New York is a beautiful and tragic and magical and awful
place.
There are a few things everyone should know about New York
that I think no one ever really talks about. It’s really cold here in January.
By that, I mean it’s so utterly bitter outside that you find yourself
contemplating if it is actually physically possible for bones to freeze. Also,
every few blocks you need to avoid animal feces on the sidewalk, as so many
people have dogs and yet do not carry doggy bags. (?) And the 6th
Ave subway often smells like pee. No grocery stores. Everything’s expensive.
There’s always the uncertain risk of bed bugs. Death by moving fixed gear is a
real possibility on Bedford Ave. I think the cyclists can’t see over their
beards.
In spite of all that, it’s also a dreamland. As I write
this, I’m contemplating the idea of ordering in for chocolate chip cookies. Only
in New York can you order from 50 different restaurants, bakeries, and bodegas,
whatever you want at any time of night. You can stand in a subway stop in
Brooklyn and find yourself only moments later in Times Square on the most
densely populated city block in the world. Or take the train a couple stops
over to Washington Square Park and throw a penny into the fountain. My office
in Greenwich Village, outright THE most charming neighborhood in America, is
dangerously close to Bleeker Street Pizza and the view of the Hudson river is positively
stunning.
I took a new route home from Williamsburg today and found a
walk up vintage closet and maybe the most beautiful dress I’ve ever seen,
hidden away in the bustle of Driggs street.
Reclaimed hangers from Junk? Yes, please. I had a life changing hot dog
that cost me 4 bucks. Yesterday, it was a Polish potato dumpling at the same
price and honestly, riding the subway isn’t that bad at all. Add to that, you
look across the East River and see this. You have to catch your breath.
Then there’s this amazing opportunity I keep referring to as
my job. Truly, I could not stand to be more blessed. I think sometimes we ask
God for something and when it finally arrives, we’re unprepared to receive
it. I have more work to do in the next
month than I know what to do with. It’s going to take weekends and nights and
skipped lunches. It will be far and away the most challenging task I’ve ever
set out to accomplish and I wouldn’t give up a single second of it because next
week I have a Skype meeting with a colleague in India. The week after that,
I’ll be launching a nation wide campaign with the largest public relations firm
in the country. The following week, I’ll be heading off in a tour van for 4
months to see this amazing nation we all call our home.
So I guess what I ask the world is this….If you’re not
putting everything all in, what are you really doing?
New York takes everything from you and gives nothing back and I wouldn’t trade it for the world.
Bryant Park
NYE threads
Punch Brothers at The Bowery
Rock Center
Keys to the Office
Heart Elbow Pads :)
Sunshine in Greenpoint
Modern Anthology
Crif Dogs
This is not a Buffalo Exchange.
