Accomplishment of the Day:

I figured out how to turn on the air conditioning in my suite. Today it got up to about 94, and with the thermal properties of a city comprising who-knows-how-many square miles of concrete, I'm sure it felt much hotter. I spent much of the afternoon in my room, much too hot to walk anywhere and definitely too hot to go down to the subway platform. Somewhere in the back of my mind I remember thinking that these rooms were supposed to have AC, but I probably dismissed it in part because I've lived in non-ACed houses for the past three summers, and I just feel like the sticky hotness is the way summer living is.

Not anymore, thanks to my finding a really grimy switch in the "off" position, on the equally grimy AC unit hidden behind something once used as a whiteboard, as evidenced through the unerasable beer pong tallies on the front, left courtesy of the previous (male) tenants.

Anyway, the past couple of days have been good ones, and full ones. Highlights include an absolutely enthralling (no sarcasm, it really was amazing) presentation by David Granger, the editor of Esquire magazine, one by the creative director at Gourmet and another by the ad sales director at Condé Nast's Portfolio. I also got to tour the Good Housekeeping Research Institute and pitch a magazine idea (along with a group) for a publication that I truly would love to see get made. The roomie and I have been continuing our evening strolls around the neighborhood, and last night some new friends and I went to the Rodeo restaurant and bar, where there was great food and drink and an excellent band.

Twice this week I've gone to a little pan-Asian restaurant on 8th St. called Cafetasia. I found out about it in the Time Out New York student issue, and it's perfect because it has a great trendy, fancy ambience, but the prices are incredibly reasonable. The food was great both times, and it made me feel like I was having a really upscale restaurant experience without the price tag.

Tonight, after the second visit to Cafetasia, I went to go see War, Inc., the new film starring John Cusack (and Joan Cusack by default) as well as Marisa Tomei and Hillary Duff, with some smaller appearances by Dan Ackroyd and Sir Ben Kingsley. It was playing at a little place in Soho called the Angelika Film Center, which has a full coffee shop with ice cream upstairs, and six theaters and a concession stand downstairs. The theaters were tiny, but it meant they could show lots of independent films at a time. Of course the price was high ($12 a ticket), but it was overall a good experience.

The movie got kinda lukewarm reviews, and although I really liked it, I can kinda see why. John Cusack plays an assassin (again) who is hired by a Halliburton-like company to kill an oil magnate in Turaqistan, with the premise that the war at hand there has been entirely financed and planned by big business. The over-the-top nature of the metaphor earns some laughs as tanks fitted with Financial Times billboards roll past piles of rubble and Cusack has a therapy-session conversation with his personal navigation system, GodStar. But the film probably could have earned some points with subtlety or depth, but its in-your-face tactics will probably draw some attention. Duff and Tomei both have good performances, and overall I think it was a good film.

John Cusack is a great actor because of the films he chooses, but I have to say I feel that he hasn't chosen the best ones lately. Martian Child was good, but it was no High Fidelity (my favorite movie ever, pretty much) or Say Anything. Must Love Dogs had the perfect part for him, and the perfect part for Diane Lane, but the two together just did not make a believable couple. It would have been two good separate movies. "Is it in fact unfair to criticize a formerly great artist for his latter day sins, is it better to burn out or fade away?"

"Sex, it sells in the single copies…"

That would be in reference to Cosmopolitan. Today was crazy. We got up early and I had a chance to make coffee before we hopped on the subway to be at class at 8:30. There was a bit of an intro and we would put into the groups will will be in for our simulated magazine launch, which will be fantastic and a ton of work. I think we have a good group.

Next came a panel discussion with top editors from Essence, People Stylewatch, the Magazine Publishers of America and Meredith Corporation, which is one of the big magazine companies. That was pretty interesting, and after that we had a nice lunch break when we found cute salad/wrap/sandwich place to eat.

The afternoon was a little rough, but incredibly informative. First a woman from consumer marketing at Time, Inc. talked to us about marketing, and then the managing editor from In Style came to talk to us about the financial side of the magazine. It was two and a half hours of numbers and economics, but the speaker was incredibly knowledgeable and engaging, so we survived. After a brief freeforall at the sign-up table (about which more later) we met back with our magazine groups, and spent two grueling hours hammering out a concept, mission statement, market position and reader audience. How long does it take 10 college graduates to come up with a two-sentence statement? Too long.

I won't disclose the nature of our magazine right now, but it is pretty awesome. At this point everyone was exhausted, so JS and I came home and then went back out for Chinese food, softserve, and a wonderful walk around the neighborhood. It was warm and nice out, even with the sun down, and there were a ton of people around Union Square.

In other news I have a dinner invite, a magazine tour, and a design class coming up this week. The excitement begins. Cheers.

