NYC - the first week

What a whirlwind the past two weeks have been.  My last week at West Liberty was filled with doctor appointments, surgery, packing, and saying some of the hardest goodbyes of my life.  On Saturday, August 3, 2013, I began the journey of the biggest move of my life – to New York City.  The move itself was seamless, thanks to the help of my incredibly awesome dad and aunt, and a couple of amazing friends.  We actually drove into the city on Sunday morning, and I must say that my dad was a champ driving a pickup truck with a trailer through Manhattan.  We spent the day unloading everything and putting together furniture (good ole IKEA).  

Me, Aunt Mer, and Dad in Times Square on my first night in NYC

That evening we met up with Missi & Aaron, my boss and a co-teacher at Arielettes, for dinner and to check in for Dance Teacher Summit. 

Monday morning was the dreaded time I had to say “see ya later” to my dad and aunt, as they headed back to WV.  

Miss, Aaron, & me at the Dance Teacher Summit 2013

However, they dropped me off to Missi & Aaron at Summit.  It was a nice transition having familiar faces (and lots of laughing) my first few days as a resident of NYC.  Along with attending Dance Teacher Summit, we did other fun things.  One of my favorite memories with them was going to an ice bar.  Everything there, including the glasses, was made out of ice.  It was cold, but so much fun!

Miss, Aaron, & me at the ice bar

I finally came back to my apartment Wednesday evening to begin the unpacking process. What a project that has become!  I’ll post pictures of my 12’x15’ studio once it’s unpacked and organized.  Recovering from surgery has taken a much larger toll on my body than I ever expected – I still tire easily and take longer to get energy back.  For those of you that know me personally, you know how frustrated that is making me. 

Thursday evening I attended the 2012 ACE Awards Runner-up (Dana Foglia) & second Runner-up (Bree Hafen) show at the Ailey Citigroup Theatre – it was fabulous, by the way.  It was an honor to be a backer for Bree Hafen’s Positive Space show.  It was walking back from that show that it hit me – I live in NYC.  What caused it?  While walking to the train, I casually passed Sonya Tayeh (for those of you that don’t know, she’s a choreographer on SYTYCD and a huge name in the dance world). 

The move itself has been quite an adjustment – it is the polar opposite of little West Liberty, WV, where the nearest Starbucks was 25 minutes away.  Errands have changed drastically, too.  I can’t take a cart through Target, buy everything I need, load it in the car, and drive back, parking at the front door to carry everything inside.  Now it is all what I can carry in my own hands.  At least it’s close! (Starbucks is diagonal across the street from my apartment building – the bank account is dreading that!) 

While this first week has been somewhat rough adjusting, I’m still very excited for this adventure and what it is going to bring!  I’m anxious for school to start so I can meet more people and finally get into a routine.  I miss everyone back home terribly – thank goodness for FaceTime!  I’ll keep updating as often as I can find time – grad school is a busy adventure, ya know.   

Until next time…

Enjoy Being…