I blinked, and October ended.

"Something's always happening here. If you're bored in New York, it's your own fault."
Myrna Loy

Well things have been quite busy lately (hence the inconsistent blog writing). The days, weeks and months are flying by, and I can't believe that it is already almost November and that I have already been living in New York for over four months. Knowing that we're on the cusp of the busiest time of the year, I have no doubt that it will be 2007 before I know it!

God continues to pour blessings on me left and right...I take no credit for my own, but things are going really great. Lately, when people have asked me the broad, "How are things going?" question, I've found myself commenting on how the summer-honeymoon-I-can't-believe-I-actually-live-in-New-York phase is over. Instead, though, I am in a routine...I am settled in here, and I have built a life. I feel like I have finally made the transition from the City feeling like a vacation spot to it actually feeling like my home. It may seem less glamorous, less romantic, but in reality it is much lovelier because it is much more real.

That's not to say that I'm not busy with fabulous things every day, though! Over the last couple weeks, my time has been chock-full of all kinds of fun things...primarily due to the fact that I have friends who are much cooler than I am. ;) From makeovers at Bloomingdales to a new favorite brunch spot in Soho with April and her roommates, from a late night showing of Marie Antoinette with the girls to acting as the test audience for the new Zach Braff movie (I recommended they up the romance level and change the title, but hey, that's just me!)...from a TV Guide media party at Buddakan to pilates at work for Breast Cancer Awareness Day...from having a 3-hour coffee with a new friend to spending the weekend with Matt and Katy while they visited...watching the UGA games at the Pourhouse (always an emotional rollercoaster)...going to see Rascal Flatts at the Garden...getting the opportunity to sing with the band at Gallery Church...I could go on and on with the amazing opportunities that God has given me in this City to connect with new people and experience new things.

But in the midst of the busyness, in the midst of living my day-to-day life in the City that Never Sleeps, I think the challenge lies in stopping to see - to really see - life. A friend recently commented to me, "I feel like I'm just living day-to-day, but not necessarily in a good way." I pray that I will be able to stay focused on my reason for being here in New York City...that I will not let the schedules and events consume me, but instead that I will use these things for a greater, more lasting purpose. I pray that I will learn to see each day as a new opportunity, as a gift from God, and that I will never be so focused on looking ahead that I miss the beautiful day that's right in front of my face. Because when it comes down to it, time is flying by..."life's like an hourglass glued to the table." And that couldn't be truer of anywhere than New York, where everything and everyone moves at warp speed.

So tomorrow, I think I'll sllllooowww down...breathe in...look around me...forget the itinerary for the day...thank my Creator...and enjoy Manhattan.

Autumn in New York (Part Deux)

"Don't you love New York in the fall? It makes me want to buy school supplies."
- Joe, You've Got Mail

Here are some pictures! The first three I took (all in my neighborhood, on E 78th St), and the last three I snagged from the Internet. :) Enjoy!

Words are not enough

I have been living in New York for just shy of four months now. I love my life...the sight of the city lights, the sound of the train that lulls me...the people I've met, the places I've gone...I love my job, my roommate, my little apartment, my commute, my church. I truly do love New York.

But in the words of Dorothy, "There's no place like home."

So, after 110 days in the Big Apple, I trekked down to Georgia for a much-needed dose of home. And it was perfect. Every minute of the weekend was perfect. (OK I am lying...please allow me to give the obvious disclaimer that Georgia losing to Tennessee in a debacle of a game was not, in fact, perfect.) I was overwhelmed with emotion from the second I stepped off the plane, and that overwhelmed feeling lasted for three days straight.

My fingers can't type the right prose to describe how great the weekend was, so I'll try to capture its glory with plain and simple, unadulterated, possibly random words...

Thursday.Pack. Cab. Laguardia. AirTran Gate B8. As always. Lots of Dawg fans! Fly. Fly home. Home. Atlanta skyline. Turner Field. Gold dome. Lights of traffic. Home. Hartsfield. Mom and Dad. :) Riding in a real car! I-75. Marietta. A double bed, all for me. My cat. My home.

