Going to New York City!

For years, I've wanted to move to New York City. When I was younger, I decided that I wanted to live in an interesting city. I had narrowed down the list to Las Vegas, New Orleans, Honolulu, and New York City. In the end, New York City won in just about every category, and now I'm going to live out my dream.

Jobs & Apartments, the hardest part of NYC

The first thing I have to do is get a job in the city. This is difficult because there are 8 million people competing for all of the jobs in only a 300 square mile radius. Not to mention the people who drive in from the Tri-State Area.

Luckily, I live way below my means, so the job I go after doesn't need to pay as much as I'm making here in Dallas. I have roughly estimated that I'll need $1400 for the smallest apartment I can find. If I bring in 35K, I should have enough to squeak by after taxes. I always plan for the worst case scenario.

Your Pay Check Results
Bi-weekly Gross Pay	$1,346.15
Federal Withholding	$153.46
Social Security	$83.46
Medicare	$19.52
New York	$58.57
NY SDI	$1.20
Net Pay	$1,029.94

Things to do in the Big Apple

I've been planning out some of the things I'll do once I get to the city.

Big Onion Walking Tours
A $15 walking tour with a history buff. I've been on three of these, Central Park, Brooklyn Bridge, and Upper West Side. They all rocked. When I get to New York City, I hope to do them all! update

Self-guided subway art tour
During my second visit to the city, I remember seeing and wondering about the subway art pieces. This website explains them all.

Take A Walk, New York!
Free, guided walks.

Toastmasters International
Toastmasters is a great way to meet people while polishing your communication and leadership skills - all for about $7 a month. I'll be looking for a strong club to join as soon as I arrive in the city.

Cultural NYC Walks
Another walking tour. NYC is the perfect place to go on tours like this.

The Tenement Museum
Find out how immigrants survived when upwards of 12 families were packed into one apartment!

Joyce Gold walking tours
Joyce does not only walking tours, but complete history courses. I just missed the last round, I'll have to keep an eye out for more.

Sell your car, you don't need it!

Public transportation in NY rocks! I remember hearing that many people don't even have driver's licenses in NYC, just the state issued ID card.

Getting around is accomplished by walking, taking the subway, riding the buses, and grabbing cabs.

Rent costs more in NYC, but I will most likely make up the difference in transportation savings. For someone living in Dallas, like me, it looks about like this:

	Dallas	New York
Apartment	$800	$1400
Car	$400	$0
Auto Insurance	$100	$0
Gas	$60	$0
Maintenance	$50	$0
Tolltag	$70	$0
Public Transportation	$0	$76
Total	$1480	$1476

Neighborhoods

A list of the neighborhoods in the city, as a starting point for research:

Astoria
Bronx
Brooklyn
Carroll Gardens/Cobble Hill
Chelsea
Chinatown
East Village
Financial District
Flatiron District
Fort Greene
Gramercy Park
Greenwich Village
Harlem
Little Italy
Lower East Side
Meatpacking District
Midtown East
Midtown W/Hells Kitchen
Murray Hill
Park Slope
Queens
Soho
Times Square/Theater Dist
Tribeca
Union Square
Upper East Side
Upper West Side
West Village
Williamsburg

Before leaving...

I'm so excited about moving, that I decided as motivation to get my loose ends tied up, I wouldn't update or post my resume until I have a certain list of items complete. Once they're done, I'll have more money and a clear head to focus on the job hunt.

Loose ends

Been kicking butt! I've wrapped up some loose ends and have really tied them up tight (I did a thorough job).

Telling everyone I know about my plan to move has been helpful - a lot of people have good insight and tips.

I got on http://www.sublet.com and looked at some pricing. It turns out that my $1400 plan is on the low end, but thankfully still doable. There are currently 40 sublets available in Manhattan for right around $1400. It will be easy to find 1.

How to spell Manhattan

You often see Manhattan spelled wrong. A year or two ago, I ran across a nice--and simple--way to remember the spelling: think of a Man in a Hat with a Tan. ManHatTan. Manhattan.

People usually regret leaving the city

A comment I found from a guy who left New York and had to come back. This was his reasoning:

Bagels. Buildings. Sunday New York Times that weigh five pounds and take you a week to finish. Get anything delivered at almost any time, day or night, often including less-than-strictly legal items or services (Manhattan only). Cabbies that know where they're going. Subways that get you places. Not needing a car. The Met, the MoMA, the Guggenheim, the Whitney, the AMNH, the AMMI, and those are just the ones of the top of my head. Those crazy street fairs where you go buy socks. Watching people drink deli coffee and then claim to prefer it. Walking fast, talking faster. Patience and Fortitude. Sunset behind Manhattan from the River Cafe. Knowing that SNL is actually filming right across town, so is The Daily Show and The Colbert Report and who knows how many crazy little films and shows and everything. Knowing that you can run into just about anyone. That first crisp fall day. That first big snow storm (and watching the delis run out of milk, cause you might be snowed in for a day - maybe even a day and a half.) That first gorgeous warm sunny spring day.

Finding the things you love about living here and then realizing that they outweigh the things you hate about living here.

Hotels on the cheap

I realized today that I needed a Plan B for my hotel stay. When I first get to the city, I'm planning to stay at Penington friends, but if they don't have a room available, I'll need a plan B.

Ask and ye shall receive! I ran across it as I was browsing through NYC blogs: http://www.newyorkmetro.com/urban/guides/nyonthecheap/travel/hotels.htm

Applying for a job before the move

If you are like me, you'd want to have a job before you get to the city. In that case you'd need a local address for your resume. Most recruiters will ignore out-of-state resumes because they don't want to deal with arranging interviews for you and/or dealing with relocation issues.

So if one is to apply before one moves, one will need a local address. I've found just the thing!

For $15/mo, I have a Fifth Avenue address to use on my resume--and to receive mail at--compliments of NYMail.

Got my first recruiter call!

I got my first voicemail from a recruiter today! I posted my resume on Monster on Saturday, so I'll take it as a good sign that I got a call the very next Monday. WooooHooooo!

I'm glad I missed the call, because it gave me time to let it sink in that I might actually be getting a job in New York City. I realized that I didn't know when I'd be able to fly up for an interview, or what I'd tell the recruiter when he asked why I was in Dallas. You can bet I've got that all figured out now!

If asked about Dallas, I'll tell them the truth: that I've been working here in Dallas for the last few years, but that I've been wanting to move to New York City for a while now. I've got all of my things packed, I've got a place to live once I get there, and all I need before hopping on the plane is a job.

Of course, it's an hour later in New York City, so by the time I called him back they were closed. Tomorrow feels so far away.

Got my second recruiter contact!

I talked to the first recruiter today, and the job was, eh... a decent fit. We're going to send the client my resume and see what they say.

In the meantime, I've already received contact number two! An email from a recruiter with a job description which is a much better fit. Hope to hear back from him soon...

Praise be to Monster.com!

The address works!

Well, having a local address works. Both recruiters have asked me if I was in Dallas or NY. The second one said "Oh ok, so you do already have a place to live" as if to say "Good, because if you didn't we wouldn't be talking". Even after that, he grilled me about how quickly I could be ready to go, to which I replied that I was already packed and was even staying in an extended-stay hotel until I found a job.

Needless to say, I'm glad I got a NY address to put on my resume!

Recruiter #3 and 4!

My phone is blowing up. This rocks.

A word of gratitude

With all of these job opportunities coming my way, I thought it appropriate to take a minute to give thanks for a life-changing decision I made a while back. I was at a loss for direction in my career, and was looking jumping ship to a new career. I seriously considered things like teaching English abroad; careers which always seem to speak to those with ambition but seeking direction.

I looked at all the possible directions I could go, and one of them kept standing out as the most logical. What was it? It was sticking with my current career. I already had 7 years of experience in it. I was once passionate about it. It is/was a growing industry.

The problem was that I used to be passionate about it. I wanted a job that I was currently passionate about. So rather than try to find a new job that would make me passionate about my job, I started searching for ways to make me passionate about my current job. It was just a theory, but boy did it pay off. I started reading about the latest developments in my field, working with people who are passionate about the field, and focusing on my own personal growth within the field.

Here I am, three years later, with 10 years of career experience. Monster has a thing they call "Career Level". It goes: Student, Entry Level, Experienced (non-manager), Manager (manager/supervisor of staff), Executive (SVP, VP, Department Head), and Senior Executive (President, CFO, etc). I nearly ticked off Manager after my experience running my own business (but decided to hold back for one more year on that). Even so, one of the recruiters told me to tout my experience in that because it might lead to a 20k/yr boost in salary.

Can you imagine where I'd be if I had jumped ship three years ago?

Hmm, to take a lesser job or not to take a lesser job...

I have two more opportunities today. They are both below my current
skill (and pay) level.

Now, I've always been one to believe in the mercenary approach to jobs. Corporations have few qualms about cutting talent and hiring talent as the budget allows, so in today's world there is no reason, as an employee, to have qualms about taking higher paying jobs for the sake of your own budget.

Even so, it bugs me a bit to think about taking the low-hanging fruit, all the while knowing that I'm just going to toss it and go for something better the first chance I get. I think I'll make it policy that it has to pay at least 15% better than the last one before I'll make the hop.

100% Travel

Being courted by one of the Big 6 consulting firms. 100% travel. Big salary (25% more than my current), sign on bonuses and year-end bonuses. 100% travel...

I think of all people, I'm best suited for one of these positions. I'm easygoing, love new things, always pack light anyway, and don't mind spending time alone (read: airports and hotels). I can explore new cities on weeknights and relax with friends back home on the weekends. Word on the street is this firm likes to make their consultants work nights and weekends. I don't work nights and weekends, so I might get fired not long after I take the job.

But it would be fun in the meantime.

Stories from a NYC cabbie

New York Hack: Pictures from a New York City cab driver

Navigating NYC

Well, I keep running across little navigation tips so rather than try to memorize them, I'm going to start listing them here.

Streets run east/west.
Avenues run north/south.

The further North you go, the higher the street number.
The further West you go, the higher the avenue number.

The numbers range from 1st and 1st up to 145th and 7th.

Odd numbered addresses are on the south/east side of the street, evens on the north/west.

As a general rule, odd numbers streets are one-way West, evens are one-way East.

Bam! First on-site interview

I have my first on-site interview on Tuesday, with a bigname music website's design team. I'm booking the flight now (Saturday morning to Tuesday night for $250). I put a call in to my favorite bed and breakfast. Now I just need to line up a plan B hotel in case the bed and breakfast doesn't call back.

W00t!

update: the Bed and Breakfast called back. $60/night, in Greenwich Village, including breakfast and dinner. NICE. They didn't have a room on Monday night though, so I'll have to see what I can find for Monday.

Simplify!

I've accomplished a life dream tonight.

Four years ago, I moved out of my house in Houston with a 24' (the largest) Ryder truck completely full of my belongings. After the nightmare of packing that up and unpacking it, I swore I would reduce the clutter in my life down to just the necessities.

Well, tonight, I have just the necessities, all fit snug inside two pieces of luggage. And it feels great.

