Natural High

"This is the day the LORD has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it." Psalm 118:24

Between the crotch to shoulder marijuana smoke filled pulsating club until 4 AM to a Colombian coffee and Advil kickstart for an exhilarating energy enhanced walk through Prospect Park into the cherry blossom frenzy of Brooklyn's Botanical Gardens, I would venture to say I am having some authentic New York moments. 

Spending time with people that live in the present is the most uplifting feeling that literally shaves years off of my forlorn forehead and relinquishes angst about tomorrow.

This marvelous Life is meant to be lived! Not just endured.

Met my dancing partner from Prague at midnight on a street corner and made the short strut to an underground lair called Southland, apropos.  After a size up from the Lacoste elbow patch clad doorman and the velvet robe unhinge..we made our descent into debauchery. Head to Head in exclusivity and kicked out of a leather booth made for a paying party. Little did they know, we had our own "table service" rocking...a flask of vodka, chest pumping beats and a new hazy memory with an old friend in a great city.

Fast forward..face plant pillow. 9AM..Is that really my cell phone?

Cold face wash, stumble stumble,chocolate croissant and 20 minutes later I'm train bound with G across the Brooklyn Bridge and Manhattan in the rear view.

Glory and Praise to my Lord for the day that lay ahead.

Weeping cherry's, Emperor Tulips, banging budding magnolias, bonsai ridden coy ponds, sweet jasmine fragrance and a people gazing view of humanity extravaganza! 

Lounging on our backs barefoot in thick fescue. I relaxed....

Climbing Park Slope hills, people were out by the droves potting Hyacinth's and clipping forsythia. We made our way through street musicians  and stoop sales to the Brooklyn Farmers Market for fresh apple cider and a game changing play at the plate with 5 year old little Leaguers. 

OH and the skin.... The bold unveiling of flesh that has been cooped away and under wraps for months showed its radiant glory baring proof that ALL species mate in the spring.

Two IPA's , a sun kissed forehead, welfare, April Showers, Somalian Pirates, Internet porn, and witch hunts thoroughly discussed (at low volume) three new friends parted ways on a glorious God filed day that can never be duplicated.  My Joy. My Delight.

Brooklyn is chill yo.

As long as the invitations come, I'll continue to say yes.

"It's never too late to be what you might have been." George Elliot

What's stopping you?

Street Savvy

"You saw me before I was born. Every day of my life was recorded in Your book. Every moment was laid out before a single day had passed” Psalm 139:16

New York City is the largest media market in North America.  Globally known and influential it is the mecca for major television networks, important newspapers, publishing houses, feature films, the biggest advertising firms and music and recording companies. It is the HUB for major conglomerates such as VIACOM and Time Warner. Names like New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Radio City, Broadway, Fox News, NBC Universal, Saturday Night Live, Howard Stern, Simon and Schuster, HBO, Paramount, to name a few all make their home in Manhattan. 

This city serves as the backdrop to the most media production worldwide....that's a wealth of employed.

This morale boosting Friday AM, after four hours of fitful sleep and a stellar dinner party, I clamored from the bed to the shower to the express subway for an audition in Times Square. Since spending up close and personal time with strangers on set, I have met it my mission to pick brains and squeeze info...this contact came from a well practiced Thespian on the set of Law and Order.

Overlooking 43rd and Broadway,in front of a rather young actor's agent, I gave a weeping and desperate monologue to my fictional husband about opinionated matriarchs. Art imitating Life. Uh-huh. I nailed it. 

Callbacks tomorrow...

Taking in the glow of the sun and neon lights; Feeling rather adept, I journeyed to the center of it all. The Time Life Building and 75 Rockefeller.  Or street vendor heaven. Carrying my resumes and head shots (my schoolteacher photo), checking my bag through X-Ray security, entering revolving glass doors, riding elevators 30 floors, and sweet talkin attendants I managed a Human Resources interview with Sports New York TV, chased a Sports Illustrated Editor down 51st street, gave my pitch and snagged a card, contacted Real Simple Magazine staffing to set up an appointment for a contributing writer position, went to American Journalist's headquarters and applied for free Dave Letterman tickets...combing the street blocks in high heels ta boot

Came home to long awaited emails, a renewed vigor and an invitation for late night swanky dancing. 

A time ago, when asked about "my plans" to procreate, I told my father..I was still nurturing my short list and New York City was at the top.

He looked me in the eye and said.."some dreams are just too hard."

He's right. This is hard. Hopeless at times. Lonely Often. 

But OH SO WORTH IT.

Isn't that the way
Everybody's got their dues in life to pay
I know what nobody knows
Where it comes and where it goes
I know its everybody's sin
You got to lose to know how to win
Half my life is in books written pages
Live and learn from fools and from sages.

You know its true
All the things come back to you. Aerosmith

Dream on?

Humor. Not Hostility.

"For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind." 2 Timothy 1:7

Fear is crippling. Fear manifests into anger. Fear closes doors.

