2011 So Far

A New Year brings the inevitable - New Year’s resolutions. I have made three resolutions for myself this year. The first, and most important to me is what I like to call Project Get Fit. I started this project in 2010, but plan to really stick with it in 2011. My overall goals are to lose some pounds, tone up, and improve my overall health. So far it has been going well and I can definitely tell I’m gaining muscle mass from all the weights I’ve been lifting. Now I just have to work on the cardio side of things so I can hopefully shed a few pounds. Unfortunately, losing weight is not easy and something I have been struggling with for a few years now and quite frankly, I am sick of it. I am sick of being self conscious about what I wear and how I look. I am sick of looking at pictures of myself and thinking, “Who is that? Do I really look like that?” I am sick of feeling uncomfortable in my own skin so in addition to the 3-4 times a week workouts, I have been dieting. Nothing too drastic like a no carb diet (because I need my energy!), but instead a low cal diet. I track the calories I intake on a daily basis and try to keep it under 1700. I’m hoping once by body adjusts to this, I can drop it again to about 1500 a day. I’m hoping the exercise in conjunction with the eating healthier will help me reach my Project Get Fit goals. So far I have lost 3 lbs, which isn't a lot, but you have to start somewhere, right?

My second resolution is to learn how to cook. I know how to make a few dishes, but I’m trying to widen my knowledge in order to make a wider variety of foods. This resolution goes hand in hand with Project Get Fit as I’ve been making healthy meals I find online. I have tried a few weight watchers recipes and a few from the healthy choice options on the Food Network. My goal is to cook a healthy meal for myself (and usually Alex) one time a week and I’ve kept with it throughout all of January. Some weeks I’ve even cooked twice in one week, which is quite the accomplishment for someone who is used to eating ramon noodles, macaroni & cheese, and peanut butter sandwiches.

My third resolution is to read more. I have never been a huge reader unless it was my college text books or a good gossip magazine. I think this is partly because I never had a whole lot of spare time on my hands and I am not a super fast reader, but I’m not in school anymore and other than work and working out, I have nothing else to do so I’ve taken up reading. At the end of 2010 I read a Nora Roberts novel, Vision in White, the first book in the Bride Quartet, and I loved it. I guess what they say is true, if you find a good book that interests you, you will love reading. I partly owe this new found entertainment to my sisters and Val. They are all book worms and have all encouraged me to read several books that they really enjoyed. I finally did what they said and opened a book and they were right, I thoroughly enjoyed it. Thanks guys, you were right! In 2011 I plan on reading the remaining 3 novels in the Bride Quartet as well as any other titles that sound interesting.

Other than resolutions, January has brought A LOT of severe winter weather. We are talking exponential amounts of snow, sleet, ice and freezing cold temperatures. I have worked from home three days in one month due to the crazy winter storms. At first I thought it was lovely, the pretty white snow outside and all, but now, I am so over it. I am tired of trudging my way through the slushy mess, freezing my buns off, and almost slipping and falling on the way to the subway station. I am hoping Mother Nature will be a little friendlier to NYC during the month of February.

Outside my kitchen window

Trudging through the snow on my way to work one morning

Lots of snow!

Resolutions, snow, January really has brought a lot to the table, but more importantly, yet regrettably, it has taken something very valuable to me, Val. Returning home from my 11-day vacation in KS was odd this time because when I arrived in NY, Val was missing. Ok, so she wasn’t really missing, as in lost, she was just plain gone. The first few days going to and coming home from work were so weird because I usually made the commute with my BFF and co-worker. I will admit, doing this alone was quite the adjustment, but that wasn’t the worst of it. The worst part was not having anyone to eat dinner with and talk to at night. My roommate Katy works late hours so by the time she gets home from work, I am already headed to my room to read, relax and go to bed. When Val was my roomie, we always had nice chats, sometimes about important things other times about nothing at all, but nevertheless, she was there to talk to me. I’m slowly getting used to coming home to an empty house, and working out in the evenings has helped fill the void, but still, Val is missed. I’m just grateful that she got to spend 4 months in New York with me. We were already close, but I think being roomies in a big, brand new city brought us even closer. We talk on the phone and skype in order to keep in touch and as long as we continue to do so, all will be well.

