oh new york, you're such a tease.

today was a rare day in new york city. it broke sixty degrees. yes, you heard me. sixty! and it's march eleventh. blue skies, warm air, and no down coat necessary. a little slice of heaven if you ask me.

but, don't be fooled, my friends, it's back to the usual freezing antics tomorrow. oh, new york, you're such a tease. but thank you, nonetheless.

so today, on this rare occurrence of the parting of the clouds, i did something i never do and left the office for lunch. bold, i know. i sat, took in the moment, and didn't check my email for a whole thirty minutes. i know what you're thinking, so rebellious! but it felt like i was downright breaking the rules. oh, new york, you have such a way of luring us into your demanding work ethic and your addictive ways.

the old version of me came to visit today. the one who takes a breather and notices the late afternoon light and listens to the songs playing on the radio {'oops i did it again,' thanks britney, and 'don't stop til you get enough,' thanks mj}. the one who watches the group of people walk by the window to pause for a selfie, observes the girl in the corner sipping her coffee looking as if she is waiting on a friend, and feels inspired to write. simple things, really. but the things that remind us that we are human and there is more to life than just a job.

i was recently in la - venice actually - and it was an early sunday morning. i was hopping out of the car with one of my bests heading into a yoga class, and it occurred to me that i missed this version of myself. the same one that came to say hi today. the one who carries little to no stress, soaks up the moment, and really lives life.

i think this is my biggest takeaway from my one year, one month, and ten days in new york city. i love it and would not trade one second of it for the world, but it promotes a different way of being. one that causes you to put your head down, to work hard, and to not ask questions because everyone else is working even harder. all of a sudden, certain parts of yourself get a little bit buried under the pile of chaos and no matter how hard you try to hang on to your old way of being, it's difficult to maintain in it's full capacity. so instead, you find yourself getting glimpses of the old version of you on an uncharacteristically warm tuesday afternoon in march at a cafe in soho.

oh, new york, you're such a tease. but thank you, nonetheless.

*photo from december via my iphone - the bryant part merry-go-round, an nyc bucket list item.

**just a disclaimer that this post is in no way meant to sound negative {because i am immensely happy and have so much to be grateful for}, but i did want to capture some of the raw parts of this experience and hope that someone finds comfort in relating to it.