 
It's not what you know, but who you know.Ahh yes, the power of who.This is true in the secular and non-secular world. Salvation is for sure about knowing HIM. Success...that's a little more complicated.

I am starting to reevaluate my will's and wont's. Today I was describing my ample Epicurean experience in  dealing with olives, imported cheeses, and exotic desserts today while outlining my ideal dinner party menu I would serve to my closest of wealthy friends. Lost in the cremini mushroom gravy and truffle cheese, I forgot where I was.  All this for an application for a Team Member position at Whole Foods Market. Which by the way is one of the least expensive places to purchase groceries in Manhattan. And my latest pursuit in making my rent.

Now Quit It. My eyes are still bright and my focus is still narrow. Editorial Writing, Conservative Commentary, Stephen Colbert meets the New York Post, Sesame Street Guest Appearance, Starring role in my own TV series, Freedom of Peach column in the New York Times..you know...The Attainable. I'm just dwelling in the ever realistic grind of how to support the habit that has become "Living in Manhattan."

Leaning over the front desk of my apartment building sulking on about no where to go, no where to be, my friend on the 21st floor came out of the elevator and gave me a huge hug followed by the formal exchange.

Off to work. 

Must be nice.

Must be nice to stay in Uggs and sweatpants all day...Touche.

Yes, I admit the honeymoon is fading. But New York City is the land of dreamers. And no one is taking no for an answer. 
This admirable spirit is what keeps me in bed and gets me out of bed at the same time. Land of Extremes. Highs and Lows. Possible and Inconceivable.

-Don’t feel guilty if you don’t know what you want to do with your
life…the most interesting people I know didn’t know at 22 what they
wanted to do with their lives, some of the most interesting 40 year
olds I know still don’t.- Baz Lurhman

If you define yourself by what you do, can't you judge yourself on what you don't?

Desperate Measures

"Give everyone what you owe him: If you owe taxes, pay taxes; if revenue, then revenue; if respect, then respect; if honor, then honor." Romans 13:7

How the hell did I miss the greatest PR opportunity? A Georgia Boy in City Hall Park NYC. Newt Gingrich should have been donning a FREEDOM OF PEACH T-Shirt.  Why weren't the rest of you at the Manhattan Tea Party?  Could it be you got stuck in all the traffic surrounding the new appointment of the Archbishop Dolan at St. Patrick's Cathedral? 

I saw a couple Ron Paul supporters disgruntled by all the backward collars and robes blocking the subway stairs...

At any rate (no pun intended) Hundreds of non-partisan New Yorkers and me turned out for the NYC T-Party.

On this day in history...The RMS Titanic Sunk. And Abraham Lincoln died. 

The Filing Deadline from the Revenue Act was declared April 15th in 1955. 

But since you can't bleed a turnip...

Today's tax day:

Here are my current highlighted options on Craigslist.

Donate my eggs to infertile couples for $10,000

Become a Bikini-Clad Maid (won't make drinks) for $200 p/d

Participate in  a Clinical Study for Depression $500 per session + free MRI

Prepare breakfast for family every week morning $75 a day

NO matter which job I take. YOU are not entitled to what I earn. THE IRS (the despicable institution that it is) certainly does not. Every single person reading this at the moment needs to research Fair Tax.  And ask yourself do you really want your government to determine where your hard earned money goes...?  Will you really vote for big government, big spending?

Now, I don't want to turn this blog into a recap of the news and my take on it. But seriously, in these strained times when the economy is taking a beating and the fear tactics are giving it a good fat shove into the gutter.

How far would you go to make ends meet?

My job search aside. I've recently witnessed a close up glimpse of how hard up landlords are in Manhattan to rent their space. Responding to the market, rent is down 10-15% and they're handing over 2-3 months free incentive!  Even the greatest skeptic on board can't deny "One bedroom in West Village $2000" spells bona fide recession...

ME? Renting my house. Selling my car. Rationing my rotisserie chicken and ironing out the bathing suit, putting on the bronzer and grabbing my dust rag...duty calls!

Jimmy Crack Corn and I don't care...

Didn't make the postmark. And I don't care.

 Did Greed or Government get us here?

Movin' On Up

"Better one handful with tranquillity than two handfuls with toil and chasing after the wind" Ecclesiastes 4:6

I love to see him come and hate to see him go...Arrival and Departure Day..oh how they feel so different. The same rain drops fall on the window pane today but the elating feeling of anticipation has been replaced with a dull dread. And the romance of meeting him with an umbrella on the subway stairs is overshadowed with the imminent last kiss and a closing cab door.... Sadness sets in like the dampness in the air.

Spent four glorious days in this grand city with my best friend sharing harmoniously decadent desserts, dirty dishes, and definitive decisions, affirming our belief that after three months apart, being together is better. Now I do love autonomy. Independence even more. 

New York is My Dream. But He's my Dreamboat. We're through spinning our wheels separately. And we want the new chapter to star us both.

Plan B in action.

Took a whole lot of tryin' just to get up that hill....

