orienting.

orientation week was a long one.  fire-safety-talks and how-to-use-the-library-talks and how-to-not-get-hit-by-the-subway-talks were bookended by inspiring "TED talk-esque" public health leaders rallying us to help cure AIDS and put an end to the obesity epidemic.  whatever inspiration we derived from this week, one thing was for sure: it was the first time in a while that most of us were thrown headfirst into an uncomfortable new setting.  why do we still feel antsy? we asked ourselves.  we're blessed with the security of our beloved apartments and our impending master's degrees! we said. but we're diving headfirst into the unknown, into a complex, albeit well-loved field that makes no promises for us 2 years down the road.  it makes sense that we're still uncomfortable.

so instead of attending a talk on how to use the library (again), we trekked south to hester street fair's hester nights in chelsea.  and instead of staying for the michael jackson video montage inside the lobby of the eventi hotel, we walked the high line and soaked in this night that made us so grateful to call ourselves new yorkers.

inspiration from the john mayer concert on wednesday night (!!):

"make sure you celebrate yourself.  there are a lot of shitty moments in life, so when life is good, celebrate it."

- john mayer 

katz's deli.

pickles and sandwiches the size of your face, table visits from the third generation katz himself, and the site of the film world's most beloved orgasm.  you've got to make it to this classic on houston street at least once. 

(good thing i'm no longer a vegetarian.)

"there is no sincerer love than the love of food."

- george bernard shaw

a trip a la capital.

not even a week settled in our new york apartment and we were off to other cities: DC, the city of activism and change and red/white/blue.  but more importantly, the city of so many friends and so many cupcakes.

"blessed are those who see beautiful things in humble places where other people see nothing."

- camille pissarro

new home sweet home.

{the red rooster, harlem}

it has been a full year since i started this blog.  over that time, i've received mixed reviews - my favorite of the mix being "...and why do you write a blog again...?" 

my reasoning, as i explained to those dubious interrogators, fluctuated depending on the day: either "because it's fun!" or "i like to write!" or "i LoOoOve pictures!" i don't think my life is more exciting than the lives of others or carries more weight or is more deserving of documentation.  this little space i've created is simply a happy hobby i'm hooked on.  

so after my brief hiatus and a rejuvenating summer, i'm back to it!  with a new look (to stay this time!) and in the best city in the world. 

"i remember walking across sixty-second street one twilight that first spring, or the second spring, they were all alike for a while. i was late to meet someone but i stopped at lexington avenue and bought a peach and stood on the corner eating it and knew that i had come out of the west and reached the mirage. i could taste the peach and feel the soft air blowing from a subway grating on my legs and i could smell lilac and garbage and expensive perfume and i knew that it would cost something sooner or later - because i did not belong there, did not come from there - but when you are twenty-two or twenty-three, you figure that later you will have a high emotional balance, and be able to pay whatever it costs. i still believed in possibilities then, still had the sense, so peculiar new york, that something extraordinary would happen any minute, any day, any month." 

- joan didion

sounds good to me.

{st. augustine, fl}

"i've learned that no matter what happens, or how bad it seems today, life does go on, and it will be better tomorrow.

i've learned that you can tell a lot about a person by the way he/she handles three things: a rainy day, lost luggage, and tangled Christmas tree lights.

i've learned that regardless of your relationship with your parents, you'll miss them when they're gone from your life.

i've learned that making a 'living' is not the same thing as making a 'life.'

i've learned that life sometimes gives you a second chance.

i've learned that you shouldn't go through life with a catcher's mitt in both hands; you need to be able to throw something back.

i've learned that whenever i decide something with an open heart, i usually make the right decision.

i've learned that even when i have pains, i don't have to be one. 

i've learned that everyday you should reach out and touch someone. people love a warm hug or just a friendly pat on the back.

i've learned that i still have a lot to learn.

i've learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel."

- maya angelou

ooooooh, chicago.

{architecture boat tour}

{the loop & millennium park exploring}

{friend-loving // chicago-dog-finding adventures}

{evanston chillin}

i have always heard wonderful things about chicago.  the city was always so elusive, like new york's second-sister-twice-removed who everyone always talked about but whom i had yet to meet.  it's beautiful!  they'd say.  it's like new york, but prettier!  more spacious.  more breathing room.  deep dish pizza.  the bean.

i finally had the chance to visit chicago this past weekend, and BOY does it live up to the hype.  i fell in love with the tulip-lined sidewalks around every street corner and the blue-green lake michigan at everyones' fingertips and THE ART, you guys!  so much art to feast my art-hungry eyes upon.  we weren't able to enjoy deep dish pizza - everything that is quintessential chicago - and were surprised we weren't banned from the city when we asked giordano's if they could make it sans cheese.  we spent a night watching a comedy show at second city, and they even used my suggested "interesting word" in an improv sketch about a horny swedish school teacher.  my word was titillating. 

over the weekend, i kept reminding myself that it is usually minus 39 degrees in the city, and isn't dubbed "the windy city" for nothing.  nonetheless, you done good chicago - i'll be back. 

thank you melanie for a wonderful stay :)

"travel brings power and love back into your life." 

- rumi