Back on Planet NY

Two ironic occurrences from my trip back yesterday:
- I got more insect bites on the plane than I got on the rest of my trip (in a single incident). There must have been a spider in my fleece (which has been sitting at the bottom of my backpack) and I have 10-15 itchy, nickel sized bites on each arm. (sympathy appreciated, thanks).
- I lost my wallet in the Rome airport. How I survived the dozens of trips I made in the last 14 weeks only to lose it on my last day is either good or bad luck....

The losing my wallet incident, while it required me to beg for lunch on my first flight, ended up working out in a good way. I met a girl who was teaching in Spain, was supposed to be going to Sweden for spring break, but randomly decided to go back to see her family in NY. So we teamed up - she covered cab fare to my apt, and I let her use my internet to get in contact with her friend. It was fun. Reinforces, once again, the upside the usually awaits "bad" events, or alternatively, the fun that can come of uncertainty.

Unlike my arrival in NY last March after India (things seemed bleak, the city itself receiving most of the blame), NY seemed humorous or even charming. Partly, having spent so much time with non-Americans, I was able to see America from a tourists perspective. First encounter was the NY-natives who work in the airport and my taxi - I remembered that famed mix of roughness, humor and friendliness the real NYers are known for. I like them. Then, driving along, seeing a huge SUV driven my someone with ghetto-style made me laugh. While we don't have the history of other countries, we aren't lacking in our own brand of culture :) Then of course, the "other half" NYers - the girls with the fancy handbags and heels, guys in their corresponding uniforms. As many NYers will admit there is a certain profile of people who are ambitious, make a lot of money, have certain lifestyles, personalities, etc. They feel like if they are on top of NY, then they are on top of the world. But NY is really such a small part of the world. That little ounce of insight that I got on my trip is all I needed to put it in perspective. From that angle, the social hierarchy, style competition, etc, all seem rather funny (but I'm not out to stop anyone's fun).

Getting dressed to go out today was an experience (I had lunch with Akshay, Rohit and Dolapo at google!). I vaguely remembered a uniform I should be wearing and walked myself through the steps - What do I wear when it's cold? Rummaging...yes, this looks like a familiar outfit. OK. Need "handbag"...leather. Need shoes....not sneakers. Am I ready...do I need makeup? The availability of toiletries was a novelty- what was my old routine, was I using this face cream every day? It was funny, and I was surprised how foreign it all seemed. Imagine if I had been away for a year!

Other little charms were coming back to my apartment so see how my potatos had turned into little plants, and everything that was left in the fridge was still there (although I had taken most of it out). Oh, Frank. I don't know what that man eats while I am away. Not one item had been added to the pantry or fridge! Haha.

I felt really good upon coming back, despite having to deal with my lost stuff, unpacking and unpleasant forthcoming activities like moving. Usually I would be overwhelmed by the to-dos, and I'm sure that day will come soon, but I'm glad I've had at least one day where my thinking is different than before. While I was laying in bed last night, I started thinking about what I had to do. Then I felt myself taking a deep breath and an image of - the stars in the open sky - came into my head. A revival of when I used to lay on the deck in Laos and look at them. I felt calm, like - what is there really to worry about. Priorities and perspective.