First day on my own in NYC

Today was my first day on my own in New York City...and guess what? I'M STILL ALIVE!

I must have had a dream last night that this entire trip was absolutely bogus, because when I woke up this morning I was shocked to be in this room. It still hasn't hit me that this is my HOME now. I won't be heading back to Austin any time soon, it will take me a while to take that to heart.

The morning started out productive. I woke up around 9, hung all of my dresses up and then went downstairs to drink coffee with Kim, the owner of this brownstone. She made me a map to get to the subway and gave me the routes she thought would work out best. I wound up traveling to Manhattan with Craig, a man who is also staying in this home. He was a perfect companion on my first subway ride because it was a little confusing at first. The two of us headed out to Union square where I hit up the Barnes and Nobles to find this New York City Molskine that Kate told me about. Craig and I both wound up buying one. I think this will be my new NYC bible! Haha. We parted ways and I sat in the park in Union square eating a tuna wrap that I bought at the Whole Foods (which was HUGE!!!) It was so much fun sitting on the benches and watching all of the millions of different types of people eating, talking, sleeping nearby. There was also a farmer's market going on.




I walked around that area for quite a while until I received a phone call from S, my new area manager. We were going to meet up at the store I'll be managing, so I decided to get a head start and jump on the subway. I am SO surprised at how deep the subways go into the ground. While I was waiting on the platform, the couple next to me would not stop complaining about how hot it was. I kept thinking, good lord...we're like 1000 feet under ground!! We're pretty much the closest we're going to get to the core of the planet in the middle of August! Of course it's going to be a sauna!!!! The good news is that the subways are air conditioned and even when they're packed (like the 4 was yesterday on my way home) they are still very comfortable.



The subway drops you off at 3rd and lexington which is a really pretty area. There are a bazillion stores...urban outfitters, a candy store, Bloomingdales, etc. The walk to my store is peaceful and in a much more trafficy area than I was expecting it to be in (which is a good thing!) I spent the afternoon with the current manager figuring out the nooks and crannies of the store...and boy are there a zillion of them. It's going to be a busy next few weeks trying to get that place in order, but I am very motivated and very excited because I've had experience with this same situation. It was a pleasant surprise to know that, although the store might be doing poorly, the low sales are definitely due to a bunch of controllable factors that I am ready to get in gear.

For now I will leave you with a few pictures of my room in this four-story brownstone. I absolutely love it and I don't think the pictures do it justice. Note to self: Invest in a nice digital camera.

Until tomorrow!