the art of purchasing goods and services outside nyc

Alison's world never extended beyond the Hudson. Why would it? A single New York block was as culturally varied as any given country. Extrapolate that to the entire city and, well, she could hardly think of a reason to leave. Any experience offered by any other place was doubtlessly replicated right here and at least ten times better in every way.

For decades, she lived in bliss. Any type of food, entertainment, leisure, or employment she could possibly conceive of was a mere five minute walk from her apartment. The stock exchange was the pinnacle of finance, Broadway the pinnacle of theater, the MET the pinnacle of culture and art, Central Park the pinnacle of nature. No place could match NYC on any of these fronts, much less offer each in equal measure.

But Alison's favorite part of New York didn't lie in the extravagant. The everyday convenience, she was sure, was unparalleled. Even a bodega, such a small, seemingly simple luxury, was unique to this place and this place alone. How the rest of the country – or the world – failed to conceive of a single shop where one could purchase Diet Coke, candy, and paper towels was an incomprehensible display of stupidity. Alison thought of herself as an empathetic person able to take on the perspective of others, but try as she might, she couldn't imagine such a lack of imagination. It only made her feel sorry for the underprivileged masses unable to live in New York City.

Unfortunately for Alison, her inability to place herself in the shoes of those less fortunate souls would turn out to be her fatal flaw.

As the COVID-19 pandemic swept through the country, New York suddenly became a death trap. Its high population density – part of its initial charm – allowed the virus to spread with unprecedented speed. Like many young New Yorkers, Alison decided to temporarily flee the city. Her sister offered her a room. In her house. In Nebraska.

The flight posed no issue for Alison. Though she had never flown before, the concept was similar enough to the subway. Hundreds of people packed into a metal tube powered by combustible liquid. Completely reasonable.

Once she landed though, problems began. Her phone died on the journey. Desperately, she searched for an outlet, not knowing if they even had electricity here. If they did, would she need to purchase an adapter? She'd heard about Europe and Asia's different outlets – was that the case for Nebraska too? She tried asking a few people but each time their snail paced speech and thick flyover accents made their answers incomprehensible.

Dazed and hungry, she stumbled out of the airport. Did they have taxis here? Would they accept New York money? She should've sought out a currency exchange inside.

Tired, hungry, and scared, she began to walk along the road towards a distant skyline. Several cars slowed next to her and their occupants spoke, but Alison couldn't tell what they said. She simply yelled, “I'm walking here!” a reference that surly went over their heads, and trudged on.

The suburban sprawl extended from the airport towards the “city.” As she walked, she examined the squat, long, bland buildings, hoping she might find a store where she could purchase sunscreen, food, water, and proper phone charger. But of course, this was too much variety. If only she were in New York where any bodega could supply all her needs easily. Here though, no such luxury existed. She passed stores with names like 7-11, Walgreens, Target. All useless for her needs.

She lost sight of the skyline she'd been chasing – an understandable mistake given its short buildings and slight frame. Days of wandering left her dazed, dizzy, and confused. The people who stopped her became harder to understand. She could only choke out her sisters name and abandoned the locals when they responded with confusion. There couldn't have been more than 200 people here. Finding someone who knew her sister should've been easy.

Confident she would be found eventually, Alison laid on a bus bench after three days of wandering. Her bone-dry mouth, throbbing head, and worsening dizzy spells warned her of severe dehydration. But no, she would be found. Her sister would stumble upon her. She had to.

Alison's sister did find her. In the hospital. Doctors told her Alison had been on the brink of death from starvation and dehydration when EMTs found her ten feet from a Walmart.

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