Annie Q Syed » harlem

Still Sundays

annie — Sun, 25 Sep 2011 19:23:28 +0000

September 25th.

made-up memories. a genetic predisposition to engage with life. a real dreamer. real magic. when the Universe bends to become the bow.

It’s so still that I can taste the difference: my black tea with milk is tasteless without the nectar of orange blossom honey this morning. I forgot to buy it yesterday.

Sugar doesn’t taste the same. Not in my tea and not what I can recall of it tasting when I was a kid. When I think of my childhood I recall sugar like a person with personalities, faults, issues, and plans. A relative everyone had to welcome because that’s what you do: pour sugar, large amounts, in desserts, eat items ordered in from bakery ...

Still Sundays

annie — Sun, 23 Jan 2011 17:33:24 +0000

January 23rd.

If you would like to know what Still Sundays is about, please take a quick gander here and just read the third paragraph. Thanks.

Intuition is a serpent. Toni Morrison on serendipity. “Freedom is nothing else but a chance to be better.” ~ Camus

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This Sunday morning I waited till it was fully lit outside before rolling out of bed for I had decided last night there was nothing to decode in the frozen darkness. It just is and you endure it. Sometimes with a frosty, unintended tear on your cheek and other moments a smile that cracks across your dry mouth.

This week I ...

Still Sundays

annie — Sun, 22 Aug 2010 18:05:14 +0000

August 22nd.

labels. madness which can derail you. “the feeling YOU get, I get first.” real artists know a secret. “1 in 5 people are mad.”

If you would like to know what Still Sundays is about, please take a quick gander here and just read the third paragraph. Thanks.

Last night my neighborhood was pumping with life. This morning it is sleeping like a baby. It partied too hard. It’s 1:30 p.m. and it is still drowsy.

There are articles and articles upon New York City. Some about specific neighborhoods, others about restaurants, others about the politics behind everything, and then some. They all say something different. They all say ...

Still Sundays

annie — Sun, 20 Jun 2010 14:21:47 +0000

June 20th.

If you would like to know what Still Sundays is about, please take a quick gander here and just read the first paragraph. Thanks.

New York City has not been as rainy or hot as she is known to get around this time of the year. Last night she was more in her element. I took a sip of water from the thick humidity guarding the intervals of breeze by sticking my tongue out in the air. Twice. It’s not the same as feeling snow on your tongue.

The other day, rushing down the steps of the subway station to catch the train, I nearly ran over this young adult–eleven to thirteen years ...

Still Sundays

annie — Sun, 13 Jun 2010 15:05:06 +0000

June 13th.

If you would like to know what Still Sundays is about, please take a quick gander here and just read the first paragraph. Thanks.

This morning–not as early as I usually embrace a Sunday morning in NYC–the City is about as still as jell-lo. Easy but not necessarily steady.

A couple of blocks down the street there is a group of men who sit and play chess. Some are there every morning and the others are around only on the weekends. There is this one older guy with thick eyebrows and dark brown skin which glows who always says, “Life is a checkmate.” He doesn’t say it to me but I hear him ...

Still Sundays

annie — Sun, 06 Jun 2010 16:46:32 +0000

June 6th.

I have never been able to articulate the stillness of a Sunday. Those quiet hours of the early morning before a city, town, or village takes a big yawn and stretches itself into your routine which may include bills, laundry, emails, phone calls, errands, groceries, etc.

These mornings are especially unique in New York because the City doesn’t sleep but she just takes naps. And the longest naps are on Sunday mornings. I love Sunday mornings in NYC. I try my best not to have anything planned, not even a yoga class, before 12:00 p.m. If my mind is quiet enough I borrow the stillness and share some thoughts with a few friends or family members ...