Why? Because everyone here is in such a hurry that there's no time to even slow down, let alone sleep. Even people who have extra time get swept up in the frenetic energy that fills this city with a pulse that the world can hear. And if the world doesn't hear, New Yorkers could care less.
It's been a crazy summer, one filled with exploring, eating, walking (lots!), musueming, shopping, and a million other things that NYC has to offer. I've gotten to live up in Harlem, work in Murray Hill, shop in Chinatown, sip a glass of wine in Little Italy, study French at a French bistro in Tribeca, go kayaking off Pier 41, wander the brownstone-lined streets of the UWS (Upper West Side), go to shows on Broadway, walk Times Square while dodging hoards of tourists, go to a movie in Bryant Park... and that was just the first week. New York City is teeming with so many opportunities that I am consistently filled with a feeling somewhere between inspiration and obligation to do everything!
I was, at first, only mildly looking forward to this summer. For some reason, I was quite fixated on working abroad, but as the summer went on I began to realize what a true adventure this was. This has been one of the best summers in my life and not just because it's been fun or entertaining but because I've grown so much. This city is a challenging place to live, work, and travel in. And of course, living on 137th (all you NYers know what neighborhood that is!) and Broadway was an adventure in and of itself!
During my summer, I have observed three very key cultural rules of New York City. The city is diverse and filled with countless races and ethnicities, but all true New Yorkers know these three rules:
1) NEVER talk to people on the subway. The only proper facial position while on public transportation is the 'subway face': a mask devoid of any emotion or humanity. This is a self-defense tactic, nothing more.
2) Sidewalks work like a four-lane road: two directions of traffic with a fast lane for people in a hurry (New Yorkers) and a slow lane for the "I Love NY" t-shirt-wearing, camera-toting, slow-walking tourist. I myself have experienced the extreme frustration that results from a human traffic jam on the sidewalk that is caused by an ignorance of these laws, and it disrupts the entire course of the day. Such catastrophes are frequently caused by a blissfully unaware tourist who, with no warning, will suddenly come to a dead stop in the middle of the sidewalk. They lean backward with camera in hand to take 10 or 20 pictures of some awe-inspiring new skyscraper that they're passing. And this is why everyone else thinks New Yorkers are rude - simply because they have a hard time dealing with the frustation caused by this. Oh, the joys of working a block east of the Empire State Building.
3) New York City is always refered to as 'the city', because there isn't really any other city.
Funny stuff aside, though, I have loved and learned from NYC. It teaches you how to be self-sufficient. It also teaches you to love life, because there's so much to live and love here! And God has been so good to me, yet again. He's protected me and taken care of me, and He's provided so much for me. From an amazing apartment with wonderful roommates to a sense of peace and security in the midst of all the craziness. He is my Yahweh and Jehovah Jireh, regardless of where I am or how I feel.
With all my lessons learned and my notes taken, I believe that I am ready to graduate from the city - back to school and the end of life and freedowm as I know it. Cornell, here I come!
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