Latest purchase.

Yesterday I made an impulse buy. Actually, I don't think it can really be considered an impulse buy, since I've been wanting a new digital camera for a really long time now. And yesterday afternoon I found a really awesome deal, so I jumped all over it.

Don't get me wrong, I love my old digital camera. Even though it's over 4 years old and sort of big and boxy and the LCD screen is tiny and the "zoom" is laughable, it still takes some great photos. And it's documented fabulous times: two stints in London, four Christmases, two Hawaiian vacations, friends' weddings, a cruise, Harry Potter midnight showings, graduation, moving to New York City...But now it's time to say goodbye, camera. We had a good run, but we always knew this wouldn't last forever. I'm trading you in for a younger, sexier model:



Sleek design, image stabilization, better zoom, double the megapixels, and a nice LCD display. And the best part is, this camera cost less than half of what I paid for my old one 4 years ago. Technology!

Edit: OMG IT JUST ARRIVED! I ordered it yesterday, with regular (free!) shipping. My life is a totally kick-A fairytale.

Equinox.

Today marked the official beginning of Autumn. I decided a while back that autumn is my favorite season. I don't especially like extreme temperatures (so why I left California for Utah, Colorado, and now New York is beyond me), so Summer and Winter are both out. And Spring seems to get a lot more rain, which wreaks havoc with my hair. Autumn means crisp air, beautiful colors, cute outfits, and the return of sweet, sweet television shows. A few days ago, autumn cemented its place in my heart when I woke up in the middle of the night - windows thrown open, a sheet barely covering me, as has been my wont all summer - and I had a peculiar sensation. I was COLD. I marveled at the feeling for a moment and then reached for my long-scorned duvet and snuggled down in a moment of pure bliss. I will say this: I am proud of having somehow survived an entire sticky, humid, oppressive New York summer without air conditioning. But I will never do that ever again.

Today I celebrated the new season by registering to vote in the state of New York. I thought of an autumn four years ago when I sent in an absentee ballot from London. I thought of last year's autumn spent living with my bebes. I thought of countless beginnings of school years that were inexplicably exciting even though they would inevitably become torturous all too soon. That feeling of possibilities still manifests itself, and is, I think, yet another reason why I love autumn (that, and caramel apple cider). I'm looking forward to seeing how the season turns out this year.

"Autumn" doesn't even look like a word anymore.

"Sexaaayyyyy! WOO!"

If you ever feel like maybe your self-esteem is going downhill, all you need to do is come visit my neighborhood and take a walk from my building to the subway. Satisfaction guaranteed!

Weekend jaunt.

This weekend I took a 4-hour coach ride down to Washington, D.C. to celebrate the arrival of a true champion and BFF (and one of the few people who loves TV as much as I do), Timothy Bruce Whiting. After nearly a year of separation, Tim opted to sufficiently reduce the 2,000-mile distance between us. I encourage all of you to do likewise. We gallivanted around his new city, and I have to admit, I fell a little bit in love with it. I'd been there once during my senior year of high school, but I'd forgotten how nice it is. Too bad there's not exactly a booming music industry in D.C. I love New York, but it was nice to get away from the intensity, at least for a weekend.


I also got to see another long-lost friend, Cory Cozzens, though I apparently didn't think to get a picture of us together. The White House will have to suffice. The Cozzens lived in the Bay Area for 3-4 years when I was in elementary school, and Cory and I hung out occasionally at BYU as well. back in the day, Cory and I had great fun getting into trouble for talking during class all the time. I got a B in citizenship in 5th grade because of him. But honestly, if socializing with your peers doesn't make you a good citizen, I don't know what does.

On Sunday, I went with Tim and his roommates to church, and I think I knew more people in that ward than they did. Heh. At least now I'll have many more excuses to make the trip. And since the coaches have free wi-fi, you can look forward to future blogs en route.

Condolences.

