The Part Where It's My Favorite Time of The Year...

... it's Holy Week!

And, yes, I'm dead serious, this is probably my favorite time of the year. Chalk it up to the History nerd in me, but I love the hearing the history of my church and knowing where my faith comes from ^_^. Anyways, happy Good Friday, folks; I hope everyone had a good Holy Week, or just had a good week in general, for you non-religious folk. It's definitely a TGIF kind of Friday for me. Seven days 'til freedom! I'll keep taking baby steps until the baby steps get me to where I need to be (where ever that actually is).

Photo update! I haven't forgotten about my project 365, so here it is!

March 21, 2013. E and I tried to go to a screening of Admission, at 7:30 at the Century City Mall. We ran into... a LOT of traffic. I think it took like 30 minutes to get from our apartment to 405, which is, like, half a mile away. It was very sad. But the night was not lost! We had a delicious Counter dinner in honor of my then-new job, and walked around and giggled at God-knows-what and generally just had a good time. Buuuuuut this was the traffic. Gotta love LA; I guess it's good for something.

March 22, 2013. My Kairos sister's boyfriend was in town! So, he made dinner and we watched Wreck-It Ralph, and had a ball. There are some more hilarious ones, but they make him look kinda crazy... so we'll leave those off this Project this time around. 

March 23, 2013. I know, I know, I have another one of these pictures, but the birds! They were all... there. And, I dunno, I just liked the picture. Oh well. 

E went to play basketball with Disney folk on Saturday and came back inspired to play more basketball, which reminded me that I thought I had seen tennis courts at a park near us, which might mean basketball courts, so we went exploring! And then found the sweetest place ever; apparently the Westwood Recreation Center is like a mile away from us. Less than, possibly! They have an indoor pool, and two full length indoor basketball courts, and they offer random classes for Westwood/West LA residents, so I signed up for a Tai Chi class. I'm very excited to start; the first class is on Monday, and I cannot wait! I've wanted to learn Tai Chi for ever and ever, so I'm super pumped. We got a lot accomplished on Saturday ^_^

March 24, 2013. Credits to Back to the Future. Went to see it with some friends from LMU. First time seeing it all the way through and first time on the big screen! Very fun, and Michael Rosenbaum (of Smallville fame) was there! And, supposedly, so was the girl who played Supergirl, but I didn't get to watching that season when it came out, so I cared a little less. Haha. Man... that was a real throwback. Smallville was my true first TV show love. And I just love it when actors are just as nerdy about things as normal people are. Michael Rosenbaum was all giddy and excited about this Delorean that someone had put outside. It was very adorable.

March 25, 2013. Went to LMU! Had a really great time hanging out with people, and while I was talking to a friend, we noticed my 'Lil and her friend hanging out in the amphitheater. So, I snapped the picture. I do love LMU ^_^

March 26, 2013. The view from the inside. I figured I'd capture the view from the inside before I left, though, I guess I still have a week. We were closing, and I was waiting on my manager to come out, so.... picture time! Yeah, I don't really have a rhyme or reason for these a lot of the time. They just ... happen. Haha

March 27, 2013. My Tiffany friend! She goes to UCLA, so we get to see each other now and again. It was her birthday on the 24th, so we went to dinner and had a great time! Happy Birthday girlie!

March 28, 2013. Me and E went and got cultured! We saw Cinderella, the Opera, at the LA Opera downtown yesterday. It was entirely in Italian, which, admittedly, made it pretty hard to understand the actual words, but it was a really good time! The plaza in front of the Opera House was pretty sweet, and this is the view from the plaza towards the south!

March 29, 2013. Happy Good Friday. Went to a service, which was beautiful, but long, but also way what I needed. I don't think I've been to a Good Friday service since probably middle school... I remember going to a lot of Holy Thursday services, but not Good Friday. I guess I had been hoping for a Stations service, but that was not what I got. Hopefully next year. 

