As my husband and I drive from ‘The City’ the lyrics to Jay Z’s ‘Empire State of Mind’ (featuring Alicia – Goddess – Keys) thrash between my ears while tears stream down my face.
“Yeah …but I’ll be hood forever…and since I made it here I can make it anywhere…tell by my attitude that I’m most definitely from…New York…”
Are the tears about the physical exhaustion from the 60 hour work week capped off with packing practically all night?
“…In New York concrete jungle were dreams are made of, there’s nothing you can’t do, now you’re in New York…These streets will make you feel brand new, big lights will inspire you, let’s here it for New York, New York…”
Or from running on fumes after three hours of sleep and multiple trips up and down our third floor walk up to load the car?
“…catch me in the kitchen…whippin’ pastry…welcome to the melting pot…”
Maybe it was the (obligatory) moving blow-out fight we had?
“…yellow cab, gypsy cab, dollar cab, holla back…8 million stories…”
No, it’s my heart breaking wide open spewing the love I have for this town, this city, New York City, ‘The City’ as we wind through its streets.
Making our way cross town headed to the Lincoln Tunnel; exiting on the Jersey side I look back and snap a parting shot.
“…Statue of Liberty, long live the World Trade, long live the ‘King’ y’all…In New York, New York…Let’s hear it for New York…”
We’re en route to another city, one we discovered a few months ago and decided to take it for a test run now that I’m working remotely and can Zoom in from anywhere.
“…Lights is blinding, girls need blinders…don’t bite the apple Eve!…into the winter get’s cold, en vouge…”
We’re dubbing this our ‘Snowbird’ trial. For the next several months we’ll be living in Charleston, SC; right in the downtown area – the Manhattan of Charleston.
“…Hail Mary” to the city…the city that never sleeps…”
“…One hand in the air for the big city, street lights, big dreams, looking pretty, no place in the world that could compare…everybody say yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah…”
For now we’re trading in the ‘Big Apple’ for the ‘Pineapple.”
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