"...it is here."

Time flies.

Really, it does.

Just yesterday I remember smiling as I hurried out of the airport. I remember hopping into a shuttle and making the trek from LaGuardia Airport to good ol' 34th Street. I remember going to Times Square with my parents, looking around at the lights and the hustle and bustle and thinking to myself what a wonderful summer this was going to be. I remember walking into my apartment for the first time, half excited and half terrified of the one bedroom, one bath place me and three other girls were to call home for the next two-and-a-half months. I remember my first day of work and how nervous I was. I remember covering my first event. I remember when I fell in love with the Good Guy from Crumbs.

These times are all memories now. Memories that will stay with me for the rest of my life.

So, here it is, ladies and gents. The last round-up of my time in the city. And it goes a little something like this:

My good friends from London, Mike and Rae, came to town. I got to play tour guide with them all weekend!
Friday night: We took Mike out for a night on the town at the Blind Pig in Union Square, then a different place (sadly, I can't remember what it was called, but they took Stef's ID hostage for a good half hour because they thought it was fake. HELLO! She's 22. Just because it is a Missouri Driver's License doesn't mean it's fake, NYPD). After that, we went to Times Square for a look at the flashing lights.

Saturday was a full-on touristy day. We explored a market that extended the length of 6th Ave. from about 40th St. to Central Park. Rae got a hat for her boyfriend and she, Mike and I commemorated our semester in London by getting delicious Nutella crepes. They sure hit the spot, too! Then we did a little 5th Ave. shopping (well, Rae and Mike did, I just watched and commented when needed). After the spree, we walked to the Plaza Hotel and into Central Park. I took them on the abbreviated tour of the park (Wollman's Rink, the Mall, Sheep's Meadow, Bethesda Terrace, the Boathouse), and we finally ended up at the Met for an afternoon of art.



From the Met, we took the trusty subway downtown to the World Trade Center and South Street Seaport. I am so upset that I waited until the end of my time in NY to visit the South Street Seaport. It has breaktaking views and it's an overall awesome place to chill out with a view of the Brooklyn Bridge and Statue of Liberty.

After our long and tiring day, we recharged our batteries and headed out for our next night on the town, this time with Rae's cousin and all of his friends. We went to this cool bar called XI, which is on 34th and 3rd. His friends got us on the list for the open bar (!!!!!), so we definitely enjoyed that aspect and danced the night away with unlimited drinks. From there, we headed to East Village to a bar called Continental where they have an astounding deal of 5 shots for $10, just like Quinton's in CoMo!

For a late-night snack, we went to Pomme Frites, a Belgian 'restaurant' that specializes in French Fries with every kind of sauce you can imagine. It was so, so DELISH!

Sunday: gave Mike the grand tour of SoHo, Chinatown and walked across the Brooklyn Bridge. In Brooklyn, we headed to Grimaldi's Pizzeria (the best pizza in NY!) for a late lunch. By the time we got back, shopped a little more and got our stuff together, it was time for Mike to head back to Boston.

This week was an awesome end to the summer.

Monday: A great day at Us Weekly. Joe Manganiello, Alcide from "True Blood," came to the office for a luncheon. He participated in a Q & A session with us and I got a much-deserved photo op with him. He is incredibly handsome! TV does not do him justice.



That night was the YANKEES game vs. Toronto. The Yanks lost, but the stadium was such a sight to see. P.S. Yankee fans boo their own players. I don't get it! After the game we met some "interesting" guys on the way home and went to Legends Bar with them where a 40-year-old man tried to win over my affections. No, thanks.

Tuesday: Corrisa and I went to the Guggenheim Museum on the Upper East Side. Lots of weird and interesting art there. Tuesday night Corrisa, Lucy and I went to McSorley's Pub, aka the best beer in NY! They only serve an ale and porter, and they slam it down on the table right in front of you! It was such a cool atmosphere, not to mention the pub has been there for more than one hundred years. We also made a detour to Artichoke for one last slice. Yum.



Wednesday: Worked all day, then Chinatown at night.

Thursday: PACKED, PACKED and PACKED some more!

Friday: Last day at Us Weekly. So incredibly sad! Took lots of pictures in our element. Of course, my last day wouldn't have been the same without transcribing one last interview: Kellie Pickler! Said my goodbyes and walked out the revolving doors one last time. For our last full night in the city, Stef, Stephanie, Bethany and I went to the Frying Pan on the Hudson River. To put in college terms, this place was frat central. And oh so fun.

Today: Packed and cleaned some more. Haleigh realized that she had never been to Macy's (which has been across the street from us the entire summer) so we went there this morning and explored all nine floors.

Gotta wake up at 5 a.m. tomorrow, so no late night for me.

