Times Square on a Saturday in April

When I arrived at the intersection of Broadway and 7th Ave, better known as Times Square, three words shining brightly on a giant digital billboard grabbed my attention. The message read, in all capital letters, WELCOME BACK NYC!

Now overcome with tremendous joy mixed with a sudden urge to celebrate, I reached for my iPhone, scrolled through my NYC playlist, turned on my favorite Alicia Keys and Jay-Z song, and started jamming!

After a minute of dancing on the sidewalk, I glanced across the street and spotted a 9-foot tall human wearing a Statue of Liberty costume. Say what?

I can't knock the hustle, so to give support, I rolled up on Lady Liberty, took a few pics, and gave her a generous tip.

Next, I moseyed over to where the New Year's Eve ball drops, picked out a place to chill, and stood there enjoying the sights and sounds of Gotham City! After nearly 30 minutes of soaking it all in, I left inspired, knowing that my hometown is buzzing once again!

Then, I began walking to the train station, listening to Native New Yorker by Odyssey and singing her famous lines, "You grew up riding the subways, running with people, oh, oh, oh, You're a native New Yorker." 😊

I am considering sharing more of this journal entry tomorrow. What do you think I should do?

#nyc #timessquare

 

Foggy Thursday Morning

Here I am on the pier at 6:05 am this morning, surrounded by a dense fog, yet overflowing with appreciation for a glorious start to my day. It was a thrill to be fully present at this moment, deliberately enjoying the cool breeze while simultaneously being awestruck by the sight of the orangish flag blowing in the wind.

Let me not forget to mention how the base of the pier was moving ever so slightly as I stood listening attentively to the sound of the river flowing below my feet!

As I began to move slowly and scrutinizing everything in sight, I became enamored with the lights, well-positioned around the gate, shining a yellow tint oh so nicely on the ground.

After walking in a circle, I decided to sit down and think about the first thing that popped into my mind. It is doubtful that I would have recognized the value of this moment in my 20s and would have most likely felt the somberness often associated with such a foggy sky.

However, beauty is in the eye of the beholder, and I chose to see this as a partly sunny morning, which set the tone for another exciting and productive day!

Have a relaxing Thursday evening and enjoy the rain if you are in the Big Apple. 😊

#nyc #mindfulness

 

Greenwich Village

While on the way home this evening, I saw an image that inspired me to write a story. If I've piqued your curiosity, take a few minutes to read this post and use your imagination.

Now that you have been transported next to me, envision us standing on this crosswalk in NYC, chit-chatting and waiting for the walking signal to give us the all-clear to go. One block over, we notice a city bus zipping by to drop off and pick up some passengers.

Six seconds later, the traffic light changes, and we are back on the move. As we make our way across the street, your eyes gravitate towards the Empire State Building in the background, and now you want to visit this historic landmark. Unfortunately, we don't have time; however, I promise to take you for a tour during your next trip to the Big Apple.

With only four blocks to go before arriving at my apartment building, you pull out your phone, open the Uber app, and order a car. Moments later, you hop in a taxi and ride to your hotel, which sits on the corner of Broadway and Times Square.

Just before going inside, you send a text letting me know you made it there safely and that you will call me later—the end. 😊

Do you want to take a wild guess on the location for my next Saturday morning post?

Until then, have a fabulous week!

#nyc

 

Washington Square Park

After leaving the Flatiron District yesterday at 7 am sharp, Alicia and I zoomed down 5th Ave, which led us directly to Washington Square Park.

It was a pleasant 1.2-mile run with lots of banter along the way, and when we rolled into Greenwich Village, we began to reminisce about our time on the party scene in college. And to that, I say thank goodness social media wasn't prevalent in those days, and I bet many of you agree. Lol!

When the iconic park was visible to the naked eye, I kindly asked her to pause our run for a minute so that I could take a picture; and she said, “let’s do it!”

Now standing just a few feet away from the main entrance, I held up my phone and took a pic. Then, we stood in silence, admiring the view and the sound of the water gushing from the fountain, which produced a misty breeze that I could feel sprinkling ever so slightly onto my face.

Once we came out of this calm state, she asked if I would recap this experience in my journal, and I said, of course! After this lovely moment ended, we were back on the move and proceeded to prance around the park. 😊

Oh, how I've missed these special moments with friends; however, I find myself cherishing them even more due to this crazy pandemic.

Enjoy your Sunday, and have a super week ahead. Let's go!

