Story 43: Taking a walk on the wild side

My brother Bruce and I have had several parties in Long Island, and in my apartment in Queens.  Although, it’s been several years since I had a good one.  I hope in the future when I have a new home, things will be different.

I’ve hosted toga parties where my friend Michelle took a sheet right off my parents bed.  Another time, I remember some guy took a girl threw her over his shoulder caveman style and brought them across the street to a neighbor’s house to made out in the bushes.

I’ve also hosted a Spanish/Korean party where my friend Michael came in a pancho and sombrero and brought along his Korean dry cleaner friend Mr. Liu to his first American party.

At that auspicious party,  my friend Jerry was performing stand up comedy.

“I hope you drank some sangria.” I said to my friends before Jerry began, and many of them who knew Jerry laughed, because they knew how bad his delivery was.

The party was located in Fresh Meadows, Queens. A pretty quiet boring neighborhood.  Mike’s brother-in-law Sandy and fiancee Jill were on their way from Bellmore. Sandy is a good guy, but was very sheltered growing up and went to religious Jewish day school.  He drove to the party in pre-GPS days but instead of going north on 188th Street. He mistakenly went south and instead of Fresh Meadows ended up in South Jamaica at night.  The area was sometimes sketchy during the day, but was more like the wild wild west at night.

While we were busy trying to laugh at Jerry’s jokes, Sandy was walking tentatively along Jamaica avenue looking for the party. The first thing Sandy noticed was two African American guys fighting on the street in front of a bodega. After a few blocks, another man had a bat and was banging it on a trash can.   

“What kind of neighborhood does your friend live in?” Jill asked with concern.

“It should be around here somewhere.” Sandy replied tentatively.

“I just want to go home.”  Jill answered fearfully.

And with that the two of them returned back to Long Island without a drink, but with a story that would last for years.

Life Lesson 43: Know where you are going in life, especially at night.  and If all else fails, have a GPS, or a guide to help you find the right path.