My Ninth Post

How CUTE is this hostel? And though it might look like a ghost hostel in these photos, there are actually other people staying and working here, they're just all in bed cuz believe it or not I wake up early these days. I think I'm just so excited for each day. Everybody is so kind here and in order to check out you have to complete a chore - I chose cleaning the kitchen, as it's something I am used to doing. Ok I'm off to explore Memphis before heading off for New Orleans - tata for now.

My Eighth Post

Louisville = mucho fun. I stayed with my old friend Kate Cornell - we first went to Chapin together when we were little, then continued riding horses together until we were 18. Since we went to college we haven't really been in good touch so it was wonderful to get together again and catch up. She is such a rockstar now - a reporter for the cbs affiliate in Louisville. I got to watch her report on the 6 o'clock news - watch out Katie Couric! I am so proud of her for kicking butt.
Anyways, Tuesday I had a nice day putzing around Louisville. I slept in and snuggled with Kate's pug Eddie, whom you will see below. We really fell in love with eachother. I had a whole photo shoot with him, but i will spare you and just show you one pic. I then hit up a kooky joint called Lynn's Breakfast Cafe - all these crazy colors and statues and silly things crammed in all corners. Yummy eggs. And of course I had to hit up the local bakeries - I went to a homemade Icecream and Pie place, and a more upscale dessert place. The owner of the latter, Helen, was there and she was extremely friendly and we talked for about half an hour about what it's like to own a business, baking etc. She was very chatty and hospitable. Later in the afternoon I went to the derby museum at Churchill Downs and went on a tour of the racetrack. It is a stunning facility and inspired me to get more into racing.
I got to meet all of Louisville's finest talent for dinner, as Kate took me out to dinner with some of the other reporters and anchors for the local stations. It was so funny, such a different world from what I'm used to up in NYC! They were very sweet.
Today Kate and I hit up a FABULOUS bakery for breakfast, called Blue Dog - I would recommend it to anyone in the area. They have absolutely gorgeous breads, and it's a very nice well decorated cafe. I'm now down in Memphis for the night at my first hostel of the trip. I have to say, this hostel has blown me away. It is in a church here in town, and the staff is so friendly, the hostel itself is clean and cozy, and it's really more than i could ever ask for for 15 bucks a night. I will take some pics of it tomorrow and share them with you. For now, it's Louisville pics.
Oh, does anybody know what a Hazmat is? I kept seeing signs for them a couple of days ago and i have no idea what they are.
And why is Tennessee the volunteer state?
Also, Francina, if you're reading, Milli Vanilli 'Girl you know it's true' came on today - i thought of your amazing rapping skills. Miss you all! xoxo

My Seventh Post

Two days down, a lot more to go! So far, so good - no, check - so far, everything's GREAT! In two days I've already logged 950 miles and 17 hours on the road. Although to tell the truth, yesterday didn't really feel much like a road trip. I-95 is the most unpleasant road to drive on. So crowded, so many trucks, so many people at the rest stops, it's just awful. However, that leg of my trip is OVER - no more east coast for now. I pulled in yesterday to DC and spent a lovely night with my friend Sam from Bates. He cooked dinner for me and his new boyfriend Marcelo, whom you'll see in one of the pics below. Afterwards we played a rowdy game of Apple vs. Apple - anybody ever played it? It's awesome - I'd never played it before - but it's great because it's very entertaining and and humorous but takes very little actual effort - no boards, no dice, no moving pieces. Sam and I took a jaunt over to the Washington monument late-night and took some dramatic shots, I wasn't sure how they'd come out but they look pretty cool! Sam looks like he's spiderman in one of them.
Today I did an 11 hour drive from DC to Louisville, KY. The drive was gorgeous, and I'd take an 11 hour drive through West Virginia and KY over a 6 hour drive on 95 any day. The first half of the trip took me through lush mountain passes, which makes the driving feel more adventurous when you're not quite sure what you're going to see coming around the bend. The second half took me through the rolling hills of Kentucky, where literally, between Lexington and Louisville, there is nothing but perfectly tended fences, green pastures and HORSES - LOTS AND LOTS of them. These people down here LOVE their horses - and if you know me you know - so do I! That stretch was actually fairly dramatic, for as I looked in the rearview mirror, the sky was black and stormy, while the sky in front of me was nothing but blue and sunny. I loved it.

here are some thoughts:

-i listened to a country station for a little while today. the chorus of my favorite song i heard went like this, a man singing to his girlfriend: "well i got sober, since then i've been thinking, you're a lot less fun since i quit drinking" who writes that???????
-driving long distances is all about pacing myself. i can't get in the car and immediately rock out at 8 in the morning. otherwise by 10 i'm dead.
-i had lunch at a place called '79er restaurant' - i asked for a burger cooked medium - before i realized it was really just a glorified mcdonalds with a free salad bar and table service. whoops. no wonder the waitress looked at me funny.
-i also listened to some ultra-conservative radio for a little while. fascinating. and some christian rock station, although that lasted a whole 13 seconds.
-i didn't have cell service for 7 hours of my drive today. i had to use a payphone for the first time in years. i couldn't figure out how to do it. that was a humbling moment.
-i didn't realize how far west Maryland extends. i always thought of it as a purely coastal state, but it's actually got quite a stunning western stretch.
-cruise control is a blessing on long stretches of empty road. my back is happier because of it.
-things really do tend to move a little slower down here. i feel like a crazy intense neurotic northerner when i talk to southerners, they are so mellow. and i'm not even in the deep south yet.

Below are some pics from DC. I'm pooped-buenas noches.

My Sixth Post

It's the eve of my departure! Tonight we are going to my sister Polly's house for lobster. Delish. I have here some pics of my last week spent with the fam and the pets. My kitty, Little, likes to gnaw on my fingers, and last night I caught her in action. And my niece and nephews just make me giggle with love when I look at them they are too cute. Ok well I guess I'll see you on the road! xoxo

My Fifth Post

Alright, it's officially been 12 days since my last post - I'm only on my fifth post and I'm already slacking!!! Well I s'pose I can forgive myself, I have been quite busy in the last coupla weeks. All of a sudden I realized I only had a week left in NYC and had a million people to see and things to do - felt a little bit crazed. I really enjoyed myself though. EB cooked up a storm at her place for her going away party, and I had a terrific meal with my roomies at the local Italian place, Locanda Vini i Olii (I have absolutely no idea how to spell that). Of course, because she's my stalker, Keri Russell was there too with husband and baby in tow. Yes, she's stalking me. It's now the fourth time I've been at a local eatery with her sitting at a nearby table. I know my fame and fabulousness is hard to handle, but really, she should try to get a grip.
I'm now up in CT at my parents' place for a few days before heading off. All the kids are here - Bella, Henry, Sevi and James - which means lots of really cute little naked kids running around at all times. I went by AAA today and they gave me a map and guidebook for every single state I'm going through for FREE. whoa. That is a whole lot of information that will probably not get read. I have to say, I am READY to hit the road! As good as it is to plan, I have a difficult time reading in depth about places a long time before I go. While I have my itinerary all planned out, what exactly I am going to do when I get places has yet to be determined, and will probably not be determined until the night before or day of my visit. The AAA woman made me feel guilty for not planning farther in advance. What poop.
I am sick of all my music, and I am not clued in to new music, so I have decided that I will mooch off my friends and burn cd's from them when I visit. That should keep me occupied on my drives.
Oh gosh, my cat, Little, is just too cute. Must go cuddle now. Happy sugar highs! xoxo

My Fourth Post

To celebrate this great nation's independence, I not only ate beef this July 4th, I also rode some beef. It sounds a little more racy than it actually was. Check it out! Cow statue courtesy of my fabulous roommate's fabulous grandmother. Fabulous.

My Third Post

It's really just now starting to hit me that I'm leaving SOON for my grand tour of the U.S. Only a week and a half until I move out of my apartment. Up until now I've felt only excited and free, and I still feel that, but now I feel a little scared too. Not scared about what I'm going to do, but what I'm leaving behind. Until I decided to take this trip, I've always sort of felt that New York is my home, for better or for worse. My family, my friends, my support system, my life is here. And even if there are things I don't like about it, this is it. I'm happy I've decided to explore other options, and I look forward to picturing my life as being something and somewhere else. But what if I move somewhere, and my niece and nephews forget who I am? What if a family member gets really sick and I can't be around to care for him or her? What if I lose the closeness I feel with my friends here? But then I guess I have to say, are those really reasons to not try something new, and perhaps discover a life that suits me a little better? Definitely not.

I've got my itinerary all laid out. Here it is!

Connecticut
DC
Louisville
New Orleans
Austin
Truth or Consequences (a town in New Mexico)
Canyon de Chelly
Grand Canyon
LA
San Luis Obispo
Reno
San Francisco
Redwood
Portland
Seattle
Sun Valley
Denver
Boulder
Minneapolis
Chicago
Niagara Falls
Burlington
Maine
Then I guess back to Connecticut?

