new york, day I

{{night previous}}

 said goodbye to some favorite friends. then packed. and packed. and packed.

got 20 minutes of sleep.

total.

{{morning of}}

left in a frenzy. had a really good talk with my dad on the ride there. made for a good prep for my upcoming adventure. made it to airport barely on time. sat next to lady who was seemingly untalkative and uninterested in acknowledging my presence. looked out window. 4 hours on plane. 

{{plane ride + view}}

the clouds were absolutely amazing outside. i admired the landscape, especially where the sun kept peeking out making spots on the ground, contrasting other areas that were being drenched with rain. the gray clouds were in a perfect horizontal line, paralleling the horizon, only breaking form for the areas of angry precipitation. from above, nothing is hidden and the big picture is beautiful. the sunspots wouldn't have held their glory without the areas where the clouds were broken up by torrents of rain. it was the whole scene that made it beautiful. interpret that [metaphor] however you'd like....

gazed out as we ascended above them, then into one. white cloud consumed my view. shut window, slept.

slept, slept.

determined, made friends with passenger neighbor about 30 minutes before landing. turns out she's from finland and works for nokia, has two daughters, and was in utah for a conference in park city. i like her. she has an illustrator friend who sounded pretty rad too. 

{{airport frenzy}}

grateful for kody who advised me to get super shuttle. got super shuttle. after i finally found it.

first on.

sat next to a german 16-yr old girl named steph, who wants to go into banking (her mom does stuff that sounded like a tax auditor, though steph didn't know the english word). 

found out that lanes are apparently optional in new york. horns are preferred, and pedestrians get least priority. pondered over what sort of driving tests were given to shuttle drivers.

passed times square. marveled at how many bodies could fit in a singular location.

steph likes comedy movies, and horror films. i don't like horror films. discussed soccer (football) and families (she's an only child).

bid farewell to steph. watched as sun began to set. fought off sleep. failed.

 last off.

{{harlem stroll + suitcases}}

realized i was dropped off ten blocks away from my destination. walked ten blocks. shelley met me and welcomed me into her lovely apartment.  fed me soup and rolls. i did dishes. read shelley's daughter a story with a promise of more stories tomorrow.

reminisce --it's the 'cat in the hat'. one i know well for multiple reasons. 

try to convince her to get to bed.

because i am going to bed.

because i'm exhausted.

and it's only 9pm. 

good night.

ps, forgot toothbrush. 

*forehead smack*