I'm kinda sad I'm not going to be able to get out to Easter Vigil; I'm working the closing shift at Loft tomorrow night =/. Shame, too, considering that it's my favorite mass of the year, but that also means I'll be able to go to 8 PM at LMU with E, and see friends and people and such. I'm excited.

Hopefully more basketball tomorrow!

I'm out!

--Tiffany

The Part Where Colorado Passed Civil Unions!!!!

Yayyyyyyyy! Yeah... I get a lot of information about Colorado because my roommate is from there and her family is very political.

Anyways, I guess this post should actually be called:

"The Part Where Colorado Passed Civil Unions... and I Have a Bone to Pick With My Church and My Country"

So, the blog about three C's!

First and foremost, YAY for Colorado. Good for you guys to take the step (yes, I know a multitude of other states have done it first, but this is the one that has happened most recently, and thus is the impetus for this blog). Second: ground facts for the rest of this blog (and, you know, for my life in general haha), I am a cradle-Catholic, and do love my religion with all my heart. That being said, I cannot call myself someone who shows respect and love for all peoples if I didn't support gay marriage, or at least civil unions. Can you see where there might be a disparity between my religious views and my personal views?

The Roman Catholic Church has come out staunchly against gay marriage, and, well, gays in general =/. That being said, I acknowledge that the LGBT community has been shunned from the Church, in various ways, most of them unfair. It hurts me to say this too, considering that churches of every kind should be places of acceptance and love... at least, that's what they taught me at my Catholic parochial school, and at mass every Sunday...But that's (kind of) for another time.

The United States government, so far, (on a federal level) has yet to really make a stand either way. Individual states have allowed marriage between LGBT couples, but even more have specifically banned same sex marriage in their state constitutions. Yes, individual politicians have come out in support of gay marriage, but the Federal Supreme Court has yet to make a decision on California's highly divisive Prop 8, which started way back in 2008, and which could be key in either overturning or reinforcing the same sex marriage bans in other states. DOMA (the Defense of Marriage Act) is similarly up for debate on whether or not it is constitutional, so while it can be said that the federal government is anti-gay marriage, at this point, even that's up for debate.

Anyways, that's just the background for the opinions that are to follow:

First, I am strongly of the opinion that the United States Federal government has a DUTY to legalize gay marriage, or civil unions for same sex couples at the very least -- on the condition that same sex civil unions give the same rights that are offered to opposite sex couples. A DUTY, Tiffany, really? Yes, a DUTY.

Does anyone know where this comes from?: "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness."

That, folks, is from the Declaration of Independence. In other words, the very basis of our Revolution against the British was to have all people in the colonies be considered equals and have the right to life, liberty, and happiness ... and in some cases, happiness means being able to get married! Thus, I believe it to be the federal government's DUTY to enforce what we fought for over 200 years ago.

Furthermore, the First Amendment of the Constitution instates the idea of "separation of church and state", as intended by Thomas Jefferson while he was rallying for signatures that would pass the First Amendment. The fact that so many people are using religion as their main reason to oppose gay marriage or civil unions is actually forcing church and state together. In fact, if we really are based around religious equality, or especially the ability to choose to be free of religion, passing marriage equality would be a way to enforce the separation of church and state that really should be happening in a country that claims religious freedom as one of its ideals.

Essentially, the federal government has a duty to work towards equality for ALL its citizens. And the church has NEEDS to stay out of a government that isn't connect to it in any way other than having a population of believers inside its borders.

On the flip side, the government also needs to stay out of the business of the Church, as does the backlash that the Church goes through every time it decides to be anti-gay marriage. The separation of church and state goes both ways.

While it is the duty of the federal government to legalize gay marriage, the Church does NOT have the duty to support it. As a private organization, the Church is like an individual; she is allowed to have opinions and act upon them as she sees fit. While I don't necessarily agree with the Church's standing on gay marriage, I have to respect the fact that this is their stance. Everyone should respect their choice; deciding to abuse the Church for its stance is impeding on the right to free speech that the United States allows.