#nyc

 

Flatiron Building

While waiting for a friend on the corner of 23rd St and 5th Ave to jog down to Washington Square Park, I became mesmerized by the Flatiron Building, which sits by Madison Square Park.

 

After a few seconds of observing this unique-looking structure, a sense of calmness began to seep through my body, the kind of warm feeling that I've learned to enjoy and fully embrace.

 

My next move was to take a seat on this red wooden bench and drift off into a meditative state. Once I entered into a flow, my imagination became very active, sending me beautiful thoughts about my family, friends, and the future.

 

As you might expect, my eyes were shut tight during this time and opened when I heard the sound of a sanitation street sweeper nearby. When I look around, I spotted a billboard (upper left) of two people hugging, signifying love in my mind.

 

Then, I glanced up at the clock to see how much time I had before Alicia arrived, hoping I had six minutes to journal my thoughts. Fortunately, I had ten minutes to spare and began writing this post, which only took five minutes to complete.

 

Suddenly, I felt someone tapping my shoulder, and when I turned around, it was my dear friend, who looks just like Alicia Keys. Lol!

 

Off we went to Washington Square Park.

 

Enjoy your weekend. 😊

 

#nyc

 

Gelato

I was racing through the World Trade Center station this evening to catch the Path train when the sight of the pink L’Arte del Gelato stand stopped me dead in my tracks! I stood frozen for six seconds, and while doing so, I made eye contact with the person working the booth. The next thing I knew, we were in a staredown!

After staring at each other for a minute, the attendant held up a tasty-looking treat and kindly waved me over for a sample. My mind was saying, no-no-no; however, my body somehow began moving in his direction. Lol!

 

Then, in a bat of an eye, I was only four steps away from the counter and mentally trying to justify a decision to buy a pricey ice cream sandwich. Since I’ve lost 12 pounds during the pandemic and have been eating healthy this year, I said to myself, let’s do it!

 

Before placing my order, I told the order taker that he was about to make his easiest sell of the day. I ordered the traditional Sicilian Brioches with Gelato, and let me tell you, it was well worth it!

 

When it was all said and done, I embraced every second of this spontaneous dessert adventure with pleasure and then hopped on the train. While on the train, I felt like capturing this experience, so I spent the six-minute ride writing this post. 😊

 

Enjoy life and your evening!

 

#nyc

 

Brookfield Place

On an overcast Sunday morning in the city, I ventured over to North Cove Marina to roam around and get my steps in before heading home to relax. Even though the number of people at the pier was not at its average level for this time of year, there were still a decent amount of folks out getting some fresh air and enjoying the scenery.

As I was making my way towards the main entrance into Brookfield Place (located on the right side of the NYPD boat), all of a sudden, I heard a roaring noise coming from directly above where I was standing! When I looked up, I saw some rather large birds flying in the sky, to the delight of some bird watchers taking pictures nearby.

Inspired by all of this action, I did what you might expect! I grabbed my iPhone, opened the camera app, and took a pic. LOL! Unfortunately, I did not capture all of the birds in my photo, only managing to get one; however, it’s still a pretty good shot.

After glancing at the picture, I laughed at myself for a few seconds and then started capturing my thoughts. When I finished writing and began walking towards the mall, I waved at the officers along the way, and they responded in kind.

Once inside, I picked up a couple of things and then went home to chill for the rest of the day. 😊

Happy Easter!

#nyc

 

My Story

 Many people in my LinkedIn network have often asked what inspired me to start posting some of my random experiences traveling throughout New York City.

 

With that in mind, during a recent interview with my dear friend Katie Collins on personal branding, she asked me a similar question, and I decided to share a snippet of my response via the attached podcast clip.

 

In this short audio clip, I recap a conversation with a woman that resulted in me getting a sense of clarity and purpose for my writing.

 

Moreover, this exchange gave rise to a greater appreciation and awareness of my surroundings, especially when I see something that captures my imagination while walking around the Big Apple.

 

When this occurs, I become fully present; and then I instinctively take a pic and capture my thoughts while in a flow state. During these moments, it seems as if I am painting a beautiful picture and using my words like a paintbrush! Six minutes later, I have the outline for my next post.

 

Well, for those of you who were curious, there you have it. 😊

 

I hope you find value in listening to my story and are inspired to share your thoughts. Let's continue learning from and growing with each other, respectfully.

 

Have a lovely Easter weekend.

 

---Podcast audio clip (2 min 46 seconds)---