I am a pretty organized individual. I put things away. (Well, once I get unpacked, I put things away.) But today a couple of things threw me for a loop. First, I need to do laundry. I am lucky, blessed, thrilled, etc. that there is a laundry room in the basement of my building. No more walking six blocks to Atlantis 24 hour wash and fold!
I received a check from Macy's for a credit they owed me of $6 and some change. Enough to do some laundry. I put the check in my purse this morning, along with a plastic bag filled with loose change. (Enough I thought to not only do laundry, but to pick up a can of coffee at the grocery store--thanks to Kansas' generosity I'll be set with other groceries 'til I get paid in a week and a half!)
On my way out the office this evening I discover the check is gone! Not in my purse, not in my cabinet, not anywhere! Total disappointment and frustration. I get to the bank and have $10 in coins. Okay, I can still make this work. I get home. Where is my laundry card? It is gone, it is nowhere. (You have to use a prepaid card to do laundry, you just keep adding $$ onto the card. But, in order to get the card you have to pay an extra $5. So $10 will get you $5 in credit.) That means all my $10 spent, and only enough credit to do one load of laundry!
I have 3 pairs of clean underwear, 4 days of coffee, and $10 cash in my possession. What to do? I decided to wait until tomorrow.
Monday, December 28, 2009
Housewarming
Yesterday I received a wonderful housewarming present. First, I unpacked. Didn't finish, but got a pretty good start. Then off to meet Kansas at Rockefeller Center. I had yet to see the tree lit up, my pocketbook was empty, and I haven't seen Kansas in a long time, so thought it'd be a nice end to the Christmas holiday--a leisurely stroll around town catching up with a friend, seeing some NYC Christmas things.
Wrong. There were tourists by the busload. The streets were crowded. And it was a nice day which meant even more people were about. The only NY's who were happy were the street vendors selling their fare at 2 to 3 times the normal price. (I actually witnessed a guy paying $3 for a pretzel!) So we pushed through the crowds to get uptown to my place.
We decided to stop at the grocery store and pick up something to make for dinner. We met up with James at Key Foods, bought ingredients for chicken cacciatore, some cheap wine and headed home.
My wonderful housewarming present? Groceries bought for me, dinner prepared by a friend for me, a bag of goodies from James' apartment (tea lights, matches, instant coffee, chocolates) and best of all, an evening spent with friends!
I'm hoping my next guests won't have to eat their dinner sitting on the floor, eating off paper plates using plastic utensils, and drinking wine out of coffee mugs. But come to think of it, I'd rather have friends that don't mind one bit.
Wrong. There were tourists by the busload. The streets were crowded. And it was a nice day which meant even more people were about. The only NY's who were happy were the street vendors selling their fare at 2 to 3 times the normal price. (I actually witnessed a guy paying $3 for a pretzel!) So we pushed through the crowds to get uptown to my place.
We decided to stop at the grocery store and pick up something to make for dinner. We met up with James at Key Foods, bought ingredients for chicken cacciatore, some cheap wine and headed home.
My wonderful housewarming present? Groceries bought for me, dinner prepared by a friend for me, a bag of goodies from James' apartment (tea lights, matches, instant coffee, chocolates) and best of all, an evening spent with friends!
I'm hoping my next guests won't have to eat their dinner sitting on the floor, eating off paper plates using plastic utensils, and drinking wine out of coffee mugs. But come to think of it, I'd rather have friends that don't mind one bit.
Saturday, December 26, 2009
My Studio Apartment-Before
Today I am going to unpack and get settled into my apartment. (That is the goal anyway. So far I've been up for 3 hours and haven't started!) I continue to have difficulty posting photos, but here are some from when I first moved in, nothing but a bed and a suitcase...
How it looked when my stuff was moved in by my Communitas family and I was visitng my family in MI...
How it looks now after a week and a half of rummaging through bags...
For those of you not satisfied with the dimensions given by me (if me and another person held hands and reached, we could just about touch all four walls!) I measured with my new dollar store measuring tape. Dimensions: 11 1/2' X 13 1/2' (Which means I was pretty right-on with the holding hands and stretching measurement.) Which also means it's tons roomier than my last room in Brooklyn which measured only 6 1/2' X 14 1/2'. (Of course in Brooklyn I had some common areas I shared (living room, dining room, kitchen) but my bedroom was where all my stuff was and the only place I really felt comfortable.)
