Clichés

You know what they say about clichés: they all come from some thread of truth. So far, I have discovered no exception in NYC. It is the city that never sleeps, the concrete jungle, and the worst sin one can commit is taking up more space (anywhere) than you absolutely require. I haven’t held up on my promise to update consistently because I like to write only when I have the most positive things to say; and for the first couple of days, that was hard to do. NYC is a huge adjustment and this blog title ended up being more appropriate than is absolutely necessary (or safe). It is very well known that I am the most directionally challenged human being possibly on the planet (one night as the DD I ended up with our car full of 12 girls on the other side of the Mississippi river from Baton Rouge…) and the subway system did absolutely nothing to ameliorate this problem in NYC. I kept getting hopelessly lost, past the point of the “haha, I’m wandering around in the big city” phase. I’m talking hours. And not in daylight (sorry mom).

I moved into my 6x6 “apartment” (ha, dorm) on Saturday. It is small but quite cozy and with a brilliant view of the city. Right now I have the window up listening to the incessant hum 12 stories down. The next day Alex and I explored the city—we went to St. Patrick’s for mass, Saks, the New York Palace, and China town. It happened to be Israel day (another cliché: “everyone in NYC is Jewish, even if you’re Catholic”) so there were literally thousands of Jewish people in the streets and the Star of David was prominent on every establishment, including hotdog stands. Irony?

I started work the next day. I knew going in that interning means starting at the bottom of the feeding chain. I did not, however, expect to be sent out into the city equipped with a metro card, seven addresses, and an empty rolling suitcase. All day long, I performed menial tasks like filing, organizing, etc. In the late afternoon, however, they decided to send me out on the day’s book garnering. I got lost, had a few minor meltdowns, walked about 7 miles (in heels) and dragged that dang suitcase (increasingly filled with books) up and down subway staircases. I was that girl. By the end of the night, I was ready to peace out and head back to ol’ Mob.

Not to worry though! I had the morning off of work today, and things have begun to turn around. I was able to sleep in a little and explore the city. I finally rode the subway without getting off at the wrong stop and didn’t use the compass on my iPhone one time (and you thought no one used the compass…). At one point, I looked up and saw a huge void in the skyline. I automatically knew that the WTC had once stood in that spot. It was a really strange, almost spiritual moment for me as l looked through the scaffolding at where the buildings had once stood. There were flags and memoirs of Sept. 11^th all around as if it was a sort of sacred ground. I definitely had chills as I wandered around through St. Peter’s church across the street.

I picked up some pretty pink peonies to brighten the room and came back in time to get ready for work, anticipating a different kind of day. I knew that I would have my first author appearance tonight. It turned out to be wayyy cooler than I expected. Let me first explain the function of my company: Publishers are not allowed to conduct events publicizing their books/authors. They come to us to plan book signings and author events. I have already worked with major publishing houses (HarperCollins, Random House, Penguin…) and am pumped about making those connections. The event that I had tonight was with a couple who wrote a cookbook and actually cooked on Good Morning America this morning! They hosted a cooking show tonight in which they promoted their vegan cookbook and extremely popular NYC vegan restaurants. They let us try everything they cooked, including tomato gazpacho and chocolate mousse pie. It was FABULOUS. Seriously, if I didn’t love meat and dairy so much, I would consider trying veganism. I got to talk to the authors/chefs and got to know them really well. They even taught me some tricks of their culinary trade! I definitely want to hit up one of their restaurants now to see what all the buzz is about. I didn’t get finished tonight until after 10PM, but it was well worth it. I liked walking home on the quiet(er) streets. The pace was slower and the tourists few. I am about to hit the hay because I have to be up bright and early for an author appearance at the University Club—an exclusive gathering of Manhattan’s elite. I have yet to see anyone famous but maybe tomorrow will be the day!