Joshua Cactus

The time has come to dig into the Manhattan bedrock. After about 18 months in the land of the free I am now the proud retainer of an unorthodox yet savvy immigration attorney. He is supposed to be a top gun but has a somehow unusual manner. The office, located in a Park Avenue scraper, has all the usual trappings of dinero (the sexy aide, the chrome and marble lobby) but the big man himself has a thrift shop cargo pants and a T-shirt. I knew right away we will get along. So, 2500$ later, with about 6K more to go, I started the elusive journey to be an American, ie. started Naturalization! Isn't that awesome? From being an unnatural to becoming a natural. What next? Papers.

Today with the help of two dear buddies and one white car all the particles that make an apartment habitable finally gathered to my new pad. It's a one bedroom on the 20 th floor of a great building, the Manhattan skyline is everywhere . To the south I can see the Chrysler building and the Queensboro bridge, to the north a wide avenue. I am finally a bone fide New Yorker!

Craiglist is the best resource that a newly arrived New Yorker needs. First to find a place to put your weary head at night, then to find stuff to make the bare carpets more hospitable. Scanning the hundreds of daily adds provide a bizarre kind of entertainment and allows to find real bargains on almost everything. Apartments, desks, TVs or Iguanas. Its all there. I found my apartment this way, I also found all the furniture and appliances for ridiculous prices. How about doing it all at under 1000$? Cool. But I also came across some shameless scams that can leave the unsuspected naive with no money and a returned email. The first scam was actually very amusing. A 1 Br apartment in Chelsea, the nicest and gayest part of town, for 1500 $. Nice. I was striking gold here! The story got interesting when the person who responded to my add claimed to be a women living currently in Greece hence not able to show me the place, only photos. Theses were great and I was a newbie . "She...

So the road dust settled and I put my weary feet on the pavements of Gotham. Spent the first two days looking for apartments. Man it's tough here. An overweight sweating broker took me around from one dump to another. We climbed many stairs, knocked on many doors, smelled lots of weird odors. Places advertised as "charming brownstone studio" turned out to be tiny closets with no air and a view to a charming rat infested ally. One bedrooms were actually one bathrooms. I thought 2000$ a month were decent enough budget but the market thinks different. Many apartments later he took me to a third floor cozy place in Hells Kitchen (midtown west for you non-yorkers- Grin:) that actually fit all I wanted. Location, size, AIR CONDITIONING. Only problem was the rent. Sky high. I figured not a whole lot of food is needed for a guy on a slimming diet and paid the deposit. Lucky stars once again, as I got back to my friend's apartment an email was waiting from the hospital. They o...

Two nights ago I left Israel. After intense days with my man R for the first time in my life I was having sex with tears in my eyes. He made me a farewell package including books, music and an amazing watch. Even got a T Shirt drenched in his sweat. Smell invokes the strongest memories. We said goodbye at the boarding gates as the sun was coming up on Tel Aviv . I Left behind a family of friends, a comfortable life. Left him. All for an adventure with many risks. Shaping your life by your own hands is not an easy thing to do but it is the only way to live. The journey to America has begun.

The hospital sent me my housing allocation today. It's in Manhattan, it's a nice place, kinda pricey. My man R was around when I got the email and saw my enthusiasm. It made him quiet. We watched the silly Eurovision contest on TV and then he went home to sleep, first night we aren't sharing a bed for months. We needed time alone. Only five nights left till my flight. Scanned some Google Earth photos of my new address. New York is so fucking large. I will be joining the ants that walk the streets beneath the glass towers. From being a class A man in my little puddle to a class D alien in a strange ocean. So many little obnoxious thoughts are running through my tired brain. Will the city be my new playground or am I going for basic training boot camp all over again? Tomorrow I start packing.

We wanted to have a farewell in a different scenario so we went north. Somewhere up in the Carmel, overlooking the forest and the sea, we found it. Three nights in a retirement home.Totally immersed in earthly delights. Long easy breakfast on the balcony followed by the hot steams and the jacuzzi. Lazy lunch on the lawn smoking a hand-rolled cigar. An hour at the gym then some steamy physicals on the white linens. We are together, occasionally scratching each other, other times cuddling. I can see a future in his green eyes. In two weeks we will be facing a new challenge. Will this cactus be able to handle LTR? The above image from Dylan Ricci works well for this weekend.

Tomorrow is my last day at the hospital. It took a very strong will and a very broad back to endure long days and longer nights in the last 18 months. I am leaving a department where I felt at home. A different post will be dedicated to that next week. In the mean while enjoy this sexy back by Biron .

My last Saturday shift at the hospital. A long lazy afternoon with relatively peaceful ward and most patients not trying to kill themselves. My man R had decided to mobilize and bring chicken sticks to the masses. He shopped and chopped and carved and grilled. Around 9 pm R (beautiful beautiful sexy guy that he is) shows up at the hospital with bundles of steamy chicken, antipasti and salad. All the gang joined in. I was so happy to see him and he made me feel loved and proud. Can't believe it's 32 days till I leave.

40 days left to the move. At 16 I left home for two years in a Canadian college. Walking the streets of my hometown in Israel I was counting minutes till the flight. Now it's different. Now it is about leaving my love. Its about leaving a ring of friends who are family. Heck I don't even know what I'll be doing when back home. The move to Gotham looms ahead. Got to start packing.