Scaffolding

It’s raining in New York and it’s windy and it’s cold. I’ve come to realize how grateful I am for scaffolding. For those who aren’t informed on national city terms… scaffolding are temporary metal structures that are commonly used to support work crew whilst building or mending a building-like structure. When one’s underneath scaffolding it saves you from the rain. Sometimes the wind too. During work- rain or shine, I stand under the scaffolding during my cigarette breaks. It’s a break from not only inclement weather- but also work in general. I associate scaffolding with a break from chaos and labor. Scaffolding is purposely made to support working crews, and I guess the general human population too. I never really thought about scaffolding before until it started raining everyday. It makes me think about the things that help me in everyday life that I rarely ever give my condolences to.

I’m grateful for sunbeams. When the sun hits my person unknowingly, it fills me with Vitamin D which is vital for human survival. “Because very few foods naturally contain vitamin D, sunlight supplies most of our vitamin D requirement. 25-Hydroxyvitamin D [25(OH)D] is the metabolite that should be measured in the blood to determine vitamin D status” (Holik, 1) This nutrient people don’t think about much. In my opinion, the new wave of ‘health’ influencers focus on protein and fitting their macros into their diet… No one talks about the damn sunbeams!!!! When I talk about unexpected sunbeams I mean waking up late on the weekend to a warm ray of sun in your eyes. Even if I’m hungover and praying for the ability to sleep- I still thank the universe for waking me up to free vitamin D. Another way I love it, is through the trees. I don’t really take walks much on my own, but back at home my friends loved finding cool places to smoke in the woods. So we’d walk in the woods, where I’d often wander off to find the sun poking through the bright green trees. I don’t exactly know why- but it has an effect to turn off my brain and just look. It makes me understand why spiritual people are the way that they are. When the universe sends you something that you and the universe share alone. No one else can share your intimate perspective with the trees and the light and the scent of the sunbeams in that very moment. I feel like it’s definitely saved some people when they’ve needed it. It was there for me when I needed it. I remember after something I thought was traumatic right after I turned 18- I took a long walk in the woods around 5pm. It was about an hour from sundown. The wind was quiet. The air was clear, and it smelled of dirt- in a good way. I walked to where my friends and I would usually walk and I was so serene, I know I was probably thinking about heavy things but, things I can’t remember.

Another thing I’m grateful for is a very shared experience for all teenagers I feel. Driving up to a place with your friends for long hours, and you come to realize the drive up is more fun than actually reaching the destination. Laughing and eating snacks and growing closer in proximity and in spirit. My favorite car ride was going to Vermont with 4 friends. It was one of my friends birthday and he got to control aux because he said ‘I’m the birthday boy’. I remember the music he played- it was a lot of Frank Ocean, Deftones, Earl Sweatshirt and a little bit of old 2000s indie rock. I feel like I’m rarely on my phone during those car rides. I don’t mean to sound fucking annoying and quirky but I find peace and self solidarity when I have time to digest the music and digest everything I’ve been meaning to think about. Listening to a song on repeat in the car and just absouelty absorbing the fuck out of it is one of my favorite things on earth. Taking a break to get Burger King or McDonald’s (boycott…) and eating it in the car and the food releases fumes of grease and hot meat (ewwwwww) is a very shared experience amongst every American. One of the most American things that can happen to a person (CACAW IM A HE IM A HIM). The car conversations are like no other. We somehow start talking about our exes, our trauma, our goals in life and political conversations that start arguments and then we get over it. The secrets I have shared…… EEEEEKKKK. And then I get aux (which is rare after I got mu aux privileges taken away) and start playing Modern Baseball and the windows go down and everyone that listens to them exposes themselves for being a loser.

Okay rapid fire of great things:

R/AmItheasshole?

Whole Foods

Washington Sq Park on a hot day

Green bean fries from PlntBurger

ChatGBT

Deep, spiritual conversations

GrubHub

Astrology

Oreo’s being vegan

Boxed mini apple pies

Voodoo chips

Manic Panic

American Spirit Blues

Citizen app

Lightroom

NOOCH!

Dying Wish (band)

Diet Coke, Coke Zero

Soju

A clean room

Deftones

Splice

Reddit when I have a medical problem

Reddit when I had scabies

My college dining hall that’s inside my dorm building

Bushwick

My best friend living with me

Smoke breaks

An old woman with fashion colored hair

A bartender who doesn’t card

A friend paying for my Diet Coke in a drive-thru

A lake!

A private stall when you have to poop in public

Being the ‘mom’ in the friend group

Good, high quality espresso

Emo violence

‘I let it in and it Took Everything’ - Loathe

My momma

Miguel my cat

Cashew butter chocolate

Being able to have open conversations un-biased

I have another like 3000 word substack on this (‘On Becoming Vegan) but- being vegan is one of the most enlightening experiences I have ever had'. Here’s an excerpt from that piece ‘Veganism has really made me realize the type of person I am. I think I became vegan at the perfect time, when I began to make decisions for myself, and becoming independent as a teenager. I’m strong, I’m learning to not be afraid to go against the opinions of the vast majority, I’m determined and I continue to stand my ground despite people having un-educated vendettas about being vegan. Being vegan has let me known the importance of health, money, cooking and providing for myself in which I would have never learned if I never became vegan.’

I’m going to continue to thank the universe for the things I should appreciate. I think you should too! I’ll add onto my list of my favorite things until I drop dead.

Work Cited

Holick, Michael F. “Vitamin D: Importance in the Prevention of Cancers, Type 1 Diabetes, Heart Disease, and Osteoporosis.” The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, vol. 79, no. 3, 1 Mar. 2004, pp. 362–371, academic.oup.com/ajcn/article/79/3/362/4690120, https://doi.org/10.1093/ajcn/79.3.362.