Today I Let Medium Fend for Itself
By: Remington Write
Tags: Work, Cities, Friends, Relationships, New York

I’ve now been officially unemployed for almost exactly one year. But don’t think I’m not working because I am. Not that I’m able to pay the rent with the proceeds of my “work” or anything, but I’m hard at it first thing in the morning and throughout the day. Most nights I’m still writing, publishing, and promoting until the wee hours.

Clearly, I’m not doing it for the money and whether I’m doing it for the prestige is also in question. But here’s what I’m working on:

Our Hours, the daily fiction- writing collaboration with my partner (who took that awesome photo, btw) in which we each write a short story of fewer than 500 words in response to his August collage project.

Jim Woods talked me into this one — the nerve of the guy — and so, you heard it here first, I’m compiling all my Coronavirus articles into a book that will also feature AleXander’s photography. And contrary to my initial belief, this will not be a slam dunk. Sure I already wrote 39 articles, but the images I used won’t work and there’s some serious editing that has to happen.

The daily grind of writing something fun, smart, entertaining, and enticing. Nothing to it. See? I’m doing it now!

The also daily grind of social media promotion wherein I spend a big hunk of the day posting new and old content on various platforms and then work really hard to find something to read besides can’t-miss articles filled with tips, tricks, and hacks. Ack.

Updating the new blog, feeding Twitter, and keeping track of content to go into the weekly newsletter. You hadn’t heard about my free weekly newsletter? What rock have you been living under???

But today I got up, did my PT stretches, and meditated before getting to the work of the day. I sat down at the computer, glanced out the window, and thought: Fuck this!

That’s New York City out there. Right outside my window. It’s the stuff of movies and ill-conceived dreams. And it’s where I live! What the hell am I doing sitting in here when it’s a beautiful day and I could be out and about in the city? Screw this. I am outta here!

What did I do with my wild and crazy morning out in the Big Apple?

Photo Credit — AleXander Hirka / Ok, it’s not Broadway but you get the idea

Not much. I took the subway down to 96th Street and walked on down Broadway for a bit. Every restaurant in the city now has an outdoor option and some are pretty elaborate, but they do add to the obstacle course that is a New York City sidewalk.

I did a little shopping. I splurged on a new set of bedsheets. Then I took the M104 bus back up Broadway. I like riding buses in the city and just watching the people and the stores — too many of them now vacant and out of business — and the people with dogs. I stopped at the “good” grocery store at West 110th Street and Broadway where I got a fancy salad for lunch and a loaf of Portuguese bread.

Then I came home. That was it. My big outing. I had a Zoom meeting at noon and then AleXander was back from his trip to the dentist. It was nap time.

Now when I really should be getting to work, well, yeah like that’s going to happen. It’s date night with Neil. During the nice weather, our weekly date night was basically a socially distanced picnic on the campus of Columbia University.

Photo Credit — Remington Write / on the campus of Columbia University

Now the students are back, at least about 60% of them, and it’s just not as much fun to be there now. So we’re meeting down at one of our favorite regular diners down by the Beacon Theater. Several friends are joining us and, face it, that’s a whole lot more fun than sitting here writing the evening away.

I’ll be back to work tomorrow. Promise. But now, hey, that’s New York City out there and I’m not staying in!

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