Wednesday, January 20th

As of today I have been living in New York for exactly three weeks. Time really does fly out here. My days are getting longer and my brain is moving faster. Or at least that's the transition I'm leaning towards. I woke up exactly one minute before my alarm was set to buzz me out of my dream state this morning. When that happens I like to think of it as my "human alarm clock". We all have that by the way, just have to learn how to program the damn thing. Sometimes you have to replace the batteries.

Anyway, I let myself actually go back to sleep for a bit so I could "sleep in" until 7:30. Once I got up, I worked for maybe thirty minutes on a new Look Book that I'm putting together for my boss. Basically what that entails is taking about 800 photos and compiling them into the best 33 shots. My time was cut short this morning in order to check out yet another apartment. I prayed this would be a final pursuit on house hunting because I am really running out of time and frankly it's becoming a drawn out chore. I found a room for rent in Chelsea, which is a borough of Manhattan as well as the gay capital of the World! The apartment area is prime. Tons of restaurants, bars, banks, and excitement all within immediate walking distance. The room is completely furnished with a bed, dresser, bookcase, two huge closets, and tons of storage space. This situation is ideal for me because I mean, I moved out here with a couple of suitcases. Quite literally. There is laundry in the building (huge bonus out here) with a secured entry system as well as all utilities included in the rent. This sweet deal of course sounded too good to be true and I knew there must be a catch. I mean... isn't there always? Well here it is - my roomate would be a 55 year old woman. I'm sure you are thinking the same thing I did when I found this out. Hmm... could be great, could be weird. So knowing everything that I was getting myself into I headed on the train to meet with this woman and see the apartment at 9am. After all, I had no room to be wasting time. A deal like this could go in a matter of seconds if I didn't jump on it. The women's name is Amy and she has lived in this apartment for over thirty years. Thirty years! I should've guessed it with all the books this woman has accumulated throughout the apartment though. I mean for real, she could stock a library. Also, if I had to guess I'd say she looked a little closer to 75. I don't say that to be judgemental but it is the truth. I thought to myself, wow, either I got stuck with some great genes or New Yorkers just age a lot quicker. But that's beside the point. Once I saw the room I was pretty speechless. It truely was everything that it had been described to me as. Huge too! Bigger than the room I am in now and so much potential for savvy decorating a la Megan. I told her that I needed to go for a walk to have a chat with myself and think it over. When I said this, I pretty much already knew that I wanted it but I didn't want make any irrational decisions. So out I went to soak up the neighborhood as I called the wisest woman that I know and love, my grandma. She's also one of the few people that I knew would be up before 6:30 California time. I rambled to her for a few minutes as she patiently listened to me speak. Once it was her turn she gave me the words that I needed to hear and just enough encouragement to make my decision. The woman renting the room is somewhat of a kook I'll admit, but she is offering me something that I know I won't find again. I don't need an apartment to entertain friends or a roomate that will be loud and partying all the time. In so many ways this arrangement really is perfect for what I need. I'm gonna take it. I decided right then and there and immediately called Amy. Twenty minutes later I was handing her a deposit and she was handing me keys. What a relief!

I can finally breathe again and the ball of stress that I've carried with me this last week has been lifted. I cannot even express how good that feels. Once I left and headed back to BK to get ready for my internship, I was feeling on top of the World. Birds chirping, sun shining, dogs walking. You know, the usual cheeseball happy-go-lucky thingamabobs. Life just seemed so incredible within this moment. Then I remembered the previous day and how awful everything seemed. All I could think is how funny is life? I mean really. The way you feel can change so instantaneously over one little thing. It makes me think that whenever things are in a slump, you have to know they can always turn back around.

I got to my internship at the usual time of 2pm and as I walked up to Corinne's building I received a text message from Donald. In case you have forgotten or haven't kept up, Donald is the other intern and has become someone who I really value as a friend here. His message explained that he wouldn't be coming in today because he just found out his grandma had passed away. I think he found out on his way to come work too because of the time I got the message. I stopped walking. Here I am feeling happy as leprachaun reaching the end of a rainbow, and my friend just got hit with the most upsetting and horrifying news I think anyone can receive. I felt awful. I took a moment before I walked inside to work and put him and his family in my prayers. I'm sharing this with all of you in hopes that you will do the same. I know you don't know him, but you do know me and it would mean a lot to me to do so.

When I got inside I shared the news with Corinne and she felt just for him just as I did. She really is such a genuine and wonderful person, Corinne. She has a heart of gold and is such a rare personality in the music industry. Since it was just me today working for her she wanted to get out and handle a few "girl things". Her showcase got pushed back to the end of February because of the grammys coming up at the end of this month. Originally her date was set at January 29th. The dress she had made for her showcase performance though, was ready as of this morning. She loves it! but there is still one problem. She needs shoes. So off we went down the streets of Manhattan to see if we could find the perfect pair. Store to store to store and more and we still didn't see any that screamed "winner". It was really fun shopping around with her though and I think she has a much better idea now of what she wants. I also learned a lot about Corinne on a more personal note and I have gained even more respect for her and what she does. It's so great to meet people that have such big dreams like I do. I feel like dreamers all connect on a level that more practical people can't reach. Unless you already understand I guess it's hard to explain. After a couple hours of work along with some great conversation, it was time to head home.

During my ride on the subway I found myself thinking a lot about my friends. My best friends. The people that I know are home and thinking about me the same time that I'm thinking about them. I started reminiscing random memories that I've had and it started to kind of hit hard. I felt my eyes well up as I know there are going to be so many amazing people that I will meet here, but no one can ever compare to what I have already. A very wise lady told me that right before I came here and now I understand. I feel so lucky to have a foundation like that. Incredibly lucky. So before I lose myself in a sap fest I suppose I will end with this: Remember that when you get to where you want to be in life, never forget where you came from. Count your blessings. Watch your step. Take risks. Remain Calm. And for my sake and yours - don't ever stop believing in yourself.

Until we meet again,
Meg