LIVING ON LONG ISLAND – JUNE 2025
- Bob Puglisi
- Jun 23
- 5 min read
Updated: Jul 31
I want to start by thanking all of you who read and replied to my May blog, “Our Move to Long Island.” It had over 100 views, the most I’ve ever received.
When I last wrote, we were celebrating our 50th Anniversary in Riverhead, Long Island. That included the Memorial Day weekend. On Memorial Day, the day before our movers were scheduled to arrive, we decided to visit our new apartment, drop off the things we wouldn’t need, and have lunch there. We had camp chairs and dined on leftover pizza and salad from the night before. After lunch, we headed to the supermarket to stock up on food and supplies.
On the way, we passed a discount furniture store that was having a Memorial Day sale. We stopped on our way back from the supermarket. We were looking for a dining table. Roaming through the store, most of the tables didn’t meet our needs or our budget. I turned around a corner and found a small white table with four chairs. Taped to the top was a sign stating that it had been reduced to $299. We bought it, and with sales tax and delivery charges, the total came to $400. We were sold. They could deliver the day after our movers arrived.
We went outside to get back into the car, and Anita said, “You have a flat tire.” It was the right rear that was flat and sitting on the rim. I got out my AAA card and called the roadside assistance phone number. They told me someone would be there in 67 minutes. We had perishables in our shopping bags that would easily spoil, so I got out my newly purchased emergency air compressor and refilled the tire. Then, we raced back to the apartment, which was only a few minutes away. We got out of the car, and sure enough, the tire looked like a pancake again.
I called AAA to let them know our new location. When the driver arrived, he removed the spare from under the rear of the car. It had never been used and was also deflated. He tried to fill it with air, but the seal was full of dirt and wouldn’t hold air. It was late in the afternoon on a holiday, so it would have to be towed the next day.
However, we had to return to Riverhead for our last night at the hotel. We called our daughter Deb. She and David drove their two cars out. We took her car and returned to Riverhead.
The next morning, we were up early to meet our movers, who would arrive between 8:00 and 10:00 a.m. We arrived a little after eight. The movers weren’t there. We got a message from them that their truck broke down the night before in New Jersey. They rented another truck and would arrive by 11 a.m.
In the meantime, I arranged for my car to be towed by AAA to a nearby Firestone store. It was a long wait before the tow truck arrived. I had spoken to Firestone to inform them that the car would be towed to their location. There was some confusion on my part, and the vehicle was towed to a nearby Firestone, not the one I had spoken to. The result: the two rear tires were replaced, and I also received a new spare. They also resolved another issue I was experiencing. The bill came to $1,000.
Back at the apartment, it was a beautiful day, and we sat outside waiting for the movers. They eventually called to say they were stuck in New York traffic and wouldn’t arrive until 1:30. Our grandson, DJ, drove our daughter over to pick up her car and spend several hours with us. DJ came along with our great-grandson Caleb. He is almost two, and it was so much fun watching him run around outside on the lawn. He was fascinated by the big truck and kept trying to run up the ramp into the van. His father had to keep shushing him away from it. The little fellow made our day.
After the movers left, we found most of what we needed for the night. It was nice to sleep in our own bed that night.
After a few days, I notified our auto insurance carrier of our move. They had to write a new policy with New York’s higher rates. We also needed a new rental insurance policy at a higher rate.
This led me to the New York State Department of Motor Vehicles. Ugh! I had to exchange my New Mexico driver’s license, which was about to expire. The gentlemen at Firestone advised me to go down the road to Medford, Long Island, where I could obtain my new license, registration, and plates. He said to make a reservation. I couldn't get a reservation for two weeks, so I went there without one. The guards at the door said they were only letting people in with a reservation. From there, I drove to the AAA office in Hauppauge.
They, too, would only see you with a reservation, but a helpful representative gave me all the necessary forms. I made a reservation with them when I got home. It would be the day that my license expired. I didn’t want to wait until the last minute, so I was able to sneak into the Medford MVD one afternoon, close to closing time. I obtained my New York license, but there wasn’t enough time to complete the registration.
When the time came for my AAA appointment, there was a problem with the effective date of my new policy that couldn’t be corrected until midnight. I wasted another afternoon. I have a new appointment at Medford MVD scheduled for the beginning of July. I’m hoping that will be the conclusion of this ordeal.
During this time, we celebrated our birthdays: mine, at 80, and Anita’s, at 78. Several family celebrations followed. The conclusion came on Anita’s birthday, when we fulfilled my bucket list item of a steak dinner at Peter Luger's Steak House in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. It was also an early celebration of our daughter Deb’s 60th birthday. It was a delicious dinner, one of the best steaks I’ve ever eaten. It is one of the oldest restaurants in New York. It was worth the Sunday afternoon drive in traffic, which our son-in-law, David, managed to navigate us through.
Since then, we purchased more furniture, as well as shelves, and continue to unpack our numerous boxes.
After a month here, I’ll conclude by saying I’m reminded of some of the reasons for leaving NY in the 1970s, such as the traffic, the difficulty of trying to get things done, and the shitty weather. Other than that, we love it here, especially being back with our family, and the awesome food options in the area.
While preparing to move, something exciting happened. Amazon notified me that they are offering authors a new service: AI-generated audiobooks. I took some time out from packing to create an audiobook of my first novel, Railway Avenue. It’s a good summer listen. You can look forward to more of my books being released as audiobooks. You can get a copy of Railway Avenue at the following link:
I love Anita's comment: "YOU have a flat!!!" Not "we." And the dining table and chairs look great with that painting! When can we visit???
Peter Luger was pretty much our go-to for steak dinners, although I myself only went there once when I was a kid (I rarely eat beef these days). It's been there since the creation of the world. You didn't say how it was.