3rd Day in the City

January 20th

Sleeping on an air mattress kind of sucks. I guess it could be worse, I could be on the floor. The good news...I only have a week left on the air mattress (insert sarcasm). I decided to actually stay in downtown today to find a gym. Naturally, I started my day at Starbucks. This time I avoided convincing myself that something terrible is going to happen and I actually got to enjoy reading outside. I made my way to the gym and was delighted when the sales manager told me to go in and workout. I even got to take a spin class...worst class ever! I had no clue how to set-up the bikes (I taught spin back in STL, so I am no newbie) or how to attach the cages to the pedals (my spin shoes with the clips were somewhere across the country). I thought the instructor would be helpful (I helped so many new riders get set up before class), but she was not. She couldn't get the adjustment levers to move, so I had to switch bikes. She clipped the cages onto the bike the wrong way, so they kept hitting the crank each time I pedaled. I had to switch bikes again (and by this time class had started and the instructor could have cared less about my bike set-up issues). Once I finally got set-up I was ready to ride. The instructor's routine was uber lame. We stayed in the same position the entire time (position 3...no real cyclist ever rides an entire ride in 3). Luckily, I have been teaching for a while so I made up my own routine. I threw in some sprints, hill climbs and jumps (I convinced myself that the other students in class would enjoy me as an instructor so much more). After class I met with the sales manager and joined the gym. Opps! It was a bit more expensive than my gym back in STL (who am I kidding...it was way more expensive).

I found the most magnificent place on my walk home...the FIDM scholar shop. You can easily get an entire outfit with accessories for $30 and the money goes to the students at FIDM. Maybe when I start to get an income again I can do a little shopping. I would love to go to the fashion district one Saturday. On Saturdays the stores that sell to wholesalers open up to the public.

I did see some crazy street action tonight (right across from where I will be working). A guy dressed in dingy denim was yelling call the cops as some gang-like fellows were harassing him. I decided to get as far away from that nonsense as possible. I have been trying to ignore the bums and to not stare at all of the crazies that occupy this lovely city. My key to success...giant sunglasses. I am able to look without people knowing I am watching their crazy antics. I think I am getting the hang of things.