I was walking around today, doing some errands, being bombarded by signs of all sorts. Signs from shops, restaurants, hairdressers, street vendors, homeless people, etc, etc. One really caught my attention today:
"Divorce: $299"
and then in the small print:
"(plus court fee)"
It made me wonder about divorces, cuz they're not a "product" you can buy at a store. It's not really a "service" like you get when you go to cut your hair. It's a process... technical, takes place over time, there's nothing fixed about it really. With a sandwich, haircut or bar of soap, you know pretty much what you're going to get. But a divorce? No two are alike, right? I don't know if it's something qualitatively different though - cuz you can argue that no two heads of hair or two sandwiches are EXACTLY alike...

Another concern of mine, which was reincarnated today, is why EVERYTHING with a price tag has to have some form of "99" on it (Deodorant: $2.99, Divorce: $299). Why can't anyone have the guts and print $3.00 or $300? Why is there such a culture of charging 99 cents or 99 dollars? Or even worse, 99 dollars AND 99 cents? When someone asks me, "how much did you buy that _______ for?" it always takes me twice as many syllables to say the price. I usually just round up. Why do I get frustrated over this? I come from a place where the smallest denomination is 10 cents. Yet you hardly ever see anything going for $__ and 90 cents. Or $_9.90. Also, there's no sales tax. So if you have the price for something shown, that ALL you have to pay for. You can count things out in advance before you go to the register. But that's a gripe for another time.

When you read "extra strength" on a package of something (a medicine, a cleaner, etc) does that make you more attracted to it? Why has there been a recent trend in "extra strength" products? Maybe you're getting more bang for your buck, but sometimes stuff that's too powerful and is not good for your system. Shouldn't we try to go for milder stuff? I'd steer clear of stuff that gives too strong a jolt to my system. I avoid caffeine for example. Getting used to substances, developing a tolerance and dependence on them is a sign of our weakness. We lose our integrity, our authenticity. By all means, if you have a headache, feel free to take a pill. If you have a cough, go suck on a lozenge. But be wary of the power that substances have over you.

Pigeons... they have plump bodies and small heads. They aren't so scared of people, so you can be pretty near them and they won't run or fly away. People have different feelings about them. Some think they are dirty and are basically rats with wings. I'm not like that. Sometimes I imagine bending down and picking one up (they're a perfect size to hold in my hands). Anyway, today I was wondering if I'd be swift enough to be able to kick one. It's kind of a comical image. I wouldn't want to hurt the bird. One day I might try to give one a little jab or poke with my foot. I don't intend to run up to it and boot it like I would a soccer ball in a free kick. That'd be really cruel and I'm sure if you run up to it it'd flee. For me... I'm just interested to see if it's possible to do a little hop and jab, just to see if it can be done. And well, to see the bird's reaction. The last thing I'd want to do is cripple/maim it. Perhaps it could be a test of my martial arts skills - to see if I can have enough dexterity and control to make contact with the bird, but not hurt it. I also wonder what people in the street would think if they saw me do it.

I'm nearly done settling in to my new apartment in NYC. So, hopefully I can start posting more consistently again... but for now, here's one thought that has intrigued me:

You gotta hate those people who wear sunglasses in the subway. Especially if the lenses are dark. When you're in the train, it's only natural to look at other people, see what they look like, what they're wearing, their hairstyle, etc. Maybe try to get an insight into what they are doing or who they are. The problem is, you're gaze isn't usually welcome. Neither are any glances. So I try to be subtle - I look with a healthy amount of curiosity. Don't get me wrong, I don't want to sound like some kind of voyeur! I'm just interested in other people - and NYC has a good variety of interesting people. But back to these people wearing sunglasses... it strikes me as silly cuz we're all UNDERGROUND!!! (well, for most of the time) Where is the sun?! The UV rays?? A person wearing sunglasses in a train tells everyone else, "F*** you, if I want to look at you and stare all I want, I can and I will! I'll stare till I get bored of you!" The person wearing glasses can stare and ogle all they want. Whether or not they do, I think it's rude to wear glasses in the train. This doesn't really apply to people wearing sunglasses outdoors, under normal circumstances (although they can also stare and ogle). It's a subway thing, something I'll have to notice a few more times till I get used to it and for it not to bother me.