From New York, Bad Childhood and All

“How old are you,” I asked. He smiled and thinking about it he responded, “About 54 or 55.” He was standing at a busy intersection in Nashville when I met him.

He told me he was from New York and hit the road at age 19. “I had a real hard life growing up as a kid… came from a broken home,” he told me. “I had to go, I became homeless on my own - by my own choice,” he said.

After a short talk I handed him a brand new 9 man tent that was given to me to give to someone who had nothing and needed something.

“Only you can control your future.” - Dr. Seuss

11:30 on a Tuesday Night in NY

It was 11:30 PM in New York and the lights were everywhere lighting up the faces as they walked past me. To me, it is street photography heaven. You then realize that it is only a Tuesday and people are out all hours of the night 24/7. 

“If London is a watercolor, New York is an oil painting.” ― Peter Shaffer

No one listening

No one was listening, but he was drumming away. "Prince the Mystic Drummer" was also singing and singing well. This was shot on a New York subway platform. 

Some of the key songs he focuses on included: Three Little Birds by Bob Marley, Night Nurse by Gregory Isaascs, Pimpers Paradise by Bob Marley and Sex Machine by James Brown - just to name a few. 

Legendary drummer Neil Peart of the group RUSH once stated, "To me, drum soloing is like doing a marathon and solving equations at the same time."

He valued being different

I met this man in New York. He valued being different in every way. 

"Trusting your individual uniqueness challenges you to lay yourself open." -James Broughton  (1913-1999). James Broughton was an American poet and filmmaker who was part of the San Francisco Renaissance, a precursor to the Beat poets.

Schizophrenia and Dispair

Schizophrenic and mad at the wind inside New York's Grand Central Station. I was able to speak with him through rants that meant nothing to me, but I am quite certain he thought he knew what or who he was mad at.

"Schizophrenia cannot be understood without understanding despair." - R. D. Laing

Despair: The complete loss or absence of hope.

It cost me one McDonalds Value Meal

It cost me a McDonalds value meal for this photo. When he saw the camera, he told me it would cost me a good meal to take his picture. I asked where he was going to get that good meal and he smiled real big and said, “McDonalds [pointing to his right].” I then asked, “How much will a good meal cost?” He laughed a little as his eyes grew larger, “$5 will get me a real good meal there.” He reeled me in with his smile as I gave him a $5 bill.

I saw this man sitting at the back of what use to be a motel that now serves as a low income apartment. The rooms are tiny and the floors concrete. Each room has a small bathroom, just like you would imagine in an old motel. The tiny spaces rent for $550 per month, but serve a vital purpose in getting people of the street. It’s all the room that this man who moved to the Nashville area from New York needs.

In New York, he paid over $900 per month for an apartment that was similar in size. He moved here about two years ago to be near his children who live in the same complex.

“A little bit of mercy makes the world less cold and more just.” - Pope Francis

New York in the Rain

New York is such a fascinating place. Even at midnight in the rain, I still find it mesmerizing. 

American screen writer Truman Capote famously stated,  "New York is the only real city-city." Capote died at the young age of 59 in 1984.  

Haiti, but in New York City

I asked this homeless gentleman in New York where he was from... He smiled and said, "Haiti." I asked, "Would you prefer to be back in Haiti or would you rather be homeless in New York?" He chuckled... "New York." 

Sometimes, what looks like a curse is actually a blessing. We are just looking at it the wrong way. 

Rutgers University anthropologist and human behavior researcher Helen Fisher stated, "Haiti is the poorest country in the western hemisphere; some say the poorest in the world." 

Dreams can be much better than reality

Asleep in a subway station located in New York. Perhaps he was dreaming of a nice bed next to a warm fire as the temperature outside was 30-degrees.  Malcolm Forbes, an American entrepreneur and publisher of Forbes Magazine, made a good point a number of years before his death in 1990, "When you cease to dream you cease to live."

America is a melting pot

Regardless of what your political belief's may be, Jimmy Carter made a very positive point when he stated, "We become not a melting pot but a beautiful mosaic. Different people, different beliefs, different yearnings, different hopes, different dreams."

I retired from the New York Stock Exchange... Now I hold a sign

"I use to work there [pointing at the New York Stock Exchange]..." I asked, "What did you do?" He told me he delivered mail in the building at the different offices for well over 20-years. He is now retired.

I met this man on Wall Street in New York earlier this month. He was holding a sign that said, "Christ Jesus came to the world to save sinners." He smiled and told me that he was saved and soon after, he retired from the New York Stock Exchange.

"I have heart problems"

"I always sit here, these folks have really helped me (pointing towards a local business in Manhattan)." "I have heart problems, but I'm getting better," he said with a smile.

"Fall seven times and stand up eight." -Japanese Proverb

A crazy little park

These men and women came running through Central Park in their underwear and some random guy came up to them and started pouring his water bottle out on the two guys in the group. The temperature outside was about 45-degrees when this nuttiness occurred. This craziness is why I love NY. 

“Here's all you have to know about men and women: women are crazy, men are stupid. And the main reason women are crazy is that men are stupid.” ― George Carlin

Jesus Loves You, even in a NY subway

I spotted this elderly woman in a subway station under the roads of New York City. By number of stations, New York has the largest subway system in the world and you never know who you will see or what you will see people doing. This woman has decided to tell others that Jesus loves them. It is a simple task that she told me she was called to do. 

Pastor Rick Warren once stated, "God is looking for people to use, and if you can get usable, he will wear you out. The most dangerous prayer you can pray is this: 'Use me.'" I smile when I see people being worn out :)

We all have a job

Throughout the morning, this homeless man in New York opens the door for McDonalds guest. He stands on the ready holding the door open with his foot as he sees guest about to exit. To him, this is his job.

“Every man is a hero if he strives more for others than for himself alone.” ― Lloyd Alexander

Location: McDonald's 972 Avenue of the Americas New York, NY 10018