I Was a Little Bad

Going to New York Saturday made me remember something. This one only slightly horrified my mother when she learned of it a few years ago.

There was a bus terminal within a block of the college I went to so every now I’d park my car in the school lot and hop on a bus instead of going to class. Back then a round trip ticket to NYC was less than $20 so I could even afford it if I skipped lunch the rest of the week.For those of you who have never been there, Port Authority, where the buses drop you off, is only a few blocks from Times Square. That’s right next to the theater district and very near Rockefeller Center and Radio City Music Hall. If you head uptown a little further you hit Macys which occupies an entire block and eventually run into Central Park. On my solitary excursions, I limited myself to that area. There was plenty to keep me entertained for a few hours until I needed to catch the bus back in order to arrive home at the same time I normally did.

It was on a show trip that my mother discovered my little day trips. One in the group with us had never seen the skating rink at Rockefeller Center. My mom was a bit surprised when I looked around the middle of the block where we were at the time and knew exactly how far away it was. See what happens when you’re overly helpful?

I really didn’t get why she was somewhat upset with me. Granted, I was only 17 the first time I ventured into the city on my own but I did have enough sense not to wander into any of the nudie bars surrounding Port Authority. I did know not to go off with strangers. I was fully capable of finding my way back to the bus. Heck, I’d already gotten myself to and from Yorkshire by way of London’s Heathrow alone so really, what was the big deal?