Taxi Driver In a Strange City and No Way to Get Pizza
but it seemed these New Yorkers must have been insulted by what I said or did not like the way I looked.
I was on a trip to New York. It was my first time there and heard about their great pizzas. So the first thing I did when after landing and picking up my luggage is hailed a taxi. I yelled out Hail! And everyone stopped and looked around and then looked at me. There was no hail, just some snow on the ground. Even the taxi driver that was parked across just looked at me. He could see I needed a taxi but had a bad expression on his face. I don't see what I did so wrong, but it seemed these New Yorkers must have been insulted by what I said or did not like the way I looked.
I walked to a hotel that was nearby. I was lucky I traveled lite and had luggage on wheels. I asked at the hotel desk if they would call a cab for me and they said no sir, we New Yorkers can not do so and to go back where I came from. As I walked out I noticed the hotel staff starting at me. I noticed someone following me out. I thought oh great I might get beat up, but it turned out the opposite. It was a foreigner that witnessed the staff being rude to me. Apparently they heard the staff talking and it was about my shirt. I had on a shirt that said the apple sucks. It was a shirt a friend gave me just before I left to go on this trip and told me to put it on right then and it would bring me luck. Well the foreigner explained that the staff were saying the apple don't suck and it was very unfriendly of me to wear the shirt.
The strange foreigner was happy to give me a shirt they had just gotten from the laundry for $20. Well, I guess this foreigner was not so friendly and they just wanted to make a buck, but at least I learned my friend was a joker and should have known better on April Fools day!
Another lessons learned is that it important what you wear. You do not have to wear a suit to be popular or a team shirt to fit in, but you need to make sure you wear something that does not put down the people that see your shirt. Had I worn a plain t-shirt with no writing on it I would have gotten along better with the crowd. The same would probably go for a torn suit with the pocket hanging down. I have one hanging in my closet which I never sent to the tailor to fix. That sure would have been better than wearing the shirt I got on the day of my trip.
Another lesson still is that one needs to have a little cash on hand for taxi or even a shirt. I was blessed I had $20 on me since nowadays everyone uses plastic. Plastic is nice, but if it does not work when the machine is out or someone there to process then you could be in trouble. It is probably especially true to need on a trip.
One other lessons is that if you cant get your pizza then to settle for a hot dog. You have to eat, and if you can not get what you crave then you have to settle. A hot dog may not taste the the same as a pizza, but it can taste good when you have not eaten in days. I have always found hot dogs to actually taste good. They are relatively inexpensive and extremely easy to cook. You just boil them in water, or stick them in the microwave. You can season to taste by adding mustard or whatever else you can imagine. You can plain or put in a bun. You can toast your bun or leave un-toasted. You can dip in chili. The list is goes on. So no pizza, no problem.
