On the other end of the phone, it was Fred who had disappeared for a while. Pen, fun, and www.biquge.info

After leaving the ranch, Fred disappeared. Lu Li came back to New York to attend the graduation ceremony before, but he didn't see Fred, and when he called him, no one answered, so he could only leave a message in his voice mail; But after leaving a message, Fred didn't reply, almost making people think that after he entered a barren mountain and never came out.

I actually received a call from Fred today, which was really an unexpected surprise.

"Your Facebook hasn't been updated in a while, is your ranch out of business?" Fred's joking words made Lu Li laugh.

Then Lu Li teased back without showing weakness, "I was still speculating before, whether you were arrested to perform a Las Vegas fierce/male/show." Now it seems that we both guessed wrong. ”

Fred chuckled, "Where are you now?" ”

"Shouldn't I have asked you this?" Lu Li left the subway station, but found that he was still in the range of Greenwich Village, after all, he had studied here for four years, and his body's memory was very clear, and he would always return here when he walked unconsciously. "Where are you wandering now?"

"New York, just came back last week." Fred didn't go around in circles, and said, "I've met with some editors of magazines and editors of some websites who are interested in my photos and want to ask me to take pictures of them." ”

"Congratulations!" Lu Li was really happy for Fred, "So you're a freelance videographer now?" ”

"Well, I'm also planning to open my own website and post my works to record different journeys." After graduating, after a brief period of confusion, Fred has now rediscovered his lifestyle and purpose in life, and his whole person has suddenly become brighter.

"Like that 'people in New York' blogger?" Because of Fred's relationship, Lu Li's voice also became lighter, and the fatigue of the journey was eliminated a lot.

"People in New York" is a blog that started in 2010. The blogger is a young man named Brandon Stanton who moved from Chicago to New York because he failed to make a living doing futures. Destitute at the time, he decided to use his camera to capture some microcosms of the city.

"Hello, do you mind if I take a few pictures of you? I'm running a personal blog called 'People in New York'. That's how Brandon started his photography project.

This shot is three years. He photographed more than six thousand people. At first, the work was just a simple photo, but later he recorded interesting clips of chatting with people and posted them together with the photos to form a short character story.

Under his lens, the streets of New York are full of smiling, comfortable and relaxed, beautiful and free, happy to share their stories. They all have their own characteristics, their own style, open their hearts to show themselves, and show the fragment of the city of New York condensed in them.

New York is a very special city, not only the world's largest capital, but also one of the most culturally complex, densely populated, and wealth-rich cities in the world. Everyone who lives in this city has their own strong characteristics. Brandon's project captures this wonderful moment.

In October 2013, he selected 400 photographs and published the album "People in New York", which sold 250,000 copies in just half a year, ranking first on the New York Times bestseller list. Brandon was also named one of Time magazine's "30 Under 30 World Changemakers" in 2013.

The young man who was on the verge of bankruptcy caught the light at the bend of his life and became a millionaire. This is New York, and it's life.

Now, Lu Li compares Fred to Brandon.

"Hah, sort of." Fred nodded, "But there are a lot of followers now, and I don't want to flaunt Brandon as second." I just wanted to record the world as I saw it. ”

"'The World as I See It,' I love the title, and I think it could be used as your website domain." Lu Li expressed his support with practical actions.

"Hey, look, the collaboration of journalists and photographers. How about writing a little text for my website if you have the chance? Fred smiled and extended the invitation.

Lu Li shrugged, "Of course there is no problem. However, you should know that my text is paid by the number of lines, right? ”

Fred couldn't help but laugh, "Don't worry, your manuscript fee is indispensable." Are there any discounts, though? The two of them joked, and Fred almost forgot what he was calling for.

After graduation, everyone went to the east and west, from south to north, scattered all over the world. Not to mention whether it is easy to reunite, just to say that everyone gradually has their own careers and lives, and the common language gradually decreases, and the emotions naturally become weaker. Fred and Lu Li are more special, they both became freelancers by chance, and the friendship between the two continued in a wonderful way.

"I'm calling you to ask, do you know Gavin Gran of the New York Observer?" Fred finally brought the conversation back up.