Start spreading the news...

I'm in New York City! Hopefully for good, but we'll see how this week's interviews go.

I was able to carry all of my possessions with me. I slung my tablet PC over my shoulder, put on my overcoat, and picked up the other two bags. Voila! Ready to move anywhere in the world.

The flight was uneventful, aside from New Yorker sitting next to me on the flight. I looked over at one point and was shocked to see some eyes looking back at me from her purse! Turns out, she had brought her little puppy, Thumper, with her on the flight. One and a half pounds. Slept the whole way, except for when he needed to go to the restroom. Then she just took him to the plane's bathroom, came back, and back to sleep he went. When we landed, he started to get excited, and she held him like a teddy bear and rubbed his belly. Cutest dog I've ever seen.



On the ride from the airport, I followed along on Google Maps. I had an internet connection the whole time, even when we drove through the Queens Midtown Tunnel! The fare for that tunnel ride was $4.50. Quite a difference from the 75 cent tolls in Dallas. Right before we entered the tunnel, I had an awesome view of the midtown buildings. It was cloudy and raining, which cast the city in a wicked gray color. Welcome to Gotham City.

I arrived at the Penington Friends House, and was immediately greeted by Joshua, Jesse, and Doan, three of the residents. I was shown to my room, which was a regular resident room since their guest rooms were both full. I have pieced togther a panoramic shot of my room as it looked once I'd settled in (works best if you look at it from right to left):


Now for some shots from my room's window. The third picture is from yesterday (Saturday-cloudy), the fourth picture is from a few minutes ago. Also, in the second photo, you can see how the school next door built a basketball court on the roof.


For my first meal in the city, I looked up pizza near 215 E 15th St and found a highly rated little pizza joint (Mariella Pizza) right up the street. This photo below shows the two slices I ended up getting. Even the olives, which I normally don't like, were good.

I spent the afternoon chatting with Joshua, Jesse, and Doan, the residents who greeted me when I arrived. I volunteered to help with the chores, and just generally got to know Penington. By the evening, Joshua had asked me if I was interested in living at a place like Penington, and Doan had invited me to a play. I'm still thinking about what it would be like to live at Penington.

In the meantime, I joined Doan and Jesse for the play. It was at The Flea Theater, an off-off broadway theater in TriBeCa. I have heard that "off broadway" just means the theater is small, and off-off means really small. That seemed to hold true; it was a pretty small theater. The show was really well written and acted. It's message wasn't new to me, so I didn't enjoy it as a "gained a new perspective" play, but it was definitely worth seeing (it was free! Thanks Doan!). Some shots from the theater before the show:

Restaurant Diversity

The restaurant diversity is already amazing me. Last night, I joined Jesse and Doan from the Penington and Beth from The Flea for dinner. We went to a Vietnamese restaurant in TriBeCa. The waitress was very fitting in both her demeanor and appearance. The menu was in Vietnamese, with english captions. We ordered various specials, and my god! mine was good. It was absolutely delicious.

For an afternoon meal today, I had Jamaican Oxtail, an authentic carribean dish from Daphne's. It, too, was delicious. Both meals ran me $10 after tip.

Of course, the first thing I did was find a local health inspection website. Thankfully, the restaurants I've eaten at so far passed by a wide margin.

Historic TriBeCa

Yesterday was an absolutely beautiful day here in the city. I celebrated it by going on a walking tour of TriBeCa (Triangle Below Canal street).

Apparently, they're considering discontinuing that tour because too few people request it as a private tour. So I was one of the lucky people to go on it before it goes away.

1. The first picture shows how beautiful the day was as I walked to the tour meeting spot.
2. The second picture shows the group standing by the fence around Washington Market Park.
3. The third picture is a shot of the buildings looking down Greenwich St (which used to run along the water before the landfilling began!). The tallest building in photo #3 is the first in the series of replacement buildings for the World Trade Center.
4. The fourth photo is a row of tiny Federal style homes, historically protected against change, which were juxtaposed against much, much taller buildings all around.
5. The fifth photo, is of the building where JFK Jr. lived.
6. The final photo is the garage which was used in the Ghostbusters movie.

The Big Apple!

The Penington had all of its guest rooms full yesterday and today. I asked around, and Kathy from the Penington was full of suggestions for places to stay around town. The second one I tried, the Leo House, had a room available for Monday and Tuesday for $65/night. So off I went to the Leo House.

This is the grocery store which is just down the street from the Leo House. The fresh fruits and vegetables enticed me to go inside.

A cool old book I found lying around the Leo House lounge. It was written in the 40's!

Here's where I would be working if my interview went as well as it seemed to.

More accurately, here's where I would be working. 10th floor above Radio City Music Hall.

I'm finding that New York City is much more comfortable for me than I expected. I guess that comfort is coming from a combination of reading about it, having visited a few times, being commited to living here, and being more confident and outgoing than I used to be. Transportation has been a breeze. The subway even made sense the very first time I got on it.

Today I learned that there are a few subway stops in town where two trains will be at the station at once, and a sign tells you which one is leaving next. Sadly, I wasn't on the one which was leaving next, so I had to wait 15 minutes. No big deal, I just worked on War and Peace while waiting. I also learned that when there are four tracks at a subway stop, the two inner-most tracks are express trains. I was already aware that local trains stop more often whereas express trains only hit the major stops, but I didn't know how to tell them apart.

It's all coming together in my new home.

Whole Foods Market

I had just walked out of the place I'm staying now, the Seafarers & International House, looking for some lunch, when I spotted a familiar sight:


Whole Foods! So I went in and had a nice baby greens mixed salad with dried cranberries, walnuts, almonds and chipotle ranch. Yum. For an entree, I had chicken tiki masala with naan over vegetable biryani, an Indian dish. YUM. It was entertaining trying to get my food, because I was constantly being jostled about and waiting for the herd to move so I could squeeze in. Whole Foods in Plano could only dream about being this busy:

There were about 10 lines in the staging area, with three employees calling out register numbers to the people standing on line. A lot like Fry's Electronics. The sitting area is upstairs, and affords a nice view of Union Square, which was sunnier than it looks in the first picture (a cloud must have gone over):


In NYC, it feels like every day is a parade. Every street corner has 20 people on it waiting to cross. Those last two pictures of Union Square were at lunchtime - packed. I can definitely see where NYC would not be enjoyable if you are shy or combative in nature. For me, I have yet to get a reaction from someone here that I wouldn't have seen in Dallas. When I'm nice to people, they are nice back. In fact, they seem to be even nicer! Not a single person has been rude to me yet. I've interacted with about 30 so far. I had my tablet with me in Whole Foods, which led to me entertaining three people with it, one of which I had an extended conversation with. Michael was his name, and he works at a library in the city. Overall, I've found people here in NYC to be incredibly normal and friendly. It's like they say: "Smiles are the universal language".

I spotted another familiar sight on Tuesday, near The Leo House:


Home Depot! I was talking with someone about it recently. Maybe Jesse. He found it really funny that there is a Home Depot in Manhattan. Rumor has it, they didn't bother to put in a lumber section.


There are water towers above most of the buildings in town. The Big Onion tour guide said they are there because it's tough to keep water pressure pumped up to rooms in tall buildings. It's easier to steadily pump it into the water towers, and then let gravity work its magic when people turn on the faucets.


A chance encounter. I've heard about Big Apple Greeters for years. I tried to get one last year when I visited, but no one was available at the time. Anyhow, pictured above is a Big Apple Greeter (on the right) who was welcoming a couple of tourists at the Leo House. She talked for about 20 minutes straight without taking a breath. The guy looked like he was about to pass out from listening for so long! I don't know if she just had that much to share or if she was talking out of nervousness. Either way, it was cool to actually see a Big Apple Greeter. I guess I'll never go on a tour with one of them, because at this point I know a ton about the city's basics already.

I hopefully will have another interview today, and from the sounds of the phone interview, it will be a shoe-in.

Does NYC really live up to the hype?

See what a few people have to say to the question, "Does New York City really live up to the hype? Is it really that good?"

http://www.43places.com/entries/view/176729

I'll summarize:
"Yes."
"Yup-most certainly."
"Yes, yes it is."
"In some ways yes, definitely. In other ways, no."
"Oh my, yes!"
"personally.. yeah!"
"Yes. It lives up to all the hype."
"I think it does, and I'm not easily impressed."
"Yeah, it does"
"Yes - NYC is that good."
"The scary part is that New York is as good as you've heard, if not better."
"NYC is simply breath taking."
"Yes, yes, yes, yes, yes. I love New York the way some people love chocolate."
(etc. 47 responses)

One weekend's excursions

The guy pictured at the bottom of the stairs was stealing magazines from Whole Foods. He had them folded in half in his back pocket, but didn't realize they were sticking up at a 45 degree angle; making the back of his sweater poke out like he had a dagger stuck in his back. I decided for certain that he was stealing them when he not-so-subtly stretched the sweater further down over them as he walked out of the door. Nothing I could do about it but chuckle and snap a quick photo.



A shot looking north up Irving Pl from the roof of the Seafarers & International House on 15th street. I didn't feel comfortable leaning my camera phone further out, or you'd be able to see further up the street. Quite the sight, despite Gramercy park's trees blocking the view. Gramercy park is an interesting thing in itself. It is surrounded by a fence, and the only people who have keys to the gate are the people living directly next to it. Needless to say, the park is beautiful and the people living directly next to it definitely look like old money. Two blocks South of where I'm at and you might think you're in the ghetto (as my cousin Jami commented). Two blocks north and you've got millionaires around Gramercy Park. That's New York for you!



Same rooftop, looking east down 15th street. The other side of the intersection, where the cars are waiting for the green light, is in front of the Penington Friends House, where I hope to live (just put in my application today!).



Now looking west over Union Square. Union Square is a fun little place. It's surrounded by some great little shops and restaurants, and even a few chains that I like such as Whole Foods Market and Barnes & Noble Booksellers. I can't wait to go into the Barnes & Noble here. It was very cool looking (picture coming soon). You can order a book online, and receive it same day in Manhattan. How cool is that? Getting back to Union Square: I mentioned in a previous post that it often feels like a parade in NYC. One of the places which makes me feel that way is Union Square. It's been packed since I got here (probably because I arrived with the spring weather). There are people with stands selling artwork all through the square.



Looking at this picture, one might think "aren't there any windows in the inside rooms?". My cousin Jami came to town on Saturday, and it was something she and I discussed briefly at one point. For the next 24 hours, it freaked me out looking at the apartment buildings crammed next to eachother. Are there any windows in the inner apartments? Lo and behold, the next day I went on a Big Onion walking tour and the tour guide spent some time talking about apartment innovations. Apparently, in the old days of apartments, there were no windows on the inner rooms.

