Orange Ballerina

i used to hang with this Mexican girl when I lived in NYC. One day she asked me if I wanted oranges. Actually she told me that I should take some because she had too many. Not really understanding I said “sure”.

The next time I saw her we were meeting at Alvin Ailey to take a ballet class. I was stretching when she showed up with a small garbage bag full of oranges. She was incredibly skinny and struggling so the bag looked bigger.

I asked her what the f**k and she said what? that i had said that i wanted the oranges. i told her i wasn’t expecting this many oranges and i was supposed to get on the train and carry these back home?

this is too many oranges! i said. she asked me how i thought she felt! and that she had more where these came from since her parents had shipped several crates to her from California.

Your parents are out of control, i said. My dad’s an orange picker! she said. so i took the oranges. A lot of the girls were looking at us with disdain but it was a beginners ballet class so they looked equally stupid practicing false moves. We should’ve thrown some of the oranges at them, I wouldn’tve had so many to carry home from ballerina class.