Every day in New York is a carnival of mundane and exciting experiences, and today, well today, was no different, or was it? I had two “firsts” tonight, both of which, in all honesty, I wouldn’t care to repeat. First off, after walking for what seemed like miles to find a Citibank, I was playfully shortchanged by my ATM machine. A word to the wise, when two tens pop out in the middle of a wad (yes, that’s how I roll) of twenties, it’s not a fancy new trick — in the end I was $40 short. Wow, what do you when that happens? Really, does the bank just believe you when you say you didn’t get all your money? Well, keep your eyes glued to this space to find out. Since it seemed like the right thing to do, (or moreover, the only thing I could do), I picked up that little phone beside the ATM (which much to my surprise, was not a direct line to India) and told them I was out some dough. I was told to call back in the morning. “The system may correct the error by itself,” my customer service rep professed. “I’ll be a little surprised if that happens.” And I will be.

What’s more exciting than being stiffed by ATM? Well, how does being stiffed by an NYC taxi sound? (Not so exciting right?) But wait, there’s a twist! After fruitlessly waiting for a cab for about ten minutes (an unusually long time I thought), a snazzy looking new yellow cruised to a halt right beside me. Like any good New Yorker I waited curbside for the passenger to exit and then proceeded to climb in. “I’m staying in the cab,” said passenger number two. “Oh you are? Really, it must be my lucky day!” I was this close to asking if her she minded sharing, after all, there’s a first time for everything right.