Soon to come, After pictures!
How it looked when my stuff was moved in by my Communitas family and I was visitng my family in MI...
How it looks now after a week and a half of rummaging through bags...
For those of you not satisfied with the dimensions given by me (if me and another person held hands and reached, we could just about touch all four walls!) I measured with my new dollar store measuring tape. Dimensions: 11 1/2' X 13 1/2' (Which means I was pretty right-on with the holding hands and stretching measurement.) Which also means it's tons roomier than my last room in Brooklyn which measured only 6 1/2' X 14 1/2'. (Of course in Brooklyn I had some common areas I shared (living room, dining room, kitchen) but my bedroom was where all my stuff was and the only place I really felt comfortable.)
Soon to come, After pictures!
Christmas Day
My second Christmas in NYC started with my now annual Christmas Brunch Tradition with Ellie and Jenn. This year I went to their apartment and we each prepared some dishes which turned into a feast. Blueberry waffles, turkey bacon, potato pancakes, eggs (and Bailey's, Quantro, Mojitos--there seems to be a mini theme of partaking spirits at Christmastime going for me here!) We cooked and talked and laughed and shared the morning with each other.
Then off to 'dinner' for Jenn and I with Jenn's friend Mary and her boyfriend Frank. (Please note 'dinner' is in quotations because Mary made reservations for 1pm!) We just finished eating brunch and had to change and leave for dinner. Ellie asked if she could do my makeup, Jenn lent me a sweater, I put on a skirt I brought, and I felt all dolled up!
(Yes, it's pretty vain, I know, but I'm adding a picture--it's been a long time since I dressed up for anything.)
We met at Fishtails on 62nd and Lexington and had a really fun afternoon. This was my first time meeting Mary and Frank, and I was happy to spend the afternoon with them. We spent over 3 hours at that restaurant. We had a back room to ourselves. (We needed the room, Mary uses a scooter and Frank uses a chair.) We laughed so much! My goal next year is to be able to afford more than just one and a half glasses of wine and a small tossed salad (total spent: $43!) The best part was watching both Frank and Mary enjoy their dinners. (They are both currently in a rehab facility and don't have the opportunity to get out often or eat decent meals.) And I have to comment on the staff at Fishtails. They were so extraordinarily nice and accommodating, every single person there. And the food was perfect. (If only I liked seafoood!)
Finally the end of the day, back to Jenn's and into my sweatpants, watching 'It's a Wonderful Life' (my all time favorite movie!) then a trip back to the comfort of my studio apartment.
A beautiful Christmas spent enjoying the people God has brought into my life, and enjoying the place He has me at right now. None of it planned, none of it expected, all of it wonderful!
Then off to 'dinner' for Jenn and I with Jenn's friend Mary and her boyfriend Frank. (Please note 'dinner' is in quotations because Mary made reservations for 1pm!) We just finished eating brunch and had to change and leave for dinner. Ellie asked if she could do my makeup, Jenn lent me a sweater, I put on a skirt I brought, and I felt all dolled up!
(Yes, it's pretty vain, I know, but I'm adding a picture--it's been a long time since I dressed up for anything.) We met at Fishtails on 62nd and Lexington and had a really fun afternoon. This was my first time meeting Mary and Frank, and I was happy to spend the afternoon with them. We spent over 3 hours at that restaurant. We had a back room to ourselves. (We needed the room, Mary uses a scooter and Frank uses a chair.) We laughed so much! My goal next year is to be able to afford more than just one and a half glasses of wine and a small tossed salad (total spent: $43!) The best part was watching both Frank and Mary enjoy their dinners. (They are both currently in a rehab facility and don't have the opportunity to get out often or eat decent meals.) And I have to comment on the staff at Fishtails. They were so extraordinarily nice and accommodating, every single person there. And the food was perfect. (If only I liked seafoood!)
Finally the end of the day, back to Jenn's and into my sweatpants, watching 'It's a Wonderful Life' (my all time favorite movie!) then a trip back to the comfort of my studio apartment.
A beautiful Christmas spent enjoying the people God has brought into my life, and enjoying the place He has me at right now. None of it planned, none of it expected, all of it wonderful!
Friday, December 25, 2009
Christmas Eve
I had the best Christmas Eve and Christmas Day! Surrendering to where you are instead of wishing you were someplace else makes all the difference in the world. (Having a wonderful friend who you want to spend time with doesn't hurt either!)
