I don’t really expect anyone to read this. I’m writing it sort of as a journal for myself. Also, a friend suggested that I’m “living my best life,” so if what I write inspires someone to live a little more, then I think that’s wonderful! I’ll try to be heavy on pictures and light on words. 🙂 Most people who know me know that I love to travel. You might even say that I live and work to travel. Much of the reason is because I like to have experiences. If anyone asks me the purpose of life, I say that the reason is to live, so having many different experiences in my life is part of my version of living. The other side of this is that since I love having so many experiences, I sometimes overindulge. Having great food and tasting all different foods is part of what I love to experience. This brings me to the purpose of this blog. I am currently on a flight from ATL-NYC, and I want to set an intention for this trip. My trip is to travel and have as many experiences as usual but return home without feeling that I need to go on a major cleanse. Since I love to travel and am able to do it more and more, I want to be able to travel without the recovery period. I want to have experiences without abusing my body. I believe it is possible. I’m sure I’ll slip here and there, but I will get back on track. Putting it in writing as I begin this adventure is the first step in acting on my intention.
My flight landed at 11am, and I made it to my Airbnb on 42nd St & 8th Av ($79!!) by noon. A bonus of any airbnb is that check-in is flexible. I was able to drop and lock my bags and immediately go find lunch. I was just looking for a simple, inexpensive salad. I had good intentions, but then I passed a beautiful French cafe called Marseille and noticed that they have salade nicoise on their menu. Ugh, I couldn’t resist. It wasn’t cheap, but it was beautiful, delicious, and healthy.
From there, I moved on, looking in a few bakeries for dessert for my friend’s birthday later in the day. Nothing was too promising, so I got to the Lunt-Fontanne Theatre a bit early for Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. My college friend, Jared Bradshaw, is in the show. He’s in the ensemble, but he is also the understudy for Willy Wonka! You might have seen him on the Tony Awards on Sunday night! My seat was way in the back but seemed to have “extra leg room,” and I was by the sound board. That wouldn’t matter, but it was an added bonus to this already fantastic day since there was a power strip, which allowed me to secretly charge my phone during the first act!
As I was watching the show, I was thinking that the only reason I was there was because I have a friend in it. That’s OK on it’s own, but what surprised me is that I really enjoyed the show! It’s very clever, current, timeless, and funny, and the singing was quite good! I laughed to so much–probably a bit more than the people around me. The line from the show that really stood out to me is this: “Charlie, you can’t help yourself, can you? You just can’t stop making something out of nothing. Not even when you know its breaking the rules.”
During intermission, with a charged phone, I found the bakery and wine shop that I should try, so I had a plan for after the show. The 2nd half was great, and I met Jared at the secret door in the house. We chatted quickly backstage, and he took me on stage, which was pretty great. This is the stage where “The Sound of Music” premiered way back in 1959, as well as the Ziegfeld Follies in 1918!
Post-show, I walked up to Columbus Circle, found some beautiful desserts, got some wine, and headed to meet Bree at Strawberry Fields in Central Park. She had just picked up our meal that we would eat on the Great Lawn before and during the NY Philharmonic performance. The weather was perfect, the food was delicious, and the company was fantastic. To top it all off, the concert ended with fireworks!
So…this day was pretty close to perfect. I left Atlanta at 9am, made it to Manhattan for lunch, and I got to see two friends who inspire me. Jared is singing on Broadway. He’s happy but always reaching for the stars. Bree has a fancy job at the Clinton Foundation and always has amazing stories from that. Seems like these friends are at the top of their game, and they are, but they are also working hard, dreaming, and striving to fulfill their biggest dreams.