I don't know; this is just my personal opinion: I get that one's religion is deeply ingrained in oneself. It's impossible to truly separate the two and try to step outside oneself to look at this issue with a unbiased eye, but I really believe that if an unbiased eye looked at the situation we have put ourselves in, we would notice the lack of equality and respect that the LGBT community gets from a lot of Americans.

Coming out is really hard for some people, especially in a country that touts freedom and equality as an ideal, but then allows its laws and citizens to overrule and intimidate away their freedoms. What I figure is: it all comes down to LOVE. If a man and a woman love each other enough, they can get married, have kids, pay their taxes together, and are given certain rights because they are family. I don't see why a man and a man, or a woman and a woman who love each other enough can't get those rights as well. Same sex marriage or civil unions aren't about proving anything or "stickin' it to the man" or whatever; they're about showing true, undying love to one another, just as opposite sex marriage is.

And you know what? If LOVE is what they got, then that's all I need.

--Tiffany

The Part Where I'm (More Than) A Little Behind On My Photo Updating

Yeah... I'm still obsessed. It's a little problematic, but whatever. I'm gonna figure my way out there again soon. Anyways, it's been a solid 20 days since I photo dumped on y'all, so here goes. Believe it or not, I actually HAVE been keeping up my project 365. So next time will be all reminisce-y, but this time is work, work, work!

March 1, 2013. Actually, my initial desire was to put up a picture of the constellation Orion from my window on the airplane, but then I realized it was pretty much the same as the one for February 28, so I decided on this; my first view of Manhattan, from Ray's rooftop in Astoria. He wasn't kidding; it's a million-dollar view. It was hella nippy up there! I remember being very excited; this was my first view of NYC! There was so much potential, so much to do in the week! Turns out I could never have been prepared for how epic that week was ^_^

March 2, 2013. Because I'm a miserable failure, I brought the wrong camera charger with me. Thus, I had to use disposables for the first few days. This is my first time in the subway. The man-shaped silhouette is Mr. Raymond. There was supposed to be another subway shot... but I think the silly disposable camera people like stole two of my photos from the camera... =/ I very distinctly remember taking a picture of a Chinese violin player when we got off the subway, but the picture wasn't in my stack. So sad. The lighting down there is terrible, but I was still really pumped to see if that one came out at all.

March 3, 2013. Some secrets, I will have to take with me to my grave. Well, that's not entirely true. But this is Times Square in the dead of night. Really trippy experience, with all the lights on, but no one around. Trippy, but really beautiful, and strangely tranquil, especially for Times Square. I think it says a lot that so much of this picture came out when all I had was a disposable camera set to ISO 400. It was seriously lit up like daylight!

March 4, 2013. It's seriously difficult to try to get everything in a photo lined up while you're on a boat,  rocking back and forth O_O. Anyways, I went on a tour of the New York Harbor that day. I wanted to go out to Ellis Island and the Statue of Liberty, but both of those islands are still closed due to damage from Hurricane Sandy. Such a shame too, I probably could have easily spent all day there just running around the islands, what with all the history, so... I guess I'll just have to go back when it reopens!

March 5, 2013. Lunch date with an old friend! He works in Manhattan now, just down the street from Grand Central Terminal (BEST place to people watch, by the way). It was really great to see him and catch up on all the craziness that's been going on since we saw each other last!

March 6, 2013. Took a train to Princeton to visit my little (super smart and awesome) cousin. We hung out; I read a book while she was in class, went to Princeton's on-campus art museum (saw some REALLY awesome pieces that I love, love, love, and have actually heard of!), and then had dinner before I jetted off back to New York. 

March 7, 2013. Like I said, Grand Central Terminal is the best place to go people watching. This isn't from rush hour, but rush hour was one of the coolest times ever. It was kind of funny to listen for trains coming in and then see a big group of people hurrying off in random directions. I always like to wonder about the people who are running; where are they going? are they late for something? It's always an intriguing story to think about in my head. Hahaha. I kind of wish I had been able to go there with better light. It was cloudy/dark all the times I was there. Worth it, but still a little sad without good light. 

