The Scout

Photo by Katy

On Friday, Katy headed into SoHo for a rendezvous at the Tribeca Cinemas with a classmate. She was guided to a record shop where she purchased Another Side of Bob Dylan on vinyl for a record player she does not own. Again, the money issue versus the glee factor. She also had a very public giggle fit when she walked past Cafe Wha? (thrice) and proclaimed her love for all things Dylan.

On a dissimiliar note, she also saw Joel & Ethan Coen at the Mac Store SoHo and realized that she wanted nothing more to sit in a room full of 500 people who understood jokes about the razor tool in Final Cut Pro.

All in all, the day proved that A Night at the Chelsea is a completely honest endeavor for her and Becca. We also appreciate the comments & support!

[Aside]

Katy, in another attempt to drain any funds she might have scraped together in the past year, extended her credit further to purchase tickets to see Mister Dylan himself on June 24th - three days before our endeavor - in Pennsylvania. She is most excited, and feels that the concert is a sign of good fortune, as the first Dylan concert she attended was on November 23rd. A 24th day show is the next logical, and superstitious step.


Step to where? Well...she will discover that at the Chelsea.


"I plan to [...] suck the air from the vents."

-Katy & Becca

Slowly, but surely, we trudge...

Another day, another dollar. In Katy's case, another day, another credit card to pay for Becca's, as well as her own, dream. Finally, we have made a small step towards the Chelsea. At approximately 4:17 today, we gathered around Katy's computer to make the final reservation. Both of us were ecstatic, though our drained expressions did not show it. Katy called the hotel and spoke to David, who took our reservation in a very polite manner and that was it. Each of us will be paying around $150 for the room at the Chelsea. It is a lot of money for two college-bound students to muster, but you can not put a price on exquisite enlightenment. With such a tight budget, we will most likely be toting around breakfast bars and pretzels to eat and a change of clothes during our stay. For two kids from tired suburbia, that is roughing it. And now, Katy and Becca must wait. Each day is another box Xed off on a calendar.





Counting down to the day we experience the Chelsea.







-Becca & Katy





To commemorate the monumental

confirmation of the reservation,

Becca snapped Katy in action as

she made the past due phone call

to David.

Katy and Becca's reservation confirmation, easily made available after Katy's e-mail account recovered.

We're Not Quite 'On The Road' Yet...

...or even near it for that matter. It is a speck on the horizon of monetary injustice. We live in the second most wealthy county in all of the United States, yet we fail. No money to our names. Well, maybe a few coins and a five pound note from England two years ago. Our gypsy yard sale is off in the distance, and the market for tears is rather low. I, Katy, cannot access my email which holds not only our confirmation that we requested to make a reservation [oh the complications], but also our reference number. Essentially, we are plagued by the same technology which enabled us to be exposed to genius. Irony or simply bad luck? Either way, we are at a momentary standstill. We are in need of money, and with Katy quitting her job and Becca working for the man every night and day (TM), the prospects are well, none. Luckily, after being raised on the credit-based budgeting logic, Katy will charge the hotel reservation with money neither have. A wise plan? Most definitely. A safe plan? Perhaps. The most important thing to us is perseverance - nothing more, nothing less.

We will find our path to the Hotel Chelsea. We will prove to ourselves and others everything, and nothing. There you go, take it, leave it or burn it.

P.S. Katy plans to attend a Bob Dylan concert on the Sunday of the week of our trip. She will then be living in a cardboard box. And not showering.


Good night and have a pleasant life.

-Katy & Becca

Dylan's music, Kerouac's words and Chelsea's charm.

Two determined students, facing a life junction, stand to accomplish a goal. We, Katy G. and Becca R., declare our participation in a search. A search for answers, questions and beauty. In the polished streets of New York City's Manhattan, lies our grime-caked Mecca. Our pilgrimage ends at the Hotel Chelsea - a breeding ground for some of the most brilliant and tortured minds of the past 100 years. Dylan Thomas, the Beats: Kerouac, Ginsberg, Bob Dylan, Andy Warhol, Sid Vicious and countless other artists have lived, worked and died within the walls of the Chelsea. In an attempt to capture the spirit and gift of this infamous den, we will document our adventure with words, video and image.


Wish us luck and do not hesitate to offer monetary support.


Much thanks,
Katy & Becca