Fort Greene Park and Preparing for Tomorrow

Today I finally went on another run (yay my knee being back to normal!) and this time I ran in the Clinton Hill/Fort Greene direction and eventually discovered Fort Greene Park with tons of stairs and this tall monument and paths and a real, life HILL!

I also am preparing for both a job interview and an audition tomorrow. I know I'd said that I was not going to do any auditions for a while, but a friend from college contacted me about coming in for a 4-person version of 12th Night (I know, I know, hilarious) and how could I say no?

So yeah... Things I'm doing tomorrow. Ran to the library to print everything off and read the script and worked the sides for tomorrow night. So yeah, think about me around 730pm ET when I'll be auditioning. And about 230pm ET when I am doing my job interview.

Williamsburg Bridge

This morning Jessica and I wandered across the Williamsburg Bridge, since this is probably gonna be the last nice weekend of the year. Super excited to now know how to wander across to the city. Plus, it was beautiful.

My First Glimpse of the Lady Liberty

My first super far away look at the Statue of Liberty from this afternoon's show. Tomorrow Jess and I are doing breakfast and possibly hitting up the Farmer's Market before I head to Midtown to meet Nate for the Husky game.

Things! Stuff! First week here!

Sunset

Sunset behind the Jersey skyline. With the crescent moon right above it.

Idyllic Setting

The gorgeous views of the show I'm about to experience. Cannot wait.

First NYC Performance

Saw Justin Bond at Jessica's Crossing the Line Festival tonight. The first performance I got to see in NYC! It was exactly like it was when Jess & I saw him at the Triple Door a million years ago. Only now he is even more acerbic and confident. Love, love, love. Plus, love songs (including "Angel Eyes" a jazz standard I sing)! And he yelled at an audience member for taking pics during the performance. It was good.

Tomorrow I go see Fernando Rubio, a 15 minute mini-performance where I lay in bed next to an actor who tells me about their childhood in Spanish (It's Argentinian!) and then it's over. The end. No more. Sounds fascinating. That's my plan for tomorrow. And then meeting Jess for drinks or something fun. First full weekend in NYC coming up!

I forgot to say...

Guys, I went grocery shopping yesterday. Or, ya know, as close to grocery shopping as you can get in NYC (I stopped in a few bodegas until I found what I was looking for), and this morning I got to enjoy a homemade breakfast here in the apartment! Saving monies! Eating better!

PS Everything is gluten-y here. I tried, in vain, to find gf bread SOMEwhere to no avail. I might have to splurge and hit up Whole Foods in Manhattan for my gf bread fix. I mean, besides that there's a pizza or bagel shop on every single corner, so... it's been hard to say no.

A Slow News Day...

Well, today was a relatively slow day for me. All I did was wander to the Brooklyn Public Library Central and check it out. It's a gorgeous outside, but the inside is... well, less impressive (and actually kinda small). PLUS, you can only have 10 holds at a time (and only 5 media holds). Oh well. Still better than paying for things.

But yeah, point being, slow and boring day, and yet, I still have nearly 14k steps. This city is insane!

Reconnecting

Spent the day today (after my semi-traumatic run) with a friend, who I probably haven't seen since college, who has offered to try to help me get a job interview at one of her sister restaurants. It was so great catching up and exploring Hell's Kitchen. It was loverly and great to reconnect and finally feel like someone who has been here for four/five years believe in me and help me succeed.

Interview probs gonna be next week. More when I know more.

Adventure Time

You can only kinda see it, but that red mark on my left shoulder is from me full on running into a branch on a tree that I mistakenly thought was a little twig. 

This was a portent of things to come in this run because after that I found Prospect Park, which was great and beautiful and I ran around in it happy as a clam, and then found a different exit and thinking I was somewhere else entirely ran the wrong direction for a while. Once I realized how far away I was from where I thought I was initially, it ended up being about a mile of so further away than I thought I was, so... it was a long run.

So, what's up 10-mile run, longest run ever, that wasn't awkward at all.

Central Park: late afternoon sun

Found a sunny rock to read on and wait for Jess to get off work.

NYC Skyline

View from the end if one of the piers back to the NYC skyline.

When I split from Nate & Kristy, I decided to walk toward Midtown, Times Square, and Central Park which is where I am meeting Jess to see her office and grab dinner.

It was a loooooong walk. But totally worth it as I am now sitting on a bench and watching the elephant seals right outside of Central Park Zoo.

Successful first FULL day in my NYC!

Chelsea Pier

View from the pier to Hoboken, NJ across the Hudson.

Chelsea Market

High line and Chelsea Market

I spent thus morning relaxing and recovering from the complete lack of sleep I got on the plane Sat night, but this afternoon I met up with a Seattle friend who had moved here a couple weeks before me and his gf to wander along the recently finished High line, through the Chelsea Market and then down along the Chelsea Pier.

It was pretty great. Exploring new parts of my new city and making mental notes about which parts I'm showing to which friends and family members when they come visit.

Even More Firsts...

First rat on the subway line... Tried to get a pic, but he moved too quickly. 

More Firsts!

First Subway selfie! And then I found the Seahawks bar! I live here now!

First NYC Friend

Meet Henri. This is the baby black squirrel that the bartenders at the brunch place Jess and I were at CHASED out of the bar and onto the back patio where we were sitting. We then took many pictures. Because he was adorable.

Now, I'm heading into Manhattan to find the Hawks bar so I can watch a Super Bowl rematch!

Adventure Is Out There

Well, it starts tomorrow. The whole thing. My big move to the Big Apple. It's been over 10-years in the making and now that it is finally imminent, I have no words. It all feels so surreal. I'm sure it won't actually hit me until I am driving to the airport (or (un)packing the car, or checking in for my flight, or arriving in NYC)... But it all happens in almost exactly 35 hours.

I have a LOT to do. Not an entirely overwhelming amount, but enough errands that sitting here at my desk at work is feeling like a less than productive use of my limited time. The last minute things always pile up in a situation like this.

Or so I would assume. I honestly don't know.

Moving to Olympia this summer was so different because I knew Seattle was just an hour-and-a-half away, so if I forgot anything, or needed to come back for any reason, it was accessible. But this 3000-miles away move? This is more like when I did my study abroad in London, and that was 10-years ago, so... I don't really remember that process.

And it's permanent. Or, as permanent as a cross-country move to the most expensive city in the US with some job prospects, but nothing confirmed and no idea where I'm going to live come November 1 can possibly be. Let's just say that as of today, there is no end date. Open ended.

But this is just post one. All about the Adventure (capitalized for emphasis). And I'm ready.

Hear that, Universe? I am ready. Bring it on!