I saw this poem on the subway while I was there, and I absolutely fell in love with it.

It's by a man named Billy Collins, b. 1941:

Grand Central

The city orbits around eight million

centers of the universe

and turns around the golden clock

at the still point of this place.

Lift up your eyes from the moving hive

and you will see time circling

under a fault of stars and know

just when and where you are.

Beautiful! Just beautiful ^_^ It makes me really, really happy, somehow, and I'm not sure why...

March 8, 2013. My last night in the Big Apple, so how else to top off a great week, than with a visit to the Empire State Building. It was fun, playing with all my camera functions, and this came out of one of the random functions I have, so yay! It's so pretty, it doesn't even look real. Sometimes, I think back and kind of wonder if it was all real... But it was wonderful! so I'm glad it was. I don't think I'm creative enough to come up with an adventure as epic as the one I had in New York was ^_^

March 9, 2013. On the road up to Boston. I think this was in Connecticut, but it very well could have been in Rhode Island. They didn't exactly tell us when we crossed over. It was cool to see the sunset though. Very pretty country up there!

March 10, 2013. the New England Holocaust Memorial, from the inside of one of the columns. From far away, it looks like the columns are made of see-through glass, but when you get close enough, you can see the numbers from the concentration camps etched into the glass. There were six pillars, reach representing a camp, and it was a really simple, beautiful, and thought-provoking memorial.

This is what happens when we forget that we are all humans on this Earth together. May we never forget that again, and may we actively fight those who have hate and cruelty in their hearts.

March 11, 2013. Running around Boston with another one of my cousins; we had a pit stop at Fenway Park, because... well, BOSTON! I guess it's pretty sweet, and I figure I'm glad I stopped there 'cause... well, it's Boston, so how do you not go to Fenway??

March 12, 2013. Logan International Airport. They have rocking chairs?! hahaha Almost the most brilliant thing ever. I love it! So I took a picture ^_^

March 13, 2013. The detritus of a pretty great trip. So sad to have to take it all out of my bag and unpack. It was quite a journey. Can't wait to get back there and have more adventures!

March 14, 2013. The one pet that I have with me in LA! A birthday present from my mother, actually, from last year. I really, REALLY need a job with a desk I can put him on. He seems kind of sad, and we just use him as a TV remote holder. I think he wants a new job as much as I do!

March 15, 2013. Yeah, I'm a creeper, I know. It was getting all foggy though, so you can't see anyone; but that's my Kairos sister and her boyfriend, and they're being adorable together, so I couldn't resist. ^_^

March 16, 2013. E says she weirdly likes this one. Hey! Me too, that's why it's the photo of the day. Hahahah I love my roommate. She's the coolest =P

March 17, 2013. Happy St. Patrick's Day! What did we do????? We watched the LA Marathoners run through our backyard! Well... kind of. If we had a backyard, they'd have run through it. It's actually the VA Hospital. So we sat on our bums all morning, cackling and cheering them on, and then went out for a little St. Patty's Day frivolity! It was pretty wonderful. 

March 18, 2013. Haha, let's be real, I totally forgot about taking a picture that day, and kinda made E be in this one. But she's over exposed, so it looks artsy and cool.

.... yeah... just go with it. Please? Pretty please....????

March 19, 2013. My big came out to Westwood and had lunch with me! And we caught up on life and exciting things happening in our lives. She's making a documentary for a class about people who are multiracial in LA and the issues they have to deal with on a daily basis. She's so cool!! =P

March 20, 2013. Happy First Day of Spring! Now it's officially time to break out the annoyingly bright colors in pastels and neons and pinks and and whites and yellows and stuff like that. I feel a little sad that I've never noticed this before, but there are cute butterfly sculptures hanging from some of the overhangs at the Century City Mall! Well, I haven't been over to that side of the mall a lot, but I'm still sad I haven't noticed them before. I'm glad I got this though!

