Ashley Harrell

A cellist playing on a moving subway train. That’s just one reason why I love New York. Well, things are really starting to come together here… my job is great, my apartment looks fabulous, the humidity has been cut in half in the last few days – what more could a girl ask for? Last weekend’s dinner extravaganza at my place was quite successful, and I think everyone really enjoyed the company and the food! The real showstopper of the evening was definitely the Apple, Goat Cheese, and Honey Tartlets – which were surprisingly easy to make with the assistance of frozen puff pastry. After leaving my apartment, our clan hopped into a taxi and hit up a few fun bars in the Meat-Packing District, including an ultra-hip outdoor lounge, a lighted-floor indie-disco hotspot, and a post-collegiate hangout packed with guys who couldn’t abandon their frat-boy lifestyle. All in all, a fabulous night. Miss Jess and I woke up Saturday morning at the ungodly hour of 1:00 pm (missing the neighborhood brunch special, much to our dismay), but made the afternoon fly by with a 3 o’clock screening of Batman and Robin. Thank you Netflix. I must admit that I had never seen it before – and man, was I impressed! I love those super campy films showcasing our governor. Wait a minute… not my governor – anymore. I am officially a New Yorker. That’s right, on Tuesday morning, after visiting the chilling former site of the Twin Towers, I headed to the DMV to apply for my New York State ID. I now have my “interim ID card,” just in case you were wondering. Well, I’m getting ahead of myself here- after watching our Saturday afternoon movie, Jess and I parted ways to get ready for another evening, down in the Lower East Side. I met up with Jenson and Jess, and several of Jenson’s pals, at a divey little bar for some local live music, including Jenson’s friend Kate. Kate played fabulously – we all had a great time. Afterwards, we met up with Laura Dieden from Theta, and went to “Pianos,” a little more upscale and a lot more expensive. One beer was enough for me, a really good one I might add: Magic Hat #9. Try it sometime! On Monday night, the gals all met up again to celebrate the official day of Jess’s birth, at Justin Timberlake & Co.’s restaurant “Southern Hospitality.” It was quite hospitable, might I add. Two dollar beers are always alright by me! And like I mentioned, on Tuesday morning, I headed down to Ground Zero to remember those who lost their lives on September 11th, 2001. The mood was somber and depressing, it actually made me feel physically ill for the rest of the day. Wednesday morning was a fabulous rejuvanation, as I woke up to a beautiful blue-skied day. The humidity was down, the umbrellas were put away, and I had a big fat smile on my face! I think I’m feeling even better because I’m really trying to committ to this regular exercise schedule of running every morning before work. It feels great to be outside and jogging around while everyone is hustling in their power-ties and skirt suits to get to the subway. I get to casually step back into my apartment and start work – what a life! A recent thought on my mind has been the idea of getting a kitten. Being at home alone all day is really weird, and having a little pet would make things seem more normal. I’ve been doing some online shopping of kitties at the local animal shelters, and today mailed a letter to my landlord asking for written permission that I can have a cat. If I’m going to do this, I don’t want to do it under the nose of my landlord and expect everything to be okay – I wouldn’t want to risk having to give up the cat if asked to do so by the property management. So, I guess I can’t really get too excited about anything until they give me the thumbs up! Well, I really need to get back to work… but tonight, Brian and I are seeing “A Chorus Line!” Hooray!