Being in New York City today felt, in a way, like being at a funeral for a friend's loved one. I felt sad for the loss, acknowledging the tragedy that occurred 7 years ago. But I was only ever an intruder on someone else's grief, because I couldn't truly have any idea how it must feel.


I'm sure everyone remembers where they were and what they were doing when they heard the news. I wrote in my journal that night - a journal that had gone neglected for months prior, and was forgotten again soon after. Over pages and pages, I related a detailed account of the day's events and the way the world felt at that moment, because I knew on that day that it would be changed forever.


I was 3,000 miles away on September 11, 2001, watching history unfold on a television screen. Tonight I stood at Ground Zero and looked up, knowing that I will never really know what those towers looked like up close, or the horror that gripped the city that day. But as I did my best to remember, I was able to experience a small part of the mourning of a city and a nation, as well as hope and the resolve to rebuild. And for that I am grateful.

OMG! (the remix)

Forget Michael Phelps, my stalking energies will now be focused in a more red-delicious-eating, kebab-buying, business-timing, bird-flipping, awesomely-accented direction: Flight of the Conchords has begun filming its second season here in the city.

Endings.

I found out this weekend that Rent ended its 12-year Broadway run on Sunday. I kept meaning to go see it, but I never got around to it. This makes me sad.

Another thing that closed this weekend was the Astroland amusement park at Coney Island. Luckily, I managed to get a piece of that action on Labor Day. Mariah, Rachel and I trekked down to the southern border of Brooklyn to bask in the wonder of carnies (Rachel won two goldfish!), Shoot the Freak, Nathan's hot dogs, the beach, and an 81-year-old roller coaster. It was everything I hoped it would be.

More.

Oh, and thanks to all the people (including my anonymous book fairies) who recommended stuff for me to read. I went to Barnes and Noble and wandered around for the better part of an hour, reading the backs of a lot of those books and others that looked interesting, and got entirely overwhelmed. I decided it would be prudent for me to look into a library card, so until I get around to that, I fell back on an old favorite. Any additional recs are still appreciated - now that I'm out of school and actually have time for leisure reading, it gives me great satisfaction to add to my list.

AHHHHHHHHHHH!

So I am watching Project Runway just now, minding my own business, when Megan comes home and suddenly I hear a SHRIEK from the hallway. And I'm like, "Are you okay?" and Megan is all, "THERE'S A COCKROACH IN OUR APARTMENT!" AHHHHHH! I have heard war stories from most of my friends about the battles waged against cockroaches, but thankfully I have never even seen one in my apartment before. I'd actually never seen one anywhere before, and was quite content to continue in my ignorance. So there it is, just chillin' on our wall, lazily swishing its antennae, cool as a cucumber. (I thought they only came out in the dark and you had to surprise them? I don't know.) I immediately get all twitchy and sort of reluctantly ask if there's anything Megan wants me to do, but I can tell she is already hatching a plan so I'm not too worried. She just wants moral support, she says, as she gets a cup and prepares to trap it. I follow her into the hall, cowering in the kitchen doorway, and shifting from foot to foot with my hands half covering my face. After disarming the little guy with some small talk, Megan lunges for it with the cup, but it is too quick and goes skittering across the wall, and I shriek and Megan shrieks and it is all around a championship scene. She tries again, and this time it gets down to the floor and takes off in a sprint (seriously, they are FAST) and things are about to dissolve into full-out mayhem when Megan slams the cup down and captures it. We stare at the cup for a few seconds, and after weighing different disposal options, we opt for the kitchen window. Megan scoops up the makeshift cage with an envelope and carefully scoots over to the open window. We are both very tense, and the little guy is running around like crazy inside the cup and just generally freaking us out even more. Megan squeals again as she flicks our friend out the window and we both shriek some more and then Megan, in her hysteria, throws the cup out the window too, but neither of us cares because at least the cockroach is gone. I never really liked that cup anyway.