Because of all of the immigration, what was originally designed as a one-family apartment often turned into a six family apartment, with numerous families crowding into the inner rooms. In 1879, the city stepped in and required the use of the "dumbell" design, which allowed air and some light down between the buildings. Modern-day apartment buildings have a huge square cut out of the middle, allowing enough room for a courtyard between the buildings. A picture of the dumbell design (right):



The Mall


From what I've heard, there is only one mall in Manhattan (another reason NYC is great!), the Manhattan Mall. I went in there to hit up the Brookstone and purchase a rockin' Pocket Umbrella, complete with a wind valve at the top (to prevent inverted--and consequently, broken--umbrellas when gusts of wind hit), teflon coating, and a stronger aluminum frame. Plus, it folds down to about the size of a 16oz soda bottle for easy transportation. Umbrellas are a huge part of life in NYC, because you walk everywhere. If you want to see commerce in action here, just watch how there are suddenly umbrella salesmen everywhere when it starts raining.



Not very often you see a boy running a water fountain for a pigeon.



Oh, the irony of this tourist photo.



Umm...



Some of the subway stations have these excellent maps which actually show the shape and size of the underground subway stations. It can be disorienting walking out of the same subway station you walked into just that morning, but find yourself two blocks from where you originally went in!

Subway Musicians




You know your music is good when you get the bums up and dancing! I've made it a policy to always give subway musicians a dollar. I love hearing live music while I wait, and I figure if they make money doing it they'll keep doing it. So they always get a buck from me. Two if they're playing classical.



There's a blurry camera-phone shot of Jami in Central Park. It was a beautiful, albeit borderline hot day in the city. I've noticed that anything below about 55 here is cold, and anything above 75 is hot. Good to know since I'm outdoors so much here. I've already had two sunburns! Need to grab some sunblock next time I walk by Duane Reade, the city's favorite drugstore.



Jami and I went to the American Museum of Natural History. The photo above is a snapshot of the Butterfly Exhibit, where you walk through the inside of the butterfly habitat. It's the second time I've been to this museum, and it definitely won't be the last. The best part both times was the show in the Space Theater. This time, it was Cosmic Collisions. IMAX doesn't hold a candle to this:




Sunday:
Today I went on a walking tour of the Jewish Lower East Side. The first jewish immigrants to New Amsterdam (as New York was called in the 1600s) arrived in the 1630s. There were 23 of them, and their immigration was not pleasant. They had just fled Brazil when their ship was pirated by privateers. They were then dumped off in New Amsterdam, where Stuvyesant, the current governor, petitioned to have them sent away. The Dutch West India Company, then owners of New Amsterdam, forced Stuvyesant to keep them there as long as they were willing to work. Needless to say, they weren't welcome. As if that weren't enough, they were then sued by the privateers for the cost of the "passage" to New Amsterdam.



This is one of the oldest bank buildings in the Lower East Side. In the bottom picture, the tall curly haired dude is Konstantine, a guy who moved here on a whim 6 months ago. He's originally from Russia, was moved to California when he was 7, then on a jeep trip cross country drove into NYC. He had planned to live in San Francisco, but once he got here he "just stayed". Just to the right of him is Megan, the tour guide. All of the Big Onion tour guides are history majors, and so far all of them have been very passionate tour guides. Megan was no exception.



"You know you're in Chinatown when..."

We went through Chinatown during the Jewish history tour. The reason for that is that Chinatown used to be as Jewish as it is now Chinese.

One of the things I learned on the tour is that the buildings with stoops (like many brownstones) were built by the richer residents of Manhattan back in the horse days. With as many as a quarter million horses in Manhattan, there was a huge problem with keeping the streets clean. It was made worse by the fact that at the time, there were no street cleaning crews. On top of that, if a workhorse died in the street, there was usually nothing the owner could do but walk away. Because of the weight of a dead horse, no one else could carry the horse away either. Apparently, when the city finally did institute street cleaning, there were some places where the cobblestones were many feet deep below the "street level". So when you see stairs leading up to a building, it's because the richer residents wanted to be as far away from the street as possible. I don't blame them!



Here's why you don't bring a car to Manhattan. Parking is at such a premium, it's actually cost effective to install multi-car lifts on the paid parking lots! I didn't look at the price per hour to park there, but I can only imagine it was astronomical.



Sho, this one's for you: some italian ice.



Real New Yorkers are never caught without something to read. You spend a lot of time waiting for subway trains and riding subway trains. May as well put them to good use! I'm quite a way into War and Peace now that I've moved here.



To finish off the day, I played chess with a Chess Master. I actually did pretty good! To an outsider, and to me, it looked like a good game. He says that he thought I knew what I was doing, up until the eleventh move. Then he had me.

Day-to-day services

Now that I know where I'll be living, I can put more effort into finding day-to-day services. Here's what I've found so far:

Laundry: Chip's cleaners. For $10, I can get 8 lbs of clothes washed and folded (about a week's worth for me). Same day if I bring it in before 9am, 24 hours if brought in later than 9am.

Supplies: Duane Reade. Everything I need for supplies, plus a 99 cent ATM.

Haircut: Albert Hairstylist. It cost $25 for my cut there today, but man was he good! He even took a straight razor to the edges of the haircut and put witch hazel on it to keep it from reddening.

Food: I'm still exporing the neighborhood's food spots. I've ruled out Joe Jr diner, and am not entirely thrilled with the pizza place that I visited when I first arrived. I think I can do better! Whole Foods is always there as my mainstay.

Exercise: There is a NYSC gym right down the street. I'm going to check them out.

Books: B&N, right down the street!

Did I mention that all of this stuff is right down the street? Ah, NYC.

So many great restaurants!

A list of restaurants I've been to and/or want to go to. Roughly in the order I heard about them:

... ... (The vietnamese place I first went to when I got here, I need to find out the name of it!)
Daphne's (Jamaican food, right across the block from me. Quite good)
Barocco Kitchen (great pot pies and sandwiches)
Friend of a Farmer Cafe
Choshi
L'Express
Musette
Piccoloz
Olympic Diner
Pink Pony
Chat N Chew (visited 4/19. BLT and Mashed Potatoes. Yumm!!)
Galaxy Global Eatery (visited 4/21. Wild exotic variations on standard dishes, e.g. wasabi mashed potatoes. Good vegetarian choices too.)
Chinos
Paquito's
Mumbles
Gramercy Cafe
The Cottage
Zen Palate
Rainbow Room
Basta Pasta
Delmonico's

New York Songlines

Just ran across this website, with which you can go down Manhattan streets and read about what's on the streets. It doesn't mention the Penington, but it does talk about the Quaker house next door. It mentions that the original Governor Stuvyesant persecuted the Quakers! I'm going to have to find out more about that.

http://www.nysonglines.com/

New York Historical Society

Today, I joined the New York Historical Society. The Big Onion supports the N-YHS, and I'm looking forward to delving deeper into NY history with both Big Onion and N-YHS. This passage from the website nearly brough a tear to my eye:

The Historical Society regularly plays host to the most eminent historians, writers, and thinkers in the nation. ... Speakers are attracted by our classic auditorium, by the relevance of their work to our mission, and by the knowledge that they will be presenting to an intelligent, passionate and articulate audience.

Damn straight.

Experiences this week

Here is a shot of the Penington. The arrow points to what will be my window on the 1st of May. It's a cozy little room, right next to the third floor's three bathrooms. Some of the rooms have beds high up off the floor with ladders going to them, but I chose against that because it makes the bed hard to get to. I only need three things: a bathroom, a computer desk, and a bed. As long as they are all easy to use and get to, I'm as content as a pig in mud.



Chips cleaners. They're 5 doors down from the Penington. They wash and fold my clothes for $10, which I can earn in under 15 minutes working on a website. If I do my own clothes, I'd have to find quarters for the washer and dryer, then use $3-$4 dollars in quarters. I'd spend my day hauling the clothes down, putting them into the washer, making sure the washer doesn't stall due to imbalance, moving them over into the dryer, cleaning out the lint filter, and folding them. Not to mention having to keep a stock of detergent. Yay for Chips!


I was walking along when I stumbled upon my favorite building: the Flatiron building. This building has always captured my imagination, although I can't say exactly why. One opinion from around the web:

The Flatiron Building is a favorite of New Yorkers and admirers around the world, perhaps because it symbolizes so much of how New Yorkers see themselves: defiant, bold, sophisticated, and interesting--with just enough embedded grime and soot to highlight the details.

The Flatiron building, on 23rd street, is among the first skyscrapers to be built in NYC. With a then-revolutionary steel frame, it towered to 285 feet. With its odd wedge shape, coming to a point at only 6 feet wide, the Flatiron building was known for the unusual wind currents around it. Specifically, it was known in the early 1900s because those winds would cause women's skirts to fly around, exposing their legs which at the time were rarely seen publicly. This caused young men to loiter around, hoping for a glimpse. The local police had to shoo the men away, and were said to be giving them the 23 skidoo. This phrase has passed out of common usage, but it's descendant, the word "scram", is still in use today.


Caught this guy writing something on the pavement with chalk. Unfortunately, I never went back to see what he wrote, and it's raining all this week.


I finally figured my way around my own subway station. It's a weird one, and I could never seem to come out of the exit I wanted to. Not only does it have that odd shape, but it's three separate floors which twist and turn all about. I spent a few minutes walking around it today until I got my head around how to identify my favorite exit every time.


Coming back from the Chat 'n' Chew on Wednesday, I stumbled across a Farmers Market! In my very own Union Square! They're open year round, Monday, Wednesday, Friday, and Saturday, from 8am-6pm. I just had to buy some cat grass (I gave it to Doan and Jesse's cat, Dippy). I picked one from the back row which probably didn't get fondled as much.


Would you be able to resist? (they had a bunch of pictures of cats snuggling up to the grass, in case you thought you could resist)


Wednesday was a beautiful sunny April day in Union Square. After walking through the Farmer's market, I stopped at a table and ate my BLT and Mashed Potatoes. While leaving, I snapped some photos of the people who were doing the same. It wasn't until I came back and looked through the photos that I realized what a statement they made about the diversity of New York City.


Starting last Thursday, a week and a half ago, I began going to Toastmasters meetings. The first one was rather painful--there were 5 guests and only 2 club members there. Amazingly, the Lt. District Governor of Education and Training was there, and she ran the entire meeting practically herself. Even so, when she started asking the guests to join, they were less than enthusiastic. They were, however, enthusiastic about my request to collect their emails and start what was later dubbed "the Troupe", a group of us going around visiting a bunch of clubs until we found the best one. So far, the Troupe has visited 7 clubs and grown to 15 members! We have a Harvard graduate (Meeta), a finance grad working as a business analyst (Aaron), and more. We have at least 2 more clubs to visit and we've expanded the Troupe to include other meetings and excursions, including walking tours and a possible group trip to Tokyo!


After one of the club meetings, we went to Connolly's. Aaron, one of the founding members of the Troupe, declared that Connolly's pot pie was the "best he'd ever tasted". A few of us were very excited about that, until, upon further investigation, it turns out he had only ever had microwave pot pies.


Haha! I finally ran into one of the infamous New York Dog Walkers. These are people whose job it is to walk New Yorker's dogs while they work. New Yorkers are my kind of people - they believe in delegation!


