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I can’t remember how I heard about the tickets going on sale to meet Lin-Manuel Miranda & Jonny Sun at The Strand, but I’m glad I acted fast and got one!

So, Lin has been tweeting “GMorning & GNight” for some time…and a book publisher worked with him and Jonny to make a small book featuring some of them. Well, where else would you get to meet the man (or “Mr. Write” as it said on his t-shirt)…certainly not at the Stage Door of the Richard Rodgers!

On a cool October night, I lined up around the block from the bookstore with about 200 other “faniltons” to meet him. We weren’t allowed to take photos at the signing desk, but we could take them while in line…so here you go!

At first I wasn’t sure about attend the book release show/party for the Dear Evan Hansen YA novel…then I saw that Tan France & Antoni Porowski were co-hosting and I was sold!

As a fangirl of Dear Evan Hansen, Pasek & Paul and Queer Eye, this was the place to be! There were excerpts from the book, cut songs from the original show and lots of discussion around the story.

Mostly, it turned into a mini-show with performances by Alex Boniello, Barrett Wilbur Weed, Rachel Bay Jones and Will Roland. Oof, I wasn’t prepared to ugly cry at a book party!

Inside the NKOTB pop-up shop was a recreated teenage girl’s (or boy’s) bedroom! Full of New Kids memorabilia and even a landline phone you could fake talk on!

Yes, I was a little bit late to the “Blockhead” fandom of New Kids on the Block (admittedly, I only got “into” them when they reunited in 2008)…but now I try to go to see their shows at least once when they’re on tour.

So, this year was the 30th Anniversary of their album “Hangin’ Tough” and their performance at the Apollo Theater in Harlem. The boys were returning for a one night only performance and tickets were super hard to get…luckily, one of my co-workers used to work at the Apollo and was able to get us 2 House Seats!

Leading up to the performance, NKOTB opened up a pop-up shop of merchandise in the lobby of the Apollo. In an effort to try and avoid the crowds at the show, I met up with my friend, Barbara (fresh off a 5K run) and we lined up to go inside.

While we were standing out front, Danny Wood walked by with his security team. Little did we know that he was about to work his way down the line and take photos with us all! He may not be as popular as Jonathan, Joey or Donnie, but he surely is the nicest!

One of the best things about Broadway Cares Equity Fights AIDS (BCEFA), besides all the charity work that they do, is their Annual Flea Market in the Fall. Various Broadway shows and theaters line Shubert Alley and 44th Street to sell or auction off memorabilia to support BCEFA.

While my previous jobs didn’t always make time for me to attend, this year the Flea Market overlapped with RuPaul’s DragCon! Oh the choices we must make! I made sure to exhaust all my options at DragCon on Friday & Saturday, so I could hit up the Flea Market when they opened!

Generally, each year, I purchase one “big ticket” item (2017: Dear Evan Hansen opening night tote bag & window card signed by the entire cast. 2016: Canvas Newsies tote. 2015: Hamilton window card signed by the OBC. 2014: Price & Son shoebox from Kinky Boots signed by the whole cast.), so I went right to the Mean Girls booth to try and score a lunch tray…well, they were signed by Grey Henson and $350 each!? Hard pass.

My next stop was the booth for the Public Theater. While they had a few random posters, I was hoping they would have one for the Animaniacs Live! show that I had attended on my birthday…and they did! In fact, the staff even said “I was wondering who would buy that?” Well, that’s me! For $10 it was a great deal…but now where will I hang it?

Shortly after snapping & gramming our way through 29Rooms, Deirdre & I went to Candytopia near Penn Station after work!

There were so many rooms filled with candy-themed items, but the marshmallow pool was the best! While we didn’t quite get into the right spot for the professional photo, it still turned out nicely!

Ever since I was little, I’ve had a fascination and taste for cherries. I’m not sure if it was all Cherry Merry Muffin or Mary Englebright related, but who knows? My Mom would always send me cherry-related gifts (sometimes too many), even as an adult.

So, when I saw this Revlon cherry-themed room, I knew I had to wait for a chance at a photo for the gram! Thankfully my Refinery29 29Rooms buddy, Deirdre, is the best at taking photos for social media purposes!

Who could resist a pile of plush Rilakkumas!? Not me, that’s for sure!

While I was waiting to meet up with the Jiwa’s I made a pit stop in the Rilakkuma pop-up shop in Times Square! Yes, I mostly knew about this spot from Instagram, so I had to contribute to the hashtag and get my photo, too!

In an effort to make Andre see more theatre, we got some cheap tickets to see Avenue Q at New World Stages one day after work. (He had wanted to see Book of Mormon, but since I just went in June, I wanted to wait until the cast changed; so Avenue Q it was!)

