What I've Learned So Far

Who doesn't love lists? I spend way more time than I should looking at pointless lists on BuzzFeed. I feel like half the fun is going, "Yeah, I totally feel the same way! So glad someone else out there UNDERSTANDS ME." So here's a list of things I've learned so far in NYC. (I'm hoping this will also encompass the fact that I haven't posted in, oh, a month. Happy, Elise Howe?)

• NYC is just about 500 miles from Detroit, MI. So if I'm ever homesick, I always think about the song "I Would Walk 500 Miles" by those Scottish guys. And then I at least forget that I'm homesick.
• I brought a lot of the wrong stuff. I had to get rid of a ton of furniture and get a bunch of new pairs of shoes. And I'll probably also need a new coat. But back to the shoes...
• You either wear heels every day and get over the pain, or you should never, ever wear them. I've learned this the hard way. Flats for this gal.
• Lots of people on a small island = actually seeing people you know. More than I ever anticipated, I see people I know all over the place! It's crazy. Knowing people in my community was something I was really gonna miss from home, but it's cool that it's happening here, too! Which leads me to...
• No matter how great your sense of direction is, you will get turned around. And lost. Just today, my friend Emily and I walked in circles for a solid 15 minutes trying to find a Chipotle. It's super frustrating, super humbling, and also super funny if you think about the fact that we circled a Chipotle.
• You're either 15 minutes late or 15 minutes early to everything. Because I don't have a car and mostly run errands in places that aren't walking distance, I'm dependent on my sense of direction and the subway. Because I only trust myself 60% of the time and the subway 15% of the time, I usually end up leaving waaay to much time. It's so hard to arrive somewhere right on time!
• People here say "on line" instead of "in line." If I had a nickel for every time I was standing in a queue and someone said "NEXT ON LINE" and I wondered who would be rudely on the internet and not paying attention while waiting in line, I'd probably have at least two dollars.
• My phone dies. A lot. Battery shmattery. It dies pretty much every day. I just always hope I beat it home.
• Finding a job can be hard. How difficult should it be to find a part-time job that isn't in retail, a restaurant, or babysitting? Like a nice ticket office job? Oh, there's a UNION FOR TICKET SALES? Right. How about a secretary administrative assistant? Right, those are all full-time. So even though my Masters degree isn't pulling as much weight as I hoped it would...
• There is inspiration and opportunity EVERYWHERE. SOOO many chances to network and reach out to people, and everyone has been super friendly and obliging. My friend Emily got me into the incredible Joyce DiDonato masterclass at Juilliard today, I've seen Eugene Onegin (which is completely sold out) and The Nose with friends for free, and saw the amazing Patina Miller in Pippin from the second row. So many people have offered to forward my resume to what ever connections they have. I have lots of auditions lined up and two interviews next week for jobs. Even the architecture is inspiring!
• The only thing I miss about cable so far is HGTV... and Here Comes Honey Boo Boo. And Long Island Medium. But that's it! I've definitely filled up on LOST, Orange is the New Black, and the last season of The Office. And I may or may not be watching Hercules... right now. 
• Having company is more tiring than you might think. We had the pleasure of having our friend Emily and her boyfriend (who is also now our friend too!) Jonathan over for a few days. It was so wonderful to have them and catch up, but I realized how much more you're out and about when you have company there. And I'm used to showing off whatever city I live in - I realized I don't have to do that. NYC shows itself off. The other thing is...
• I'm starting to be able to identify tourists simply by where they stop on the sidewalk and their walking pace. Chances are, they stop right in the middle of the sidewalk to check their phone or tie their shoe or whatever instead of "pulling over" to the side of the... sidewalk like most true city folk do. They also walk very slowly because they're taking it all in, which I can totally relate to. But if they're wearing heels and walking slowly, they're probably just making a footware mistake WHICH I CAN TOTALLY RELATE TO.
• It's never boring and there is always someone to hang out with. It's a little different because I'm used to having people over to my home, and mostly here you go out with people and spend less time in their actual apartments. For me, this is a space/commute issue. Just takes some getting used to (and is more expensive!) 
• Errand running takes careful planning and a lot more time. You have to plan a subway/bus route. You have to make sure you go to the grocery store last because you'll carry the most from there. You have to really plan it out, like a scavenger hunt or a vacation or something cool but it's actually just that I need post-its.
• I'm super grateful for my friends who know the city really well... and for those who don't. My friends who have been here for a few years are always reassuring and tell me that whatever I'm going through is normal and will pass (probably). My friends who moved here when I did get secretly excited with me when we walk by the Chrysler Building at night and get really nerded out that we actually live here.
• Through it all, I know moving here was the right choice.