January Things

Oh January. The worst month. This year has been a real treat with these regular below zero temperatures. Let's just say my big puffy might as well be a down comforter coat is getting a lot of credit while I wait at the bus stop trying not to lose any fingers or toes to frostbite. But there has been some good stuff.

Miriam came to visit for a weekend and we went to the Museum of Natural History on a very rainy day, ate our fill of oysters, instructed her on the finer points of Mario Kart, and visited my new favorite bagel place on the UWS Barney Greengrass. The kind waiter tried to inform Miriam and I that we "don't like lox" and must "have meant the nova salmon" when we ordered because the lox is too salty. Little does he know, salt is one of my food groups. It was delicious.

Over MLK weekend, Sean and I took a train to western Massachusetts to visit Jocelyn and Cory. We were rewarded for making it through the mess that is Penn Station on a Friday night with lots of beautiful snow, cheap movie tickets, and an epic 80s dance party.

In other important January news, we finally broke down yesterday and bought a space heater. Our little apartment has been trying so hard to stay warm but with super high ceilings and a poorly insulated patio door, it was losing the fight and we were freezing. The space heater has instantly improved things. We also got a humidifier to help with the dryness from the space heater so now they are both chugging along taking up plenty of valuable floor space. But absolutely worth it.

And now....two photos! I know, I really overdid it with the photos. The first is obvious. The second is Sean before he started throwing and rolling around in the snow in MA.

Intentions for a New Year

Travel to more places that I have never been. Last year I went to San Francisco and Philadelphia for the first time. This year I have personal trips to Nashville and Antigua, Guatemala in the works, along with potential work trips to Atlanta, Dallas, Houston, and Seattle. International travel has always been my favorite but I am beginning to see that visiting new cities and places in the United States can be a great experience too. Hoping to do a lot more of that this year!

Take more risks. In 2013 we took one big risk, moving to a new apartment in our dream neighborhood that made our bank accounts take a hit and wondering everyday if it was worth it. I also took some risks professionally that were stressful at the time and made me question if I was making the right decisions. But as with most risks that you think about carefully and decide to go ahead with, it was definitely worth it. In 2014 I hope to do more of this "careful" risk taking and keep moving forward with things that might seem a little scary but will ultimately be so worth doing.

Get back on the saving track. Sean and I have a fairly good rainy-day fund built up but moving this past year really made our savings take a hit. We have tried to maintain a small goal of $200 dollars each month going to savings (this is beyond what we each contribute to retirement accounts through work) but even that hasn't been happening recently. When it comes to saving money, I do believe even a small amount is better than nothing, and we can easily spend that $200 on two dinners out. So this is a pretty practical intention, to remind myself what needs to be done and keep working at it.

Unplug and explore activities that don't involve a screen. I fall into the trap like everyone else of keeping my phone glued to my side. I start my day at my computer, stare at my phone often on my commute, spend most of my work day in front of a computer, and come home to often watch a few episodes of a tv show. I have been intrigued by the idea of taking one day each week to unplug completely but am not quite there yet. I would like to take more dedicated time away from a screen to read/explore the neighborhood/sleep/try new recipes. You get the idea and it is obviously easier said than done but ultimately I think it would be good for my eyes and brain to take that break on a regular basis.

2014

2013 will henceforth be known as the year of the tiny apartment, or when I learned how much space/stuff I really need. Looking back, it was a pretty great year.

In January and February we did not hibernate as usual and instead were quite busy getting out and about even in blizzards. I thought a lot about moving and started trolling apartment listings.

In March we had a fun family weekend in Chicago and towards the end of the month started a real apartment hunt. In April I went to San Francisco for work and then we found our new apartment!

In May we went to every restaurant we loved in Astoria and felt sad about leaving our very first New York City apartment.

In June we were both very busy and we finally moved. I turned 26 and realized that there was now a Shake Shack within walking distance of my apartment. Sean assembled a lot of new furniture.

In July Miriam and Aaron came to visit and we struggled through two heat waves. We took a weekend trip to Philadelphia.

In August we took a long trip to Michigan and my Mom got married! Our new nephew Hudson was born and I showed his picture to anyone who would look. In the process of this trip I flew on standby for the first time (not by choice). Fun!

In September we visited Jocelyn and Cory for Labor Day weekend and then celebrated our three year wedding anniversary. I fell in love with New York City all over again, as one does in the fall.

October was mainly quiet, Michael visited and I tried to keep a Mum plant alive. Sean turned 27.

In November I wrote about hosting guests in a tiny apartment after Jocelyn and Cory spent the weekend with us. We went to Michigan for Thanksgiving and finally met Hudson who I proclaimed to be the best baby ever.

In December I went to Chinatown for the first time and we watched a ton of cheesy Christmas movies. We went to a bunch of holiday parties and back to Michigan for Christmas.

And now it's 2014!

At the start of 2013 I had some goals for the year of things I wanted to do/see in New York. They were:
-Go to a Mets or Yankees game.
-Explore more of Queens.
-Go to the Museum of Natural History.
-Take a trip somewhere on the East Coast that is easily reached from here.
-Eat at Franny's in Brooklyn.

We never really did get to explore more of Queens but that doesn't mean it won't happen in the future. I also STILL have not been to the Museum of Natural History (I do not count the one night there for a work event) but am hoping to remedy that next weekend. Happy to report this year I did go to a Yankees game, we took a trip to Philadelphia using public transportation, and we ate at Franny's along with a ton of other great new restaurants. 

I have been thinking about resolutions and things I want to accomplish in 2014 but those ideas are not quite fully developed yet so they will have to wait for another day.