regenerate

(Note from the present: I’ve decided to jump back & forth on these travel journals instead of posting them chronologically like I originally intended. I figure it really doesn’t matter to the reader and it was really just me being so anal about chronology which as a result made me feel less inspired to post these travel journals lately. Okay, so now back to July when my life was more interesting and I was in a city & country that I absolutely loved & found totally inspiring.)

11:06 pm: The Pixies’ ‘No. 13 Baby’ isn’t the best song to wake up to. I got up an hour late this morning and I made the noon bus back to NYC by the skin of my teeth. Well, actually perhaps I exaggerate – I was there at 1145. But I was terrified that I would miss the bus. It seems really important that I do something so as not to lose myself here in NYC. There are too many distractions – they’re wonderful distractions, no doubt, and very welcome after a lifetime of not-really-living in Singapore.

I did a lot today:

1. Left PA for NYC. 3.25 hour long coach ride. Fell asleep for an hour but passed through Newark, NJ which was cool.

2. Moved into my new room in Brooklyn. I like the new neighbourhood already and you can see the Manhattan skyline from the subway station which is fantastic.

3. Grabbed a very quick pizza dinner with Keith & then headed to Molly Crabapple’s book launch party which was pretty interesting – the gorgeous Amber Ray, burlesque performances & the Two Man Gentlemen Band. I saw Gala Darling there again. And again I was way too shy to say hi. It’s so weird because this is the 2nd time I’ve bumped into her in NYC.

Anyway, it was really interesting being at that event. I told Keith it was as if the internet had become real for me. These are the kind of events I’d been reading about online (not to mention I’ve followed people like Gala + Molly online for years) when I was in Singapore and feeling stabs of envy & finally I’m here actually experiencing all this firsthand. (note: Dr Sketchy’s & this event were both so truly awesome that they really deserve their own post, and so I’ll write more about that in the future!)

After that Keith & I walked all the way across Williamsburg Bridge as the sun went down. The J & M trains kept passing us by, along with several cyclists & joggers. Eventually I caught the M home from Marcy Ave.

Transience is a difficult thing to deal with. It’s not circumstances that cause suffering, it’s attachment. I wish I could let life pass through me, experience and remain unattached. Why do I put myself down such a difficult path? I will stop thinking about the future & past so much. I will experience present moment awareness. Life pushes me towards this end. Sometimes gently, sometimes less so.