A Small Taste of the Big Apple

As my dear brother would declare, "I have arrived." The first day here was challenging.

I arrived at La Guardia around nine, got my luggage, and hailed a cab. It was obvious I was new to it. I couldn't even figure out how to cue up for the drivers. Ten minutes in New York and I was already feeling stupid. I was so tired, I gave the cab an extra 10 bucks for a tip on accident. Yikes. It definitely wasn't worth the extra ten dollars; he ended up dropping me off on the wrong side of campus. Of course, I didn't figure it out until my bags fell over and a chemistry professor came over and had mercy on me. He grabbed a bag and guided me through what appeared to be a secret passage under campus... leading me to the proper place. It felt very 'Alice in Wonderland' to me.

I signed my lease and schelpped some of my bags eight blocks to my new apartment, leaving the rest behind at the leasing office to pick up later. [See! I'm already using Yiddish! Quickly trying to become a REAL New Yorker!]

I learned that I have the biggest room in the apartment. It's huge. I have no idea what to do with all the space. I'm horrible with guessing sizes, but I'm going to estimate it's about 16ft X 18ft. I also have 12 ft ceilings. And my view is kinda cool -- it's down the alley way behind the building... so when I look out, I see the windows stacked to an apartment building on the next block up.

I met a couple of my roommates. Paola is half French and half Italian. She's from Ottowa. She's very laid-back and has red hair. I think I'll enjoy living with her. Anjali, who grew up in Montreal, just moved here from England. She's actually finishing up her thesis from her first graduat degree at Oxford. It's due tomorrow. Maria, who's from Greece, arrives today.

After waking up from a three hour nap, I felt lonely and debated whether to just feel it or explore the neighborhood. I decided to get up and go. It's interesting -- plenty of grocery stores, drug stores, and places to eat. But I'll have to travel for the cool stuff. The campus is great! Reminds me of my college -- only supersized and not as beautiful.
Mostly, what I did yesterday was SWEAT. I can't handle the humidity!

I have orientation tomorrow. I checked out the Journalism building, which is great architecture on the outside and pretty boring within. I asked one of my roommates where the bookstore was. She said, "oh, it's on the street and says 'Barnes and Noble'."
"THAT'S the bookstore?"

Last night I stayed up trying to move furniture... then decided to put it back where it was. I scratched the floors. I have noticed I will likely go through a series of, "I would kill my renters if they did this" over the next few months. So I'm going to see if I can clean it up a little. However, part of me sees that there are already eight layers of lacquer and thinks, "what's one more?" The layers of finish are so thick the floor feels sticky. Ugh.

My sleeping pattern is horrible. It's 2pm. I think it's time to get up, take a shower, and go get some things...

Start spreadin’ the news…

I’m leavin’ today.

I want to be a part of it

New York, New York

Although I knew the day would come, it still hasn’t hit me that I’m making a major life change, have quit my job, and am heading to live in New York for the next nine months.

Tonight I will make my way through several airports before my arrival at La Guardia. In Salt Lake, I’m taking advantage of the three-hour layover. I met up with my dear friend Jennie, her husband Tom, and their child Tommy. It was a hoot. Jennie and I actually picked up and moved from Roanoke to Salt Lake six years ago. It was two years later I would head to Portland. And now, I’m off to New York… many changes in just a few years.

So far things have been coming together quite nicely. I had a few panic attacks last Thursday when I found out all of my tenants were moving out of my other house. My brother found out about a good property manager. It turns out, the man had been recommended to me three times before, so I decided to go with it. So in a few weeks, hopefully a new family will be living there.

Everything is falling into place. Maybe it’s not all exactly as I pictured it, but it’s working out well in the end. It gives me confidence that even though I have no idea what’s ahead, it’s the right thing. The path has just been too clear so far for it not to be right. It’s still too surreal for me to be worried, but I am already missing my friends, my family, and of course my cute pets. I was glad that I was rushed out of my house and to the airport. Otherwise, it would have been sinking in that I’m leaving.

At the airport, I ran into the Young family; I sang with them in a lot of the stake musicals and performances. Then when I went inside, my good friend Krystal was there sending off her cousin. It’s pretty funny how I knew so many people. I kinda’ felt like I had my own entourage!

Saying goodbye to my family was hard. I miss them tons already.

Goodbye Party

I had my KATU goodbye party at Chuck-E-Cheese. I suppose that should be no surprise. It was so much fun! I can't believe how many people showed up!

We had to book the event as a birthday party. We told them I was turning 10. They even sang to me!

I'm going to miss all my friends so much. They've been a surrogate family for me in so many ways. But what a great sendoff they gave me!