"Gavin? I know him, but I haven't crossed paths, he's the editor of the Life Edition. Lu Li recalled it carefully, and then remembered the name, "He's a very interesting guy, the first thing he does every morning, he must go to Chinatown for a walk, do you know why?" ”

"Because you like Chinese breakfast?" That was the first guess in Fred's mind.

"You think everyone is like you, a foodie." Lu Li laughed directly, thinking about it carefully, he himself couldn't help laughing. "No, he's going to Chinatown."

Because he used to see that many old people would carry a bird cage or change into a riding coat, go out early in the morning for a walk, go for a walk, and then sit in the nearby park to play chess. He felt that this way of life was so pleasant and he could see different city scenes, so he also learned. ”

Lu Li remembered that when he first saw Gavin in a horse coat in Chinatown, his jaw was almost dislocated, and then Gavin pulled him to the side to play a game of chess.

Mathematics is not Lu Li's forte, and a project like chess, which requires calculation, logic, and thinking, is naturally not, and as a result, Lu Li was killed without leaving a piece of armor, and the masters next to him laughed at him, "Lost all the things of the ancestors." After Lu Li went back, he practiced chess for a period of time behind closed doors.

"He's such a wonderful guy." Fred made up the picture in his head, and he couldn't help but laugh.

"What, you're looking for him?" Lu Li pulled the topic back and did not continue to deviate from the topic.

"Oh." Fred patted his head, "Yes, he called me and said he liked my photos and wanted to work with me on a series that captured life in Chinatown." I was a little hesitant because Brandon Stanton had already done a lot of filming in New York, and if I went over to shoot it, it would inevitably be a repetition. I'm just asking you if he's going to ask me to shoot something that mimics Brandon Stanton's style. ”

"No, it won't." Lu Li nodded in understanding, and then gave his opinion, "Gavin is a lover of exotic cultures, he always believes that the United States is a country with no cultural heritage, and his favorite countries are those with ancient history. For example, China/China, such as Egypt, and Greece. He believes that these cultural inheritances are irreplaceable. ”

Therefore, he doesn't like things that are modern and humanistic like Brandon, he is more inclined to the things of life, that is, the collision of culture and life. What he needs is characteristic. After finishing speaking, Lu Li added, "However, these are just my own superficial understandings. I didn't meet him very often, and when I did, he would pull me and ask me some strange questions about China/China, and sometimes, I couldn't answer them myself, and I really blushed. ”

Fred pondered for a moment, "Okay, I see. I'll meet with him once to see if the project is feasible. He asked me to meet at an Ethiopian restaurant, which was ......," Fred frowned, his face full of question marks.

"Haha, it's very characteristic of him." Lu Li laughed out loud.

"What about you? Where are you now? After finishing the matter, Fred also said politely.

Lu Li smiled dumbly, and did not answer directly, but asked in a tricky way, "What do you say?" ”

Fred was stunned, "You shouldn't be in New York too, right?" ”

"Correct." Lu Li chuckled, and Fred's voice of scolding came from the other end of the phone, "How is it, do you have time to eat together at night?" ”

"Of course." Fred said categorically, "What, you're still planning to sneak back to the ranch without meeting me?" I won't say yes. Where are you now? I'm looking for you. ”

"I'm here on Eighth Avenue, 21st Street." Lu Li raised his head and looked left and right, "I'm going to find an agent and rent an apartment here, otherwise every time I come to New York, I won't have a place to stay, it's really troublesome." ”

The streets of Manhattan, New York, are like an orderly chessboard, running east-west as main streets, numbered from south to north, from First Street to 222nd Street; The north-south direction is the Avenue, numbered from east to west, from First Avenue to Twelfth Avenue, and there are a few avenues that are not named by number, such as Madison Avenue, Broadway Avenue, and so on.

Therefore, when people say their own location, they always use the street as the coordinates, and it is very easy to complete the location.

As soon as Lu Li said this, Fred immediately understood his location, "Okay, I'm here on Fourth Avenue and Eighteenth Street, you can go to the agent first, I'll go directly to you later, and I'll call you when I'm nearby." ”

After hanging up the phone, Lu Li looked at the suitcase in his hand, and then looked at the bustling streets around him, it seemed that everything was exactly the same as when he first arrived in New York in his memory, but there seemed to be some changes that he couldn't see.

Stuffing his phone into his pocket and identifying the direction left and right, Lu Li dragged his suitcase and began to look for the sign of the real estate agent along the street.