That's it for me. I gotta get to bed. Gotta get up kind of early tomorrow for a maybe job thing? I don't know. I'll have more to say when whatever I'm going to tomorrow is done. But fingers crossed for the best! Maybe I can finally say goodbye to retail....

Hey. A girl can hope, eh?

--Tiffany

The Part Where I've Shipped Up To Boston/ The Part Where I'm Leaving Ona Jet Plane

March 9, 2013. 11:58 PM Eastern Standard Time

So I left New York today, at 2 PM, from Penn Station. Last night was most definitely a night for the ages! What send off from New York!! I can officially say that I am obsessed with that city. It's like in "Definitely, Maybe": it's the energy, the people; you're gonna love it here! ... Of course, at that point, Ryan Reynolds's character's girlfriend astutely notes that he's probably never going back to their small town; that New York has irrevocably changed him and she doesn't know how to feel about it.

That is kind of how I feel. I don't know how to explain it, but something about New York was a turning point. I'm not sure what, right now, but coming to Boston, slowing down after seven straight days of epic... I can feel something different about myself. I guess what they say about travel and change is true. You'll go back to what things used to be, only to see the ways you've changed yourself. Hopefully I like the change that's happened in this past week. I won't really know until I get back home to Los Angeles.

Anyways, many thanks to Mr. Raymond and the members of the Covenant House community for letting me stay and witness a little bit of what they do day to day. And many thanks to all my friends that I met/met up with in New York. You all made it an unforgettable experience; I can't wait to go back and visit again.

But here I am in Boston now, even though I know this post isn't going to see the interwebs for a little while. Met up with my Kairos sister, Jenn, who is doing City Year in this lovely city. So far it's a pretty cool city (literally and figuratively) and I can't wait for tomorrow and Monday!

--Tiffany

March 12, 2013. 9:47 AM Eastern Standard Time

Well, it's just about that time. =/ I leave for the West Coast in less than two hours; I should get into LAX at about 7:20 tonight, after a layover in Tennessee. Goodness knows that this trip has probably the most eventful one I've ever been on, and I will ALWAYS love the East Coast to bits and pieces.

I'm currently sitting in Logan International Airport's Southwest Gate, waiting for my flight. There's definitely a slight sense of melancholy; these past twelve days have been quite the unexpected experience. I can't help but think about how strange timing can be in this age, how this age of information and travel has encouraged the possibility of meeting people, connecting with people that, in another time, you would never, ever have any likelihood of getting to know.

I remember absent-mindedly mentioning to E last year while we were driving somewhere: "My life is a hilarious series of almosts."

That's what this vacation has felt like, a series of almosts, a series of things that almost happened, that did, but didn't happen, and have irrevocably forced a ripple in my future. Who would have thought that a relaxing get-away could be so helpful in being decisive for the future?! I am happy though. I feel like I see things more clearly; where I am right now isn't so much of a rut as it is the wilderness between the separate paths in the road. I just need to choose which path I want to take and put myself on course to get out of the brush.

Gah. Enough with the philosophical-ness. It's crazy to think what I've accomplished in less than two weeks! Look, the basic breakdown is this:

