Anonymity...or not

One of the dangers of living in a city the size of New York is the potential for anonymity and isolation. Of course, these are dangers anywhere, but perhaps the potential seems to be greater there than other places I've lived. As I have mentioned in a previous post, God has been gracious to pave the way for me in this move so that I am already connected to multiple people in the City.

Last night I attended a large going away party, which my family hosted in El Dorado. There were so many members of my extended family there, along with many hometown friends. They were all so kind to me. They were also great to remind me to keep my eyes on Jesus as I move and to honor Him. This morning I've been thinking about them, their lives, and their kind and wise words. I am reminded of the wonderful friends and family that I am moving away from.

I just wanted to write this post to mention that God keeps His eyes on me. I don't mean that in the context of, "Watch out!!! God is watching you!!!!!" I mean, He is watching over me and watching out for me. He is faithful and kind to me, despite the times I have not been or am not faithful or kind to Him.

My little brother and his wife wrote the following verse in a card to me:
"See I am sending an angel ahead of you to guard you along the way and to bring you to the place I have prepared." - Exodus 23:20

A Few Images From My House

Most of my furniture has been hauled away. I had to clear out my room to make space so I could sort my belongings, and figure out what to store, what to pack and what to throw away. Here's a peek at what's left.

I've armed myself against my cold. So far, it looks like our side is winning!

(This has nothing to do with my room, but I thought I'd throw it in anyway.)

This is my new filing cabinet.

This is part of my new dresser.

This is the corner where I am sleeping and packing my bags.

This is my new sleep number bed (minus the numbers). I can make it as firm or as soft as I want. And Lord-willing, it won't get any holes in it before next week (at least!).

Sick

I have had a cold for a couple of days. Just a cold, thankfully. Co-workers at both jobs have been dropping like flies from the flu, bronchitis, etc... Today I was leaving work, feeling exhausted (and tired of feeling exhausted) and knowing I needed to go home and take a nap (which would take away from my time to do other badly needed tasks), and I thought, "These are the days when living in New York is going to suck." At least today I could get in my car, drive for 5-10 minutes, and be home. In a month, I may have to walk multiple blocks, wait for a subway train, ride for 10-20 minutes, switch trains for another 10 minutes, then walk 2 1/2 blocks to get home.

I still want to move. This is just a reality check for me.

Some blessings to count in this:

1. I'm sick this week, and, Lord-willing, not next week when I'm trying to finalize everything, or the week after when I'm trying to adjust to a new city and get in touch with potential employers.


2. I have the resources to get some amazing meds for a cold. Zicam is my friend. (http://www.zicam.com/)





I use the nasal gel. The mouth spray is gross! Okay, so putting gel in your nose is also gross...but at least it doesn't taste gross.

(If you are wary of drugs, you can check out others' thoughts about this with a Google search. http://www.consumerreports.org/ cited lawsuits against the company for loss of smell.)

3. I slept for 2 1/2 hours and felt much better after that.

In Anticipation

I am getting ready to move to New York City. Wow. I love saying that.

I have about ten days before I leave for Kansas City, and then I'm taking the train to NYC the next morning. Part of me wishes this whole move were already over and I was settled into my new apartment.

Before that happens, however, I have a lot of packing and planning yet to do, and I continue to stay busy with my two part-time jobs here in Wichita. I still haven't said "Ciao" to most of my friends and family here in Kansas yet. It seems funny to say goodbye on such a grand scale, when I'm just moving to a new city. It's not like I am moving to a foreign country (though in some ways perhaps NYC is a foreign country compared to Wichita) or will not be back for visits. Yet, this is a big move and I do want to say goodbye. I am a very egocentric person. I crave attention badly, but when I get it, I tend to become shy about it.

I have secured an apartment in the Bed-Stuy neighborhood of Brooklyn, New York. I already have an address in the City (officially as of March 1st)! I have two roommates who I am anxious to meet in person. The apartment is part of Radical Living, an intentional Chrisitan community in Brooklyn (http://radicalliving.wordpress.com/). The more I learn about this community of people, the more excited I get about living there and being a part of what's happening.

I am also excited about The Village Church (http://www.villagechurchnyc.com/), which meets in Greenwich Village in Manhattan. I have already visited the church and met with the pastor a couple of times. I've also been in touch with the leader of one of their homegroups which meets in Brooklyn. Everyone has been extremely welcoming.

Between Radical Living and The Village Church, I feel like God has already provided many opportunities for me to meet people in the City. Through Radical Living I will be living within a one-block radius of 13 people, who I will see at least once a month (if not a few times a week).

I know that I will be lonely during this move. I am already anticipating lying awake on my first night in Brooklyn, staring at the ceiling, wondering, "What am I doing?" But even so, I am excited about this move. Nervous? Yes. But excited nonetheless.