January came and went in the blink of en eye and before I knew it, February was upon me. Thursday, February 3 was especially notable as it was my one-year anniversary in New York City. I moved to the city on Feb 3, 2010 and I can’t believe an entire year has gone by already. Although the year went by so quickly, I feel like it was a really important year for me. It was my first year out of school. It was the year I worked at my first real job. It was the first year I was living in the real world, paying bills and being a responsible adult. And of course, it was the first year living in one of the biggest and most exciting cities in the world. There were definitely trying times and feelings of fear and uncertainty, but getting through that brought feelings of excitement and accomplishment. Sometimes I still look back and think, what the heck was I thinking? How did I bring myself to pack up and move away from my family, friends and everything familiar to me to live in a place where everything was unknown? I honestly don’t know how (or sometimes even why), but I’m so glad I did. I have learned so much from the experience and it’s definitely one I will never forget and always cherish. I can’t even begin to describe all the things I’ve gained in just one short year, but one that I must mention is the better understanding of myself. I feel like the harder you push yourself and the bigger chance you take, the more you learn about yourself. You know what they say, the bigger the risk, the greater the reward and let me just attempt to say this without sounding conceited; I’m very proud of myself for what I have accomplished in my professional and personal life over the past year. My Tio Martin is proud too so we're going out to celebrate my 1-year NY anniversary next Friday! ;-)

February 9 is Alex and my 7th month together and February 14 is of course Valentine’s Day so needless to say, February should be a good month. This will be my first Valentine’s Day in YEARS that I have had a Valentine so I’m super grateful to have someone as great as Alex to spend it with. In the few short months we have been together I have been so happy and it’s so nice to be reminded how wonderful relationships can be when you’re with a great person. After so many years of being single, I slowly forgot what it felt like to be loved and appreciated. Don’t get me wrong, I learned a lot from being single and I don’t regret at all spending all those years by myself because I think it taught me a lot about myself and how to be independent. It also allowed me to grow and understand myself better which in turn made me realize what I want in life and what I want and need out of a relationship and I’m happy to say that Alex fits the mold. Happy Valentine’s Day to everyone, I hope everyone gets the love they deserve on the 14th and every day of the year! ;-)

A Month Already

Can you believe it has already been a whole month since I left Kansas City!? I know it’s totally cliché, but man, time flies! It seems as if just yesterday I was packing my bags and saying good bye. I honestly can’t believe a month has already gone by, especially because so much has happened in such a short period of time!

Everyone reading this blog who knows me at all knows that I love to write, I’m a Journalism graduate after all. This blog serves as a way to keep in touch yes, but it also allows me to “journal” my life, my thoughts, etc. With that said, I thought I’d document some of the things that have happened over the past 4 weeks.

I have been introduced to some really great people. My Tio has some awesome friends who I’ve had the privilege to get to know better. Every time we hang out, which is at least once a week, they are all so happy to see me and greet me with a hug and kiss. It seems minuscule, but it really means a lot to me considering they are my only “family” in this city. Most of them are quite a bit older than me, which is beneficial because they have experienced many more life lessons/NYC lessons and are always happy to share. However, since I’ve been here I’ve been hoping to meet some more people my age. Luckily, I did so last Saturday when hanging out in Brooklyn. After My Tio and I ate dinner with some friends, we all went out to a local bar with a younger crowd. A few numbers were exchanged and hopefully some friendships will develop. I’m also super excited to start my job because a lot of young and seemingly friendly people work at Patch, which is a great recipe for making friends.

Dinner & Margaritas at Arriba Arriba (A really GREAT Mexican Restaurant in NYC)

I really feel like this apartment is becoming part mine. For the first couple of weeks I felt like a guest, which is only natural because I was living out of a suitcase. After some time passed and the vacation feeling went away I became more comfortable living here, rather than visiting or just staying here. Once all of my things were organized and put away it became more real. It is starting to become routine to wake up, eat breakfast, get ready, etc. like it’s my own place. I know that sounds silly, but before it felt like I was just visiting and now when I do those little daily activities, I feel like I would in my own bedroom/bathroom in Kansas. Put simply, it’s starting to feel like home.

Contrary to popular belief, New Yorkers don’t always eat out or have food delivered (like you see in movies). I have cooked more since I’ve been here than ever before. We go out to eat about once a week and every other night we cook dinner. I actually am really starting to enjoy it. It’s kind of fun to plan dinners and try making different things. It’s sort of rewarding when we sit down to eat a delicious meal that we prepared ourselves. Now, don’t get me wrong, we don’t cook huge elaborate meals that take hours, just simple things, but it’s cooking nevertheless! Nightly dinners & glasses of wine are becoming one of my favorite things about living here!

I haven’t watched too much TV since I’ve been here, usually it’s movies, with the exception of the Bachelor.

Tangent: I was addicted all season, sad, but true! Although after another disappointment in the last person standing, I might remove the nonsense from my life because I get really pissed off. I don’t know why, it’s not like it directly affects my life. Oh, ok, who am I kidding? We all know I will be in front of the TV when next season starts in May. It is crazy women like me that keep the show’s ratings up and the show on the air. Sorry!