As soon as I saw the giant, furry, orange “Q”, I knew I had to take a photo with it! I even wore my Ernie “New phone, who dis?” t-shirt for the occasion!

Sure the photo’s a little, but I got to be on stage at HAMILTON! My friend, Jacob, knew one of the wardrobe team members, so when I said I had a ticket for sale, he jumped at the chance to buy it from me. What an experience to actually stand on stage, see David Korins’ set up close, meet Tony Award Winner James Monroe Iglehart and shake hands with him!

Also, we were running a little late to the show, so just as I went to turn off my phone, it rang! I almost sent it to voicemail before seeing it was my brother, who never calls me…well, as soon as I told him I was at the theatre he & my sister-in-law, Melanie, quickly interjected to say I was going to be an Aunt!

Wow, the only Chen son was actually going to have a baby! Such a bittersweet moment, since the only thing my Mom ever wanted to be in life was a Grandma and she never got to experience it…but I can’t wait to meet their little one and be “Auntie Chenny” for real!

Breaking my “square photo” pattern for this adorable shot of me with Ellie at MoMA PS1! While Rem was out of town for work, Tempestt, Ellie, Solomon and I had a little slumber party at their apartment in Jackson Heights!

We took a trip to Long Island City to play around at PS1, including lounging on this giant hammock-like net right outside the museum.

I never can get enough of this little one who always calls me “Chenny!”

The things I do for concerts & entertainment! Originally, I had purchased a single ticket for “On The Run II” to see Jay-Z & Beyonce at MetLife Stadium in NJ. After making the trek to East Rutherford for Taylor Swift, I knew it would take me a hot minute to get back home to Brooklyn.

Seeing that my friend, Andre, lived in Newark, NJ, I asked if I could crash on his couch after the show. Well, it all worked out for the best, since he decided to buy a ticket and come along! (This also meant a ride to and from the show!)

However, neither of us could have anticipated a severe thunderstorm that forced us to evacuate the stadium and a show start time of around 11:30pm! Bey & Jay still put on a show to remember and well into the 1am/1:30am hours!

Needless to say, the following day at work was a zombie-like blur…but I wouldn’t have traded the experience at all! (And thank god, I didn’t go alone!)

My first attempt at a boozy painting class! My team at work left a little early to paint a beach scene at Muse Paintbar!

While normally I love to follow instructions, I knew I’d never paint something that looked exactly like the instructor. So, I took my own liberties: smiley face on the rock? Sure! Flowers that kinda look like starfish? Great!

All-in-all, I had a great time, but the class was a tad bit too long…3+ hours!? No thank you.

Sometimes I get a little over zealous in my ticket purchasing…so, I bought a ticket to see Jeremy Jordan & Ashley Spencer at Sony Hall; the same day I flew back from Chicago.

Well, my friend, Sara, really loves Jeremy and wanted to do VIP, so we could meet him & Ashley…so, I tried to sell my other ticket; but no luck.

And so, I went to both nights of their show (“Starring Opposite You”) and got this photo with them afterwards! I think my favorite part was when they sang Broadway music from shows that the other one had been in…especially Ashley’s impression of Jeremy’s accent in Newsies!

Why did it take me so long to visit the Museum of Food & Drink (MOFAD)!? Located in Williamsburg, it was barely a 15 minute train ride for me to get there.

I knew that I had to get there for “CHOW: Making the Chinese American Restaurant.” The exhibit traced the history of Chinese immigrants in America and how they brought their cuisine to the States and subsequently had to modify it for American tastes.

Now, as our foodie culture evolves, it would be interesting to see how these first generations of Chinese immigrants feel about the search for more “authentic” Asian food. Would they love or hate the rise of Xi’an Famous Foods and Mission Chinese? Or would they love it?

No filter on this photo of the pure blue sky in Upper Manhattan! It was my first time going to The Metropolitan Museum of Art’s other location, The Cloisters. I finally made the time to take the train up to 190th Street to see the other part of “Heavenly Bodies” this year’s exhibition from the Costume Institute.

Arguably, the better part of this exhibit there were pieces from Rick Owens and way more opulence!

However, I couldn’t resist the reference to Dear Evan Hansen once I went outside and saw the color of the sky!

After a friend cancelled on our 4th of July plans, I was looking for something to do. I found myself wandering around Williamsburg in Brooklyn.

Somehow, I seemed to forget that the Macy’s Fireworks were going to be on the East side of Manhattan, meaning that everyone was lining up on the West side of Brooklyn in Domino Park to watch…yes, this was where I decided to randomly walk.

Despite the crowds, I did find this Tom Fruin stained glass house while walking around the waterfront. So, some rainbows on an otherwise sort of melancholy day.

I figured the best way to end Pride weekend in NYC was to see Kathy Griffin at Radio City! It was actually my first time seeing her stand-up live and in person, after watching numerous versions of her show on Bravo over the years.

