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March 17, 2019

Five Minute Friday: PLACE

Five Minute Friday Place

Five Minute Friday: PLACE

Give the prompt of “place,” and I’m going to write about New York City.

I have always said (and believed) that I could be happy anywhere geographically. I still consider that the truth, but no locality makes my heart sing like NYC does.

I pondered that during my last visit (in January).

I felt an anxiety I haven’t usually felt as the trip approached. What if I had lost my street smarts (such as they are)? What if something basic had changed (like the time the public transit system had switched from tokens to swipe cards and I had to stand there at the machines, like a new arrival in a foreign country, clueless)? What if I got mugged? What if the decent streak that began in 1989 of essentially getting through city life unscathed, both when I lived there through 1992 and during all the visits since, ended?

Once I was settled in my AirBNB, though, being in NYC was like putting on my oldest, softest, most soothing garment.

Five Minute Friday Place

The view from Brooklyn

It’s easy to say when I know I get to come home to the relative ease (and lower expense) of living in Tallahassee, but I love (usually!) having to figure things out. Also, it’s a whole lot easier to navigate mass transit now that we have little tiny navigators in our hands through our smartphones.

The city has gotten less gritty, more gentrified, a new degree of “homogeneous” since 1989.

Still, it offers up new discoveries every time I arrive, as much about who I am as about what it has to offer.

Five Minute Friday Place

Welcome to this week’s Five Minute Friday. Our instructions, via creator Kate Motaung: “Write for five minutes on the word of the week. This is meant to be a free write, which means: no editing, no over-thinking, no worrying about perfect grammar or punctuation.” (But I can’t resist spell checking, as you can imagine.)

Paula Kiger
Paula Kiger

Wife of one, Mom of two, Friend of many. My pronouns are she/her/hers.

Filed Under: Five Minute Friday Tagged With: Five Minute Friday, New York City, Place

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Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Leigh says

    March 17, 2019 at 8:50 pm

    So glad you enjoyed your time! Blessings and peace to you. Stopping by from FMF!

    Reply
    • Paula Kiger says

      March 17, 2019 at 8:51 pm

      Thanks, Leigh. I almost canceled the trip (budgets, etc.), but it was worth every penny.

      Reply
  2. Haralee says

    March 18, 2019 at 11:35 am

    I too love a trip to NYC. AS soon as I come up from the train station or land in the airport I feel that pulse of energy that NYC delivers!

    Reply
    • Paula Kiger (Big Green Pen) says

      March 18, 2019 at 5:37 pm

      YES! I guess that’s the magic of it!

      Reply
  3. Jenn says

    March 22, 2019 at 1:54 pm

    I love this! My daughter has been asking to visit there – she’s never been, despite all our travels. Hoping to make it a reality this year.

    Reply
    • Paula Kiger says

      March 22, 2019 at 7:21 pm

      Oh yes. My daughter and I have so many happy memories from our visits there. I look forward to hearing about yours.

      Reply

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