On Thursday, a throng of people started a riot in the city! Well, ok, it was actually only 12 people, and they were only staging a peaceful protest against some new housing fees. Most people walked by like it was just another day in the city. Which it was.


The redhead in this photo is Elizabeth, the Big Onion tour guide for the day on Thursday. We did a tour of Immigrant New York, where we looked at the history of the Irish, German, Jewish, and Chinese immigrants to the city.


During the tour, we passed one of my earliest memories of NYC. Pictured here is the spot, under the steps to City Hall, where I first went on a Big Onion tour. It was the Brooklyn Bridge tour, and I had just come off of the plane. I actually hauled my luggage (one bag) around with me during the entire tour.


NYC is the place to be if you appreciate architecture.


Another "You know you're in Chinatown when..." picture.


The Nom Wah Tea Parlor (in the background, red sign) has been open since 1920. It was the first restaurant in the city to serve the now famous dim sum.


Hope you can read Cantonese. Or at least Mandarin.


Spotted in the Lower East Side. Apparently, there have been a rash of Harley thefts there.


Shannah! I found our dream restaurant - New York style Pizza, Falafel, and Ice Cream, all in one!


"You know you're in Times Square when..."


One might begin to wonder what exotic cuisine this throng of people is awaiting to partake:


Ah, it's the rare and exotic Dallas Barbeque.


A shot looking down Wall Street, and a shot looking at the interior, of the Trinity Church, right next to Ground Zero at the corner of Wall Street and Broadway. At a height of 281 feet, it was the tallest building in NYC for 50 years in the late 1800s.


Beth, the tour guide for Big Onion who guided us through the history of New York's Financial District.


A side shot of Charging Bull. This 7000 pound statue was built by an artist out of his own pocket for $380,000 in 1989. He trucked it down in the middle of the night and planted it outside of the New York Stock Exchange to rally the spirits of the stock brokers after the stock market crash of '87. The police impounded the statue, but after much public outcry it made its way to its temporary spot, a few blocks over, facing up Broadway. It is still sitting there, "temporarily", today.


Delmonico's, the oldest restaurant in the United States. It was opened in 1827. It moved around numerous times and changed hands numerous times, but the name lives on...


Subway trains get pretty full at rush hour. The guy on the right is just daring anyone else to try to get on...


A violinist in Grand Central Station. She stopped to thank me for my donation. The old guy standing next to her was instructing her. He was probably just a passerby, knowing New Yorkers!


After Friday's Toastmasters meeting, a huge group of us (14 people, 5 from the Troupe) went to the Jewel of India, an indian restaurant. I instructed a few people on some good starter Indian dishes, and purchased a nice bottle of Rosemount Shiraz to split among a few of us. In the end, I needn't have assisted with the Indian food, because it all came out very mild and very tasty! Everyone was passing around their serving dishes and trying out the various foods. It was excellent. We ended up with a $400 bill and when everyone had put in their money, it was $100 short. Turns out the waiter had asked us if we wanted the rice or the naan bread with our meals, making it sound like it was included, when in fact, it wasn't. I stayed out of the negotiations, but pitched in nearly triple my cost to help out. It was worth it to me, the evening was a ton of fun. I really got to know Aaron and Meeta much better. They are two of the founding members of the Troupe.


Here we are calling it a night after four hours...


On the way home, still chatting with four of the group, I walked into Grand Central Station and was stunned. I hadn't been in this part of Grand Central Station. The ceiling is huge, the room is huge, and there are constellations all across it.


David, the tour guide for today's Historic Harlem tour. Note the distinctive specimen of a New Yorker on the right - blackberry in hand, dog in jacket, knock-off Prada purse on arm, ready for the tour.

It was COLD and WET today. I wasn't prepared, and it kept getting colder as the wind picked up. Eventually I made a wrong turn into a nice warm subway station instead of following the group on the rest of the tour.

What a week! I'm going to bed.

Great Panorama of NYC

Taken from One Hanson Place, Brooklyn's tallest building: Panorama.

People to meet, everywhere!

An interesting thing happens when it starts to rain. Suddenly people go from needing 2 sq ft of space (their body width) to needing about 4 sq ft of space (their umbrella width). It makes for interesting games of dodge the umbrella. At one point, I was looking back waiting for some friends to catch up from the previous street. I turned around and caught an umbrella nearly in the eye. I think this is about the most danger I've been in since moving here!


What can I say, I'm easily amused. Spotted in Harlem.


A synagogue which suffered a roof collapse two months ago. This is directly across the street from the Tea cafe that I visited last Sunday. Speaking of, Sunday was an amazing example of what life can be like in NYC.

In the morning, I went to a Quaker meeting. The Quaker meeting room was set up with pews coming from all four walls, all facing the center which was empty. The idea is for everyone to sit in silence for an hour, waiting in "expectant silence" for divine leadings. If anyone is inspired to speak, they are free to do so. Only one person spoke during this particular meeting, although I hear that the 11:30am meeting is usually full of shared thoughts. I used the silent time to explore the origins of the universe, and ran into a few interesting questions which I'll want to research later on. I once heard that Stephen Hawking has so many amazing revalations about the origin of the universe simply because he spends so much time sitting still, thinking about it. Now, I can completely understand that.

After the meeting, I left for the Multi-ethnic eating tour. I arrived 30 minutes early, and coming out of the subway I ran into a guy who needed directions. His name was Tom, and he was interested in my phone (doubles as my PDA/wallet/camera/videocamera) which I was using to pull up a detailed map of the streets. We got to talking. It turns out he was on his way to a little tea cafe to meet an acquantance, and he invited me along. With 30 minutes to kill, I said "sure!". We arrived at Teany, which turns out to be a cafe started by Moby. Moby's ex-girlfriend, Kelly, started the cafe with him and now owns and runs it. She was there to chat with the three of us. Unfortunately, I had to bail out pretty quick and head to the walking/eating tour.

There, I got to know Brian and Sonya, who were the guide and guide-in-training, respectively. We sampled all sorts of ethnic food from the largely immigrant-populated Lower East Side. The samples included: Plantanos from a real Dominican chef. In fact, at one point, Big Onion had to skip this part of the tour because the chef had literally gone home to the Dominican Republic and was the only one who knew how to make the plantanos! Rugelach, a Jewish pastry. The choices were chocolate, raspberry, orange and cinnamon. I had the raspberry and cinnamon, which were both delicious. Pickles from the Pickle Guys. They were quite a bit different--and better--than the typical pickles you buy.

We also had Dim Sum in Chinatown, where we walked past a statue of Confuscious. Finally, we finished the tour with some fresh Mozzarella balls and Parmesan chunks in Little Italy. Overall, the tour was excellent. Afterwards, I was chatting with a group of 7 people from the tour who were thinking about stopping somewhere for some coffee.

I told them about this great little Tea shop which was right near the start of the tour, and consequently, their parking spots too. Yep, you guessed it, I showed back up at the same Tea shop where Kelly (Moby's ex-gf) had seen me earlier in the day with two people I had just met. This time, I was bringing 7 people I had just met! They all tried the TeanyChino, the incredibly delicious tea I'd had earlier that morning, and all of them loved it. I had to leave this party early too.

I was off to meet a group of people from 43things.com, who all share the goal of "organize a 43Things meetup in NYC (or nearby)". There ended up being three of us there after a nasty thunderstorm in the morning made the rest of the attendees a little hesitant to come out (thankfully, it had stopped raining during all of my outings that day!). After meeting and getting to know them for an hour, we all went our separate ways.

I ended up at the Penington, having dinner with half of the house on a rare night that the dining room was completely full. I made plans with some of the residents to go to the Annual Ben and Jerry's Free Cone Day on Tuesday, then went to bed.

What a fun day. And to think...
I used to be the classic introvert.

New York Experiences #5

#3 in the "You know you're in Chinatown when..." Series


New York has this wonderful habit of crossing subcultures. Here, you see the crossing of those who don't eat meat and those who like to eat samples of various Chinese foods.


In the first photo, I was attempting to stand in front of this example of New York Juxtaposition. More and more, as I learn more of the city's history, I spot interesting juxtapositions of buildings, such as Two-story Federal style buildings from around 1800 on cobble-stone streets next to sixty-two-story glass buildings, etc. In the first photo, the actual building was a bit left of where I was standing. But I captured it in the second: a tiny six-story brown building at the bottom left, below a monstrous modern glass building. Both beautiful in their own way.


One of the deserts at the Penington. Delicious!


On my first day at my new job, I walked out onto 8th avenue, planning to look all around for a good restaurant. I didn't have to look far! The second one I looked at was Pita Grill, a place which apparently had just opened and which was a beautiful sight to someone like me who enjoys mediterranean food. I ended up with the vegetarian platter, pictured here, with falafel, hummus, babaganoush, and dolma on top of lettuce and some tasty little tomatoes (I love tomatoes). Made for one heck of a first-day lunch at my new job!


A few shots from inside my office. The first one is the sitting area, where the wall on the left is a huge plate of glass with water trickling down it for some peaceful sounds. The second one is a shot looking at the start of the cubicle rows.


My clothes, fresh from Chips Cleaner's. That stack represents every piece of clothing I own, except for my suit, overcoat, and the clothes I had on that day. There's actually a towel and a jacket hiding in the stack too.


It's fascinating watching people wait for this incredibly slow elevator which takes them one floor. I'm sure a lot of them have good reason for taking it. Right?


Anna, Katie, Kathy, and Holly from the Penington. I talked them into joining me for Ben & Jerry's Free Cone Day. They didn't put up much of a fight.


My first work meeting. The woman in the center-right of the middle photo is my boss' boss, Regina. She controls the budget. I was the only person who wasn't behind a wall of old-school laptop--I was pimpin' my slate Tablet PC!


As I sat in the Winter Garden between Two World Trade and Three World Trade (the two rightmost buildings in this photo), a little boy boldly sat next to me and kept asking "whatcha doing?" in a thick accent. His parents smiled and spoke things to him in another language. At one point he opened a small package and pulled out a seaweed smelling treat which he gleefully ate while frequently saying "eat! eat!".


The woman on the left here was up to no good. A minute before, her seat had been occupied by a weasely-looking guy in a suit. He was so weasely-looking, that I couldn't help but watch him out of the corner of my eye. As a result, I was probably the only person who observed him get up from his seat and walk to another seat a little ways away, ostensively tapping something into his PDA on the way. Additionally, I was probably the only person to watch the woman I photographed sit down in the guy's old seat and slide his red duffle-bag underneath herself. Basically, it looked like some sort of big money or drug exchange.


This guy was playing a hip-hop/rap song on a flute. Strange, but very interesting.


Living here has certainly been the first time I've stayed in an 11th floor hotel room and opened the window to this!


Yes indeed. Spotted at a garden show in Union Square (different from the Farmer's Market held there every other day).


If you look closely, someone scaled the statue of George Washington and hung a flower basket from it. Those cooky gardeners...


I take interest when I walk out of the front door and see this. Turns out, there was a huge anti-war protest going down Broadway. It made page 41 of the Metro Times... I guess anti-war protests are old news.


