Good afternoon, Friday. So here it is, the end of Summer and for the first time in forever, I'll be sad to see it go.
As I've told you no less than a million times, I'm not one for extreme heat. But this summer in New York was nothing short of a revelation- beautiful, temperate days in the 80s and gorgeous mornings and nights. From my time in Miami to the brutal East Coast summers of late, I had come to dread the warmer months, even though I have always been a fan of being barefoot, being by the ocean, and of course, extra daylight. This summer sealed the deal for me- I may officially become a Summer girl again- this one reminded me of so many Summers growing up, my birthday in July always being the pinnacle of happy memories.
And because this Summer was so beautiful, I didn't get mad at New York as much as I usually do when it's hot outside. Yes the subway platform is still hot and the garbage still smells, just not quite as much. And on those weekend when almost everyone in town goes somewhere beachy, I reveled in staying around, exploring my Brooklyn neighborhood, eating ice cream, and taking long walks with David and Khan. I also worked a lot, too. A whole lot. (Thanks, freelance gods. A wonderful gift indeed).
I enjoyed producing work which took me to airplane hangars in Atlanta to pyramids outside of Mexico City. I was lucky to be part of a great launch for a huge brand and get to know some new very talented people in the photography world. It was by no means an easy Summer workwise, but it only made those heavenly weekends that much sweeter, and I love traveling so work that takes me somewhere is work that makes me feel very lucky. I went from one super cool gig to another, and I'm looking forward to what's next, with some fun stuff in the works and hopefully some more writing projects as well. But I'm hoping we can keep the Summer vibes happening for a bit longer, because I just love it to pieces.
I perfected my red hair color this Summer, got to go to Rehoboth Beach (one of my favorite beach towns of all), ate lots of crabs, lobster, and enjoyed the offerings of my local farmers market, and what I loved even more was the Sunday am trek to said market with David and Khan in tow- I enjoy mornings in New York more than I can explain- when the city is waking up there's a feeling of great promise and hope, scented with strong coffee and bagels. I enjoy the puppy parade that comes down Court Street on the weekend mornings, as does Khan, though admittedly he prefers the bagels to the dogs. I loved seeing the Jeff Koons show, eating very expensive and delicious omakase in a basement on Greenwich, and rediscovering my love for the gin gimlet. (Don't even get me started on the rose. At this point, it's like drinking water). I became a lifelong customer of Warby Parker as I decided not to get Lasik and just buy glasses. Lots of them. That place is beyond from customer service to the best frames to the very best prices. So good. I spent my birthday in an airport hangar and was happy not to make a big deal over this one. I ate an insane torta in Mexico City in a hot van in a rainstorm that had more meat on it than anything I have ever eaten in my life. I embraced sleeping in and enjoyed Khan's new habit of sneaking into our bed in the middle of the night, all cuddle sauced and horizontal. I did not douse myself in a bucket of ice, and was relieved I was not challenged to do so. I painted my toes in light colors and painted my nails bright red. I tried to convince myself that we'd have many parties of the outdoor variety this Summer, but alas, we opted for more dinners out than in. I stayed pale but did not mind. I watched with delight as my neighbors in Cobble Hill ate dinner in the park, complete with candles and a tablecloth and bottles of wine. I attempted to read a few books, and failed. I felt like a kid watching giant planes take off from an airport perimeter road in Detroit. I often left the house without makeup, and in Birkenstocks and track pants. I embraced a more relax vibe in general, because work was stressful and the news was stressful and I just needed to just chill. And in true form, the city gave me just what I needed and chilled right back. I swear I felt sea air all Summer here in the BK. It was heavenly, in the Summer, in the city.
And Khan got to go on some lovely adventures too, thanks to a friend of ours who watched him a few days a week and exposed him to the joys of Prospect Park. And speaking of friends, I saw many this Summer and stayed true to my goal of being more social and enjoying the company of some people I really adore, and even made a few new pals. You all know who you are. Thank you for lovely dinners, bottles of chilled red, and lots of laughs. With such gorgeous weather, it's hard to not want to be out and about and appreciate this gorgeous city. And it's not without a bit of the bittersweet since unfortunately, this was a rather tumultuous Summer for so many as mentioned above- I followed all of the events from my friend's very profound Facebook posts from Israel to the nonstop crushing parade of bad news from Douglas and Syria and well, just about everywhere. We lost Robin Williams and watched in horror the tragedy in the Ukraine. It was hard to come to terms with all of it, and like many of you, I was grateful to be able to just walk in the sunshine and feel the warmth on my face and shake off the news feeds that dominated our lives. In many ways, having a beautiful Summer saved us from completely losing it altogether, and I was happy to see that despite all of the bad news, there was plenty of good- many of my friends had lovely summers, and if you were lucky enough to be at the beach, every weekend was a sacred one- picture perfect weather and not terribly sweltering.
I suppose I wanted to share all of this because I had the day off today and took to wandering around on yet another gorgeous afternoon, feeling so grateful for dog walks and the low hum of people enjoying a vacation day and iced coffee. I probably bitched a lot this Summer because I had very little time off, but for the first time in years, I'll hang on to these lovely light filled days as long as I can. Because even though the news was often too much to bear, the glisten of sunshine and the just right temperatures gave me some hope. And with Fall being my absolute favorite time of year, I'm feeling pretty revved for what's to come- but please don't take my Summer away just yet...it's been so darn lovely, and kind of just right.
And that's what's up this fabulous Labor Day weekend celebrating with friends, family, pets, and hopefully, some more lovely weather. Yours, in rediscovered Summer lovin'. I'll miss you when you're gone. Good one, mother nature. Good one. XO