Five Years (Continued...)
(Disclaimer: I know this entry looks nuts...I could NOT try and make it look pretty anymore...after 5 years, I'm still figuring out how to format this mess!)
Yesterday was my five year New York Anniversary. Five years! I can't believe it. I started this blog almost that long ago on November 29, 2006. I was temping then and spending a lot of time confined to random reception desks around NYC bored and having nothing left to g-chat about and I began to realize that after college, opportunities to be creative are no longer just handed to you. So, I started keeping this collection of random observations I made about living here. I've decided to celebrate 5 years by sharing the top 5 lessons I've learned living in New York City.
1. Moving is a bitch... A high maintenance bitch that never listens to you, never acts appropriately in any situation and forces you to spend tons of money on her. I have no pictures to accompany this lesson, at least none that I can find, but I will tell you, moving in the City is awful...unless you get movers. So, I suppose the actual lesson here is HIRE MOVERS. When Terrell and I rolled into Manhattan five years ago in a U-Haul, we thought we were moving into a building with an elevator. Unfortunately, that elevator was broken and he, Kerry, Tom, Evan, Gregg and I spent 15 (no joke, FIFTEEN) hours moving (mostly my) massive amounts of heavy (mostly Ikea) furniture up five flights of stairs. Kerry said that at the end of the day, he was so exhausted, you could have told him his parents had died and his emotional shift would hardly have been noticeable.
Kerry and me in our apartment on 118th after we painted and Ikea'd.
2. Finding your favorite places makes you feel like you know how to live in New York. My favorite places, believe it or not (and if you don't my Amex bill will prove it), are almost 100% comprised of restaurants and cafes. Central Park goes without saying. Whenever I can recommend a place, I feel like a real...New Yorker. My favorite places are:
-Cafe Gitane- So obvious. But, I love it. Avocado toast.
-Gottino- Wine and Cheese, it's tiny and there's a bartender who recognizes me and Meg. Love that.
-Morandi- Once my mom poured about an entire bottle of wine on Megan during dinner.
-Market Table- I posted very early on about this restaurant and it's STILL my fave.
-The Hungarian Pastry Shop- The best place to feel like a real writer and really good walnut macaroons.
-Pisticci- Too much. I've lived in Harlem the entire time I've been in NYC and Pisticci is the best restaurant up here. Kerry introduced me to it and it's probably the only place I can't count the number of times I've been.
-Joe The Art of Coffee
-Kitchenette- BEST CHOCOLATE PUDDING EVER.
3. One should wear costumes (and have photo shoots) WHENEVER possible.
(Guess what?? I spent 3 1/2 hours on THAT photo collage...)
4. Escape from NYC is absolutely essential.
(last minute addition for my brother who DOES read my blog!)
Also, check out this entry and all the others from March 2009 when Evan and I took a road trip.
...and last but not least...
5. New York is a really hard place to live, but once you figure out how to do it, even if you still hate it sometimes, it is really the BEST place in the world.
See?
xoxo,
Gossip Girl
Yesterday was my five year New York Anniversary. Five years! I can't believe it. I started this blog almost that long ago on November 29, 2006. I was temping then and spending a lot of time confined to random reception desks around NYC bored and having nothing left to g-chat about and I began to realize that after college, opportunities to be creative are no longer just handed to you. So, I started keeping this collection of random observations I made about living here. I've decided to celebrate 5 years by sharing the top 5 lessons I've learned living in New York City.
1. Moving is a bitch... A high maintenance bitch that never listens to you, never acts appropriately in any situation and forces you to spend tons of money on her. I have no pictures to accompany this lesson, at least none that I can find, but I will tell you, moving in the City is awful...unless you get movers. So, I suppose the actual lesson here is HIRE MOVERS. When Terrell and I rolled into Manhattan five years ago in a U-Haul, we thought we were moving into a building with an elevator. Unfortunately, that elevator was broken and he, Kerry, Tom, Evan, Gregg and I spent 15 (no joke, FIFTEEN) hours moving (mostly my) massive amounts of heavy (mostly Ikea) furniture up five flights of stairs. Kerry said that at the end of the day, he was so exhausted, you could have told him his parents had died and his emotional shift would hardly have been noticeable.
Kerry and me in our apartment on 118th after we painted and Ikea'd.
2. Finding your favorite places makes you feel like you know how to live in New York. My favorite places, believe it or not (and if you don't my Amex bill will prove it), are almost 100% comprised of restaurants and cafes. Central Park goes without saying. Whenever I can recommend a place, I feel like a real...New Yorker. My favorite places are:
-Cafe Gitane- So obvious. But, I love it. Avocado toast.
-Gottino- Wine and Cheese, it's tiny and there's a bartender who recognizes me and Meg. Love that.
-Morandi- Once my mom poured about an entire bottle of wine on Megan during dinner.
-Market Table- I posted very early on about this restaurant and it's STILL my fave.
-The Hungarian Pastry Shop- The best place to feel like a real writer and really good walnut macaroons.
-Pisticci- Too much. I've lived in Harlem the entire time I've been in NYC and Pisticci is the best restaurant up here. Kerry introduced me to it and it's probably the only place I can't count the number of times I've been.
-Joe The Art of Coffee
-Kitchenette- BEST CHOCOLATE PUDDING EVER.
3. One should wear costumes (and have photo shoots) WHENEVER possible.
(Guess what?? I spent 3 1/2 hours on THAT photo collage...)
4. Escape from NYC is absolutely essential.
(last minute addition for my brother who DOES read my blog!)
Also, check out this entry and all the others from March 2009 when Evan and I took a road trip.
...and last but not least...
5. New York is a really hard place to live, but once you figure out how to do it, even if you still hate it sometimes, it is really the BEST place in the world.
See?
xoxo,
Gossip Girl
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