Chapter 5
From: A. Walker
To: J. Spearman
Subject: The route around New York
Sit back and relax. More like bundle up and start walking ahead.
Begin your journey without skipping ahead.
Have a date with yourself, provided, you like to be with you.
Make sure to eat a hearty breakfast. The link is right there.
When you are in the museum, look at every painting with your own eyes.
Forget about what you’ve read about them, sense what the artist is trying to tell you.
When you see the Starry Night by Van Gogh text me a picture of it.
I dare you to break the rules. How many Picasso’s do you see?
Are there any Monet’s in there? I love Claude Monet.
I’m terrible at drawing, but for some reason, pointillism was created for people like me with a desire to create art but who can’t draw more than a stick figure.
Once you’re done with the museum, cross 54th St and have lunch at O’Riley’s Pub.
Order a beer, whatever they have on tap.
Try something new, let them surprise you.
It might taste like skunk pee, or it might become your favorite beer.
If you order a hamburger, make sure to ask for sweet potato fries. They are the best in town.
After lunch, head to Argosy Book Store. They sell old and rare books. You have to contact me when you’re there. Afterward, have a Frozen Hot Chocolate at Serendipity’s.
Your day isn’t over, but we’ll discuss what’s next once you’re done eating one of the most delicious and decadent desserts in the world.
Enjoy,
Amy
Saturday, April 2nd, 11:23 a.m. EST
JSpear84: Don’t tell me, Starry Night is your favorite painting by Van Gogh. You’re so predictable.
AWalk90: No, but that’s the only Van Gogh they have at MOMA—at the moment.
JSpear84: What’s your favorite?
AWalk90: A Bridge Over A Pond of Waterlilies is my favorite painting. But from Vincent, it would be Irises. I appreciate Starry Night, but it isn’t the best one. I like his sunflowers a lot. What’s your favorite piece?
JSpear84: I like photographs better than paintings. What are you doing?
AWalk90 is sending you an attachment.
JSpear84 accepted an attachment.
JSpear84: I thought you said you couldn’t paint more than a stickman.
AWalk90: Maybe it’s a paint by numbers?
JSpear84: That’s a beautiful oil.
AWalk90: I’m at a gallery taking a class. My painting isn’t bad, but I wouldn’t call it beautiful.
JSpear84: Your adventure of the day?
AWalk90: Yeah, I woke up thinking … Amy, today is the day you should create something wonderful and different.
JSpear84: It’s beautiful. I like it more than some of the paintings I’m supposed to … admire.
AWalk90: Finish your tour. It won’t take you more than three hours. Afterward, remember lunch and the bookstore.
JSpear84: What are you having for lunch today?
AWalk90: Tacos.
JSpear84: I like tacos.
AWalk90: There’s always tomorrow. I’ll make sure to create a plan for you to have Tacos and Tequila.
Saturday, April 2nd, 2:34 pm EST
JSpear84: What are you doing?
AWalk90: Treasure hunting, like you.
JSpear84: That’s why you’re sending me to the bookstore?
AWalk90: You’re not there yet?
JSpear84: The bartender at O’Riley’s had a lot of stories to tell.
AWalk90: Are you drunk?
JSpear84: Four beers at sea level are nothing when you’re used to drinking at a high elevation.
AWalk90: Great, then head over to the bookstore.
JSpear84: What am I looking for?
AWalk90: Treasures, like this one.
AWalk90 is sending you a picture. [image.jpg]
JSpear84: A written dedication?
AWalk90: Yes!
AWalk90: I love looking for old books and checking if there’s something special inside, like a dedication, a dried flower, a note … there’s always more to an old book that just words.
JSpear84: What book are you holding?
AWalk90: Persuasion
AWalk90: That makes sense. “Aspen, It’s never too late to make it work, Mom.”
AWalk90: There’s a story behind this. Why would a mother give her child Persuasion with those words?
AWalk90: Maybe it’s a way to tell her she has to be patient, things—like love—take longer.
JSpear84: The daughter was eighteen, in love, but the guy enlisted, and they broke up.
AWalk90: I like your story best. Do you think she waited for him?
JSpear84: You hope she did, don’t you?
AWalk90: [covering eyes emoji]
JSpear84: Of course you do. Every woman’s dream is to get married and be taken care of by a man.
JSpear84: Every female character ever written expects a man who will solve their life’s problems in one way or another. That’s what women fantasize about, what they hope for.
AWalk90: Every woman? What books are you reading? Are you talking about your mother and sisters too?
JSpear84: Stop bringing my mother and sisters to our conversations.
AWalk90: Don’t generalize. Not every book or every woman are the same—we are all unique.
JSpear84: Tell me you don’t dream about some knight in shining armor coming to rescue you from your life.
AWalk90: Aren’t we a little misogynistic? There’s a difference between being happy with a partner and thinking that women can only be satisfied if they have a man by their side.
JSpear84: You didn’t answer my question.
AWalk90: I’m not waiting for anyone to rescue me. The life I live is pretty fucking fantastic. Your perception of women is sickening.
JSpear84: If that’s what you got from what I said, I don’t have anything more to say to you.
AWalk90 has left the chat