Brandon Stanton's Blog, page 353

“In the 70’s, I used to work out at this Gold’s Gym in...

“In the 70’s, I used to work out at this Gold’s Gym in California, and one day this wrestling promoter comes in and says: ‘I need a black guy, a Chinese guy, and an Indian—- he said Indian, but he meant Native American.’ I happened to be working out with a black friend and a Chinese friend, so I said: ‘We can do it! I can be an Indian!’ So he agreed, and he moved us into this empty warehouse to live. Then he gave us $600 per week to do a bunch of coke and beat the shit out of each other before Roller Girls events.”

“I’ve done a lot of whacked out shit for money.”

“I’ve done a lot of whacked out shit for money.”

"I didn’t really know what I wanted to do, so I went to an...

"I didn’t really know what I wanted to do, so I went to an expensive college. I realized afterwards that it would have been better to go to a cheaper college with a goal in mind."

"I knew you’d stop me one day."

"I knew you’d stop me one day."

“I moved here from Jamaica when I was six, and my accent was so...

“I moved here from Jamaica when I was six, and my accent was so bad that I had to spend two years in ESL classes before anyone could understand me. I remember feeling very frustrated. I was surrounded by people with really thick accents who were trying to tell me that I needed to get rid of my accent.”

“No more excitement for me. No more parties. No more boyfriends....

“No more excitement for me. No more parties. No more boyfriends. No more husbands. I just want some peace. I want to sit on the beach with a martini. No, not a martini— a glass of wine. Because wine is what they drink in Spain, and I want to be in Spain. I want a house on the beach in Spain where my kids can visit during the summer. Well, not the whole summer. I want a house on the beach in Spain where my kids can visit for two weeks every summer.”

“Do you remember the happiest moment you ever spent...

“Do you remember the happiest moment you ever spent together?”
“The day we had lunch on top of the World Trade Center, and I got to tell her that I’d finally met someone.”

“I don’t always wear blue. Sometimes I wear turquoise.”

“I don’t always wear blue. Sometimes I wear turquoise.”

"I’ve done nothing horrible. And nothing heroic."

"I’ve done nothing horrible. And nothing heroic."

“I had cancer when I was sixteen. But honestly, it was so long...

“I had cancer when I was sixteen. But honestly, it was so long ago that it’s almost like it happened to a different person. It doesn’t color my interactions or anything. But I’m a dancer, and I do think it’s affected my dancing. There’s this interesting tension between training and striving to control every movement of your body, and realizing that at any moment, your body can rebel against itself in a way that’s completely out of your control.”