Ruminations on Life, Now.

So, it's been two weeks to the day since we moved. It is also the Fall Equinox and last night hubbie and I sat outside at The Prospect and toasted the moon with an icy PBR (we needed some downtime from the beer amazingness that embodies Asheville). Life in Asheville is pretty much COMPLETELY DIFFERENT than NYC. Sure, there are the common threads, like hubbie and the cats and my favorite coffee mug, but so of my daily life is so very different.

A major change in my time on the computer, which has gone down substantially. My normal week in NYC involved about 7 hrs daily in front of the computer -- working, emails, surfing the net, etc. Now, spending time with Dad, meals with the family, running errands, visiting friends, seed meetings, gym, breweries, antiquing, etc. have lowered my computer time to about 2 hrs per day. Sure, work still =s computer time, but the surfing time has gone to almost nil. I kinda dig it, at least for now. I'm interested to see how winter changes this aspect for me.

Also, I've gone from riding my bike 24/7 to driving everywhere. I thought giving up my bike (at least for now, no place to park it in the condo) would be more difficult than it has been. The car is a necessary luxury, and I try not to take it for granted, but it does make my life easier. From picking up Dad from exercise class to loading in large bags of potting soil and shrubs for Mom's yard to heading up Rt 209 to Hot Springs for a lazy Saturday in the mineral tubs, it's just HANDY to have a vehicle, though it is definitely making me think about our next car being more green.

Speaking of green, probably the most difficult part of our transition has been our condo's location. Who knew it could be noisier in Asheville than the Lower East Side? Living next to a helicopter landing pad (MAMA) hasn't helped, and the fact that Asheville High School is across the street and the stoners park next to our condo doesn't help either. Kids are LOUD at 8am chainsmoking American Spirits. Zoiks! So, while the condo is awesome in regards to location / city living -- it is not at ALL what I imagined when moving home to this lovely mountain town....Ditto for the rush hour traffic.

I have to say that my food preference is definitely Asheville, simply because (at least where we're living, downtown) almost every restaurant has amazing, local, fresh, affordable food so it feels easier and certainly more convenient to go out and have a great meal. That said, I've been cooking less (crappy kitchen) so I'm hoping to start getting back into the cooking mentality, and the farmer's markets here are pretty rad. I'm looking forward to Saturday morning's City Market as I found a fall soup recipe for Ribollita -- a fantastic rich Tuscan dish -- that I'm really excited to try.

I'm super happy to be back at my church where I'll be spending today in a silent meditation in reflection of fall and the equinox with my mom.

So far, two weeks in, I'm happy and optimistic about this "year of transition" --though I'm somewhat anticipating the shoe to drop and overwhelming nostalgia for NYC to rear up at any second. For this, I'm working to adopt my mother's mantra: day by day.

The Most Important Box You'll Need: MOVING 101

Sadly, I must report that I learned this packing lesson the hard way! Upon arriving to our new abode, I started looking for a zip lock bag of screws I'd tucked away for safe keeping to put together the bookshelves. Low and behold, that special place I'd so confidently tucked them away was impossible to find. Ditto for the bath soap and the utensils (which I still have not found).

Moving is like camping. You cannot take the basics for granted, or you will be utterly miserable. Our first night...not so hot. But now we have a shower liner and rings, a towel, a coffee pot, and SOAP, and our second night is looking up!

So, with a sigh and a nod to "next time" -- here's my "PACK IN VIP BOX" moving list:

• Coffee pot, filter, and ground coffee
• Two mugs
• Fish Oil, Vitamin C packets, protein bars
• Any medicines, feminine products, etc. specifically needed
• Cleaning Rag (if you wear glasses)
• All phone and computer chargers
• 2 forks, spoons, knifes
• Paper towels / cloth towels and a couple of napkins
• Shower liner and rings
• Bath Mat & 1-2 towels
• Shampoo, Conditioner and Soap
• ALL misc. screws, pegs, nails, etc that have been removed from important furniture
• ALL bedding (2 pillows, sheets, duvet)
• 2 pair of scissors
• Bottle / wine opener
• Big garbage bags

Another learning was to have plenty of cash on hand at all times as we’ve burned through cash in the most random "emergencies”.

Day by day!

Straw Solution! The Perfect Icy Beverage Cup

So, anyone who knows me knows I'm obsessed with straws. Gotta have one in my ice water at dinner, and in pretty much everything I drink that is cold (except orange juice and cocktails).