The anti-war protest on Broadway in SoHo. Look who's leading this section of the parade, fellow Quakers! (I live in a Quaker residence and share many views).


The old police headquarters, built right in the middle of the then-worst area of Manhattan. The idea was to put it right in the middle of the crime. It was designed to be very impressive looking, to let the criminals know the police were on the job. It didn't work.

Now, the police headquarters are in a new building, and this old headquarters? You guessed it, luxury condominimums. Cindy Crawford and a few other big names have lived there.


A building in Greenwich Village. Apparently, after a building burnt down, they pulled the bricks from the rubble and used them in the reconstruction. Very cool!


Manhattan's narrowest rowhouse. This building was originally built in an alleyway, and at one point served as a candy factory! Formerly lived in by Edna St. Vincent Millay, famous for penning the quote "burning the candle at both ends", a phrase which is still in common usage today.


Former residence of Aaron Burr.


During a tour of Greenwich Village, we passed some camera men on our way to talk about the Stonewall Tavern, a gay bar where, in 1969, eight NYPD officers raided it. Only this time, the clubgoers fought back, which sparked a three day riot which is considered by many to be the beginning of the gay rights movement. What's odd though, is that as Tim was telling us the story, the camera men came over and set up right behind him. Then an old guy walked up next to Tim and started blowing smoke at him. He went on with his tour as if nothing was happening, but I can't help but feel like we were on a modern version of Candid Camera.


Guess who officially resides at the Penington?


Bad lighting, but that's a photo of a statue of Gandhi in Union Square.


A man walking his very old cat. They took so long to cross the street that the light changed halfway across. They didn't mind though, they just kept on walking.

New York Experiences #6

Rough week this week. I picked up a sinus and throat bacterial infection, which put a damper on my New York excursions. I've pretty much kicked it though, just the tiniest bit of it left. In the end, I came away with some knowledge about Air Purifiers, which apparently are a must for anyone with allergies. To quote the doctor I went to see, "it'll change your life". Now to find somewhere in Manhattan to buy one...


There was a blockbuster at the corner of the block--the closest business to the Penington. I'm happy to see they've relocated. Hopefully something interesting will move in their stead.


I can't believe how often I walk outside and find something huge going on. On this particular day, as I was walking by Union Square, I heard a loud, rallying voice and noticed the square was filled with thousands of people. I decided to walk through the crowd and see what it was all about. It was filled with illegal immegrants protesting for more rights.

I heard someone else put it quite well, something like: "In New York, we frequently have huge events which in any other city would have the whole town involved. Things like celebrity stunts, visits from foreign leaders, parades, marches... Here, things like that happen all of the time and you might not even hear about it!"


Tom, the guy I met coming out of the Subway on his way to a tea shop, invited me to a Jazz performance at the National Arts Club, an exclusive club near Gramercy Park. I put on my suit and walked on over. It turned out to be a really great night! The club is beautiful, filled to the brim with paintings, sculptures and the like. The performance was very entertaining. The highlights were a 10 year old violin prodigy who played very well and even broke out into song a few times, and Tom's own daughter, Sarah, singing a Gershwin piece and "Somewhere Over the Rainbow".


A picture of Tom and Sarah, both quite the Jazz dancers.


A picture of Tom and Sarah, with Moby.


That red sign says "No Clearance in Niche". A warning to people thinking they can stand by the tracks until the train comes by, then try to hide in the 4" deep niche. I only hope the sign was put up as a precautionary measure, rather than a reactionary one.


More New-York-speak. Instead of saying "Please swipe your debit card" at ATMs, they say "Please dip your debit card". After seeing some older style ATMs, I speculate that it came from those early ATMs having the card reader mounted vertically, so you literally seemed to be "dipping" your card down into it. The phrase seems to have stuck.


A true New York review.


A much better shot of the nice 2nd floor cafe in the Whole Foods by my house.


I've been trying to find good health insurance here in New York. As a freelancer, there aren't (m)any good options.


That's one way to carry your suit!


A very bad shot of Rafael Vinoly. I went and saw him speak at the National Arts Club.


Great advice from MTA.


Buildings disappearing into the clouds at night...


A shot of the Penington residents enjoying a hard-earned lunch after our spring cleaning.

Well, these are true too

"New York has relentless energy: it's an island of type-A personalities."

Kent Barwick, president of the Municipal Art Society

New York Moments #7

This is a before shot of my room at the Penington. The first thing I did was haul the dresser out of the room, which cleared up a ton of floor space and makes the room feel... well, roomy.


I went with some friends to watch Mission Impossible 3. The Tom jokes seemed to never end, and I couldn't resist a photo of Tom giving Georgina the "look". She was too busy with her phone call to figure out why we were all chuckling. The movie theater here is called "Leows". It was so packed that people were sitting on the stairs which lead up to the seats. Can't say I blame them; frankly, I think it was a good idea to sit there instead of in the neck-breaking front-row seats.


The view from the rooftop patio at the Penington. That's the Met Life building at the left with the gold statue on the top, and the Empire State Building in the distance.


A manly man...


Ok, maybe not.


Sarah and Ken. I decided to have some decent photos of myself taken, finally, and Sarah was my photographer. We had a great time during the shoot. She even went so far as to call me a ham! What a compliment for someone who used to be an introvert. This photo was taken at Seoul Garden, a little Korean restaurant tucked away on the 2nd floor in K-town (Korean town) near 32nd and Broadway in Manhattan.


This is what they ordered. Boiling hot bowls, which you crack an egg into and let the egg cook before eating. Very cool! I ordered the Bi Bim Bop, which I highly recommend to anyone visiting a Korean restaurant. Mine was "mountain herbs" on a bed of white rice, with an over-easy egg on top. You eat Bi Bim Bop by pouring in some hot sauce and mixing all the ingredients together. Fun and very tasty!


Korean restaurants bring out a bunch of small bowls with various foods to sample before your meal.


You know you've found a good one when you're the only non-Koreans in the place!


Branwen, this one's for you! The Lobster Place. Inside of Chelsea Market. Chelsea Market rocks, especially the soups and salads at Hale and Hearty Soups and the brownies at the Fat Witch Bakery.


What could interest a French girl in camouflage pants so much that she'd stop on the subway stairs to take pictures while laughing hysterically?


Oh, that.


The latest in rain-proof fashionwear?


It was a really odd sight to see a gas station! I realized I hadn't seen a single one in the city before seeing this one.


The dessert at One. That ice cream "scoop" is about the size of a golf ball. Tasty though!


Home sweet home! Taken from the plane on a weekend visit back to Dallas.


The police are always up to something in NYC.


Now that's a catch! Pulled out of the Hudson by a guy fishing from the Hoboken waterfront. He said they planned to eat it.


A street fair which we (myself and Shannah, pictured) stumbled across upon walking out of my house. Great prices! From what I can tell, it was all goods brought straight up from Chinatown.


A Blue Man from the Blue Man Group. What an awesome show. It makes a lot of fascinating statements and explorations into human nature. Without saying a word. I also got to see Wicked and Avenue Q that weekend, both excellent shows and quite the contrast not only from eachother but from Blue Man Group as well. Wicked is deep, thought provoking, and very... musical. Avenue Q is hilarious, over-the-top, and has muppets in it. I highly recommend them all! If you're an engineer type, see Blue Man Group. If you like shows like Chicago, see Wicked. If you like things like stand up comedy, see Avenue Q.


Cabs are... plentiful. Taken from the top floor corner suite at the Westin, looking down at the Port Authority Bus Terminal.


The view of the Empire State Building from the Westin.


Towards the Hudson from the Westin.


These dudes rocked the house (subway) with only a door and a box. The guy on the left sat on the box and made bass drum beats, while the guy on the right tap danced the tune on a piece of a door. I gave them a $1 and a $10. That's hard work tap dancing like that!


It's funny, you see the Empire State Building from all around, and it seems pretty tall, but until you walk off of the PATH train in Hoboken and turn the corner to see it TOWERING over midtown, you haven't really seen it at all. I have a new-found respect and love for it.

New York Moments #8

Well, you can't live this close to Washington, DC, and not go visit!


For my first visit, I decided to splurge and ensure that it would be a comfortable journey. Rather than taking the Chinatown bus ($20), staying at the Quaker residence ($40), and doing a self-guided tour (free), I chose instead to take the Amtrak train ($168), stay at the Hilton Garden Inn ($160), and take a two-day Grayline guided bus tour ($180 for two people). I don't regret the decision one bit - because my first experience with Washington was most enjoyable and absolutely painless.


An interior shot of the train. The train is spacious, comfortable, and smooth. In fact, it's so smooth that you won't even notice when it takes off. It smooth enough that you can walk around anytime you like, and they don't even have seatbelts! There's even a cafe car, where you can sit at tables and dine while the scenery rushes past, just like I always see in the movies.


This is the subway in Washington DC. All of the subway stations I entered looked like this - a concrete tunnel. The exit from this particular station (Dupont Circle) was particularly ominous, with loooong escalators. Thankfully, there were multiple escalators and people stood to the right, so you could actually walk up them. I usually feel like the odd one out because I actually walk up escalators.


Union Station. The Amtrak train, the subway station, and the tour bus all converged here, which was quite convenient!


First stop, U.S. Capitol. The two large square buildings on each side are the meeting houses for the Senate, and for the Congress. When the flags atop the buildings are flying, they are in session.


Inside the capitol, looking up at the dome. Needless to say, it is WAY up there. I wish I had a clearer shot of the mural in the center; it has George Washington sitting on a cloud with various figures. The figures on the side are 18 feet tall (which comes as a shock when you are actually standing down there looking up).


We had an amazing tour guide. He asked us early on where we were from, and invariably, whatever country someone said, he would speak to them for a minute in their own language. I'm talking Japan, Austria, India, Spain, etc. You could really see their faces light up, particulary the Japanese who promptly began bowing. He was also incredibly knowledgeable about American History, as you might expect, but what took me by surprise was a subtle way in which he displayed his patriotism. Whenever he talked about a court decision, he spoke of it as if it were a wonderful thing that they chose what they did. Surely he couldn't have agreed with all of the decisions as an individual, but as a patriot, you bet he did. That's what I call loyalty!


A poster which was on the wall in the Capitol. I tried to find a copy of this great shot, but had no luck.


WWII memorial.


The Washington Monument. Many people don't realize that it is named and was constructed for George Washington. What's interesting about it is that it changes color drastically at about 150 feet up. The reason for this is that construction was halted during the civil war, and resumed afterwards. Despite going back to the same quarry for stone, the builders couldn't find the same color marble. So they proceeded with a different color.


Unfortunately, it was a tad windy, but normally this would be the angle from which the Reflecting Pool aptly gets its name.


The guards don't seem to take too kindly to us chilling on the front lawn of the White House. ;)


At the Museum of American History, there was a podium with a teleprompter and video cameras, where you could pretend to give one of three famous presidential speeches. I chose "A Day Which Will Live in Infamy".


They had the real ruby slippers from Wizard of Oz. As it turns out, the original ones were silver slippers, but they turned them into ruby slippers for the movie so they could show off the magic of TechniColor.


