It's Cold.

Hello All!!!

I am safely in NYC, starting work tomorrow morning at 9am. And I couldn't be more excited. I finally have a job in my field, and somehow I ended up in one of the premiere cities in the world, doing what I'm good at.

And it looks like I'm going to enjoy the company too. For those that don't know the story, my friend from GaTech, Walt, gave me the referral for this job. He says that the company is fantastic to work for, and he loves it. I will be the 4th member of the development team, so there will probably be quite a bit of room for growth.

My flight went well, without a hitch, and finding my apartment was relatively easy (cause Walt walked me to it. :) ) I'm staying in the East Village, near NYU, on 4th st in between 2nd ave and 3rd ave. (Streets go east/west, ascending northward, and Avenues go north/south, ascending westward). It's a cute little place on the 6th floor (no elevator). I paced it out, and if my steps were right, its 45 ft long by 10 ft wide. 450 sq ft. A box, to be sure, but a cute and comfy box. It certainly feels bigger than it is.

Currently I am sitting on the floor in the corner of the 4th floor of Barnes and Noble, cause my apartment, though furnished, is not furnished with internet. As you might imagine, I tried to steal internet from one of the many people in surrounding boxes, but none of them were consistent or fast enough to really work with. So I came over to B&N to get some internet. But at 6pm, the cafe has no available tables at all, and there is a line of people waiting for someone to get up. There are also people scattered throughout the store on the floor in the corners, so I figured that was just the way to do it. So here I am.

And to top off this already strange evening, it appears that it is "no pants" evening in NYC. As I walked through Union Square, there was a large milling crowd of people -- all in their skivvies. I had the balls (no pun intended) to ask one of the pants-less wonders what in God's name people were doing running around bare-legged in 5 degree weather, and they responded that it is simply a demonstration of choice -- that people are allowed to run around without their trousers, so they feel that they should every once in a while. Then she told me to take my pants off and join the party. I decided to pass on pants-less-ness. Maybe on my way back to the apt I'll join in on the liberation of the pants.

It's all a bit of an overload still, but I think things will settle down pretty quickly. Work will certainly add some much-needed structure to my days. But it looks as though every day will be an adventure, which should be great.

Oh, and I still apparently have whatever air I carry that says to strangers that I know where I'm going. Maybe this happens to everyone, but I feel like I get asked for directions way more often than most people do. It happened all the time in Atlanta, it happened in Barcelona, and it has already happened here in New York. Last night when I went out foraging for food, I had some gent ask me where "Scratches" was. He sounded Scottish. After telling him no, I got a "Cheers" and he headed off. So there you go. One day in and people are already asking me for directions. I must be a New Yorker already. :)

Ok, well there is always much to tell, but I think it's time for me to head off. I hope all of you are keeping well and keeping warm.

Oh, and it was 0-10 degrees all weekend. It's cold here.

Much love,

K3