I hate the wastefulness of plastic straws, so I invested in aluminum straws (3 per pack / $10). They were great -- for a while. But soon, I noticed the inside of the straw didn't appear that clean, even after boiling it. It looked...gunky. Super gross.

So, I've been on the search for a solution, and I found it last week at Stonewall Kitchen in Maine, where my mom and I took a tasty cooking class.

Viola! The Copco Sierra Cold Tumbler, 24 ounce. I got it for my kale shakes, but have decided to keep it solely a water glass, to keep it clean. It's fantastic. Never too cold to pick up, fits in all cup holders, BPA-free, doesn't drip condensation, and....it has a stellar straw!!

Two thumbs up -- I plan to rock it as I drive my 16ft moving truck down I-81 on Wednesday.

Is it a Treasure?

As we're packing up 7 years of cohabitation together, I've had to figure out the bar for packing or tossing (or donating, etc.) --ultimately, I think it comes down to this simply: "Is it a treasure?" And then I think of my friend Erin, who is the most stylish and functional interior and garden designer I know. She inherited a home filled with treasures of every kind, 5 dining room sets, 7 pianos, 14 globes, and dozens of fishing trophies. What's a girl to do? Erin got down to business and held an auction -- and how she selected what to keep and what to go, and I'm pretty sure she was saying, "Is it a treasure?" as she sorted out decades of her grandmother's utterly southern collections.

I've been channeling Erin a lot in this move. I've realized hubby is an amazing packer, but he leaves messes where ever he goes. A little tidying up on my part makes a MUCH more livable home (less face it, we're here for 4 more days and need to get to the loo). My other packing trick is staying happy. This means good home cooked meals or kickass delivery from places that don't exist south of the mason dixon border: vegetarian dim sum anyone? How about a quick cab to korean? or stay near houston street for mexican? large groups? perfect private party? best "local" local LES restaurant? As you can see, making sure we have ample supplies, including food and plenty of ice cold water helps it be a little more bearable. Add to that a dash of trying to take smaller loads and silly computer breaks and heck, I think I'm even having a little fun!

So, packing checklist, ahem!

1. IS IT A TREASURE?
2. keep it tidy while you pack
3. divide and conquer
4. don't forget to take care of yourself in the process -- basic necessities like food, water, alcohol, sleep, fun, exercise, etc. should NOT get tossed out the window for the 1-2 weeks it will take you to pack up yr place, move it, and unpack it. keep up with caring for your self, or you will get sick (speaking of, wear some masks when things get really dusty! truly, your house is not as clean as you hope it is!!)

I think that's it for now. It's back to the process.

It's all about the journey, right?

When It Rains, It Pours...

So, we're leaving NYC on Wed, Sept 8. We will pull into our new hometown in the hills of Western NC on my 33rd birthday, Thursday, September 9. There are so many emotions, it feels impossible to give myself the time right now to capture them all, but there are some things I wanna remember about this time.

Like -- how many references to LEAVING NYC are popping up everywhere right now...First and foremost is the amazing article in THE ONION this week that is making its way like wildfire through Facebook. The article, titled 8.4 Million New Yorkers Suddenly Realize New York City A Horrible Place To Live 'We're Getting The Hell Out Of This Sewer,' Entire Populace Reports is hysterical and yet, RIGHT ON in so many ways.

Then, while reading an article about Ralph Ellison, who asked an old man at a bar "Do you like living in NYC?" the response was: "I'm in New York, but New York ain't in me. You know what I mean? Listen, I'm from Jacksonville, FL. Been in NYC for 25 years. I'm a New Yorker! Yuh understand? Naw, naw, you don't get me. take Lenox avenue, take seventh avenue, pimps! numbers. cheating poor people out of what they got. shootings, cuttings, backbiting, all them things. Yuh see? Yuh see what I mean? I'm in New York, but New York ain't in me"

And then, when reading about the "godfather of rap" Gil Scott-Heron, there is reference to his new song, "New York is Killing Me" which has a line that goes, "Bunch of doctors come around, they don't know, that New York is killing me / I need to go home and take it slow down in Jackson, Tennessee."

Three anti-New York moments in 24 hours in pop culture references -- okay, okay -- thanks for the swift kick in the ass to remind us about the downs of the City when we are "romanticizing it all out of proportion" as Mr. Allen would say. Tis helpful to keep us from clinging to tightly to a City that had served us so well, for so long. Got it.