An engraving at the Arlington Cemetary. Brought a tear to my eye.


This is where the "tomb of the unknowns" stands, as a monument to all of the soldiers who are unidentified from the various wars. It was centered around a single unknown soldier. Then DNA came and screwed it all up, now we know who this one soldier was, so now it's "tome of the unknown guy who we now know who he is but he is still a symbol for all unknowns".


Welcome to Mount Vernon! This was the highlight of my visit: George Washington's estate. I learned a lot about the man, and was very inspired by his rise from middle class to the pinnacle of society.


This photo talks about how he 677 overnight guests in one year. At one point towards the end of his life, he and Martha sat down to a dinner alone. He remarked how odd it felt--because they hadn't dined alone in twenty years!


The bowling green, looking out from the front of the Washington mansion.


Looking out of the back of the mansion. Beautiful...


Back in New York now, where the stickers and graffiti can be hilarious! In this case, someone stuck a sticker over Black's face, probably originally with some graffiti-style initials. Someone else peeled it off, leaving the backing. Finally, a third person came along and added the eyes. Little things like this are all around and always make me laugh.


Another one of those experiences which makes me beam with pride and think "I LOVE NEW YORK!". I walked down to Chelsea Market to get my lunch, as usual, only this time there was a school band inside playing some really great tunes. Everyone was smiling as they walked past.


A better shot of the crowd.


You really have to put a lot of effort into looking different. 8 million people bring together a lot of random styles. The guy in the middle of this photo caught my attention though - what rockin' hair!


Where can I get those PANTS?


An ad for Avenue Q, one of the three Broadway shows I've seen so far.


I went on a tour of Greenwood cemetary in Brooklyn heights. It's a HUGE, beautiful cemetary. That's the tour guide on the right. She has guided three of my tours, including the first one I went on upon arrival to the city. She remembered me, and introduced me as one of the Big Onion "groupies". Guilty.


DeWitt Clinton, the man who Clinton Castle and numerous other sites are named after. I can see why now after learning the history of his accomplishments. He's the man who put New York ahead of the rest of the then-budding East Coast cities with the building of the Erie Canal. Most people were naysayers of the idea, calling it "Clinton's ditch", but he knew better and he was right. Without the Erie Canal, where would New York be today?


The crypts and buildings at Greenwood are beautiful.


Inside that second building, where there was an exhibit in honor of the man who started and built up the ASPCA.


The original ASPCA logo took me a bit by surprise. Brutal!


You see the strangest things in NYC. This man was letting his dog eat snow peas off of the ground at the Farmer's Market. At first, I wanted to let him know that his dog was eating them, thinking he didn't know it, but then he reached down and handed the dog a fistful, saying "Have some more". Strange way to save money on dog food...


This is the Amtrak lobby at Pennsylvania Station (Penn station). When I think about it, Penn station is quite the hub! Three subway lines, two major railroads, and the largest bus station.


A beautiful sunny day west of Times Square. I can't believe how beautiful it's been here since I arrived. It's nice to actually get to enjoy weather because in NY you're outside every day.


In many places, the streets remind me of Mexico. The lines on the street don't mean much.


They had free lawn bowling lessons in Central Park. Unfortunately, Sarah, Tom and I missed it by an hour!


What great follow through the man in the center has! Notice he's in the EXACT same position as the previous photo?


See?


Sarah, Tom and I went to the Puerto Rican Day Parade. Wow, what a party! I've never seen so many Puerto Rican flags before. You can bet I'll never misidentify that flag again!


Everyone was wearing Red, White, and Blue for the parade. If you can see the red stoplight in the distance, that's how far back we had to stand from the street where the actual parade was going past. Apparently, people had been waiting since 6am that morning just so they could be up against the street when the parade started at 11am.


We eventually got a closer spot, where we were the ones at the front of a barricade which was about 30 feet from the street. You can see the float going past just below the traffic lights... We were proud of our "front third mezzanine" seats.


A shot of the parade as we crossed the street on our way home. 80 thousand people marched in the parade, and over 2 million people were spectators. Compare that to your last hometown parade...


A shot of the city from the center of Central Park. It's incredibly peaceful in this part of the park.


Tom didn't hesitate to take advantage of the peacefulness to sneak in a nap while Sarah and I were off talking.


Yes, that's the finger from a "We're #1" foam hand. And yes, the only reason the guy had it strapped to his dog was because he felt his dog was "number 1". Admit it, you'd do it too.


We visited Strawberry Fields, a memorial to John Lennon located in Central Park.


It was populated with a band playing pure John Lennon songs, as well as about two dozen lip-singing people. Notice the true specimen of a New Yorker in the center, holding out the microphone from his iPod in the face of the lead singer. In New York, you quickly learn to not care so much about what people think. You don't have the time.


Walking along near Columbus Circle, I had to take a shot of this beautiful building. I was coming back from a class called "Acting for Non-Actors". Essentially, it is a class in good storytelling, and was a lot of fun.


Now THAT'S what I call an apartment building (on the poster).


The soccer game was big news in New York. This is a shot of my coworkers chilling in front of two projector screens showing the game. I bet the management is still trying to figure out why sales dipped so much that day...


I shall soon be a resident New Yorker, with a driver's license to prove it! I was amazed at the "License X-press" center, where you could very quickly and comfortably swap your out-of-state license. The process was quick and painless.


You never know what you'll find at the Penington. One of our residents is a budding Film Director, and was filming a scene in our dining room when I walked in. The bright light at the top left was their lighting umbrella. Another resident is a dancer in the American Ballet Theater, "one of the foremost ballet companies of the 20th century". Unfortunately, our national chess master just moved away...


Yes, it can be dangerous to the safety of the customers to enter without a shirt...


One of the rare times that the Subway is lit by daylight. This is the N train, which goes over the east river, affording some beautiful views on the way to Brooklyn.


A community meeting regarding the building of a new arena in Brooklyn, to go along with the purchase of the New Jersey Nets. It makes me beam with pride to think about all the major teams which are based out of New York. We have the New York Yankees, New York Mets, New York Giants, New York Jets, New York Knicks, New York Nets (coming soon), New York Islanders, and New York Rangers. Too bad I don't enjoy sports much.


More fun poster vandalism. There was a philosophical debate raging in the top right corner of it.


This gentleman couldn't stop preaching! He preached about how "they" allowed the holocaust, or how God allowed the holocaust, or something along those lines, during the entire train ride. He continued all the way up the stairs after the ride, and all the way down the hallway. He wasn't talking to anyone in particular.


Ever wonder what's below the grates in New York?


At least for many of them, there's a little shelf below them. It sits above the subway train waiting area, catching the rain and trash. Essentially, it's there for ventilation.


I love walking through the financial district. The streets are so incredibly narrow, next to buildings so incredibly tall...


You know what's funny? I bet these balconies increase the cost of the attached condos by a hundred thousand.


On my way down to see some corpses on display, I stumbled across the South Street Seaport. I say stumbled, because despite knowing that was where I was headed, I was not prepared for what I found there. It's a gorgeous, cobblestone-lined throwback to centuries past. I can't wait to go back and see the ship whose masts are poking up above the building in this photo. When I glanced at the map of the area, I saw numerous old ships which are on display, including steamships. Can't wait to go back, and I bet this will be a stop during my personal tour for guests who come in to town to visit.


No, this wasn't one of the bodies on display. He was sound asleep.


BODIES was incredible. They had real corpses, sent through a process where the muscles, bones, organs, and blood vessels can be preserved in such a way that they could be viewed as if they were made of plastic. There was a ton of information available to go along with the displays; it would be impossible to walk away from it without knowing more about the human body. At one point, they even had the entire respiratory system of a person on display - minus the rest of the body. They had sent it through a process by which the rest of the body was removed, without changing the shape of the respiratory system. Effectively, it was a bunch of blood vessels in the shape of a man. Incredible. At one spot, there was a body holding the hands of a skeleton with both of them leaning back, like two children playing ring around the rosy. After reading the description, it turns out that the skeleton came OUT of the body. Sure enough, if you looked closely, it was only the muscles frozen in time, holding the skeleton. Wild stuff. Where else can you see so many varied and amazing things like this?

Have I mentioned that I love New York?

Rowhouses, Brownstones...

What a cool rowhouse. It reminds me of Swiss Family Robinson. And a little of Greystoke too. Like a house in the jungle... Makes you wonder how many years it took for those vines to grow.

Ever wonder what the difference is between a brownstone and a rowhouse/townhouse? It's as simple as the material it is made out of. If the rowhouse is literally made out of brownstone, then it can be referred to as a brownstone (or a rowhouse). If it's not made out of browstone, then it is only a rowhouse.

New Yorkers have focus.

This woman was serious about her book. And thumbnails.

New Job!

The tallest building in this photo--the one with the spire--is the headquarters of the company where I'll be working as of next Wednesday: Conde Nast Publishing.

Out of the top 14 fashion magazines published in the United States, Conde Nast publishes 12 of them. In the fashion and publishing capitol of the world, I'll now be working at the top fashion publishing firm. This is going to be a New York experience.

Love All, Serve All

The Hard Rock Cafe, Times Square, New York City.
That shot was taken from on top of the cafe marquee, looking south. If you look straight up from there, you see this:

Right above the red "o" in "Discover" is the pole where the ball is dropped to celebrate the New Year. Whoever reserves this spot for the Times Square New Year celebration is going to have one hell of a view!
(BTW, the building on the far left of that photo, disappearing into the clouds, is the Conde Nast Building.)

Back inside of the Hard Rock, I tried their baby back ribs, which were delicious (thanks for the tip Nathaniel!). Then we went on a tour of the facility, packed with memorabilia from The Beatles, Led Zeppelin, Nirvana, Billy Joel, The Ramones and Elvis Presley. The evening finished off with box seats next to the stage, where one of the best guitarists of all time, Derek Trucks, was performing.


Thank you Connie and Harry for this incredible experience!

Publishing

My new world.

A typical Sunday...

Here's the view looking north up 3rd avenue, about 30 feet west of my brownstone, on a Sunday. I can't get over how nice it is to walk outside and find yourself right in the middle of something.

July 4th in New York City

What an amazing New York Experience. On the suggestion of a housemate, Kathy, I purchased tickets to watch the famous Macy's Fireworks display from the southern tip of Roosevelt Island.


This map shows how great of a spot it was. One red X shows where the seats were, at the very tip of Roosevelt Island. The other X shows roughly where the closest of the three synchronized fireworks displays went off, above the East River.


A view of the Manhattan Midtown skyline as Nathalie and I walked down the waterfront towards the tip of the island. You can see the Chrysler building. Just to the left of it, the tall black building is Trump World Tower, and on the far left of the screen, U.N. Headquarters. The weather was absolutely flawless for the occasion.


Here's a shot as the sun set lower, and the boats started to gather for the view. Much better shot of the U.N. Building, and the Empire State Building peeking up in the background. If you look closely along the waterline, you can make out thousands of people standing against the edge of Manhattan awaiting the spectacle.


