this is new york

New York City is iconic. It is an epicenter for art, culture, fashion, business. It is historic, monumental, invigorating, exciting. It is constant and yet it continuously evolves. New York is where it all happens.

But to really understand New York, to really love and appreciate it for what it is, you have to look beyond the skyline. Past the iconic buildings that have become a symbol of strength and the blinding lights of Times Square. Because what really makes this City timeless are the elements ingrained in day-to-day life. These are the things that will remain unmistakably New York.

The City itself has become an unprecedented main character in the story of my life. Here's a little glimpse into my New York. . .

sweltering subway stations in the summertime. . . .the way the snow quiets the city that never sleeps. . . .out of control bike messengers. . . .the obsession with "summer share houses," that I still don't fully comprehend. . . .hearing 4 different languages on one subway ride. . . .bars that don't kick you out until 4am. . . .never having to worry about who's going to drive. . . .lazy summertime days in Central Park. . . .despising the walk from 42nd to 47th anywhere near 7th Ave and Broadway. . . .but secretly still loving the lights and energy of Times Square

the Today Show. . . .take-out delivered to your door at any hour. . . .apartment envy. . . .the Upper East Side. . . .no one really knowing what is it about Brooklyn that makes it hipster trendy. . . .crosstown buses. . . .guidos. . . .subway station performers. . . .the Yankees. . . .learning to live in 900 sq ft, with 3 people, 1 small bathroom and a cat. . . .seriously, what is the obsession with bagels?

the way people from the South seem to ban together. . . .noisy radiators. . . .standing in the Shake Shack line for an hour for the best burger and shake in the city. . . .the walk across the Brooklyn Bridge. . . .Broadway musicals. . . .ice skating under the trees at Bryant Park. . . .the view from the top of the Empire State building. . . .always getting lost at Port Authority. . . .the familiar line of customers that snakes around the corner for Magnolia Bakery cupcakes

the Big Apple BBQ in Madison Square Park every summer. . . .but why can't they figure out Mexican food here, it's a mystery. . . .Sunday afternoon happy hour at Cilantro where the margaritas will knock you out. . . .the hour train ride to Robert Moses Beach in Babylon. . . .Memorial Day weekends in Montauk. . . .the phenomenon that is Street Meat. . . .the Christmas Tree at Rockefeller Center. . . .never being able to find a cab when you actually need one

sideways rain = countless broken umbrellas. . . .the Chinatown motto, "Gucci? Prada? Louis? Chanel?". . . .window AC units that are actually supposed to cool a room?. . . .the colors on the tree leaves in the fall. . . .Sunday brunch. . . .being woken up by garbage trucks, jackhammers and/or screaming fights on any night of the week. . . .dive bars in the East Village. . . .furniture discarded on the sidewalks. . . .department store Christmas lights. . . .trying to determine if the cab driver is speaking to you, or mumbling into his phone

corner cash-only bodegas. . . .Houston Street (not pronounced like Houston, Texas). . . .street fairs. . . .railroad style apartments. . . .sidewalk cafes. . . .unpleasant apartment brokers. . . .rush hour on the subway. . . .Starbucks literally on every corner. . . .used book stores. . . .the city lights rushing by on a late night cab ride home. . . .people swearing every year that this year really is their last year in the city

the West Village, why can't I live there?. . . .super-swank media parties. . . .celebrity sightings. . . .feeling a strange tie to the cast of Gossip Girl because we've seen them filming, surely we are a part of their world. . . .the necessity of puffy coats. . . .country music concerts bringing southerners together. . . .Longhorn Football games at Stout. . . .St. Paddy's Day festivities. . . .getting run into at least 5 times a day. . . .unwritten rules of public transportation - personal space, cell phone usage, let people off before getting on. . . .spontaneous trips to Atlantic City

the coffee cart guy who knows my daily order. . . .the shopping cart conveyor racks at Bed, Bath & Beyond and Target. . . .black & white cookies. . . .the South Street Seaport. . . .TKTS Broadway discount ticket booth. . . .window shopping in Soho. . . .Serendipity 3. . . .stripping off winter layers the higher you climb to your 4th floor walk-up apartment. . . .the charm of the laundry mat where you can always count on more broken machines than ones that work

finding peace in the quiet of central park. . . .crying on the front stoop of your apartment. . . .the inexplicable "only in New York" mantra. . . .the view of the city from the window of an airplane. . . .the exhilarating belief that this is what it's like to live at the center of the world.