? ?Happy Anniversary NYC ? ?
A mini reflection post coming up, on the year that’s seen us pack up and move to the other side of the world. So we’re 365 days into our American Adventure but we’re still feeling brand new. It’s been an amazing first year, we’ve met some amazing friends and have felt at home more often than not. Here’s x4 quick things i’ve learnt in the first 365 days in NYC.
You’re tougher than you think.
Moving across the other side of the world to a place you’ve never been before and a place where you don’t know a soul is hard. Equally; it’s an adventure of a lifetime and is totally worth it. Do it when you’re young and when you have the energy; because it’s exhausting. On those bone-chilling winter days when you’re missing everything familiar and you feel like you don’t belong, remember who you are and where you’ve come from. Draw strength from your friends and family back home and let them give you the chutzpah to keep going.
It’s not a race.
Its super easy to get caught up in the rat race in NYC. Work faster. Work harder. Work smarter. Compete compete compete. Do your best. Be the best. Give only your best. Your friend just bought a house. Another just bought an Audi. Others are having babies. Do what you want to do when you’re ready, in your own time. There’s no winner at the end of this race, so enjoy it and do it your way.
Religion & logic.
Doesn’t really go hand in hand here. One is much more prominent than the other. Deep breaths & baby steps. Try your hardest to be open minded but do try to educate when you can. Love is love, we are all human & we have to look after each other, our animals and this planet we call home.
We’re killing our only home and it’s worse than you think.
NYC is covered in rubbish. I’ve never seen so much rubbish covering a western city before in this quantity. It’s in piles on the streets and there’s bin juice boiling on the footpath on hot summer days, releasing such a stench of aromas, you think the particles are going to go straight up your nose and burn everything off. But that’d be too easy. You have to suffer through this medley of aromas during the hottest summer day and you’re praying to any god who will listen that you don’t step in bin juice it and have it flick up the back of your legs. ?
The litter blows up in the air and it hits you in the face on windy days. You see plastic bags floating through the air. It’s a reminder that we all have to pitch in and do our bit to look after it. Don’t wait for other people to pick it up. It might be gross but if there’s a newspaper blowing in the wind, pick it and put it in the recycle bin. ?
Significant events from year 1:
- Chris & Cat’s wedding ?
- 4th July in Northfork, staying in a converted old barn with a wonderful group of new friends
- Discovering San Fran & Sillicon Valley
- Checking our DC and visiting all the monuments
- Visiting Chicago and seeing Hamilton
- Martin Luther King weekend getaway to the Catskills in a massive house with a great bunch of new friends
- Getting a job at Viacom & working with MTV and Paramount Pictures
Fun things:
- Visiting Outback with my MTV framily
- Hosting visitors from Aus
- Broadway shows
- Off Broadway shows
- Unexpected celebrity spotting
- Rooftop bars
- Seeing the NYC skyline
- 24/7 amazon delivery
- Running in Central Park
- Listening to the NYC / Brooklyn accent
- Having people like your accent
Not-so-fun things:
- Having all your music delete off your iPhone when you change app stores from AUS to USA & then having to re-download everything when changing back
- TSA ??♀️
- USPS ??♀️
- The subway in summer. and winter.
- Street rats ? the risk of bed bugs ? and mice ?
- Forgetting about bears when camping.
Grateful for:
- everything
