{"id":2710,"date":"2025-09-06T18:32:04","date_gmt":"2025-09-06T18:32:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/adventure\/?p=2710"},"modified":"2025-09-06T18:32:05","modified_gmt":"2025-09-06T18:32:05","slug":"on-the-road-to-worcester","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/adventure\/on-the-road-to-worcester\/","title":{"rendered":"On the Road to Worcester"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
Raoul’s Two Cents: September 5, 2025<\/h5>\n\n\n\n

New Yorkers: Still Weird, Still Wonderful<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

I lived in New York right after college. I worked there as a one-man Art Department for a classical guitar company where I designed posters for classical Spanish guitar legends which were displayed in Carnegie Hall and the Lincoln Center.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

One morning. In a train packed with fellow workers, I realized I was part of the infamous Rat Race. I was a rat among the rats! I didn\u2019t want to be jaded, eccentric and have superficial relationships for the rest of my life so (in a few months) I left the Big Apple.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Last week I was back in NYC<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

I found the city\u2019s pulse unchanged \u2014 same wild energy, same eccentric souls. Fashion\u2019s evolved though \u2014 tattoos and sneakers-with-suits replace Clairol curls \u2014 but the \u201ccome as you are\u201d dress code still thrives. Pajamas? Sure. Cell phones? Glued to every hand.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Californians drive. New Yorkers walk<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Unlike LA\u2019s car-bubble isolation (where I live), New Yorkers collide on subways, yet stay lost in their own heads. Panhandlers break the trance, demanding attention in the melting pot of Blacks, Whites, Asians, Puerto Ricans, young, old, gay, straight \u2014 diversity\u2019s poster child, no doubt. At the MET (Metropolitan Museum), it\u2019s a global guessing game: which country is that tourist from? And one of them stole my wife’s water bottle by mistake. We knew it, (after discovering her own water bottle in her bag) she knew it, but she was too embarrassed to admit it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The subway\u2019s a circus<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

A Hispanic-African American woman scrolls her phone; a younger lookalike sits beside her. Mother and daughter, unaware? Wild odds! It’s New York \u2026 anything can happen. The city hums with 8.5 million people (Tokyo\u2019s 37 million laughs at that), trains rumble, tap water\u2019s crisp and delicious, parking\u2019s a nightmare \u2014 but I still love the city. Before you visit, remember that walking\u2019s non-negotiable\u2014get in shape! I wasn’t. I suffered. I almost died!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

One odd note: faith\u2019s scarce. Just one teen in a \u201cJesus is the Way\u201d cap stood out. A godless city vibe? Maybe.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Then I saw the weirdest New Yorker of them all: a lanky old man in baggy jeans and a \u201cI paused my game to be here\u201d T-shirt \u2026 pathetically clinging to youth. Wait! \u2014 that\u2019s my reflection in the glass!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

TGIF people!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you like my emails, please do me a favor and spread them around. Thank you!<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mailchimp has been tampering with my email database so you might get cut off. If that ever happens, you can find me in travelingboy and resubscribe.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Quotes of the Week<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

“If you live in New York, even if you’re Catholic, you’re Jewish.”<\/em>
— Lennie Bruce<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“The state bird of New York is the jaywalk.”<\/em>
— Archie Bugler<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“New York is like living inside Stephen King’s brain during an aneuryism.”<\/em>
— Kevin Rooney<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“Then he said to his disciples, ‘The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few; therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest.’\u201d<\/em>
— Matthew 9: 37-38<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Joke of the Week<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Thanks to Cheryl of Arcadia, California<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Original art by Raoul Pascual.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Parting Shots<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Thanks to Kanye of Ontario, CA<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Thanks to Colleen of Washington State<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Thanks to Fred of Long Beach, California<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Thanks to Art of Sierra Madre, CA<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Thanks to Tom of Pasadena, CA<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Sad but true<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Thanks to Drew of Anaheim, CA<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Thanks to Norm of Encino, CA<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

I found these:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

My good friend (and jokester) Terry and I came up with these.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Got any good jokes? Come share it with rest of us!
Know someone who enjoys a laugh? Share this website.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

