Rollercoaster

If there's one thing that I have learned being single, it's that there is much less of a consistency to life. Really it is just higher highs and lower lows, and that's tough sometimes, especially when in a foreign city.

There is an unrivaled freedom in being single. Going hard on a Tuesday night, staying in on a Saturday, meet up with people on the spur of the moment...don't get me wrong, being in a relationship does not prevent you in any way from doing this, it's usually prior plans and consideration for your partner that would limit the number of those "why the heck not?" questions being answered in the positive. The calendar becomes a lot more fluid when I am single.

Of course, the loneliness can be quite depressing. Waiting for friends to call you back, staying in on Saturday because there are no plans, it's quite easy to spiral downwards with those "what am I doing here?" questions. This is the first time I have lived by myself as well, which magnifies these thoughts as there is no one to interact with. On the positive side, It is also a learning experience. To be able to rely on myself, back myself, it's something that I am slowly learning. At least my cooking is getting better!

The possible key is to just fill up the calendar with activities. Stop waiting for things to happen and make them happen myself. Let's see how that turns out. Acting class starts Monday.

Yoga In All Its Glory

I've had a neck injury (putting on my shoe, of all things) that's stopping me from continuing on the P90X regime. For some reason the tweaked neck hasn't gone away, and it's been about 4 weeks since I stopped. It's quite sad, all that effort from the last few months gone.

Of course, I haven't given up yoga, so there's still some exercising.
I got myself a yoga mat for home, so I'm still hitting that DVD, although some of the moves are proving even more difficult than usual.

A friend of mine was amused that I'm doing yoga at home on a DVD. Perhaps I'm training up so one day I can go to these actual yoga classes around the city and look the part. She did shock me by telling me about naked yoga. New York, being the city that it is, has its own website on the matter.

It got me thinking...I'm having enough trouble with concentrating on the moves now, if some guy does the downward dog in front of me, how in the world is that considered relaxing and therapeutic?

Hiatus

It's been about a month since the last entry. Many things have happened, some sadder than others. To everyone who has sent a "how you doing" email or call, much appreciated. Onwards and upwards is the motto.

So some enjoyable things that have happened over the last few weeks:
1. Attended my first Comic Convention (ComicCon) in New York. Surprisingly dominated by a lot of video game displays, although there were a substantial "Artist's Alley" where people were doing their sketching thing. Got to meet the authors of Penny Arcade, which was cool.

How awesome is this Yoda?



2. Skiing at Mont Tremblant. 8 hour drive across the US border through to Quebec. Unfortunately super cold temperatures (-20 celsius!) and a lack of snow meant that skiing was not that enjoyable, with multiple injuries to our party. Yes, I attempted another 180. No, it did not go very well. Yes, it was under a chairlift.

A panoramic of the place we stayed at.



3. Moving to the new place. East Village is where I'm now located, so no more walking to work, but I'm close to the train station so it's all good. I have made multiple trips to Ikea (the food there is great) and I'm getting much better at using a powerdrill. I'm quite happy with it, although my boss (visiting from Sydney) was shocked at what I was paying for rent, as all people who do not live in New York are! It's my place and it's good to settle in.

I've attached a view from the window out to the street. Probably the last of the snow for this year. Note: we had a "Snow Day" in NYC first time in 5 years, which means kids can stay home. It was only 9 inches.



Other things worth mentioning:
1. Boston vs Knicks game at Madison Square Garden (obviously Knicks lost)
2. Lovely roast beef made by Janey at Janey and Stephen's place
3. Yet another round of Benjamin Steakhouse. I think they recognise me now!

Full set of photos here.