Highway 9

It occurred to me yesterday, as I was packing and listening to Springsteen's "Born to Run," that there was a reference in that song to a Highway 9. This is not the Highway 9 of my blog title... unless Springsteen has spent an untold amount of time between Black Mountain and Bat Cave, NC.

If I can make it here

Welcome to New York. More specifically, welcome to the small desk in the small bedroom of the decidedly dorm-scented apartment that I will call home for the next six weeks. It's getting a little homey already, now that we've put us maps on the wall in place of any sort of real poster that costs money.

I arrived in New York this morning after an altogether uneventful trip, which is the good kind, there's just not much to say about it. The most interesting thing that happened is that I had to call my car service to ask where they were and I couldn't understand my driver over the phone at all. Once in the car, though, there were no problems and I safely arrived at the Palladium Residence Hall, home to almost 1,000 student-aged persons, some of whom are taking classes and some of whom are doing other things. (It's also right on top/next to a Trader Joe's.)

My apartment is made up of two double bedrooms, each about the size of a rear South Campus room, but plus the luxury of a small walk-in closet. Furnishings are what one would expect: extra-long twin bed, desk (with shelves), desk chair and a dresser (with inexplicably shallow drawers). In between the two bedrooms is a small sitting room with one of those ridiculously uncomfortable wood-framed couches with weird stains and a matching chair. There is a small dining table and four more desk-type chairs, again with the weird stains. On one side of the main door is our bathroom, which is fairly spacious given the size of the bedroom, and our small kitchen, complete with sink, gas stove and a smallish fridge/freezer combo. No microwave, which means we might actually need to invest in some cookware before this is all over.

Given nine months or so, one could make this space pretty nice, with some carpet and posters and nice lamps, but for six weeks it will be mostly white and fluorescent-lit with good ol' tile floor (nice and dusty) and stained upholstery. It's really not bad, though.

After I arrived this morning and retrieved my student ID (with the classy photo I took using my laptop) I dropped my things upstairs and met my roommate, JS, who is from outside Philly and is really great. We seem to have a lot in common. Just before I left to run some errands, I met LR, one of the girls in the other bedroom, who is from Dallas. The final suitemate showed up after shopping, JK, who is from Eugene, OR.

If I leave my building and turn left, I am walking toward Union Square, and within two blocks or so, I pretty much pass any store I could need or want, including Walgreen's, Whole Foods, Circuit City, Starbucks (of course), Virgin music, Staples, you name it. I'm set. I went to Filene's Basement this afternoon to find linens that I wasn't able to pack, and it was a decent experience, though partly ruined by the awkwardness of carrying home a huge fluffy bed pillow. The giant windows in the front of Filene's look out over Union Square, which was full of people lounging on towels in the grass and vendors selling all sorts of things. It was really quite beautiful.

This afternoon we took a walking tour of the neighborhood and the main NYU campus, most of which is down in the Washington Square area, but it really just made me more confused. There's really now way to give a tour to 25 people in a crowded city. It just doesn't work. When we arrived at the Woolworth Building, where all of my class sessions will be, we recieved the obligatory nametage, a messenger bag with a BIG (can't say huge, because I've experienced the Eats binder) binder of magazine section info, and a bag lunch, which was really quite delicious. (A plus: I get to walk past the Brooklyn Bridge every day, and there are TWO Starbucks between the subway stop and the class building.)

The course is 92 people = 87 gals and five guys, and it will be intense. There are five UNC grads
here, none of whom I expected to be here (apart from myself, of course), and two of whom I actually know. Weird. Anyway, tonight was a general introduction to everything, including a personal introduction from almost all the students. There are people here from some 26 states and four or five foreign countries, and it seems like a good group.

After orientation my suite found our way back on the subway (thanks to the express trains it's only one stop away), and we did a little minor grocery shopping at the Whole Foods. It's amazing how congested the store was, made even worse by the fact that it was three stories in a fairly narrow space. But hopefully now I won't starve, or stuff my face with pretzels from street carts.

So far New York is really beautiful in the summer. I'm sure it will get hot—thankfully the subway is air conditioned—and I'm sure I will be even more tired and overwhelmed than I am now. But all the program directors are very encouraging, and I feel like it's an excellent opportunity to hone my networking skills and actually make some great connections.

For now I will take my swiveling fluorescent desk lamp around to my bed, complete with a brand new Wamsutta Egyptian cotton blanket and jumbo Ralph Lauren synthetic-stuffed pillow, both a bargain from the place the brings you the running of the brides. Peace.

