Brandon Stanton's Blog, page 480

"My daughter lives in Pennsylvania. She’s working at a...

"My daughter lives in Pennsylvania. She’s working at a nursing home and studying to be an accountant. She’s my pride and joy."
"Does she know you’re homeless?"
"No, she’s got enough to worry about. I just tell her that I’m retired."

It’s that time… ONE WEEK...

It’s that time… ONE WEEK LEFT:

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"The images are gorgeous, and the effect is like walking through a version of the city where startlingly honest thought bubbles appear over everyone’s heads." 
-New York Magazine

"I’ve been off cocaine for about 4 months now.""What...

"I’ve been off cocaine for about 4 months now."
"What changed that allowed you to quit?"
"My parents stepped in and started randomly drug testing me."
"Did you resent them at the time?"
"No. I only resented that they had to do it for me, because I couldn’t do it myself."

"Americans need to turn down their, how do you say, climate...

"Americans need to turn down their, how do you say, climate machines. The buildings are too cold here and it is using too much energy. I was in the Metro today and it felt like a refrigerator."

"Can you take my photo? I have Asian parents that need...

"Can you take my photo? I have Asian parents that need confirmation I’m working."

"I just graduated from college."“What’d you...

"I just graduated from college."

“What’d you study?”

“I majored in history and political science, and minored in Chinese studies, international studies, and economics.”

“Wow, how long did that take you?”

“Five years. I would have done it in four but I brought back a blood parasite from China.”

“That’s pretty epic. I’ll use that for your caption.”

“Can you write one more thing?”

“What’s that?”

“Write: ‘He misses his girlfriend. He knows it’s for the best. But he misses his girlfriend.’”

"If you’re opening a business just for the money,...

"If you’re opening a business just for the money, you’ll fail. There’s too much work before the money comes. Your heart needs to be in it."

"It is important to maintain your equanimity. You cannot let...

"It is important to maintain your equanimity. You cannot let yourself get too ‘up’ or too ‘down’ based on your circumstances."

“Too ‘down’ I understand. But why not too ‘up?’”

“Because the higher your mountains are, the deeper your valleys will seem. You should not react to the world. You should respond, but not react. A response is an action based on logic. A reaction is an emotional state. Your reaction will not change the world. Your reaction only changes you. Your response will change the world.”

"In the Dominican Republic, life is lived much more outside....

"In the Dominican Republic, life is lived much more outside. When I came home from work, my friends would be drinking outside on my block, and we’d play basketball in the street. Here, life is lived much more inside. I go from my work to my apartment. I feel like I’m in a cage."

“So why are you here?”

“My American Dream? I want to make a Spanish language film.”

"I just got out of prison. I was there 37...

"I just got out of prison. I was there 37 years."

“What’d you do?”

“Something I shouldn’t have done.”

“What was that?”

“Someone pushed me. So I killed him.”