Farewell

It's the end of an era. I'm moving on. Next weekend I'll be a one-way flight to London in the hopes of finding what it is I'm looking for. Maybe it's in London; maybe somewhere else in Europe; maybe Asia or maybe right back here in New York! Who knows?! When I do, dear reader, you'll be the first to know.

p.s. No picture can ever do justice to the emotion of a farewell party but I've included one below anyways...

Met Opera

This evening I went with Rico to the Metropolitan Opera in Lincoln Center to see Donizetti's 'Lucia Di Lammermoor'. The theater was stunning, and the people there certainly dressed for the occassion. It felt like we were back in the time when people didn't have televisions or go to the cinema. Instead, they got dressed up and spent over 3 hours watching men and women screaming at the top of their voices about love, life and death. What fun!

Marathon

Today I saw my first marathon in person. I didn't have to go far to see it. Literally one block away from my apartment was near to the 4-mile mark. A friend, Kristin, was running so I tried to find her in amongst the throngs of people, who still looked in good spirits. It wasn't until the final stretch on Central Park South that I was able to see her, also looking surprisingly bubbly. Maybe they need to make the race longer...

Paul & Me

While getting my hair cut today I asked my hairdresser if he happened to meet any famous people in his line of work. He mentioned that one of his clients was none other than Paul McCartney! I'm sure that Paul is flattered...

Jogging

While on my daily jog in Bay Ridge I'm fortunate enough to be able to take in some great views of Brooklyn, Staten Island, Manhattan, New Jersey and Queens all from one spot: Pier 69.

Today I took some pictures from 3 different angles:


First, from the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge, the longest suspension bridge in the United States:


Second, from the end of Pier 69, looking towards the Verrazano bridge:


Third, from pier 69 towards Manhattan. You can just about see the Statue of Liberty off to the left:


If was a gusty day, the sky was lit brilliantly by the early evening sunset and the water blew in cool salty air. Quite a refreshing scene!

Tree

It was the third night of heavy rain, but nothing too serious. Not nearly enough to cause a 40-foot- (12 meter-) high tree to collapse into a building, right??

Wrong.

And so, on a cool and damp October evening, while I sat watching television, the sound of a slowly collapsing tree came from across the street. Through a window left open to allow Rico's flu germs to escape, I heard every creak, crash and scream and it was amazing.

Immediately following the incident I did what any decent American citizen would do, and called Fox News...

Moving: part 3

That's right, I'm moving... again! This time to Bay Ridge in Brooklyn.

Rico has kindly offered to let me stay with him while I continue looking for work in New York. I've spent the past 15 months living in the following places:

Chelsea: 6 months
Sunnyside, Queens: 3 months
Upper East Side: 6 months

My time in Sunnyside will have prepared me well for the lifestyle of Bay Ridge, which is likely to be very laid back and culturally very diverse. But as all my experiences have taught me, it's not where you live but who you live with that makes the difference. It's all up to Rico now...