Fri., March 1: Flew to NYC, night out in Astoria
Sat., March 2: Times Square (in the day time, and in the middle of the night), High Line Park, Battery Park, learning the subway
Sun., March 3: St. Patrick's Cathedral, Central Park (and a Harlem Shake), the Met, the Strand Bookstore
Mon., March 4: NY Harbor Tour, including going past the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island and under the Brooklyn Bridge, seeing the Bowling Green Bull Netflix movie night (with a new addiction to pistachios)
Tues., March 5: Grand Central Station O_O, lunch with Andrew from SJC, attempt at rush tickets to Wicked, Times Square again, real NYC seafood, and Wreck-It Ralph movie night pt. 1
Wed., March 6: epic journey out to Princeton, seeing my cousin, and really entertaining conversation with Ray's housemates
Thurs. March 7: walking the Brooklyn Bridge, Indian food for lunch (yum!), seeing the Washington Square arch, people watching in Grand Central, attempt #1 at going up the Empire State Building, and movie night (Jack the Giant Slayer)
Fri. March 8: lunch with Andrew from SF, checking out Ray's work at Covenant House, attempt #2 at going up the Empire State Building (successful), epic night out in Astoria w/ my SeaGoat Buddy
Sat. March 9: train up through Connecticut and Rhode Island to get to Boston, wandering around Copley Square and having a really mature snowball fight at 9 PM, Wreck-It Ralph movie night pt. 2
Sun. March 10: going up to the North End and the Boston Commons and a bunch of tombstones of Revolutionary Era people, seeing New England's really impressive Holocaust Memorial, hanging out with good friends, going to an Evangelical Covenant service, and eating at Legal Sea Food and Mike's Pastries
Mon. March 11: wandering to the Boston Museum of Science, going to the Gardner Museum with one of my cousins, seeing Fenway Park, and having dinner and Georgetown cupcakes with my cousin, and Wreck-It Ralph movie night pt. 3

I've accomplished a lot! And I'm really going to miss this place, and all the crazy hustle-bustle of the big cities (NY more than Boston), and the hilarious spread out college-townsieness (Boston more than NY). This place... is definitely something magical.

I can't wait to come back ^_^

--Tiffany

The Part Where I'm Learning to Jaywalk With Impunity

New York, New York! What can I say?? It's a pretty amazing, but I figured I should probably post something while I'm actually in the Big Apple.

Saturday continued into a night for the history books. That is all until I can get my pictures figured out...

Sunday was wonderful! I went to mass at the beautiful St. Patrick's Cathedral in Manhattan, and met up with my beautiful Tahoe SeaGoat Buddy! We walked all the way up through Central Park, got caught up in a Harlem Shake (check it out on Youtube "Central Park Harlem Shake"; we're halfway up and on the right edge), visited the Metropolitan Museum and saw some pretty beautiful Impressionist art, and the Matisse gallery there.

After we lost SeaGoat Buddy on the subway (semi-on purpose, in that we actually were separating, but not on purpose because we accidentally just got separated on the really super crowded subway), Ray and I went to The Strand, which is this really epic bookstore in Manhattan. It was very ... epic. haha

Monday was pretty low key. I went on the Statue of Liberty/Ellis Island cruise. Unfortunately, we couldn't disembark because of damage from Hurricane Sandy, but it was cool getting ferried around the islands and up under the Brooklyn Bridge and into New York Harbor. Ray met me and we walked around Wall Street and he told me about being at the One Year Anniversary of Occupy Wall Street. We took the subway up to Grand Central Station and the New York Public Library.

Man! Grand Central was AMAZING! It sounds funny, but everything in New York seems a lot smaller than pictures make it out to be (funny, i know; I think all the photographers must use either wide lenses or fisheye lenses, because EVERYTHING is way smaller than I thought it would be). On the other hand, Grand Central was BIGGER than I thought it would be. And it was beautiful. It definitely lived up to its name.

The New York Public Library... wow. Another beautiful, BEAUTIFUL spot in NYC. Gorgeous use of natural light and open spaces. And the ceilings! Wow! So, so much detailing, it was almost painful to look at. But we just sat on the benches for a little while and admired all the art work above us. It was definitely awe-insiring.

From there, we had yummy, spicy ramen and then called it a night, especially as my phone decided (unfortunately) to crap out. Oh! we watched Atlantis: the Lost Empire that night too. Very cool movie. Kind of surprised I hadn't seen it before, but I'm very glad to have seen it now.

So Tuesday, had to go try to fix my phone, and ended up just getting a new one, considering my phone's age and propensity to glitch out when it really shouldn't and die super quickly. So, new phone! Thankfully, I don't have to make a silly number group on facebook or something heehee.

