visiting Chris in NYC
Back from NYC. Had a great time--might post about it in greater detail later, but I might not.
I do want to tell you all, though, about how proud I am of myself. I left Philly around 4:15 to drive to NY. I hit a lot of traffic, thought to listen to AM radio to get updates, and found out I shouldn't go over the GW bridge as planned because it was backed up by about 2 hours. Had to take the Lincoln Tunnel instead, which was really stressful, but I did okay. On the other side of the tunnel, I got turned around, but didn't panic and managed to figure out where I needed to get to (admittedly, I was aided by the fact that NYC streets are laid out in such a nice neat numbered grid). I made it to Missi's neighborhood and found parking in only about 20 minutes, only a block and a half from her building. I didn't stress out at any point in the parking search. After I freshened up, I managed to take the subway all by myself downtown and found the bar I was looking for.
Now, some normal city person would not find any of the above to be a challenge. If you know me, though, you'll know that situations like that cause a lot of anxiety for me, especially in NYC. I have never driven by myself in NYC before. Honestly, this might have been the first time I've ever driven in NYC at all--from Boston I just took the bus, and Lauren or Colleen drove the other times I've been there more recently. So driving there, dealing with the traffic, getting lost downtown, and looking for parking were all really stressful things for me to do. But I did them, and I was okay, and I didn't have any anxiety attacks, and when I got to the bar I relaxed and had a good time. So I'm really proud of myself.
I do want to tell you all, though, about how proud I am of myself. I left Philly around 4:15 to drive to NY. I hit a lot of traffic, thought to listen to AM radio to get updates, and found out I shouldn't go over the GW bridge as planned because it was backed up by about 2 hours. Had to take the Lincoln Tunnel instead, which was really stressful, but I did okay. On the other side of the tunnel, I got turned around, but didn't panic and managed to figure out where I needed to get to (admittedly, I was aided by the fact that NYC streets are laid out in such a nice neat numbered grid). I made it to Missi's neighborhood and found parking in only about 20 minutes, only a block and a half from her building. I didn't stress out at any point in the parking search. After I freshened up, I managed to take the subway all by myself downtown and found the bar I was looking for.
Now, some normal city person would not find any of the above to be a challenge. If you know me, though, you'll know that situations like that cause a lot of anxiety for me, especially in NYC. I have never driven by myself in NYC before. Honestly, this might have been the first time I've ever driven in NYC at all--from Boston I just took the bus, and Lauren or Colleen drove the other times I've been there more recently. So driving there, dealing with the traffic, getting lost downtown, and looking for parking were all really stressful things for me to do. But I did them, and I was okay, and I didn't have any anxiety attacks, and when I got to the bar I relaxed and had a good time. So I'm really proud of myself.