As students, we are often told by more than one well-meaning parental figure that planning is a major factor in achieving success or failure. We’re supposed to have a plan for selecting a major; we’re supposed to have a plan to thwart the dreaded freshman fifteen; we’re supposed to have a plan for what we’re doing after school while we’re still in school…With so much planning, sometimes it’s nice to just give into a random impulse or spontaneously do something simply because the idea popped into your head.
I did just that last week, and now, I have a nose ring.
In the words of John Lennon: "Life is what happens when you're busy making plans."
Let me start at the beginning. It was nearing 11:30pm on a weeknight and my friend and I were craving pasta. We were supposed to go to bed early because we both had obligations the next day, but the more we thought about fresh vegetables sautéed in olive oil and served on top of ziti, the more our initial plan to go to sleep seemed absurd. So with aspirations of an impromptu pasta party for two, we began searching for ingredients.
First, we tried a Duane Reade, and were disappointed by the lack of produce. Additionally, there was no ziti to be found, only angel hair and elbow macaroni. By the time we trekked to Gristede’s, our fears that the grocery store had already closed were confirmed as the automatic doors refused to open no matter how much we jumped, waved, and stomped, hoping to trigger some sort of motion or weight sensor.
Close to giving up, I suggested we make the best of the minimal selection at a 24-hour CVS, but that’s when my friend recalled a grocery store on St. Mark’s that she though might be open all night. Hopeful, we power-walked east, soon immersed in the eclectic counter-culture that gathers on St. Mark’s.
Eventually, we reached what looked like a design for a tattoo parlor; an underground shop brandishing a logo of a heart with giant angel wings and a halo suspended above its “head.” But, it wasn’t a tattoo shop; it was our destination, St. Mark’s Market. A gourmet godsend with the promise of “Open Always.”
As I attempted to select the perfect garlic clove to flavor our midnight feast, my friend blurted, “Hey, isn’t that piercing place you always go to close by?”
When I confirmed that her suspicions were true, we somehow came to the conclusion that she should get a new ear piercing. After minimal badgering on her part, I agreed that pending the cost of our snacking spree, I would also get a piercing.
Thankfully, the bounty we selected from St. Mark’s Market was so well priced I was able to afford a stud for my left nostril. Sure, I woke up with a slight soreness from my fashionable puncture wound. And yes, I was a little more tired and full than I planned on being when I woke up for work. But the bonding session I had with my friend thanks to pasta and piercings was worth the minor inconveniences. Sometimes, it’s worth it to scrap the plans, and just go with the flow.
-Alex Agahigian-
Photo Credit: live4ever.uk.com
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