SUBSCRIBE<\/a><\/h2>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

I found the city\u2019s pulse unchanged \u2014 same wild energy, same eccentric souls. Fashion\u2019s evolved though \u2014 tattoos and sneakers-with-suits replace Clairol curls \u2014 but the \u201ccome as you are\u201d dress code still thrives. Pajamas? Sure. Cell phones? Glued to every hand.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":2711,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[1050,54,1048,719,1049],"class_list":["post-2710","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-raouls-tgif","tag-californians","tag-jokes","tag-massachusetts","tag-new-york","tag-new-yorker"],"yoast_head":"\nOn the Road to Worcester - Traveling Boy<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/adventure\/on-the-road-to-worcester\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"On the Road to Worcester - Traveling Boy\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"I found the city\u2019s pulse unchanged \u2014 same wild energy, same eccentric souls. Fashion\u2019s evolved though \u2014 tattoos and sneakers-with-suits replace Clairol curls \u2014 but the \u201ccome as you are\u201d dress code still thrives. Pajamas? Sure. Cell phones? Glued to every hand.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/adventure\/on-the-road-to-worcester\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Traveling Boy\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2025-09-06T18:32:04+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2025-09-06T18:32:05+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/adventure\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Worcester-LEAD.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"576\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"278\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Raoul Pascual\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Raoul Pascual\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"7 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/adventure\/on-the-road-to-worcester\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/adventure\/on-the-road-to-worcester\/\",\"name\":\"On the Road to Worcester - Traveling Boy\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/adventure\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/adventure\/on-the-road-to-worcester\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/adventure\/on-the-road-to-worcester\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/adventure\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Worcester-LEAD.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2025-09-06T18:32:04+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2025-09-06T18:32:05+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/adventure\/#\/schema\/person\/61f94b60d3afefc0bae4ba933f8ba399\"},\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/adventure\/on-the-road-to-worcester\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/adventure\/on-the-road-to-worcester\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/adventure\/on-the-road-to-worcester\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/adventure\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Worcester-LEAD.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/adventure\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Worcester-LEAD.jpg\",\"width\":576,\"height\":278},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/adventure\/on-the-road-to-worcester\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/adventure\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"On the Road to Worcester\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/adventure\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/adventure\/\",\"name\":\"Traveling Boy\",\"description\":\"\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/adventure\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/adventure\/#\/schema\/person\/61f94b60d3afefc0bae4ba933f8ba399\",\"name\":\"Raoul Pascual\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/adventure\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/502f47ba37d826de4fcc5bf78268c6599ade4c5b1324ebd96ce2537b9da62787?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/502f47ba37d826de4fcc5bf78268c6599ade4c5b1324ebd96ce2537b9da62787?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Raoul Pascual\"},\"sameAs\":[\"http:\/\/wynkmarketing.com\"],\"url\":\"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/adventure\/author\/raoul\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"On the Road to Worcester - Traveling Boy","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/adventure\/on-the-road-to-worcester\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"On the Road to Worcester - Traveling Boy","og_description":"I found the city\u2019s pulse unchanged \u2014 same wild energy, same eccentric souls. Fashion\u2019s evolved though \u2014 tattoos and sneakers-with-suits replace Clairol curls \u2014 but the \u201ccome as you are\u201d dress code still thrives. Pajamas? Sure. Cell phones? Glued to every hand.","og_url":"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/adventure\/on-the-road-to-worcester\/","og_site_name":"Traveling Boy","article_published_time":"2025-09-06T18:32:04+00:00","article_modified_time":"2025-09-06T18:32:05+00:00","og_image":[{"width":576,"height":278,"url":"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/adventure\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Worcester-LEAD.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"Raoul Pascual","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Raoul Pascual","Est. reading time":"7 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/adventure\/on-the-road-to-worcester\/","url":"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/adventure\/on-the-road-to-worcester\/","name":"On the Road to Worcester - Traveling Boy","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/adventure\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/adventure\/on-the-road-to-worcester\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/adventure\/on-the-road-to-worcester\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/adventure\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Worcester-LEAD.jpg","datePublished":"2025-09-06T18:32:04+00:00","dateModified":"2025-09-06T18:32:05+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/adventure\/#\/schema\/person\/61f94b60d3afefc0bae4ba933f8ba399"},"breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/adventure\/on-the-road-to-worcester\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/adventure\/on-the-road-to-worcester\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/adventure\/on-the-road-to-worcester\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/adventure\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Worcester-LEAD.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/adventure\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Worcester-LEAD.jpg","width":576,"height":278},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/adventure\/on-the-road-to-worcester\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/adventure\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"On the Road to Worcester"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/adventure\/#website","url":"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/adventure\/","name":"Traveling Boy","description":"","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/adventure\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/adventure\/#\/schema\/person\/61f94b60d3afefc0bae4ba933f8ba399","name":"Raoul Pascual","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/adventure\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/502f47ba37d826de4fcc5bf78268c6599ade4c5b1324ebd96ce2537b9da62787?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/502f47ba37d826de4fcc5bf78268c6599ade4c5b1324ebd96ce2537b9da62787?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"Raoul Pascual"},"sameAs":["http:\/\/wynkmarketing.com"],"url":"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/adventure\/author\/raoul\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/adventure\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2710","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/adventure\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/adventure\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/adventure\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/adventure\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2710"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/adventure\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2710\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2729,"href":"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/adventure\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2710\/revisions\/2729"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/adventure\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2711"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/adventure\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2710"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/adventure\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2710"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/travelingboy.com\/adventure\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2710"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}