After that, got lunch with one of my friends from elementary school. It was really nice to see him! I can't believe how much has changed and how much fun we had catching up. It was good to see him ^_^ After that, met up with Ray at Midtown Comics, rode back to Astoria to pick up my now-fully charged phone, and headed back to Manhattan in the hopes of getting rush tickets to Wicked (didn't happen :/). That was pretty entertaining, though. There were two guys there, both foreign, who had the same name, which was pulled to win the raffle. It was a pretty funny moment to watch them both jump up in excitement, and then realize they shared the name. I dunno. Maybe you had to be there.

After that, had a nice little night on the town... =) and got home in time to watch Wreck-It Ralph with Ray and curl into bed just after midnight.

Today, I went to Princeton to visit my cousin. GAWD that was a hilarious, mistake filled trip, but I made it there, saw her and the University and had a really great time! And, this also technically means I can cross New Jersey off my list of states to go to.

Got back in time to find Ray and one of his housemates chatting about marijuana and legalization, which was pretty entertaining. And now they're chatting about what they would do in the event that they accidentally killed someone. Yeah ... I came all the way to New York to listen to in-depth conversations about how to cover up murder. Oh dear Lord.

All in all, New York is GREAT. Teaching me new things, keeping me on my toes. I've really enjoyed getting to know this city. It's slowly but surely opening up to me; I will be sad to leave it, but I don't think I'd actually be able to survive actually living here. But, who knows where the next couple years will take me. I may be eating my words very soon if applying to grad schools actually becomes a thing.

Anyways, it's just past midnight now, so I'm going to head to bed. Good night world; Happy 9oclock, West Coast!

--Tiffany

The Part Where This Is a Three-Parted Update!

The Part Where ... Traveling!!

03/02/2013: Even though I don't have wifi, I'm going to try live blogging this epic cross country trip. Will post tonight, when I get in to NYC

3:54 PM, Central Standard Time. I landed in St. Louis, MO about an hour ago. The flight here was extremely uneventful; I did my best to sleep all the way here, 'cause E and I didn't get much sleep last night (me from excitement, her from adrenaline from an awesome Disney thing she got to do yesterday). I'm running around the airport looking for the little keytags I like to collect, but I'm sorry to say that I have struck out. Looks like I'll have to come back for realsies to get one and run around Missouri. The airport here really reminds me of San Jose's... at least this terminal. I don't really have the time to go explore; my flight to New York leaves in an hour, so I'll be boarding pretty soon. It's pretty cool here, though. Literally. There's snow outside the window, though, admittedly, not as much as I thought there would be. But all the signs for the stairs have "stairs/refuge" on them. Which threw me for a loop at first. I mean, why would there need to be a refuge in an airport?? My mind initially snapped to earthquakes. But you don't really want to be in a stairwell during an earthquake.... But then I remembered, I'm in tornado country! It's a bit of a trip to think about; I've only ever been near one tornado ever.

Yeah, that was much more stream of consciousness than I meant it to be. I've been awake for too long, or something! I guess it's just pretty cool to live in a country with such vastly different weather systems and potential natural disasters. Haha that sounds morbid.

Anyways, there's not much more to report, other than there's an adorable almost 2-year-old running around our gate who's going to be on my flight to New York with his family. God, little kids are freakin adorable! ^_^

All right, I'm out. I'll write a little more on the plane later.

The Part Where I'm Blogging from 10,000 Feet

5:28 PM, Central Standard Time. Well, I think it is at least. We just took off from St. Louis and hit 10,000 feet, so I assume we're still the time zone I think we're in. Of course, we might not be when I actually finish writing this, but lets hope it doesn't take that long.

We had to de-ice the plane wings before we took off... I've never had that happen! Haha crazy crazy!

The pilot made a quip about the weather being a "warm" 42 degrees in New York just before we took off. I'm excited! I'll forever be a California girl, but I was born to live in the MOUNTAINS of California. Or something. Somewhere where its cold and snowy! I'm just pumped to get my first real-life glimpse of New York City in about an hour and a half. I'm super excited to be able to get to do this. I can't believe I was in California this morning!

