Well, Yeah I'm Gonna Do It

It has taken me a little longer to post than originally planned...as I've been packing my apartment in preparation to move tomorrow (which will be next week's post)! But, this past weekend was an awesome and special one for me, so there's no way I'm skipping the post!

Thursday my sister, a childhood friend and a new friend all came to visit me in the City (for this post I will refer to them as Samantha, Miranda, and Charlotte...I'm Carrie, of course). While there was no Sex and the City, there was a whole lot of City and Grits!

We began the weekend off right with a viewing party for Samantha's debut on the Dr. Oz Show and a few glasses of wine we had delivered....now maybe SATC believes me when I say, "EVERYTHING is delivery in the City!" Samantha was amazing on Dr. Oz, but most importantly, she gave us the quote of the weekend: "Well, yeah I'm gonna do it!" That night we ate at Schiller's Liquor Bar...and I'll just say now that we didn't have one bad meal all weekend, so any of these suggestions are MUST EATS! Following dinner we went to Pravda, which is a martini bar in Soho. You can only find this bar by locating the miniature lit sign above a staircase, as the bar is underground and strongly resembles the catacombs Edgar Allan Poe once wrote about. Pravda was very chic, but if you want to keep it classy like the theme, don't order a dirty martini....no dirt + all liquor = no chic.

Friday we went to eat at Le Pain Quotidien for a late breakfast (trip one of two), a local chain restaurant, but so AMAZE! The venue alone is very French, complete with cutting board tables, arranged in a family-style setting. After our rendezvous with Paris, I went to work (as a writer, of course) and Samantha, Miranda and Charlotte hit up all that the City shops have to offer.

That evening we went to the 9/11 Memorial, luckily able to reserve tickets the previous week. The original reservation time was 6:00, but it took nearly 30 minutes to get through the lines and security. I'm not complaining though because A) you MUST go to the Memorial and B) you MUST go after dark. We all saw the video footage of the Memorial on the 10-year anniversary, but video (and the inserted pictures) simply do NOT do it justice. The words engraved on the outer portion of the pools had lights behind them, allowing visibility even at night. Even the first Freedom Tower, which I've seen 100 times now, lights up with red, white and blue lights, which I would've never known unless visiting at night. Take note of the picture on the right. Samantha says dots like this are said to represent spirits...what do you think?



After dinner we went to Adrienne's Pizza Bar, which I referenced in one of my first City and Grits posts. It was the first time SATC got to meet my new roommate, and what a good laugh we had! M is always center of attention, and his stories of private school, professional college-finders and police run-ins were just what we needed after a somber experience.

Saturday was the day where we did serious damage-- to our bank accounts and feet. We began the day with brunch at Pastis, a local hot spot where celebrity-spottings are common. We didn't run into a celeb there...but, wait for it! After brunch (which was very tasty, but slightly over-priced) we walked the High Line. Now, the HL is the best metaphor for rugged urbanity. Originally a train track, the HL weaves between buildings above ground for roughly one mile, and it is overgrown with weeds, bushes and random patches of grass. The HL is likely famous for its direct view of The Standard Hotel (and shameless visitors undressing in front of the windows), but is an experience that makes you feel like you are part of a forgotten world of the future.

Following our blast into 2030 we shopped all around the Tribeca (my soon-to-be neighborhood) and Soho areas. Since moving here, I'll admit it, I ALWAYS keep my eyes peeled for celebrities (sure, you can call me a star-chaser). Observation pays off because wouldn't you know...I spotted former Dawson's Creek heart throb and Joey stalker, James Van Der Beek! The good host I am, I took one for the team and approached him to ask for a photo with one of my childhood crushes. Miranda and Charlotte currently live in Wilmington, home of Dawson's Creek, and it made a nice topic of conversation...buying us a solid five minutes with JVDB. For my first celebrity encounter I was more than surprised....what a NICE guy!! Maybe fame doesn't freeze your heart afterall?

Saturday evening we attended a Broadway show called Fuerza Bruta. It wasn't your typical show...in other words, I imagine it's similar to what drug addicts experience daily. The audience stood for the 60-minute show, with most all of the act taking place above your head. The performance was complete with a light show, DJ who wore a George Washington wig and sprayed the crowd with a water hose, and best of all....a floating pool! Yes, this is real life. The pool was unreal! It literally appeared out of nowhere and lowered all the way to the audience so that we could lift our arm and touch it. Inside the pool were girls swimming and dancing and being blown from one side to the other from fans pointing into the water. Girls even came from the ceiling at one point, attached by harnesses, and ran in circles after one another on the four walls. I hope these pictures may give you some perspective of the show, and if not, know that the show was the most bizarre and most awesomely amazing experience of my life.

There's no way to come down from an experience like that than to end the night with some pastrami. SATC ventured to Katz's Deli, one of my favorite local spots. We had traditional pastrami sandwiches on rye bread with a side of pickles...as my Jewish friends say, "real Jew food." If you've never heard of Katz's, you've certainly seen it. Meg Ryan's famous scene from When Harry Met Sally was filmed here, and a sign above the table reads "Where Harry met Sally...hope you have what she had."

We didn't have what Sally had, but we did bring the grits to the City...and what a delicious weekend it was!

Free Arts NYC

Like every other Southern belle, I am an active member in the Junior League. Now, most people like to refer to this as an adult sorority, and while you may not be too far from the truth, the League also does a number of great things in surrounding communities.