I do try to catch KU games when I can. I have been pretty successful considering KU has maintained a high ranking all season and games are broadcast on ESPN, however, there have been a few that are not aired in NYC and it’s really upsetting to not be able to cheer on my Jayhawks. On a good note, they obviously don’t need me to cheer them on as they do just fine without me. Actually, WAY more than fine, they ROCK! Big 12 Champs AGAIN, whoop whoop! I’m so proud. I can’t wait for the tournament…National Champions anyone!?

There have been two big snow storms since I’ve been in the city and two official snow days in which schools and some businesses closed. (First time in years NYC has had two snow days in one winter season!) During the first snow storm we didn’t really get out because it was cold and wet, but this last snow storm we decided to take advantage of Mother Nature. We bundled up Perkins and Elvis and took them for a walk/trudge in the snow. P loves it, E not so much. We both took some really great pictures of the snow, it was really pretty! By last Sunday most of the snow had been plowed or had melted and we headed to Central Park! I was super excited because before I moved here I had visited 3 different times and did all the touristy things except for CP. My Tio told me that we would need lots of energy to take a stroll through Central Park so he made us a nice big breakfast (eggs, ham, fruit, and croissants, it was delicious!) and boy was he right! I knew CP was big, but I didn’t realize just how huge. We entered the park right in front of the Plaza Hotel from Home Alone, which is actually luxury condos now, and walked for a couple of hours before stopping at The Boathouse for lunch. The Boathouse is a well-known restaurant in CP and is in a lot of movies like When Harry Met Sally. I thoroughly enjoyed walking through the park and seeing “famous” spots. The whole time I kept saying, “Oh, that’s the fountain from Hitch.” “Oh, that’s from Home Alone.” “Oh, that’s from One Fine Day.” After walking about ¼ of the park, we decided to call it a day. BTW-That’s an indication of just how big CP is, we walked for a couple of hours and didn’t even get through half of it. I was exhausted, but it was a great Sunday!

Central Park's famous Bethesda Fountain

Great view of the city from CP

Alright, this post is getting a little lengthy; I think it’s about time to wrap it up! I’ll leave you with one final “story.” I went to get my hair cut on Thursday at a Salon on the Lower East Side (the “cool” people call it The L-E-S) and afterward I was walking, shopping, exploring, etc. and I sort of paused for a moment and thought, “Is this really my life right now!?” I smiled and continued walking thinking, “Absolutely it is, and I love it!!”

Side Note: Haircuts in NYC are ridiculously expensive, like $75 on up for JUST a haircut! I spent over an hour researching salons in the area before I found one that was affordable. The stylist was fantastic, she washed, cut, and blow dried my hair straight all in an hour!

1st NYC haircut a success! (Yes, I know...I look my sisters, or so I've been told!!!)

Snow Storm to Val Day & Everything in Between!

I thought I escaped the snow when I left Kansas City, boy was I wrong! Last Saturday NY was expecting the snow storm Kansas got on Thursday/Friday, but only a few flurries fell and all was well…until Wednesday that is.

It all started on Tuesday when the news reported that we would get about a foot of snow on Wednesday. They were 99.9% sure because schools and businesses started closing on Tuesday evening, the first time this has happened in a long time (so I’ve been told). The big snow storm was the topic of conversation all day Tuesday. I know this because I had 2 interviews on Tuesday and the snow storm came up in both of them. (I am sure you want to know how they went, I’ll get into that in just a minute.)

Here is a little elevator conversation I had with a random lady on the way to my interview:
Lady: Are you ready? (With a scared yet eager attitude)
Me: Ready? Ready for what? (The tone of her voice made it sound like I should’ve replied with something like, hell yeah I’m ready!)
Lady: The big snow storm. They say we are going to get a lot.
Me: Oh, that. Yeah, I’m not too worried about it, I’m used to snow. I just moved here from Kansas City where we had a very snowy winter.
Lady: Really? Well good look. (She had a look on her face like Armageddon was coming)

At that point I had a pretty good feeling that we were going to get bombarded with snow, which is why on the way home from my interviews I stopped at the Walgreens up the street and picked up a few things knowing I wouldn’t want to get out on Wednesday.

