Category Archives: internship

new york vs. p-town

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I know that title may seem like a no-brainer, but there are some things that I miss, I swear.

Things I am loving about New York:
  • Public transportation – until you have lived somewhere where public transit is good–and NY is one of the best (although of all the places I’ve been, Paris may actually win)–you seriously can’t understand how great it is.

  • Good food. Everywhere. But my neighborhood happens to be full of cute little restaurants. (Kelly and I went to this great little restaurant around the corner from my apartment.)

  • People watching
  • Broadway shows – Sarah and I went and saw In the Heights last night (joined by two of my fellow b-schoolers, Allison and Mike). Amazing!!!
  • Central Park – I know you can tell it’s big from a map, but wandering through it, and not just the tourist/famous/movie featured parts, you get a whole new perspective. It’s like a forest in the middle of a city.
  • My besties – I have so missed Sarah, Kelly, and Candice. It’s so fun to be back with them.
  • Photo ops – I don’t ever leave my camera at home. 
  • Walking to my gym – it’s right around the corner from my house.
  • Reading on the subway – because you lose cell phone reception completely underground, I can’t call people. And because I’m not driving, I have plenty of time to read. It’s awesome.
  • The diversity – living here is just incredible. On Wednesday I overheard two men talking about a women (a client – I was at the gym) and one was describing her to the other. He said, “You know, the caucasian woman with the big eyes.” Never in a million years would you ever hear anyone in P-town describe someone as “the caucasian woman” because it wouldn’t mean anything.
Things I miss about P-town:
  • Getting just about anywhere fast – while public transportation is nice, it takes a little more thought and planning.
  • Running all of my errands at once – or another way of putting it, having a car with a trunk. I have to be much more strategic about errand running here because I can only carry so much.
  • Time to talk on the phone – that might sound weird but the combination of traveling underground and being 2 – 3 hours later than all of my family and most of my friends makes for not a lot of communication.
  • Prices – seriously, everything here is more expensive. Everything. 
  • Central A/C – I do have a window unit, but it’s just not the same. 
  • Dryness – it hasn’t even been that humid here, but I do love that I am in control of my own moisture level in Utah. If I want to not be dry, I put on lotion. NYC – no such luck. I’m sticky all the time. 
  • Stealing toilet paper from my dad’s house – and various other goods that I haven’t had to pay for over the past few years. 
  • A washer and dryer that I can use any time, and in which I can leave my clothes while I go do other things.
  • The mountains – nothing quite compares.
  • Target – I have one here, but it’s in the Bronx…which is about 220 blocks north of me. It’s quite the trip.
  • My b-school besties – the consolation there is that they are spread out all over the country right now, so being in P-town wouldn’t really help that.

my fabulous apartment

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When I decided that I would be headed to NY for the summer, I started to stress about finding somewhere to live. Having lived alone for the past 4-ish years, and knowing plenty of people in NYC to have a fabulous social life sans roommates, I wanted to find a place to live on my own. So, I got on the Google group for the singles in my church in NYC and posted a “sublet wanted” ad. I got a few pretty quick responses. Thanks to the oh so fabulous Sarah, I found a great place! (It’s nice to have a person “on the ground” to help out in these situations.)

Said fabulous apartment is a studio located in Greenwich Village. It is teeny-tiny, but perfect sized for me for the summer. It’s a fourth floor walk up in an older building that has lots of character (and characters…I can currently hear neighbors fighting in the courtyard–it sounds like a breakup). I am seriously in love with it!!! Even if it is just the slightest bit slanted…ha ha ha.
And here are some pictures (straight out of the camera…no time to edit these, so I apologize for how dark they are) to show you what it looks like:

Yes, this is the view from my front door…with the door open. I told you it’s small. But notice the AC unit in the window…that’s the only thing that would have been a real deal breaker.

My cute fireplace (excuse the pile of clothes…I still need some hangers).

From the corner looking toward the door. Notice that I have no microwave, no disposal (you can’t see that, but I’m telling you), and a mini-fridge. It’s a good thing I’ve lived without these things before, or this would be really difficult. 🙂
View from the bedroom/living room/kitchen window.
My hallway…which leads to my closet and bathroom (the doors of which don’t close on their own). 

My bathroom is actually quite large. I love it! plenty of room to be organized and move around.
Another bathroom view.
And the view from the bathroom. 
My apartment is seriously awesome (even if it does slant). I love my neighborhood. I love the fact that it’s at the back of the building (through a courtyard). I love that it backs up to more apartments, instead of a street. It’s in the heart of Greenwich Village, but totally secluded at the same time. Pretty much amazing!!!

fear of the new

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I arrived in New York yesterday, but I have just now opened up my computer and discovered that, while I don’t have internet myself, there is an unsecured network available. Yay!