It's an ambitious itinerary, but I know I can do it, and I know I'll have a fabulous time seeing new places and old friends.

Peace and cupcakes.

My Second Post

Ok, I think I'm getting the hang of this a little bit. Once I get really comfortable with the blogging thing I will start thinking up more creative titles for the post. For now, this will do. I was talking with my roommate tonight about the purpose of a blog, and just how much information one should expose. In a sense, I want to keep a journal, as a sort of timeline of a point when I'm fully embracing my 'quarter life crisis' and doing something a bit spontaneous, pretty exciting, and something that has quite a bit of emotion wrapped up in it for me. I'm sure I'll experience a lot of profound (and not so profound) feelings throughout my trip, and I'd like to write about them. And perhaps it might be a good exercise to put them out there, on this blog, and share them, unashamed. But how much do others really want to read that stuff? Do you really care about what I think, or would you rather just read a few silly little comments about how I saw a bearded lady in Omaha, or a five-legged donkey in Texas? I suppose I should just write whatever the hell I want, and if others want to read it they can, and if they don't, then don't. Simple.

In my first post I wrote about my dislike of crowded subways with all the crazies. Well tonight, for the first time ever, I got officially "ridden" on the subway. I thought I was going to vomit - It was a crowded subway, i was presed up against a railing, and this older man kept finding a way to conveniently bump and softly rub his junk right up against my rear end. I mean, c'mon, crowded or not, there is a way to avoid doing that. i tried shifting around, but it didn't help. I was very close to pulling a Linda Ramsey (Chapin gals, you know the drill) but I refrained and as soon as the car door opened I fled. Then on the bus a crazy lady got on and refused to pay the fare and started screaming and yelling about how she always gives and noone ever gives back to her and she's not gonna pay cause they don't deserve her money. it's funny, i used to love all this nonsense - not so much now...Needless to say I'm looking forward to getting in my car - where I'll have a sense of my own defined private space. But wait, I'm a New Yorker, who needs space? What's space? Ahhh...pshaw...

Night!

My First Post

This is my first time writing in a public forum online. I've never left a comment, or a review - I'm even shy about posting things on other people's pages - a strange neurotic fear of judgement perhaps. So stick with me while I get used to this whole blogging thing - YIKES!

First I'll eplain why I'm here, why I brought you here too. I'm a born and bred New Yorker (ok, well technically I was born in a New London, CT hospital - but I like to ignore that fact and just go with the former statement) and in the last couple of years have fallen in love with baking and pastry. When I was younger and I couldn't sleep, I would sneak downstairs in the middle of the night without my parents' knowledge and make fudge - and then go sit in bed and eat it before it had even set. Some may say disgusting, I say fabulous. I remember one night in particular, around 2 am yours truly was climbing the stairs to her bedroom juggling a tray of fudge and a big glass of milk. One false step and milk went everywhere - coated my hair, splattered on the wall, and flooded the fudge. But I didn't care; I hadn't dropped the fudge and that was all that mattered. Damn that stuff was delicious. The stale aroma of my hair the next day? not so much.

Fast forward to my mid-twenties. I went to college in Maine, travelled abroad a bunch, became fluent in Spanish, had my gallbladder removed, fell into a baking job, went to culinary school, and here I am. I love my current job (One Girl Cookies rules! Check 'em out - onegirlcookies.com) but have decided to take some time to explore other places, other options, other cities, other lifestyles. I would really like to be able to afford my rent. I would really like to have a dog. I would really like to not have to take the f*ing crowded ass nyc subway, with all the crazies that yell obscenities and preach and rub up against me. If I stay in New York, accomplishing these things might be a challenge. We shall see.

On July 23rd I'm taking off for a two month (almost) road trip. I'll be heading down to New Orleans, then across through Texas and Arizona, up the California, Oregon and Washington coastlines, down through Idaho, Colorado, across the mid-west to finally end up in Maine mid-September. I'll be staying with friends, in hostels, Best Westerns, and who knows where else. Well, hopefully nowhere else. I thought I'd blog it - for my own fun, and so I can make all of you jealous as you sit at your boring day jobs killing time reading blogs about people having fun adventures. Sorry to rub it in. I'll be trying to eat as much good food as possible too - if anyone has suggestions of great bakeries to hit up along the way let me know!

Keep in touch and keep checking in - After 12 hour days in the car with just me, myself and I, I might need to hear from people other than the voices in my head.

On that note, I should sleep. It's one AM, I'm on valium for a muscle spasm in my neck, and I'd best just hit the hay. Night!