...New Brunswick

i stepped off the new jersey transit train and stood in the parking lot watching the rutgers university students make their way to a variety of hallowe'en parties. the winner, in my opinion, was a large box of pocky chocolate sticks (right).

i was in jersey to assist on a photo shoot for a costume party and was told to dress up if i felt the urge. being short on time, i slapped together a cowboy outfit with an over-sized straw hat, bolero tie and a 4" plastic sheriff's badge. nothing too fancy; a modest effort (but an effort just the same.)

an hour later, after i had been consigned to standing under a tree while it rained, i was whisked away to the shoot. when i arrive at the country club, i realized my worn-out, dirty, cowboy-esque jeans were a far cry from the black tie affair i was about to step into.

the event itself was a benefit for a noble cause: a private school assisting autistic children. the guests were warm and cordial, and a number of them wore costumes. (the lady going as Mr. Peanut was the clear winner here.) but there was a whole lotta money in that room of 510 attendees. the few people i spoke with were all law-firm partners, or investment bankers and and they were scooping up $20 pictures like hot cakes. i'm talking billions in accumulated wealth.

the event was filled with the usual cast of characters: the aggressive husbands demanding their pictures and obsessing over the fact that their car was waiting, the obnoxiously drunk employee there with her boss, 20 years her senior, the sober drivers looking to have some sort or normal conversation amongst the highfalutin crowd.

dinner for the crew was slated for 6pm and the event was scheduled to start at seven. well, like all events, the guests arrived early and dinner was served late. i hummed along photoshoping the images as they came in and was distracted by a very good glass of wine. the photographer however, seemed more concerned with our lack of food than anything else, constantly pestering the wait staff as to the whereabouts of our food, rather than photographing the guests. (don't get me wrong, food was part of the deal, and it was a sirloin steak with truffle-infused potatoes, and it was great once it came. but at the time, we had more pressing matters.)

so we ate intermittently starting at 11:15 and by the time i had to catch the last train into manhattan at 12:45, half the food- cold as it was when it first arrived- was still on my plate.

i was dropped off at the train station five minutes before my train and was approached by a college student asking to use my phone.

"Sure" I said, "But I need to catch this next train."

"You going to Manhattan?"

"Yup."

"You can't catch the train here, you need to go to the other end of the block." she pointed far down the tracks, and up a flight of stairs.

"Shit." so i took off running, the college student with my phone in tow, through the parking lot, in the rain. i ran up the stairs and reached the platform just as the train was approaching. the student finally reached her friend via my cell, said "thanks" while trying to catch her breath and returned to the stairs.

i was fortunate to run into her, dead cell phone and all, otherwise i would have missed my train, and would have had to spend another day in new brunswick.