We're flying above cloud level right now, and, as always, it's beautiful.

--Tiffany
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The Part Where It's 3AM, And I Really Should Have Been Asleep 3 Hours Ago

03/02/2013: I got into New York safely! Caught a taxi from LaGuardia to Ray's place, and it wasn't crazy expensive or crazy scary or anything. This part of New York kinda feels like San Francisco, honestly. But somehow, not at the same time. Obviously, because I'm on the other side of the country! Or something.

Excuse the excessive stream of consciousness; I may or may not have just barely finished my beer less than 20 minutes ago. THAT'S a story. We'll get there. In time.

Anyways. I am currently situated quite comfortably at Ray's community home (a really cool, maybe a little creepy (but only because I watch American Horror Story) convent in Astoria), which has generously allowed me to stay in one of the downstairs bedrooms, typing away in the dark because I am super exhausted from the excitement of the night and of traveling all day.

I got in around 9 PM Eastern Standard Time. Ray and I got Falafel Sandwiches from the food cart down the street, which were DELICIOUS. It's not crazy cold here, but most definitely nippy. I'm really glad I brought my peacoat, 'cause that thing's gonna come in handy. I told Ray I thought we should "go out" just to... see what's around, and do something that would let me burn off the excess adrenaline I've had going the last couple days because I've been so excited to get out here..

So, after dinner, we decided to hit up a nearby bar to chill, and let me kind of get a feel for the hang-out scene in New York. The place is called "The Quays", and it's this Irish pub, and has a pretty mellow vibe. Tonight, there were a good number of people in and out all night long. Initially, it was just me and Ray, but he told his housemates that we were there, and then three of his house mates showed up, and it was cool!

But all while me and Ray are chit-chatting and passing time while his housemates are getting off of work, I'm kinda checking out this guy who's been sitting at the bar (who's been maybe checking me out? I can't tell -- turns out he was; I wasn't imagining it, thank God!), and being kinda quiet.... So Ray and friends push me into going over to say hi to him. And I figure: What the heck, I'm only in New York for a week, what's the worst that can happen? I make a fool of myself, and I never see him again. So, I bend to peer pressure (hm. that's a first. lol) and go over and introduce myself.

That was at 12:30 AM. I know this posting doesn't actually say the time I'm writing it at, but I'm writing this at 3:30 in the morning.

WUT.

I don't even know what happened. We just started talking, and talking, and talking. I don't think I've ever reveled in the awkwardness as much as I have tonight, but, truth be told, it was FUN. He's a Financial Investigator on Wall Street, from Iowa, who went to school in Vermont, and is as much of a nerd as an animation major is.... I don't even... oh man. I am going to be regretting staying up this late tomorrow morning. There're just no words!

Really: it's 3AM, and I REALLY should have been asleep 3 hours ago. Jet lag is going to END. MY. LIFE.

Good night, world. There has been far too much excitement for one day/night for me to process!

--Tiffany
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The Part Where It's 10 PM, and For Some Reason It Feels Like 1 AM

03/02/2013: Ray and I took New York by storm today! We went all over Lower Manhattan and kinda throughout Astoria a little. It's kind of a beautiful city! I can't get enough of the light here... It's so different from the West Coast. We saw the Statue of Liberty from Battery Park and stood like a block away from the foot of the Freedom Tower and took the subway all over the place.

I'm excited to go out again tomorrow! I'm seeing my goat buddy from Tahoe and going to Saint Patrick's Church, which is supposed to be one of the most epic churches, well, anywhere. It's always a church outing with me! haha

I feel like I've got reverse jet lag 'cause I'm super tired from traveling, but it should feel like 7:30 to me right now, but it most definitely doesn't. How'd that happen!?

All right. Off to do... well, I'm not really sure what right now, but the night is young, so let's get this party started!

--Tiffany