I Heart NY

There are so many reasons why anyone would love New York City. I mean, whoever created that t-shirt must swim in the profits, like the rich duck in Duck Tales (woo-ooo!) What the heck is his name?? I suck. Anyway, so I have some of my own, some of which might be common and/or expected, some of which might be not be. So, here they are, in random order.

Let's kick things off with all the take-out. I can order any kind of food I want to be delivered my door: breakfast, hamburgers, pizza, Thai, Chinese, Indian, etc. It rocks. We'll go eat at a restaurant in the area and if we like it, yoink! We'll grab a menu for future use. It is so excellent.

Another thing I love is all the diversity, racial and otherwise. I love seeing so many different kinds of ethnicities and cultures and hearing so many different languages on a regular basis. And I love that it has become commonplace. I don't feel like an outsider, and on top of that, I think I add to it. I might not look like anything special, but I think I am and I like that I have something unique to offer, religion-wise. I love talking about my religion, particularly to those who've never heard a thing about it.

Today I ate lunch at a very New Yorky diner. It was very homey and cozy and owned and run by the kids and grandkids of the original owners. There was just a bar and stools and they give you a menu and talk to you and make your food right there and I love it. Plus, this place was cheap, something very un-New Yorky. Su-weet.

There is something about this place that I am far from understanding, nor have I delved deep enough to really make an attempt at it, and it really deserves its own separate entry, which i may or may not one day post. What it is, is paint. Here, it seems to be a cure-all for any kind of damage done. And it also seems to be an obsession. For instance, when surfaces get scratched or hurt otherwise, instead of fixing it, people just paint over it. Voila! "Healed." If it's dirty? Paint it! "Clean." And then--and I've particularly noticed this in apartments, where the landlord seems to go paint-crazy. It's amazing that there are UN-painted surfaces. The light switches are painted, door hinges, outlets--and that one irks me. The outlets are basically painted OVER, rendering them completely useless until we dig the paint out with a knife or something. What is that?? It's not a decoration! We need it to get to eelectriiicity! (<-- say that like it's a brand new word) Ridiculous. So this obsession and oddity of paint usage here remains a mystery, but still a quirk, and something I have actually grown to love.

I love stone sidewalks. They are dark, gray, and smooth. And the tap-tap sound that my stepping feet makes on them is utterly delightful. Ear candy. The stone is solid and immortal--until the roots of a tree push it up and make me trip, which happens on a regular basis. But even then it doesn't crumble, which is nice.

I love street fairs. On any given day (mostly Sundays though), a certain street will be closed for several blocks--a mile, it seems, and tents are put up with vendors selling food, jewelry, clothes, bags, scarves, woven things, trinkets, shoes, home-made this and exotic that. I love these! Eat a falafel while you try on scarves woven in India or jade earrings from Fiji. Too much fun. p.s. I don't really know how to spell "falafel." It's a spelling i made up a long time ago and i really couldn't tell you if it's even close to the correct one. oh well.

One word: Chocolateries. I've developed such a taste for such intricate combinations of flavors so exquisite, I write about them in my journal in as much detail as possible. I've learned that milk chocolate stifles the taste buds and, while tasty and sweet, masks the richness quality and the ability to taste anything else. The chocolate here is such that it makes you sit back, close your eyes, and breathe deeply while you eat it, and I would prefer not to be bothered while doing it. It is an experience that requires full and undivided attention.

I love the art and the museums. I love that Sean knows about up and coming artists that out-of-town artists have never heard of. He's got the inside scoop. I love that he has a job where he handles Degás and Hopper and Munch paintings. I love that I've worked in the Empire State Building (though the job itself sucked, but we won't get into that) and I know my way around the city. I know the subways and can handle myself if I have to get out of the underground and find another means to get to my destination. I can get a taxi and give someone directions on how to get somewhere. I love delis and the fact that i have my favorites and know their locations.

So many more things, but for now I'll leave it at that. Anyone up for a visit? :)