killer party duuuude

Sup internet.

Last night was Shael and Ivy's last big party in Bed Stuy. Since their move into that neighborhood, it's been nothing but drama, so I'm glad that they're finally moving out. Hopefully their next place (i hear it's in Williamsburg) will be a little friendlier...a little less hectic.

Bed Stuy...it's not a great place to walk around in at night. While we were walking to and from their apartment (which takes about 10 minutes from the closest subway stop), I always get stared at by the locals, which are predominantly black. It's one thing to be the only minority in a place - that I don't mind. The thing that sucks is that 90% of the people I see all stare at me like I'm out of place. Like I don't belong. While it's not completely racist of them to do so (why are a bunch of middle-class white kids walking through our poor black neighborhood?), it raises issues of race. Maybe it's just too hard to ignore.

Last night on our way back to the subway, we got called "little snowflakes" by some 30-something on his way over to a bunch of buddies. I smiled. What a stupid comment, I thought. Is that really the funniest thing he could come up with? Anyway, Bed Stuy isn't as bad as it used to be, but the feeling of not belonging in their community is still reflected in almost everyone I see. It helps me understand, if only a little bit, what whites put minorities through for a long, long time. Now I see how it must have felt to be the sole black kid in my hometown of Springville. It must have been nuts.