Friday.Wake up. In double bed. DRIVE. Fear! Phew, like riding a bike. Chick-fil-A. Large sweet tea. Ahhhhh. Fitzgerald. Old friends! Old cube - new occupant. Happy memories. Atlantic Station. Reunion with Jess. So happy. South City Kitchen. Perfect. Wonderful. Did I say perfect? Six girl friends. Six best friends. Forever. Fried green tomatoes. Biscuits. Sweet tea. Free refills. Cherry cobbler. Giraffe. Lingerie. Laughter. Happy. Perfect. More driving! Back home. Grandma and Granddad. Wonderful. All my family together...wonderful! Dinner. Kitchen table. Home.

Saturday.Drive to Athens. Zaxby's! More sweet tea. Athens, Athens, Athens. Red and black. North campus. Memories, floods of memories. Overjoyed. Tailgate. Family. Friends. Old friends, new friends. Friends. Overwhelmed. Surprise! Jason! Back from South Africa?! Reunions. How sweet it is. Dawg Walk. Picture with Uga! Sanford Stadium. Glorious. Redcoat band. Football team. Thousands of fans. Beautiful sky. "It's Saturday night in Athens." Trumpet sounds. Larry Munson. "Glory, glory to ole Georgia." Parachutes. Friends. Elation. Excitement. Disappointment. Heartbreak. Fourth quarter. Sea of hands raised with four fingers. Game over. Sadness. But Athens, Sanford Stadium and friends...happiness. Downtown. The Grill. Milkshakes. Fries with feta. Laughter. Two Doors Down. Stay up late with the girls. Sleep three in a futon. Feels like college again. Feels like home.

Sunday.Wake up early. Goodbye Athens, goodbye college, goodbye friends. Ride home. 316. Goodbye Jess. Back home. Family. My house. My home. Welcome to Moe's! More sweet tea. Relax at home. Sudoku. Spend time with Mom and Dad. Where did the weekend go? Unpack the seersucker. Repack the wool. Back to Hartsfield. Sad goodbye. See you soon. Goodbye, Georgia home...Hello, New York home.

But then again, words are not enough.

"It feels like home to me
It feels like home to me
It feels like I'm all the way back where I come from
It feels like home to me
It feels like home to me
It feels like I'm all the way back where I belong"
Chantal Kreviazuk

Autumn in New York

"Autumn in New York"...Richard Gere was in a movie by the same name, and Billie Holiday sang a song about it. After being here for the month of September and oh, a day of October, I can see why. Fall has always been my favorite season, but in Georgia, I usually only get to enjoy it for a few weeks. (Amazing how it seems to go straight from summer to Christmas in the South.) However, here in my new northern home, fall actually starts when it's supposed to...in September.

There may not be as many trees around to turn shades of red and orange, but that doesn't stop this city from being magnificent this season. The air is already cool and crisp, the breeze refreshing, the Park gorgeous, and the sunshine "abundant" (at least according to weather.com. When did weather get so poetic?!). My ten minute walk down tree-lined 78th Street at 8:40am has become one of my favorite parts of the day...the brisk autumn air can't help but start your day on the right foot. Just make sure that foot isn't wearing a flip-flop anymore, or your toes might get a little cold.

In addition to the lovely fall climate, fall is all around me in a cornucopia (Oxford American Dictionary: "an abundant supply of good things of a specified kind") of seasonal charm. The local Food Emporium has pumpkins all lined up in the window and static-cling black cats and spider webs in the window. Starbucks is brewing the ever popular pumpkin spice latte, and my local ice cream parlor Sedutto is now serving pumpkin ice cream, a scoop of which I splurged on today on my way to church. Hmm, I just read back over that list and realized it's actually a tribute to pumpkins. So be it! If they were good enough for Cinderella, they are good enough for me.

It's funny...even though fall is technically the season where everything is "dying," I think the thing I like the most about it is that it's really a time that is a cornucopia of new possibilities as well. Perhaps it's reminiscent of the academic calendar I was on for 17 years of my life, but there's always an air of excitement in the fall that a new year is on it's way. A new football season is underway (5-0 baby); new clothes and styles are emerging on the clothing racks and in the magazines (leggings? slouchy boots? skinny jeans?); new school supplies are called for (or I suppose they're "office" supplies now...either way, Lauren and I took a trip to the supply room and got all new pens, pencils and notepads on Friday); and there's the hope and possibility of new relationships (girl friendships...cute boys...let the chips fall where they may). Autumn to me, even moreso than January, is the time to put the past behind you and start anew for the future.

...and where better to do just that than in old NYC.

:)

"Still I notice You when change begins
And I am braced for colder winds
I will offer thanks for what has been and what's to come
You are Autumn."
Nichole Nordeman