I heard about this event only a few weeks before it took place. It was not surprising to me that Bernie Sanders would write a book, following his hugely successful presidential campaign that energized so many millions of Americans, and provided some real hope for a better future there for a while.
So, I had kind of figured that he would come around with a book and, hopefully, a book tour. Having missed any earlier campaigns (although I came close to attending one at my alma mater - Rutgers University), I really wanted to get a chance to see Bernie Sanders, and to continue to hear what he has to say.
Of course, a book tour allows both, as you get to at least see the candidate in person (and get your picture taken exclusively by a professional), and you get to read his book to learn more about him personally, and his ideas, of course.
As soon as I saw that he was coming, I wanted to go, to make it happen!
And so, I did, going straight from my night job to New York City, to Manhattan, where the event was to take place at the Barnes and Noble on 46th Street. The pre-signed books were supposed to be available at 9AM, but we were still on line well past 11AM (it might have been 11:30), and there were still long lines long after I had finally gotten inside and made my purchase.
I also obtained a flier for other upcoming author events in Barnes & Noble stores in Manhattan. Among some of the other prominent names were Tony Bennett (same night across town), Simone Biles, Trevor Noah, Kathy Griffin, Sarah McLachlan (cd signing(, and Anne Rice. There was also an instruction sheet for how this particular event would run. The way that they did it seemed a little bizarre to me, as we had to arrive in the store to obtain our pre-signed book (only one per customer). It was supposed to be available at 9am, but it was closer to 11:30 or so when I finally got mine.
In any case, we had to come back at around 7:30pm for our chance to actually meet the man. I live across the Hudson, in New Jersey, and was not about to go all the way back home, just to have to come back into the city during the peak of rush hour, so I had to stay in the city. Took advantage and visited the nearby New York Public Library and Bryant Park, which I had not visited in years! Went back after a few hours and waited it out on a long line, feeling colder and colder, despite how relatively mild it was out for mid-November in New York. But it was worth it. I had missed my opportunity to attend one of his rallies at my alma mater, Rutgers, months ago, and cursed myself for it. But perhaps it meant more now, after the election is finally over, and as the nation faces four years of Trump.
I noticed Jane Sanders here, and pointed her out to my neighbor on line, as we had been talking here and there a bit. What was also hard not to notice was the very angry looking police officer staring me down, as well, after looking very annoyed at everything going on around him. It was so completely unnecessary, but what can you do? He gave me a sardonic smile when I put my phone down and made it clear that I noticed him, too. Just cannot understand why he seemed so damn angry. Guess he was a Trump supporter. Would not surprise me. However, that was not my problem, and still is not a problem on my end, so why worry about it?
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