After dark; just before the fireworks. Chrysler building and Empire State fully lit.


Aside from finding someone with a boat, I can't think of a better place to watch the fireworks than Roosevelt Island. We had reserved seats, allowing us to bypass the crowds, a live band serenading us before the show began, food and restrooms available, and a chance to walk around the peaceful and fascinating Roosevelt island. To top it all off, Kathy and Emily arrived early and saved Kathy J, Nathalie and I seats close to the front tip of the island.


The fireworks. This photo is from the internet, but gives you a rough idea of what ithe show looked like. The fireworks launched from the East river, the South Street Seaport, and Ellis Island. They were all synchronized together, and coincided with a medley of music as well.

The whole experience was one I won't soon forget.

Times Square horse police

I wonder if the cops consider it a cush job or punishment to be assigned Times Square on horseback.

Seen here with backup to ensure proper directions are given.

Somebody's Horny

New Yorker's like to honk. Forget honking only when you're mad. Here, you honk if the person in front of you is going even slightly slower than you think he could be. The cabbies will even honk as soon as a light turns green, despite being 10 cars back from the light.

Another thing about New York that you learn is that glass has exactly zero soundproofing quality. You can hear people chatting on the street, 10 floors below you, and you can definitely hear drivers honking. I chose a front-facing room because I can tune out honking easily. Apparently, I'm not alone, because you can buy a sleeping sounds machine at Brookstone or Sharper Image, which has ocean sounds, jungle sounds, waterfall sounds... and cars driving by honking. I've got to get one of those for when I travel. If nothing else, just to remind everyone that I'm a New Yorker ;)

So apparently, people have started trying to limit the late-night honking by posting the above-pictured sign. I wonder if it has any effect. At all.

A Cello, a Human Beatbox, and a Poet

What do you get when you mix a Cello player, a human beatbox, and a improv poet? One hell of an interesting show.

The best part was when she asked for questions from the audience. I chimed in first with "Why is the sky blue" to get the ball rolling, and she also answered "Why are there so many people in China" and "Why are we here". All at the same time, all to music, all poetic. Very cool. The group is called Transmitting.

New Yorkers are flexible!

Apparently, New Yorkers are more flexible than I thought. And I'm still easily amused. Damn you Chris Rock!

Now where did I park my...

If any place was meant for Segways, it's NYC. I would get one, but I can't get used to the idea of eliminating all the free exercise which comes with walking around.

Too bad the common belief in the 19th century didn't prove to be true. Namely, it was assumed that not using your body would make it last longer. Makes sense, really, as most things get weaker with use. We could all sit behind a computer all day, use elevators, ride segways, and never have to work out. Then, if food that tasted good was also good for you...

So anyway, I've got to go hit the gym.

You get creative living here...

Yes friends, that is a chair strapped to her back. Quite the good idea, really. She was probably off to stand in line for Shakespeare in the Park. The tickets for that are free, so people line up at 6am the day of. This year, Meryl Streep is going to be performing, so people are lining up three days ahead of time. I'm highly tempted to unleash the power of NYC and Craigslist: to hire a college student to sit in the line and get me some tickets. Why not?

Incidentally, the woman in the green shirt in the background is a good specimen of what the majority of women in New York seem to look like. Skinny!

Shakespeare in the Park

I was walking along south of Union Square when I ran across the famous line for Shakespeare in the Park. Looking at the website, it looks like they run it in two segments. "MacBeth" from June to early July, and "Mother Courage and her Children" from August 8th to September 3rd. The latter is the one which has Meryl Streep in it, and has everyone saying that the line will form three days ahead of time.

I believe this is something I'll have to wait a year to do. By then, I'll know exactly who would be the most fun to stand in line with.

Birds!

New York has a serious pigeon population. So much so that the logo on top of the MetLife building supports a nest for a pair of peregrine falcons which were introduced to manage the pigeon population.

When you think about it, it could be worse: Austin, TX has a serious deer population which causes a lot of accidents as they run out into the street. The only real risk you run with pigeons is losing your lunch when you spot a pigeon or two happily dancing away in someone's vomit as if it were a bird bath.

Beetlegeuse, beetlegeuse, beetlegeuse

This macabre looking pile of steel is a playground. I spotted it outside of church just north of my house. It looks like it was meant for small children, and meant to be a modern artistic piece. I wonder what the story behind it is...

Property Theft

Here's what happens if you forget to keep an eye on your bike while you grab a coffee!


I remember reading before I came here that New York has drastically reduced the crime, to a point where you are really quite safe from bodily harm. However, there was still a lot of property theft.

Michael Jackson!

This subway performer certainly turned heads. I've learned that the subway performers have to pass an audition process and be licensed to perform in the subway. Apparently, It's a reasonable way to get noticed in the music scene.

Have a Panini!

New York was my first exposure to Panini sandwiches, and now I see them everywhere. They're not bad!

Music on the train!

This guy decided to bring his music on to the train with us!

Conde Nast

Well, here it is, the long awaited Conde Nast post. For those of you just arriving, I started a new job working at Conde Nast, the largest fashion publishing firm, right here in the fashion and publishing capital of the world. Just think Vogue, Glamour, Vanity Fair, GQ, Allure, W, Style; as well as many others such as The New Yorker, Wired, Architectural Digest, Golf Digest... The book and movie The Devil Wears Prada are based on an editor-in-chief at Conde Nast. Needless to say, it's a very New York place to work!


To start off, here's a shot looking down the street near my building, a block east of Times Square.


Some coworkers. Conde Nast is famous for it's beautiful people. In the headquarters building, the employees are 75% female, and it's not at all uncommon to see models walking to and fro.


The view outside of my window.


As mentioned above, I read The Devil Wears Prada before starting my job here. The book is about an assistant who was hired to work for the editor-in-chief of Vogue here at Conde Nast, and the crazy demands which were put on the assistant. The book was very good, and really makes you think about your life priorities. The author changed all of the names in the book, but the descriptions in the book fit perfectly with Conde Nast. Pictured here is the newstand mentioned in the book as the place where the editor-in-chief's magazines were purchased in a rush every morning.

The movie has many good shots of New York, but deviates so much from the book that it's not the same story any more. It's Hollywood. I highly recommend the book if you were interested in the movie!


My workspace, complete with Aeron chair, Dell flatscreen, and iMac.


The famous cafeteria at Conde Nast. Before I started working here, people were already talking about the cafeteria. It was designed by Frank Gehry, and is reknowned not only for the architecture, but also for the skilled chefs who prepare the meals.

Ah, New York.

New York Moments #9

Aside from beautiful people, NYC also has more than its share of beautiful dogs, like this blue merle collie. It's not at all uncommon to see tiny little dogs poking out from purses and jackets.


A row of buildings like this serves as the main attraction in a lot of towns, such as Telluride, CO. In NYC, it's the norm.

A set of buildings like that with businesses on the first floor and apartments above, serves as a trendy, hip, happening place to live in a lot of cities, such as Dallas, Tx. In Manhattan, the entire city is constructed that way! It's a great way to live.


Am I the only one who thinks that's an odd design for pants?


A few weeks ago, I to see a show with Ismael Auray, a film director from Canada who was in town for a month. The show was called Esoterica, and features Eric Walton (pictured, on left) performing magic tricks and demonstrating his incredible memory. I was probably the only person in the entire audience who knew how he did the memory tricks, as I've learned them myself from Ron White. Incredibly useful skills, and as Eric demonstrated, lucrative too.


Ismael Auray. What's cool is that he filmed one of his short films and a music video right in the Penington, where I live. The music video--for a contemporary Canadian composer, Pierre Laponte--is available for download. Check it out. If you look closely, you'll see me for a split second in the background, to the left of the dancing couple.


It's amazing how quickly you get used to crowds in New York. For instance, the crowd pictured here didn't bother me at all.


There are signs in the subway warning people against climbing down into the tracks. The warning reminds everyone that the "third rail" is electrically charged. I've often wondered which one is the "third rail", being that there are only two rails. Well, I finally saw a clue: perhaps it's the one with two 1 inch thick copper wires welded across the gap in the rail. Makes you wonder how much current is going through there...


Batteries. I've noticed an odd thing in the Subway - there are batteries strewn all along between the rails. Duracell batteries. I haven't figured out why they are there... My best theory is that the subway workers go through a lot of them in their flashlights or radios. Or maybe walkman wielding passengers heed the warning on the battery--you know, the one that warns you not to throw the batteries in the garbage.


Imagine my surprise at finding a bulldozer parked underneath the stairs in the Subway (mind you, there is only about 2 feet of room on each side of the stairway before you fall off into the tracks). Imagine my further surprise to find someone asleep in the bulldozer!


I love the wording of this ad in a subway train. "A handful of peanuts a day may hand you more days, period". It's like saying "We think peanuts might be healthy, and that's a fact".


Rockafeller Center. Famous for its observatory, "Top of the Rock". That's where my current favorite photo of NY was shot: A New York Sunset. What makes the Rockafeller Center building interesting is that from the other side, it's a thick "slab" of a building. Hopefully soon, I'll get to check out the view from the observatory. First though, I need to check off the Empire State Building observatory. Who's with me?


Now that's a door. Spotted on Fifth Avenue, near the Rockefeller center.


Oftentimes, I want to capture the size of a structure or the feeling of a particular experience. Many times, it's hopeless, because you'd need to be able to take a 360 photo to really grasp how breathtaking a scene is. This photo comes fairly close to capturing the size of one of the churches on Fifth Avenue. For comparison, The Trinity Church, a different church located downtown, is famous for being a landmark for ships sailing towards New York. It is that tall; and I bet this church is even taller.

Then you realize that the Empire State is six times that size.


The original Saks Fifth Avenue.


It's not very often you see a thousand-foot-tall building being supported by a few pillars.


Another awesome New York sight. There is a large glass cube in the middle of a block by Central Park. Apparently, when it first appeared, it had a line wrapped all the way around the block and populated with characters such as Kevin Bacon.


When you get closer, you see the Apple logo, and realize that there is one, single, solitary elevator just below the logo.


Going down the elevator, you discover a complete Apple store! It's much better organized than any other technology store I've ever been in.


The view looking up on the way out of the store.

Someone made a great video of the day the Apple store opened. Check it out.


This building found a cool place to plant some trees! I'm pushing for a green roof at the Penington.


This is the path which runs up the east side of Manhattan near 20th St. It's great for rollerblading. Note the small patch of beach on the right side of the photo. It's the only patch I've seen on the east side, and is about big enough for 20 people to crowd onto. Someday soon I'll have to visit Coney Island. It fits a few more people.


A beautiful, deserted public space, and its view looking north up the east river. Since I discovered it (thanks to Kathy from the Penington), it has been a frequent stop while rollerblading along the east side pathway. It was built very recently, so it's not well known yet. There aren't any clues as you walk past it either; it's hidden between a few buildings. There are so many great little gems in Manhattan, if you just know where to look!


The most fun friend I've made in NYC: Nathalie Dore. We've rollerbladed down half of the eastern side of Manhattan. Next up: the entire west side.


