After my first official intro to Bern, we would then spend two years working side-by-side, helping navigate the daily tasks of a congressional office. The stretch of time was particularly unique, coming as it did in the months after the attacks on our country on 9/11. One of the tasks Bern and I worked together on was helping Congressman Meehan stay connected to the families of the victims from the Greater Lowell area who lost their lives on September 11.
Along with our fellow district staffers - Lori Loureiro (now CONGRESSWOMAN Lori Trahan), Sara Khun, June Black, Chris Doherty, Benari Poulten, Zoila Gomez, Emily Byrne, and our counterparts in the D.C. Office, Bill McCann, Shilpa Phadke, Jen Staruski, Ron Carlton, and Suzy Dumont, among others, it was a usually well-oiled machine that bonded closely in the trenches of congressional office work.
But eventually, the team went its separate ways, with most everyone pursuing new careers paths.
For her part, Bernadett decided to make the move to the Big Apple, and pursue the career in modeling she had always longed for. Almost immediately she carved out a niche for herself in NYC, and those of us who knew her got a big kick out of following her exploits, especially when she walked the fashion runway on a morning talk show.
In the ensuing years, whenever the Cook family made our Christmastime pilgrimage to New York, we'd always connect with Bern, and she would help stage our stylish Christmas card pose for the coming season. She rode the ferris wheel with the kids in Toys R Us in Times Square, played the floor piano and had disgustingly gluttonous ice cream sundaes at FAO Schwarz with them, and loved to point out her favorite haunts. For Heather, especially, Bern became her go-to super-model who offered her fashion and self-esteem tips. Once for Andrew, Bern played the role of show-and-tell prop for his school project on Hungary. He's still steaming over the fact he got a B on the project. "I BROUGHT A FREAKING ACTUAL PERSON FROM HUNGARY IN AND SHE BROUGHT HUNGARIAN COOKIES," he frequently bemoans.
Bern is one of those friends you don't have to see to constantly stay close to, but you know she's always there. And invariably, when our names pop up on cell phone caller-ID, it's usually a must answer, because there's usually a laugh to be shared on the call.
When she comes back to town, it sometimes even warrants a Wicked Good Blog post: 2012
Fast forward to 2020 and the new normal that has become living in quarantine in America. Here in the Mill City, we have the ability to roam the streets and not bump into many other folks during our travels. Not so in the Big Apple.
Bern and I have been chatting through the COVID-19 crisis, and she's been especially active on her social media accounts, trying to show how life has changed for her in NYC. This week, she reduced those thoughts to words, and submitted a first person account of New York quarantine, and the results ended up on page one of the Lowell Sun, seen here: Bernadett
Bern agreed to let me share her post here as well, to share not just her story, but several more pics showing what life is like in New York these days. I was more than happy to comply.
So without further ado, here's a first-person account of living in the Big Apple during a time of Coronavirus, courtesy of my bud from Budapest, Bernadett!
By BERNADETT VAJDA
For me, this is day 34 of my self-quarantine in my small New York City apartment. The apartment is the perfect size for one person.
Were this a normal day, I would be dressing for my two careers – as the business owner of Bern With Style, an image consulting business, or when I’m not styling my clients, I am off and running to castings and auditions as a model.
Most mornings, I leave my apartment early to go work out at the gym, then run, home for a shower to get ready for work. What follows is a five-minute walk to the subway and my morning commute, normally surrounded by dozens and dozens of fellow New Yorkers.
Lunch usually consists of a walk to my favorite salad spots, where I stand and check out what people are wearing, noticing the latest fashion trends and styles of my fellow residents.
Dinnertime would consist of a social event, at a popular restaurant, a fund-raiser, or a business meeting. Most of the meals are partaken out on the town.
Now, though? Nothing could be further from my normal routine. I am quarantined in my own apartment, taking in the sights of New York that I can take in from my window. The bone-chilling sounds of ambulances driving to and fro to the neighborhood hospital provide the constant cacophony of sirens that have become commonplace for me.
The NYPD barricade surrounding Bern's neighborhood hospital
My sister, Eszter, a former radio personality on WCAP 980 in Lowell, lives in Sicily, Italy, and had already been in lockdown for weeks. I got on the phone with her to seek her advice, and it was clear what was happening.
COVID-19 was coming to my New York City.
My sister spent an extensive time prepping me, trying to tell me what types of items I needed to get in stock in the virtually guaranteed eventuality of a coronavirus mandated home quarantine. We shared long distance tears knowing our worlds were changing, and not for the better.
Eszter began sharing stories of what life was like now in Italy, and we both cried as we realized the same pandemic was coming to the Big Apple, the heart of the USA, and the place I’ve called home for more than 15 years. It was then I began my first grocery runs to stock up.
Even during normal times, grocery shopping in New York City is a burdensome chore, especially when you don’t have a car. The constant struggle always, is deciding what types of groceries you want to haul home – canned goods, water, fruits and vegetables and cleaning supplies are heavy on our best days.
With my first supply runs during the pandemic, returning home and climbing my staircases with the heavy bags, it hit me, and the tears came again.
Don’t get me wrong. I am fortunate, in that I have a roof over my head and food in my refrigerator. But being a business owner, single and navigating the streets of one of the busiest cities in America is daunting.
Since my quarantine began, I have tried to maintain my own schedule to help me feel well. I still have my coffee in the morning, followed by a meditation. One of the other highlights of my days has become a morning video yoga routine with one of my best friends, Dr. Cynthia Davis of Wakefield, Mass. She helps hold me accountable to show up for both myself and her during this time.
Now though, my days also start with updates from Governor Cuomo, and periodic check-ins on the television news. And of, course, phone check-ins with my mom and sister.
I shower and get ready for my day. I’ve taken to regular applications of red lipstick, because I like the way it looks during these trying days.
Every night, promptly at 7 p.m., I run to my kitchen grab a wooden spoon and pan, open my window, and starting banging on my drum, screaming out my window with the rest of New York City as we clap for those doctors, nurses, health care workers, first responders, and store employees who continue to perform their jobs so the rest of us can survive. To me, they are more than heroes. Imagine walking into work every day knowing you may be the next patient. There should be a new word for heroism. The faces of hospital workers I see walking to and from the subway each day going to their shifts will haunt me for a long time.
Occasionally, I still venture out to my local market, but what was once a quick stop has now become a longer process, as I have to wait in line to get into the store.
I miss my weekend walks in Central Park. I miss meeting my friends for lunches, or coffees, or cocktails.
From experience, I have learned that as horrific as this time is for many, if we make the right choices physically and mentally, in the end we will be stronger, wiser and have a deeper understanding of ourselves and a gratitude for the simple things in life.
Most of all, I miss my friends and family. I miss returning to Massachusetts for special occasions. I miss human contact.
I know it will be back. I know we will eventually recover. I know we will be stronger. I know I am inspired. But still, I miss my New York City.
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