I had to work on Christmas Eve, covering for a coworker in Queens, (and believe me, this was the busiest week with clients making poor decisions, both mine and my coworker's--the holidays can be difficult for people)so after work I came home and took a nap. I had plans to meet my good friend, Jenn, who also had to work, to attend midnight mass. Our plans were to meet on Fifth Avenue & 58th Street and walk around a bit before mass started.
One of my favorite areas in NYC is 5th & 58th. It's what I consider to be a romantic area and on Christmas Eve it is simply magical! It's at the bottom of Central Park and so there are a lot of horse drawn carriages. My favorite movie theater is there, Paris, as well as the Plaza Hotel.
(I have always wanted to go to the Plaza! I admit it's maybe the one 'wedding dream' I have, to spend my wedding night at the Plaza!) Many tourists are always in this area to check out the Apple store and shop at FAO Schwartz. But the best thing to see at Christmastime are the windows at Bergdorf Goodman!
I met Jenn at the corner and was greeted by her warm smile (and a diet coke bottle filled with spirits;) The windows at Bergdorf Goodman were spectacular, truly a work of art. We went to both The Plaza and the Waldorf Astoria, my first time at both luxury hotels (it was only to use the restrooms, but no one needs to know that!)
Jenn was unable to get tickets for St. Patrick's Cathedral's mass (which you have to do in September) so we tried to find another Catholic church they recommended, St. Agnes. We finally found St. Agnes, only to discover they didn't have a midnight mass! We wandered around the city trying to find anther catholic church when we stumbled upon St. Bartholomew's Church. Beautiful! We were late, but managed to hear and sing some Christmas songs as well as partake in communion (which I don't think you're supposed to do if you're not Catholic, but we did anyway--my first time in a long time approaching and kneeling at an altar.)
And then Christmas Day...
I had to work on Christmas Eve, covering for a coworker in Queens, (and believe me, this was the busiest week with clients making poor decisions, both mine and my coworker's--the holidays can be difficult for people)so after work I came home and took a nap. I had plans to meet my good friend, Jenn, who also had to work, to attend midnight mass. Our plans were to meet on Fifth Avenue & 58th Street and walk around a bit before mass started.
One of my favorite areas in NYC is 5th & 58th. It's what I consider to be a romantic area and on Christmas Eve it is simply magical! It's at the bottom of Central Park and so there are a lot of horse drawn carriages. My favorite movie theater is there, Paris, as well as the Plaza Hotel.
(I have always wanted to go to the Plaza! I admit it's maybe the one 'wedding dream' I have, to spend my wedding night at the Plaza!) Many tourists are always in this area to check out the Apple store and shop at FAO Schwartz. But the best thing to see at Christmastime are the windows at Bergdorf Goodman!I met Jenn at the corner and was greeted by her warm smile (and a diet coke bottle filled with spirits;) The windows at Bergdorf Goodman were spectacular, truly a work of art. We went to both The Plaza and the Waldorf Astoria, my first time at both luxury hotels (it was only to use the restrooms, but no one needs to know that!)
Jenn was unable to get tickets for St. Patrick's Cathedral's mass (which you have to do in September) so we tried to find another Catholic church they recommended, St. Agnes. We finally found St. Agnes, only to discover they didn't have a midnight mass! We wandered around the city trying to find anther catholic church when we stumbled upon St. Bartholomew's Church. Beautiful! We were late, but managed to hear and sing some Christmas songs as well as partake in communion (which I don't think you're supposed to do if you're not Catholic, but we did anyway--my first time in a long time approaching and kneeling at an altar.)And then Christmas Day...
Thursday, December 24, 2009
Hiatus
So I suppose some of you may have noticed that I haven't posted in a while, and some of you (at least one of you!) may have noticed that the last time I posted was on Nov. 4th and am now off your list of 'blogs I read.' The longer it's been since I haven't blogged, the harder it is to write---not because I have nothing to say, but because I feel compelled to explain why I haven't written and what has been going on. So I think the best thing to do is to just jump in without an explanation and stop letting opportunities to share pass me by.
But, for those of you know me, know I can't do that and instead will post the blogs I started over the last few months (in various stages of completedness) with the date started.
Following God's Will
10/25/09
It's funny, but it's hard to follow God's will when you don't take the time to ask Him what His will is.
