little things, big stuff

I went home for the 4th last summer, so I hadn’t seen a New York City style 4th of July.

A friend from college, Sam, was in town. Hallie had a friend visiting, too, so we went to a lot of the popular spots over the course of our 3-day weekend — Wall Street, Ground Zero, Brooklyn Bridge, Central Park, Times Square, Empire State Building, Yankee Stadium, Chinatown and Little Italy.

looking out over Governors Island

Little Italy at nightfall

Though amateurs at the 4th in NYC, we knew we needed to get to our fireworks-watching spot early. We got there too early and killed three hours playing pepper and speed, reading and chatting.

teaching/learning pepper

The police began blocking off certain sections they deemed too crowded, so we ended up with no dinner and no bathroom. Once fireworks started, we realized we had an exit ramp blocking our view. Regardless, it was a great show — several barges were shooting fireworks off in synchronization.

our view

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I got a taste of the real world magazine industry this past week. It didn’t directly affect me, but it caused me to step back and reevaluate a bit. I don’t think I like NYC has much as I thought I did. I don’t think I like working at a magazine as much as I thought I did. Not as glamorous as it seemed, and well, I can sense myself changing. Different tastes, different dreams. I’m even more uncertain about what I’ll do upon graduation next year. But I am so thankful for the One who is with me always, the One who has perfect timing, and the One whose plan for me will far outdo anything I can plan for myself.

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things I’m looking forward to: first day with the kids at Operation Exodus on Friday, going home for four days on Saturday morning, a taping of Late Night with Jimmy Fallon on July 17 (I’ve been consistently checking the guest calendar — no names yet!), a free Ben Sollee show in Brooklyn, more outdoor films, a poetry slam, and the Brooklyn Flea Market.