Alumna

I am officially finished with my undergraduate education. And it's a strange feeling. I don't feel any different in particular, but it's beginning to sink in that I won't be going back to Chapel Hill, at least not for anything longer than a football weekend visit. That makes me a little sad because I love that town, and I love the area and the ambience and the people there. But I suppose that just means it's time for me to find a new niche, a new locale to call home.

I head to the Big Apple in a couple of weeks, just for a short time, so we'll see how that goes. The time I spent there should give me plenty of opportunities to explore the area and my own head. It's the beginning of a new part of my life, one I'm looking forward to very much.

My heart will go back to these mountains...

Last night I had the good fortune to see David Lamotte perform on my campus. I'm graduating
in three weeks, and he's retiring in seven months, so it was a bit of a once in a lifetime opportunity for me. And it was fantastic, as it always is. The difference was that this show I cried during almost every song, beginning with "Shadows" and ending with a late-night "Song for You."

The first time I ever heard of David Lamotte I was in the living room of Sylvan Heights lodge in Montreat. I don't remember if I was on one of the ancient couches or sitting on the floor that still is slanted enough that spilled drinks run to one of the walls, but I know it was 1998 and I was on my first-ever youth retreat. The song was "New Lullaby," and although it was probably eight years before I heard the story behind the song, it was immediately obvious to me that there was a giddy joy hanging from the line, "If the Lord should come see me before I awake, we'll run up to heaven and eat chocolate cake."

I saw David perform for the first time less than a year later in a church in Charlotte, and I think it was quite a long time after that before I saw him again. You can't not love David Lamotte, and about three summers ago I went to four or five shows in a span of two weeks. Over the years I have accumulated CDs, a DVD and a fantastic T-shirt, but it's been more than that. Listening to his stories and attending a "World Changing 101" seminar, he has touched something real. Real enough to bring tears to my eyes multiple times in one evening, just by sending out songs from a "real idealist," as he calls himself on his blog.

This label makes sense to me. Not only is he actually changing the world through his PEG projects and his shows, but he is also very real. I've met the people he talks about in his stories, and I've spent endless evenings at the Velvet Moose where he lived for a summer. I've seen David at the Morning Glory Cafe on a Sunday morning and I've grinned so big when he greeted one of my best friends as "Hey beautiful" at Lake Tomahawk park.

David's retiring in November to study peacemaking in Australia, and I couldn't be happier for him and his wife. It seems to be the right next step, but I would be lying if I said I won't be mourning a bit for the hole he'll be leaving on all those stages. Although it won't be an empty hole; it will be filled with the memories of people like me and with all those rich, guitar-spanking chords he sent out to wash over the people he loves.

I hope I won't have to leave these mountains for at least a couple more years, but when my heart does go back there, as it certainly will, they will remember David. Thanks David, for all of it.

First Note: I decided during the show last night that "Song of Peace" will have to play a part in my wedding.

Second Note: David had a lot of fun with his layering machine last night, and I found this YouTube video of another time he had similar fun. Enjoy.

A new look, a new life

I got engaged about a month ago… to be exact it was 41 days ago, minus about 5 hours. And it was fantastic. So needless to say I'm looking at some pretty big changes in my life, with graduating and finding a real job and getting married. I'm hoping for a geographical change too, even though right now I'm not sure if that will be toward NYC for publishing, toward Asheville for a hippe-esque life of mountainous bliss, or toward the West Coast for a lifestyle transformation I can't possibly imagine. Who knows?

This Lent season I gave up television, which I realize now was a fantastic decision. I read a lot during those six and a half weeks, and since Easter I've spent much too much time watching CSI and the like. I enjoy them because they're interesting and yet not too engaging. So I turn them on for background noise and end up watching for several hours. I'm hoping this will stop now that my roommate has taken the futon out of my room. I've also discovered that when I feel like watching TV I would really much rather listen to NPR. Yep, I've become one of those people that begins every sentence with, "So I heard this thing on NPR…" Instant plus in the dorkdom department.

I've also been watching a lot of movies this semester. I've been taking a class about identity in European cinema and have watched I-don't-even-know-how-many films for that. Plus I've been writing film reviews for The Daily Tar Heel, so that adds another one or two films each week. You learn a lot, watching so many films and reading so many books — not that that's any sort of profound statement, I have just come to appreciate my rediscovery of it all.

This week I discovered (without the 're,' because I'm being honest) the music of Joe Strummer and The Clash with the film Joe Strummer: The Future is Unwritten. For a full review you'll have to wait until Thursday's issue of the DTH. But I will say that the film was fantastic and quite eye opening, and I just bought the whole soundtrack. Like the film, the soundtrack is arranged in a sort of radio-show style, using recordings from Strummer's New Hour show.

This month has been about learning to appreciate what's out there, and learning how much there is left to discover.