippie "love salon" full of dancer types. It was humid and hot so mostly we were lying on the floor and singing silly improvisational songs. But at some point, someone announced that the Knicks were making a 25+ point comeback.
We put the night on pause to break out a laptop. Someone found an illegal streaming site to watch the game live, and soon enough we found ourselves screaming at the screen. Our screams were matched by screams from across the city that swelled through the open window.
EB White once wrote:
"New York is peculiarly constructed to absorb almost anything that comes along (whether a thousand-foot liner out of the East or a twenty-thousand-man convention out of the West without inflicting the event on its inhabitants, so that every event is, in a sense, optional, and the inhabitant is in the happy poistion of being able to choose his spectacle and so conserve his soul."
The only time I remember an event breaking "absorption" like this and spreading through the entire city was when Obama got elected.
I don't feel very connected to professional sports, but I'm currently in awe of its ability to raise the vibe of an entire populace. Until this whole Knicks contagion, there was widespread agreement that the vibe here had become quite BAD since covid. Burned out. Antisocial. But last night, trucks were honking and people outside of bars were bellowing back at them in joy before hugging and kissing strangers. What a sight!
Everyone now seems convinced that this will be the greatest NYC summer ever.
Wait, so we were told to take shorter showers, turn off the tap while brushing our teeth, and conserve water at every opportunity… but data centers can show up and use millions of gallons like it’s nothing?
My favorite tacos ever was from a taco truck at a car wash lol
I got tacos for lunch there literally every day
When the guy told me he had to close up shop, I asked how he made the green sauce
He said “I’m not giving you my recipe are you fucking crazy”
my dad got a hospital bill last month.
went in for chest pain. stayed 2 nights. nothing serious.
the bill was $34,000.
insurance covered $21,000
we owe $13,000.
he's 67 retired on a fixed income.
i went back and looked it up.
the hospital reported $2.1 billion in revenue last year.
$2.1 billion and they're billing a 67 year old retired man $13,000 for 2 nights.
please if you are no longer interested in someone let them know. slowly distancing yourself, ignoring calls, and giving halfhearted responses hurts them more than simply being honest.