Now let me back track a little bit…Tuesday morning I woke up, got ready for my interviews and left the apartment anxious and a bit nervous. It was the first time I was going to have to navigate the city on my own. Until then, my Tio Marty and I had gone everywhere together so I didn’t have to worry about directions, public transportation, etc. Like I said, I was nervous, but excited too. I walked to the closest intersection (20th St. & 1st Ave.) and hailed a cab. To my surprise, it didn’t take long to get a cab (sometimes it can take 5-10 minutes to see a cab with its light on, indicating it’s vacant). I got in, told him where I was headed and 15 minutes later I arrived at my first interview at Career Blazers, a hiring agency. I spoke with a recruiter about a few opportunities with various companies in NY, but considering she was a bit unpleasant, I knew I didn’t want to work with that agency. I left feeling a bit disappointed, but optimistic that my second interview would go better, and I was right. I had about an hour between interviews and the buildings were only about 8 blocks apart so I decided to grab some lunch. I walked down 5th Avenue and spotted a McDonalds so I went in and ate lunch alone. The reason I mention this is because I have never eaten alone. In fact, every time I see someone eating alone I feel bad for them. To my surprise, almost everyone in McDonalds was eating alone. It was 1:00pm and you could tell by the business attire that most of the people were grabbing a bite on their lunch break. It made me feel a whole lot better knowing that eating alone is pretty normal around lunch time. It also made me realize how many "firsts" I am going to have here, which is great because like my blog title says, "...moved to New York in pursuit of new experiences!"

As soon as I finished my snack wraps I headed to my second interview. It went really well and I’m waiting to hear some more details on potential employment. I left feeling pretty optimistic and in a good mood so I decided to walk home. I was in Midtown and I live on the Lower East Side so it was a decently far walk, but again, I was feeling energetic and it was a great opportunity to see more of the city. I walked down 5th Avenue for a while, which was so surreal considering 5th Ave. is so famous. I walked past the NY Public Library (the one Carrie Bradshaw is supposed to get married at in Sex in the City) and briefly stopped to enjoy my surroundings. I then carried on and made it back to Sty Town. I was proud of myself for navigating the city on my own without any problems at all and even more proud that I walked, lord knows I could use the exercise! ;)

So like I said, I (and my Tio Marty) ran all of our errands Tuesday evening because we knew Wednesday would be a snowy mess, and indeed it was. We woke up Wednesday to a very white, windy and pretty New York. Obviously NYC is a big busy city so to see it so empty was bizarre. Schools and jobs were closed so of course everyone took advantage of it and went to parks to ski, sled, build snowmen, and have snow ball fights. Right outside my window there were about 15 dogs and their owners playing in the snow, it was so cute. I was watching the news with coverage of Central Park and the amount of people out enjoying the snow was insane! You could tell it had been a while since NY had a lot of really good snow. My Tio Martin and I spent the afternoon inside relaxing and eating soup and the evening watching a French film, eating pizza and drinking Italian wine. (We are so worldly, I know, lol!)

Thursday morning I woke up with a bit of a wine headache, but toughed it out as I had a phone interview with a company I’m very interested in. It went really well and I should be hearing something about a formal interview sometime this week. I spent the rest of Thursday relaxing, going for a jog, taking the dogs for a walk, and reading a few chapters of Eat, Pray, Love (a book I’ve started reading a few times, but have never finished. I am determined to finish it this time!)

Friday was a beautiful day, the sun was out and the temperature warm. I of course went for a jog, it’s so easy to be motivated to run when it’s nice outside! Let’s hope I can stay motivated. To help, I downloaded lots of upbeat songs on iTunes. Let’s face it, running to slow sappy love songs doesn’t help ya pick up the pace. Thanks to the gift card Drea and George bought me, I was able to download lots of good “work out” songs. Also, Drea sent me “Empire State of Mind” via email, which is my favorite song right now (I’m sure you can guess why) and when I hear it, it pumps me up and I think I run a little faster, until it’s over that is, lol!

I spent Friday night at; you guessed it…Happy Hour! Like I mentioned before, Friday night Happy Hour is the norm in this city! It was nice to go 2 weeks consecutively. Every time I visit NY, I go to HH, but then my vacation is over and I leave. This time, I went 2 times in a row, which made everything a bit more real. Until that point, I still felt like I was on vacation. Not anymore, I’m starting to adapt and become used to the idea that this is going to be my home. Well, at least one of them. They always say Home is where the Heart is, and if that’s the case, my home will always be Kansas (or anywhere my family is, of course!)

As far as the rest of the weekend goes, I didn't do much on Saturday. We had a play date with the pups, rented 17 Again (only because it had Zac Effron in it), and made a chicken and mushroom pasta for dinner. The movie turned out to be totally cheesy, but cute and the pasta was delicious! Sunday was the dreaded Valentine's Day, but thanks to my dinner & a movie date with my Tio, it wasn't so bad. We are both single so we figured we should get out of the house together and enjoy the fake-holiday, lol. We saw the movie Valentine's Day which was really funny and actually made me feel better about being single for whatever reason (probably because I remembered just how difficult and how much work relationships really can be). After the movie we went to try out a little Italian restaurant near the apartment. It was yummy and we most definitely will eat there again soon, I'm sure!

Well, that's all for now. LOL, as if that wasn't TOO much to handle. Again, you know me...long stories can never be short, nor can short stories ever be short! ;)