I joined the League in Charleston, and I recently transferred to the NYJL (yes, there really is one here). As an active member, I am required to volunteer a designated number of hours per year with one of our sponsored organizations. This past week, I chose to spend a day with an organization called Free Arts NYC. I was instantly attracted to this organization because it mirrors one that I organized last year as a graduate student.

Free Arts NYC gathers underprivileged children from schools and homeless shelters to participate in art every other Saturday. Each child is paired with one volunteer to ensure they receive the most attention possible during their time at the event. Over a five-hour period, volunteers create arts and crafts with their buddy, followed by lunch and a performance from a local dance or theater group.

I was paired with a 10-year-old girl, who I will call T. She lives with her mother and two older brothers, and she goes to school from 7:00 a.m.-9:00 p.m. each day because her mom works two jobs to support her and her siblings. She eats three meals at her school, and the majority of her waking hours are at school.

Coming from a hometown with a high poverty level, I am not surprised that these conditions exist, but what is surprising is how normal she thought her conditions were, as though this is how most children live their lives. Organizations like this re-ground you, making you realize what is "normal"....essentially something different to everyone. Organizations like this reaffirm just how lucky we each are to have grown up in a home where we ate nearly every meal with our family and spent quality time with our parents.

Last year, I ran an after school program once a week with friends where our focus was similar to Free Arts NYC. Most people think that as schools lose their budgets, they lose physical education classes, but in reality, art and music classes are the first to go. Growing up, I learned through my art classes that I was a strong creative writer. Had I not had these classes and been told this by my teachers, I wouldn't be where I am today. Every child deserves the opportunity to discover what they are good at, and often this comes through creative art forms, such as painting, drawing, writing, music, etc.

For the few short hours I spent with the kids, I had the chance to give the attention to T that she deserves, and hopefully I helped her to realize her strengths. If you are looking for an organization to volunteer with, I highly recommend Free Ats NYC. If I can't change the world permanently, I can hopefully change the world for a few hours.

Mother Teresa, foursquare and Beanies

This is the longest period of time I've gone without blogging, and since you've all been asking, I'm making a post, but not about the City...rather my favorite city in the States.

Last weekend I experienced my first journey outside the City since relocating here. Hesitantly and excitedly I traveled to Washington D.C. to visit two of my very best friends, one who recently moved there, and one who was visiting her little brother, a recent freshman at GWU. I say 'hesitantly' due to the fact that for the past two years I have told everyone I was moving to D.C. after graduate school, and I feared being in this city would make me jealous not to be there...clearly God had other plans, and all has ended well because I'm obsessed with my job and achieving so much in NYC (and again, I will hesitantly admit NYC is growing on me, and I halfway love it).

Surprisingly, in my 24 years of life I experienced my first bus trip, courtesy of the Bolt Bus, a so-called "bus with extra leg-room and wireless internet." Needless to say, the space was equivalent to coach seating on an airplane, and the wireless internet worked on and off in increments of 30 seconds...not to mention the guy beside me eating curried tuna out of a ziplock bag his mother clearly packed (thanks for being courteous, buddy). Each way I arrived to my destination one hour past expected, but then again, what can you expect with a $39 round-trip ticket?

The weekend was filled with great food and drinks, outings, shopping and catching up. My friend, L, was visiting the city for her first time, and I'm happy to announce she realized quickly why I'm obsessed with it. Additionally, her little brother recently began college, and is not only new to the city, but new to freedom. Wow, did I not only feel old, but missed the amazement that comes with moving out of your parents' home for the first time and feeling complete liberation (sorry, mom and dad, if you're reading this). 

L and "little bro," as I'll refer to him, come from a family unlike any you'll ever meet. Likely the most laid-back, up-for-a-good-time type of family, and never a disappointment to travel with. Little bro was the energizer bunny, keeping us up until 5:00 in the morning (I can't remember the last time I did that), and L, on the prowl for "finance guys," as she referred to them all weekend (I corrected her a number of times that she's referring to my City, and "Hill guys" is the appropriate reference for D.C). But underlying their relationship is this profound support for one another that cannot be dismissed. While L is struggling to get settled into a new job, and little bro into a new lifestyle, they are there for each other through and through.

My friend, M, also recently moved to the city to begin a job with one of my favorite companies. I happened to be one of the lucky ones who graduated with a job, but M took a few months to find something. Of course none of us ever doubted it would work out for her, but when it did, it was what she was destined to do. I experienced the uncertainty of the months prior to her starting her job, and seeing her in an amazing city and loving her job meant the world to me. 

I didn't quite realize how desperate I was for time with my best friends (DUFFs, as we often refer to one another), and am going through a bit of withdrawal this week. But what I realized on this trip was that no matter how far my friends live from one another, our friendship spans thousands of miles. Everything always works out in the end, it's simply just making it through that period of uncertainty to get to certainty. And no matter how difficult those times are, it's like we can come back together and it's as though there is no physical distance. Seeing one another gives us that extra kick we need to make it through.

I'm not sure if it's just the company I choose to keep or the vibe you experience in D.C. People in this city are often scrambling, working themselves to death for literally the clothes on their back, yet in the end, it all works out. They find satisfaction and happiness in their lives, and along the way they pick up those friends that stick with them through it all.

And for those of you who don't understand the title's references, don't worry, because what happens on the Hill, stays on the Hill.