Homeless and Stuffless
11/3/09
I have been living for nearly a year and a half now without most of my belongings. In July of 2008 I sold nearly everything I owned in preparation to move to NY. The little bit I kept was put into storage, in Michigan. I then spent 3 months living with my cousins. Then to Brooklyn where I lived in "community" for a year. In a tiny, tiny room with no closet.
And now, where do I find myself? Without a home, again. Other than a suitcase, a box and a bag, the rest of my belongings are on a truck. A truck which is parked somewhere along the East River. A truck that in a few days will be headed to MI for the month. With my stuff on it.
My life just keeps getting more and more 'interesting.' And by interesting, I mean unbearable. I am...
Doubt
11/3/09
I'm doubting the existence of God. I have a hard time believing in someone, something, that can continue to push, and push, and push.
I feel as if I am being pushed and held down underwater. But the worst part is that for a moment, I am allowed to come up for air. And as I take a breath, I start to have hope that I will be able to breathe. And then I am held under again. I can handle being held down underwater. It is the cruel taunt of being let up for air where I can catch my breath that is the torture. The struggle of fighting my way to the surface is exhausting...exhausting in body, mind and spirit.
I just want to be able to breathe without swallowing water.
NYorkiversary
11/9/09
Monday marked my one year in New York City! So many changes this year, I don't know where to begin.
So as you can see I haven't been totally idle these past few months. In fact it has certainly been the hardest few months in the past few years, but I have experienced much growth. It was just easy for me to get wrapped up in and absorbed in my own version of my story without realizing that I am not the author of my novel.
In summation, for those of you who have actually continued to read this lengthy piece, I have had to rely and trust in God, learn to ask for help and receive it, confess and repent of my sins, receive forgiveness. And all this I learned through moving out of Brooklyn before it is time, living with friends (who continue to amaze me with their way of living open-handedly), trying to find an apartment in this city with bad credit and one I could afford, moving (without my belongings), no internet access, a trip to MI (but not for the holidays), finally receiving my belongings, and another Thanksgiving, Birthday, and Christmas in New York without my family.
But, for those of you know me, know I can't do that and instead will post the blogs I started over the last few months (in various stages of completedness) with the date started.
Following God's Will
10/25/09
It's funny, but it's hard to follow God's will when you don't take the time to ask Him what His will is.
Homeless and Stuffless
11/3/09
I have been living for nearly a year and a half now without most of my belongings. In July of 2008 I sold nearly everything I owned in preparation to move to NY. The little bit I kept was put into storage, in Michigan. I then spent 3 months living with my cousins. Then to Brooklyn where I lived in "community" for a year. In a tiny, tiny room with no closet.
And now, where do I find myself? Without a home, again. Other than a suitcase, a box and a bag, the rest of my belongings are on a truck. A truck which is parked somewhere along the East River. A truck that in a few days will be headed to MI for the month. With my stuff on it.
My life just keeps getting more and more 'interesting.' And by interesting, I mean unbearable. I am...
Doubt
11/3/09
I'm doubting the existence of God. I have a hard time believing in someone, something, that can continue to push, and push, and push.
I feel as if I am being pushed and held down underwater. But the worst part is that for a moment, I am allowed to come up for air. And as I take a breath, I start to have hope that I will be able to breathe. And then I am held under again. I can handle being held down underwater. It is the cruel taunt of being let up for air where I can catch my breath that is the torture. The struggle of fighting my way to the surface is exhausting...exhausting in body, mind and spirit.
I just want to be able to breathe without swallowing water.
NYorkiversary
11/9/09
Monday marked my one year in New York City! So many changes this year, I don't know where to begin.
So as you can see I haven't been totally idle these past few months. In fact it has certainly been the hardest few months in the past few years, but I have experienced much growth. It was just easy for me to get wrapped up in and absorbed in my own version of my story without realizing that I am not the author of my novel.
In summation, for those of you who have actually continued to read this lengthy piece, I have had to rely and trust in God, learn to ask for help and receive it, confess and repent of my sins, receive forgiveness. And all this I learned through moving out of Brooklyn before it is time, living with friends (who continue to amaze me with their way of living open-handedly), trying to find an apartment in this city with bad credit and one I could afford, moving (without my belongings), no internet access, a trip to MI (but not for the holidays), finally receiving my belongings, and another Thanksgiving, Birthday, and Christmas in New York without my family.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