There are plenty of fun things to report, but for now, I want to capture what moving to New York has felt like.

So, I have always had this sense of adventure. I want to experience everything. I want to have a full and exciting life. But what lots of people don’t know is that I am generally terrified of almost every “new” thing I do. Remember the cooking class I took last summer. I was so scared…which probably sounds ridiculous (it’s a cooking class for heaven’s sake), but it’s true. The reason I try new things isn’t necessarily because I am so excited to do whatever it is I’m going to do (initially, anyway). It’s partly because, at the end of the day, or week, or whatever, I know that I will be so glad I did it. The other part is that I want to be “that” person; the person whose life is full of new experiences and adventures, the person who always has something interesting to talk about, the person who can connect with almost anyone because she’s tried so many things. I never want to let fear stop me from having a full life.

My point? The idea of moving to New York for the summer was fabulous…the idea. The reality of it scared the crap out of me. When I was packing up my life Saturday night/Sunday morning (no, I didn’t sleep at all, in case you were wondering), I started to really feel the fear. I didn’t ever actually give into it and break down, but the same thoughts kept running through my head: “You could have gone to Cisco in the Bay Area; a place you know and love. You could have gone to Microsoft in Seattle where your cousin lives. You could have gone to P&G and lived in an apartment that has a separate bedroom and a real kitchen. Instead you wanted something challenging, something that would stretch you. Something on the other side of the country from your entire family. What were you thinking?” Most of the plane trip was spent thinking these same thoughts. Even without sleeping the night before, I still only dozed for maybe 20 minutes. Serious fear.

And then the plane landed at JFK. I got off, texted Candice to let her know I had arrived, and headed to baggage claim (to claim the three very large and heavy bags that I checked in addition to the two I carried on). I only waited about two minutes at the curb before I saw Candice and Mark’s van coming around the corner. As soon as I saw them, I started to feel so much better. Here I was, moving to this HUGE city on the other side of the country…with one of my best friends to pick me up and make me feel like I belonged.

We drove to my apartment, with Candice and Mark pointing things out along the way. I figured out which keys opened which doors, got up to my apartment, and more of the anxiety started to leave. Then Sarah met us and we all went to dinner.

Sometime between being picked up at the airport and getting back to my apartment after dinner, ALL of the fear was gone. I know that might sound absolutely ridiculous, but it’s true. I remembered how much I love my little part of New York and how much I love all of the restaurants, and shops, and public transportation, and diversity, and nightlife. And I also remembered that, while my entire family is on the other side of the country, technology (phones, email, planes, etc), make it so they really aren’t that far away.

So, fear will come. I know that. I’m just glad that (for the most part) I don’t let the fear win. I can’t even begin to enumerate the number of opportunities and experiences I would have missed out on if I let fear win.

new york!

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I’m here! I have lots to share, but for now, I need to get some sleep. After two long days including flying across the country, unpacking, shopping, and sight-seeing, I’m pretty dang tired. However, a couple of posts are in the works…and one will have pictures of my FABULOUS apartment.

However, before I go, I want to give you a brief log of my activities so far:
Arrived in NY to be met at the airport by Candice, Mark, and kiddies…and then Sarah at my apartment. Had a lovely dinner. Unpacked. Slept. Checked out my new gym. Signed up for a personal trainer. Worked out. Purchased Metro card. Lunch in Union Square with Sare. Shopping for organizational type items. Coney Island with Sare, Candice, et al,including a Nathan’s Hot Dog. First celebrity sighting in NY (other than at a show I was paying to see): Tracy Morgan (of 30 Rock) in line in front of me at the concession stand at the movies. Movie.

Not bad for a little over 24-hours in a new place.

It’s too bad I have to start working eventually, although given the bills that I’m racking up, it’s probably a good thing.

a conference call

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So, this summer I am heading to New York to intern with this company. Many have questioned my judgment considering some of the offers I had. (I was very blessed and had great offers from a few Fortune 100 companies.) At times I have even wondered if I made the right decision. I definitely didn’t make the “easy” decision or the “safe” decision, but yesterday I remembered just why I made the decision I did. It is an AMAZING opportunity!

Yesterday I had a conference call with my program coordinator, the new full-time hires, the other summer associates (aka interns), our mentors, and the Head of HR (for the entire company). It was so great to talk to everyone, get a feel for the people with whom I’ll be working, hear where the company is heading (in terms of HR), and really feel like I’ll get the opportunity to do some very meaningful work.

Not to mention the fact that I’ll be in New York with Sarah, Candice, and Emily.