Life is a Gift

Oh wow, it's only been a few hours but I am having a blast in the village! It is so beautiful! So fun! So exciting!

After we got to our hotel, my post doc and I took off walking around. (Digression: It was supposed to be me, Mentor, and post doc on this trip. However, Mentor had to cancel at the last minute because his son is in the hospital, hopefully to be discharged tomorrow. So this definitely stinks for him, and I'm sorry for him, especially since he was looking forward to the trip a lot. And it's hell to watch your kid suffer in pain. But it looks like his son should be okay in the end, and meanwhile, post doc and I have soldiered on without him.)

Anyhoo, so we took off walking and ran into about a thousand fabulous looking restaurants, and ended up eating in this nice cozy Thai place, warm inside while it rained outside. And the food was sooooooo good, as were the cocktails, and it was just awesome. Then we went for a walk in the rain around Washington Square Park and enjoyed the sights and sounds. Even the rain couldn't deter us.

My post doc and I are in the same frame of mind about living in NYC: Why have we never done that? How did I get to be as old as I am without ever having lived here? I know, the reality wouldn't stand up to the fantasy, but right now I am enjoying my fantasy.

My entire life, beginning with Harriet the Spy, I have read literature and seen movies and t.v. shows set in New York. It is such a common setting that walking around, I feel like I've already been here many times before. It all feels familiar, even though it's not. I feel like a more awesome version of myself just by being in this setting.

Now if only I could figure out how to turn on the heat...