So, for my final farewell I would like to say this:

New York, you've been good to me. You showed me the good, the bad, the funny, the sad, the scary and the downright terrifying parts of this crazy world. But overall, you proved I can be whoever I want to be. You showed me my full potential. Thank you.

Until we meet again...

A change of heart about Kanye West

Little did I know what I was to experience when I got to work last Friday. It started off like any other morning, the usual daily tasks and conversations with my intern besties Lucy and Corrisa. We even caught Flo Rida strolling through the office like it was an everyday thing. But that afternoon had to be the coolest experience of my life.

It all began when Corrisa and I got on the elevator to go downstairs to Duane Reade. As we got off the elevator on the first floor, Corrisa looks at me with excitement in her eyes. Our following conversation went a little like this:

"I think I just saw Kanye West," she said.
"What?!" I exclaimed, flabbergasted. "No freaking way. I didn't see him at all!" (I tend to be a little up in the clouds sometimes, as you might already know)
"I swear to God. He had on a black suit and sunglasses, but it was him."
"Oh my God! We HAVE to find him!"

After our mad rush around Duane Reade, we headed back upstairs and did a little investigative snooping of our own around the Us and Rolling Stone office. No luck. We headed back to our post in the library where we were working before we went downstairs. And, lo and behold, when we headed back to the library, there was a crowd of about 10 people in one of the conference rooms next to the library. They were all sitting. But standing in front of the room was a man in a black suit and sunglasses. He was talking about an album.

It was Kanye.

Now I've become accustomed to these random celebrity run-ins (I do not mean to make that sound that self-absorbed, but when you work at a place like Us, you're bound to run into anyone and everyone), but this one caught me completely off guard. I tried to keep my cool, but it's KANYE. How can you keep your cool with that? The whole time I couldn't help but think, "Imma let you finish..."

Lucky for us, the conference room is all glass, so we sat at our trusty computers with a full view of Kanye talking to the people at Rolling Stone. After stealing a few looks and glimpses and acting like I was working, we heard music coming from the room.

No WAY he is playing his new music! I thought. I stole some more looks into the room. Everyone in there was head-banging like crazy. Kanye was practically dancing in the front of the room.

What is going on?!

All of a sudden, like a light shining down from above, Kanye looked through the glass into where Corrisa and I were sitting and staring. He waved and motioned us to come join.

ARE YOU SERIOUS?

A man came into the library. "Come on, guys! Come on in!"

Why not?

So we were invited into the conference room, with the man himself, front and center. He was still previewing his music. He said some of the songs weren't even finished. And he performed them for us from standing on top of the conference room table!

It was like our own private concert. He was playing the music pretty loudly, so slowly but surely more and more people began to gather outside the room. And when Kanye saw them outside, he invited them in.

"Guys, we have room in here! Come in! Make some room! I want you all to hear!"

He spent a good 45 minutes to an hour of him rapping his new material for us (My personal favorite? One that goes something like "This is a toast for the assholes, a toast for the scumbags," with a killer guitar solo at the end, if I remember correctly). He said his new album was called "Donda's Voice," dedicated to his mother who died a few years ago.

After the private concert, he opened the floor for discussion and questions.

"I want to know what you think! Ask me anything. Anything you want!"

The questions begin to fly. "What was your inspiration for this album?" (You!) "How did you regroup after the whole VMA-Taylor Swift debacle?" (It was just my time for a break to reevaluate who I was and what person I wanted to become) "What's the difference between Kanye today and Kanye two years ago?" (Two years ago it was all about me, me, me, now it's about WE, the fans and me). My heart burned to ask a question.

If your mother were here right now, what would she say about this new album and the new you?

But I chickened out. I thought it was great, but I didn't want to bring up such a touchy subject in front of the entire company. So I kept it to myself. Stupid me.

"Enough about me!" he said. "I want to hear about you! What kinds of music do you listen to? Who inspires you? I need to know."

So then we began. He started going one-by-one to everyone around the room and they had to say who they liked listening to. There were the typical bands (The Beatles, Rolling Stones) and the not-so-typical (Hanson). And then, it was my turn.

"How about you? What do you like to listen to?" he asked.
"Well, you know, I like Queen, Foreigner and Styx. ... And then of more recent stuff I love Lady Gaga and Maroon 5." (I failed to mention my obsession with Taylor Swift but I think that was a great decision on my part)
"I love that you love pop music," he said. "I think pop music gets a bad rep because people are embarrassed to admit they listen to it. But some of music's best artists are pop artists. Gaga, for instance, she's changing the world with her music..."

I couldn't help but smile and nod my head. It was probably the single most coolest experience of my life.

After the Q & A session, the mini meet-and-greet came to a close. I realized that this guy really had changed. Like he said, he wasn't the "asshole Kanye" anymore. He says he wants to help people with his new record. I guess that will remain to be seen until it comes out, but, for now, I've decided I've had a change of heart about Kanye West.