Now if a 500 square foot studio doesn't bring us closer, sharing one closet in Manhattan will.

"after you go I'll have a lot more room in my closet,after you go I'll stay out all night if I feel like it and when you're gone I could run through the house screaming and no one will ever hear me I really should be glad but I'm bluer than blue sadder than sad." B. Manilow

Could you live without your lover?

Yin and Yang

"For there is no difference between Jew and Gentile—the same Lord is Lord of all and richly blesses all who call on him." Romans 10:12

New York City is an animate and inanimate living and not breathing concrete one of a kind piece of desirable art. With smoke billowing up through the sewer gaits and haunting shadows casted on the 1900's brick dispensary buildings, as black plastic trash bags float through the air past seagulls, the scenery is always changing.

 The sanitation brigade works around the clock loading all of our discarded immense luxuries brought in trucks to the island of plenty. After our Easter dinner party overlooking the pastel pink, green, and yellow drenched Empire State building we contributed ten empty glass bottles to the recycling bin and hundreds of of scrap paper from an dramatic fierce game of Celebrity. 

To work off deviled eggs, honeyed ham, cheesy polenta, and pent up competitive energy, we fought the blaring wind to the Hudson for an orange sunset past weeping cherries and Bradford pear trees growing under corrugated rusty tin roofs and metal scaffolding and toasted the dirty white caps of the river with a delightful sparkling bottle of Rose. The color and contrast involved in this city is so extreme....

Since I arrived in Manhattan, New Yorkers have recommended the wonderful adventure of taking the (free) Staten Island Ferry. So, absorbing the 60 degree weather and hand in hand with my visiting husband, we set out through Chinatown into Little Italy and left across Broadway for a taste of the perfect slice of hot cheese and dough (Bleeker Street Pizza) and an open air invigorating ferry ride on the convergence of the two rivers...

Here is where we ended up...

In a massive shuffling crowd of  300-400 Hassidic Jewish families into an air tight stuffy closed packed 30 minute slow moving boat to another island, where the point was to disembark, run as fast as you can through the terminal to embark on the ferry heading back to South Ferry in Manhattan and wave quickly at the beautiful passing lady.

But seriously, for the round trip hour ride listening to John Legend on shared headphones,  we soaked in late 18th century Eastern European customs and dress coupled with 21st century Converse clad tourists from suburban Illinois. Yiddish meets "dontcha know?"...  and the contrast was celebrated....

As we exited the boat ramp and held the door for two Buddhist Monks. I turned, grinned, and mouthed, I love this city.

Don't you love the fact that it takes all kinds?

Tuesday tune in: ABC Cupid. Pink Tie Pouring Wine.

Salvation. Whoo. Whoo.

"Jesus said to her, "I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me will live, even though he dies; and whoever lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?" John 11:25-26

Hallelujah Christ is Risen. He lives. Conquered the grave. And covered my sins.

These words are the epitome of the Christian faith. 

And the promise we have in eternal life. Jesus is the Son of God who was crucified and buried and who rose from the dead. 

This is how we know he is the Lord of Lords and King of Kings.

Jesus Christ is not the leader of just another religion.

He is the creator of the world and you and me. 

The Apostle Paul tells us that a sinless God came to the Earth to die for the justification of our sins. And his tomb is empty.

This is why Christians celebrate Easter. It has nothing to do with furry yellow chicks, gooey marshmallow bunnies, pastel covered eggs, or ridiculous ornate hats. It has to do with Him being the truth, the life, and the way to God our Father.

One drop of his blood saves us all. From the one's who cried Hosanna to the one's who yelled crucify the King. We are all forgiven because He lives. And there is power in the blood.

The miracle of His resurrection is the cornerstone to our faith and without it there would not be Christianity.

As Christians we believe there is no more judgement in this life. The Crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus are the final payment of sins and the bridge to a long lasting relationship with God. For he so loved the world. Not just Jews, nor Gentiles, not straight, not gay, not black, nor just white. The WHOLE WORLD. And this provision of a new redeemed life is a gift, an opportunity, and its ours for the taking.

YES and to the skeptics who say Jesus was a great prophet, a good man, a strong leader, and a wise teacher, the truth is if the witnesses had not seen and believed his death and resurrection....the word of the Lord would not have spread across the globe and remained a life changing profound belief today.

This is how I respond to the resurrection of Jesus Christ. I do exactly what the Apostle Paul told the Philippians jailer. Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ and you shall be saved. As you are sitting down to a greasy plate of buttermilk fried chicken, toasting your family with a mimosa in the morning, or still lost in the grass searching for the golden egg...

Will you bow down and ask the author of salvation, Jesus Christ into your heart?

And as I stand in victory

Sin has lost it's grip on me

For I am His.

And He is mine.

Bought with the precious blood in Christ.

No guilt in life

No fear in death.

This is the power of Christ in me.

From life's first cry 

to final breath

Jesus commands my destiny.

No power of hell

No scheme of man

can ever pluck me from his hand

Till He returns or calls me home.

Here in the power of Christ I stand.