It is rare, in New York, so I’ve noticed, that conversations pop up with strangers but I have experienced a few. I was in the bakery down the street from my apartment on the Upper West Side, the one with only two tables and a line out the door, and I was searching for the extra chair they have hidden behind the creamer station. A nice young man offered to help me with the search as he boosted that he was ‘a regular’ and ‘a local’ and knew right where the chair could be found. A conversation was born.
Are you from here? Originally?
No.
Where are you from?
I’m from Colorado.
Oh, where in Colorado?
Southern Colorado, a small town in the mountains.
What town?
Westcliffe.
Never heard of it.
It’s really small.
Do you ski?
No.
No?
No.
Why not?
Just never learned.
Why not?
My father moved my family and me around when I was young. And…it’s too expensive anymore. Over a hundred a day, not including ski rentals.
You don’t own skis and you’re from Colorado?
I don’t ski.
Have you ever skied?
A couple of times.
Do you hike?
Yes.
Rock climb?
Some.
Mountain bike?
No.
Colorado…
Yep. You from here?
Born and raised New Yorker.
You go to the top of the Empire State Building often?
No.
Ever ride those double-decker tour buses?
No.
Statue of Liberty once a year?
I get your point.
Go to Florida?
Yes.
Anywhere else?
Not really.
I’ve been to Florida once. Miami.
Only once?
Yes. Only once.
I go a couple of times a year.
You’re a New Yorker.
What’s that supposed to mean?
I’ve just noticed a lot of New Yorkers go to Florida, that’s all. What do you do in Florida?
I don’t know.
Ski?
I said I get your point.
Jeanette Thornton is writer from Colorado who lives in New York. It is true that she does not ski.
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