One of those weeks

This has been a pretty crappy week so far. Allow me to complain:

• Sunday morning: I cut my thumb pretty badly with a brand new knife my mom had given Ari for Christmas. Blood everywhere and decreased mobility. 
• Sunday afternoon: I tried to do laundry in the basement of our building, only to discover that the center washing machine is broken. This left our clothes soaking wet, with nowhere to put them but hang them dripping in the shower. I also got my thumb blood all over everything in the process of carrying laundry up and down the stairs. 
• Monday afternoon: I found out at the last minute that I would be teaching an extra class. I had to scramble for material and basically wing it. 
• Wednesday afternoon (today): DUN DUN DUN. Got my wallet stolen on the subway. I couldn't believe it, because I literally swiped into the subway, rode four stations, and then got off, and my wallet was gone. The kind of funny thing is, I think I know exactly when it got stolen: two guys bumped into me at the same time on the subway platform, which was weird, because the subway wasn't crowded at all. I'm pretty sure they planned to bump into me. So I guess it serves me right for having my wallet all exposed. 

So now I have to get new Metrocard, new credit cards, a new drivers license, new Pace ID, new Columbia ID, and a new Film Forum membership card. I hope it's manageable. Fingers crossed.

Old stuff is cool

I guess the coolness of looking at old stuff is the basic premise of most museums. And it certainly applies to the Transit Museum in Brooklyn. Ari and I were free this Saturday, so we decided to make the relatively short trek out to see this place, which was recommended by my friend Jenny as a fun, cheap way to spend an afternoon.

And it was! The best part is the lower level, where they have all these subway cars from different decades lined up along the platform (the whole museum is a converted subway station from the thirties). You can get on each one and see ads from that time period.

This ad was my favorite (dating from some time in the 40s or 50s, I believe):

The most remarkably different train cars were the wooden ones from the 1910's. So rustic! With wicker seats! 

At the end of the trip, I made Ari pitch in for a "Q" subway magnet for our fridge. That's the subway line that stops closest to our apartment (Parkside Ave.), and it's basically one of the best lines there is in the city, considering it runs express into Manhattan, and rarely has delays. Thanks, Q! 

Snow

Some belated pictures of the snowy day we had last week.

Columbia's Butler Library

View out the window from Lewisohn Hall

Main entrance to Columbia

Ocean Avenue, the main street by our apartment in Brooklyn. 

Reflections on being back in New York (and America)

I figure I'll take advantage of one of my last free evenings to write this blog post, since I'll be starting up with a new, more hectic teaching schedule next week (spring semester, woo hoo!).

• Teaching adult ESL in this city is stressful. I have a master's degree now, which allows me to earn a living wage, but I can't imagine teaching in this city long term. I was teaching 18 hours at Pace University last semester. This coming semester they offered me nine hours--no warning, no apology. So I was luckily able to supplement those hours by joining the adjunct staff at Columbia. We'll see how the juggling of hours goes. I'm a little nervous. 
• The weather here is not that bad. No really, I think I psyched myself out while living in the last year in Indonesia. I totally forgot that cold weather, for the most part, is manageable. SURE, it was literally 3 degrees during the daytime last week. And I realize we still have a few more months of winter left, during which time I may rescind this exact comment. But really--I have generally been able to stay warm enough and still have a life. 
• I can't get enough movies or theater/music/cultural stuff. It's not New-York-specific, but it's been wonderful being able to use Netflix again. Add Film Forum (my one true theater love) and numerous free/discount show options, and it's hard to get bored. 
• I really missed General Tso's tofu. I can't think of anything more worth the $5.50.
• I don't want to live in New York City beyond the next couple years. 
• I really wish our apartment was big enough for a cat. 

I just got back from a comedy show

Wherein I watched John Hodgman dress up like Ayn Rand and tell libertarian jokes in a Russian accent. It's funnier than it sounds, I swear.

Here's the mail! It never fails!

Except that it did fail.

Ari and I have been living in our new apartment since October 1st. At first we didn't receive mail because our address hadn't been officially registered with the post office, and our building hadn't installed mailboxes yet. Then, when the mailboxes were finally installed, we still didn't get anything, despite the fact that my parents had definitely sent us stuff and friends had asked where to send Christmas cards.

This morning, our neighbor from 2C knocked on our door and handed us a stack of mail. Apparently our mail (2B) is being delivered to his mailbox. Whaaaa??

Why is this such a freaking hassle??

At least I have lots of nice Christmas cards to look at until this thing gets figured out.

Snow Storm!

My first day of work was supposed to be today, but thanks to an impending snowstorm, classes were cancelled.

This morning, we woke up with a good few inches of sparkling snow. It's nothing like the snow we got in December of 2010, but it's pretty! Ari and I went for a little walk around Prospect Park during the warmest part of the day (21 degrees).

Pardon the slanted shots--it was too cold for me to stop and hold the iPhone correctly! 

We are now safely inside! 

Resolutions

I think I've got to post my New Year's resolutions before it gets too late. According to an NPR story I heard a few years ago, women are more likely to keep their resolutions if they tell people about them (but apparently this rule doesn't apply to men). 

So here are my resolutions: 

1. Write down one good memory from every day. This resolution will hopefully be made easier by the fact that my sister gave me a cute little French notebook that's designed specifically for this purpose. 
2. Start tracking my spending more carefully and keep within a budget. I hope some kind of miracle app on my new iPhone will help with this goal. Anyone have good recommendations? 
3. Commit more seriously to volunteering. Ideally volunteer at an animal shelter. 
4. Try to be more patient. This is something I have gotten especially bad at since living in New York City. 
5. Make more of an effort to keep in touch with and spend time with friends and family. 

And before I close out this post, a quick mention of big things that happened in my life in 2013 (off the top of my head):

• I lived in Indonesia; and returned home from Indonesia after being away for over 10 months. I also traveled to Singapore, Vietnam, and Hong Kong this year. 
• I moved back to New York City to start a part-time teaching job at Pace University and rented an apartment with Ari. 
• My grandmother on my dad's side passed away on December 20th. Her death was not unexpected; she had been doing poorly for quite a few years and had recently taken a turn for the worse. My family remembers her as a compassionate and giving woman who loved to laugh. We all miss her.