The parlor at the Penington.


A piece of graffiti pointed out by my friend Nathaniel, an artist who was in town for the summer with his wife Iryna. He pointed out that these keys can be found all over the lower east side, and they're always in the most hard-to-reach places. He's right; I've seen about 8 of them now, and I have no idea how the guy who creates them gets them up to where they are. The only thing I can think is that he hauls around a 20 foot ladder with him. Not very plausible in New York!


Nathaniel. (beard, patterned shirt)


His wife, Iryna. (in the white baby-tee)


His art. (Psychic Radio - Fission & Ice)


His art show. (at the 2006 Chelsea International Fine Art Competition)


Random red fire-breathing woman in Union Square.


These two people were dressed exactly the same. Made for a strange sight early in the morning.


Another Segway. What better place to own one than here?


Someone important (center) being escorted by a 6'5 bodyguard (left) to her driver (right).


Random very beautiful person. Cruising down fashion avenue with mother, radiating importance.


Someone decided to something productive with all of the MetroCards the city discards daily.


Sheep's Meadow, Central Park, New York. I skated past it on my way to the Central Park Dance Skater's Association.


There were a bunch of incredibly skilled dancers at the event (think figure skaters--on roller skates), as well as a substantial audience, and even a film-maker doing a documentary on my skating instructor. My class participated in the dance for our graduation. It was incredibly fun; I was sad when I had to go. On the way out, I signed a release to include me in the film.


A little reminder of South Texas - a mariachi band trio playing right next to me.


Random key embedded in the concrete. With keys embedded in it.


Grimaldi's Pizza. One of the best pizza joints in New York City, and man, that's not a joke! The pizza was amazing. Aaron (pictured) and I went there to check it out.


I snuck a photo of them preparing our pizza. Word is they use all organic ingredients, special ordered from a place where they know the quality will be high.


I tried to capture a shot of the coal-fired oven, but the coal was just too bright for my little camera. Coal-fired pizza ovens have been outlawed in Manhattan (unless you already had one). Coal-fired is more desireable though, because you can get the heat much higher than electric ovens, creating crispier pizzas. To avoid the law, places like Grimaldi's build their pizza spots all around the outskirts of the island. Grimaldi's is right on the other side of the Brooklyn Bridge.


Yum. You can tell which side of the pizza was close to the coal (hint, it's the closer side)! It looks burnt, but it wasn't. Just dark.


That's one way to lock your door! For some reason, this tree was allowed to grow through the bars on the door.


New York experienced quite the heat wave this summer. Nathalie, Joelle and I were all relaxing on the roof of the Penington, when I noticed that this once cylindrical candle was looking rather... flat. I joked that it must have been the heat, thinking it was actually just caused by the candle melting from use. It wasn't until I touched it and it oozed out melted wax that I realized it was from the heat. Wow.


Next time you're in the mood for some seriously delicious (and seriously expensive) breakfast food, check out Balthazar. I went with a group of friends, and it was definitely worth the trip. The Brioche French Toast just melts in your mouth...


Aaron at Balthazar, digging into his breakfast.


A shot of the stage at the theater where the play The History Boys was playing. I went with my friend Susan Cannaday, a writer. Blue Man Group is still my favorite Broadway show.


Now talk about your "only in NY" experiences. I got a hookup (thanks Molly and Brie!) on some awesome seats for the screening of "The Manchurian Candidate" at the Bryant Park Film Festival. This is a free event, so awesome seats are hard to come by. Brie was there three hours before the movie to save the spot, and combined with a threat of rain--which never materialized--we had quite the view.


A very blurry shot of the HBO "feature presentation" teaser which played before the movie. It was blurry because a few hundred people were all dancing to the HBO tune. In the spirit of the film festival, I of course had to participate myself. Needless to say, the festival is a great crowd experience. For instance, when Frank Sinatra walked out, everyone clapped; when he patted his wife on the butt and said "now go be a good little housewife and get us some drinks", all the guys clapped and cheered. Oddly, the women didn't laugh.


Here's a shot of Bryant park from a webcam. The webcam is set up to let visitors see the size of the crowd at the festival. I saved this shot right before I left to go to the movie, so it was probably about half again this many people by the time it started. The funny thing is that when I arrived, I distinctly remember thinking "Hey, it's not crowded!". I meant that too--I had expected a much thicker crowd. That was the moment I realized just how much I'm at home in NYC.

A NYC video

Ran across this great video: 24 hours in New York City. The cool thing is that as they were going through the neighborhoods, I was able to identify which neighborhood they were in before the caption came up. Guess those walking tours paid off!

Interesting Encounters

    This guy has been written about in newspapers; he goes around and sells vegetable peelers. "You won't find these peelers in stores". "These are made in Switzerland". "Sharpest peelers you can buy".

I wasn't buying it. But a few people did, in the short time I was watching.


    You can't pass this sign and not stop! I talked with Bill (left) for fifteen or twenty minutes. Turns out they're part of a small organization, TalkToMe.org. The guy on the far right was a fellow passerby, and he let me in on the details about a big group of rollerbladers who skate through the city every Wednesday.

Skyline, everywhere!

The view, looking south, from the cafeteria in my office building. I used to love seeing the building and working from within my 16th floor office in the 22-story Millenium Center in Dallas. Now I'm surrounded by amazing buildings, and have stood nearly a quarter-mile up in the air. I'm counting down to the completion of the Bank of America building and the Freedom Tower.

Leadership and speaking

This is my boss at Conde Nast giving speeches on our infrastructure. He's two years older than I am, much like my boss at Match.com was. My Toastmasters experience has already paid off heavily; I can only imagine how far I'll be in two more years!

Plus, look at that suit! Suits aren't out of place in New York City, and I'm falling in love with them. I wore mine when I helped orchestrate a demonstration Toastmasters meeting at the New York Society of Security Analysts, and I felt like a million bucks. I wore it to work today without a tie, as a sort of casual look, and again felt like a million bucks.

Time to start saving up for more suits!

The famous Chinatown Bus

        On my second trip to Washington D.C. in the 20 weeks I've been here, I decided to follow through on my plan. I purchased a round-trip ticket to D.C. (only $18 each way!) on the infamous Chinatown Bus.

Luckily, David (pictured, third photo scratching his eye) and I arrived early. That is good, because it took us a little bit to realize that there was no bus station; rather, we all had to stand against the curb. Then the bus swooped in, we piled on, and it took back off. Who needs a bus station anyway?

Unfortunately for the last two women to arrive, the bus was full. They were on their way to a wedding, and needed to catch this bus to make it. At my prompting, a few people offered their seats for the price it would be worth to them to give them up. Although I didn't say this, mine was worth something like $400 or $500 to me because I was on my way to the Toastmasters International Convention. But one guy did offer his for $100, and a woman offered hers for $40. The two women didn't respond. About then, the bus swooped off. Oh well, $18 doesn't buy you much service. It's fend-for-yourself at that price!

Then the guy next to me watched a movie on his laptop. In chinese. At full volume. He got yelled at by the $40 woman, and turned it down a bit, but I was thankful when his battery ran out; regardless of the fact that I found the chinese popular culture to be fascinating to watch from a cinematography and body language perspective. That, and my first exposure to the "Chinese language" version of Windows. Most of it was in English.

The bus driver's driving habits were also amusing. I never thought I'd see a bus driver fly down the exit ramp, then at the last second cut back into main traffic. Makes sense, really; he has enough weight to get away with it. I guess a New York driver is a New York driver, car or bus!

Overall, I would do it again. I mean, at least my bus didn't catch on fire.

New Yorker

And proud of it.

Trendy furniture

        "Step right up! Get your one-of-a-kind antique chair, now for only one thousand dollars!"

That's what I thought at first too. But actually, this chair is meant as a demonstration of how ABC Carpet + Home reuses materials in the construction of their chairs, which I bet do cost a thousand.

I have had a few interesting experiences with furniture in New York. The first was a small door next to a beautiful old church by Gramercy Park. The door had an antiques sign on it, and despite looking very mysterious and dark, I ducked inside. It turned out to be an amazing little furniture store, with some really great restored pieces. I will not soon be able to justify overpriced furniture, but it's fun to look at. The second experience I had was walking home from a dance class - I saw a great chair which would fit perfectly in my room without wasting space. I walked inside to ask the price, and couldn't find anyone. Finally, in the back, was a guy who looked up at me like a snooty british butler as I asked "how much is the chair in the window?". The reply? Twelve thousand dollars.

I'll take two.

No Smoking Area

A New York no smoking area, complete with New Yorkers doing what they want anyway despite what a sign says.

You learn a lot about personal boundaries in New York City. You learn that you don't have to hang out with people just because they want to hang out with you, you learn that you don't have to stick with an activity just because you're good at it or your friends want you to, and you learn to ask yourself the question "What are the consequences?". There are just too many friends, too many activities, and too little time to settle for anything less than doing what's best for you.

Like the famous quote says, "Live in New York City once, but leave before it makes you hard. Live in Northern California once, but leave before it makes you soft." A little toughness never hurts.

Haircut in the City

One of my early memories of New York City was a special (Insomniac?) about a place in NY where you can get your hair cut in the middle of the night. How cool is that? I've come to realize that the label "City that never sleeps" refers to the immense amount of late night activities which are available. Like other cities though, most parts of it shut down during off-peak hours.

In the photo, there on the second floor is Insitu Salon, the place where I get my hair cut. After years of struggling with bad haircuts and avoiding the barber, I finally found a place where I feel like it gets done right. Kim, my stylist, does a great job of considering my hair to be a part of my look, instead of giving me the same haircut the last 200 guys got. It's one of the few areas where I splurge, and I enjoy every minute of it. Like most New Yorkers, Kim is ambitious and involved in many things. Take her ice cream company for example.

Adventures in D.C.

In the second part of my two part series about traveling the adventurous way, AKA shoestring traveling, AKA "I hope my bus doesn't catch on fire" (see part 1), I stayed at a Hostel in Washington D.C..

$22 per night is unbeatable. Pictured here is David in one of the rooms with 9 beds.

The little details were great, like the lovingly framed jigsaw puzzle of Miss Piggy, Kermit the Frog, and Animal.

Also, the backyard complete with grill, ping pong table, limbo bar, and hammocks.

Unfortunately I didn't capture the funniest part of the adventure on film. This is a photo of the light fixture in the bathroom, painstakingly painted over. The pinnacle moment was here in the very same bathroom, when I went to use the sink to brush my teeth. It's usually a little off-putting when you see a hair or two on a sink. Well... when I walked toward the sink, there wasn't a hair or two. There was so much hair on it that you'd be hard pressed to touch your finger to the sink without hitting a strand (or ten). It takes a brave soul to commence brushing anyway. As a finale, the water pipe was disconnected from the drain, so after running the water it just pooled out from under the sink onto the floor. So THAT explains why the rug is wet in a half-circle pattern.

The view from the front door. Overall, the people were cool and the price was unbeatable. Better to go to D.C. on the cheap than to not go at all!