She called this show her “Laugh Your Head Off” Tour and it was capitalizing on all the drama surrounding her “banishment” from CNN, the end of her friendship with Anderson Cooper and everything around her career post-Trump’s severed head joke photo.

Obviously, the crowd was mostly LGBT friendly, so she stayed true to her humor; stories about her mom and much more. Impressively, she filled the show with fresh material right up until the 11pm deadline.

Near the end of the route for the NYC Pride Parade is the Stonewall Inn, the site of the Stonewall riots in 1969, and an icon in the LGBTQIA+ history books. This was my first time walking in the Pride Parade in NYC and while it was hot & humid, the experience was well worth it.

My friend, Whitney, walked with me in full makeup and we could feel the happiness all around us. What a feeling to walk by this landmark and with next year being the 50th Anniversary of the riots and World Pride being hosted in NYC, I can’t imagine what that will feel like!

With Sarah & her family back in NYC, they met up with Dad & me. We gathered with a group of my friends for a Saturday morning dim sum in Chinatown. Although the kids weren’t big fans, it was nice to have friends & family all in one place.

After dim sum and finding some more food for the kids, we were off to the Staten Island Ferry for a quick trip on the water. (Oddly enough, while we were waiting in the Whitehall Terminal in NYC, I looked to my left and there was Kashawn from my office! This just proves that NYC is smaller than anyone thinks.)

After a brief nap on the ride to Staten Island, Dad woke up to take some photos of the NYC skyline, just alongside a bunch of Asian tourists!

For Dad’s annual trip to NYC, we started out by walking up the High Line. The end of the tracks are starting to finish in anticipation of Hudson Yards, which will open in the Spring of 2019.

Towards the end of the elevated walkway, there was this little bridge, so I made him pose to try and get this shot. #HipsterDad

When my cousin, Sarah, told me that she & her family would be in NYC for two weekends in June, I was excited for the chance to hang out with them! They would be taking a trip to the Caribbean and staying in NYC between the trip.

For the first weekend, we met up in Times Square by the Line Friends Store. Of course, Reese, Sarah & Scott’s daughter, couldn’t resist going into the store and neither could I. We browsed before posing for this photo with the giant plush Brown bear in the entryway. Kawaii!

I met up with my favorite family on a Sunday afternoon in Soho, they had just come from the annual Pride Parade in Queens, so Ellie arrive with a little rainbow flag in hand!

After lunch, we stumbled upon Flour Shop and all of their rainbow themed treats! How could a 3-year-old, and let’s be real - me, resist!? I opted for some cake balls and Ellie got a rainbow cake pop, perfect for this great photo op!

Fleet Week will always hold a special place in my heart after last year. So, to honor that moment and to honor our troops, I went to the Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum at Pier 86 in NYC.

Since Deirdre’s husband is in the Army, she was the ideal buddy to tag along on this Memorial Day Weekend excursion. (Yes, I mostly wanted to go to see the Broadway stars that would be performing on board the ship and she was game).

We decked out in our patriotic best and arrived just in time to see some of the acts performing. While I was standing and singing along to the songs from American Idiot, a photographer asked if they could use a photo where I was singing in a press release. (I agreed, although I have yet to find the photo anywhere online. Tell me if you see it! I’m in a navy tank top with white stars printed on it, army green shorts and a red bandana.)

Walking through the decks, we were both impressed by the size of the ship, artifacts about the ship and it’s sailors, got to meet one of the sailors that sailed on the Intrepid, purchased a Nebraska enamel pin and got some choice Boomerangs for Instagram.

My NYC birthday tradition: taking a day off of work and visiting the Met Museum for their annual Costume Exhibit. Since the Met Gala and fashion exhibit are always unveiled during “The First Monday of May,” I luck out. My birthday is 7-days from the end of May, so although it may be cursed with falling close to Memorial Day Weekend, I can always count on going to see some great fashion to celebrate aging one more year.

This year the theme was “Heavenly Bodies: Fashion and the Catholic Imagination” - clothing inspired by religious dress and the Catholic church. Even more bittersweet as I know Mom would have loved to see this exhibit. She only made it to NYC once, in my almost 9 years living here; where we went to the Museum of Natural History, but not the Met.

Here are some of my favorite dresses from the exhibit from Rodarte.

Thank goodness for good friends! Since I knew this first Mother’s Day without Mom might be hard, my friends, Deirdre & Risa met me up in Queens at the Museum of the Moving Image to see the Jim Henson Exhibit.

I had a heyday seeing the Sesame Street and Muppet characters of my youth in person! From Cookie Monster to Prairie Dawn to the Doozers from Fraggle Rock, it was a great experience in nostalgia!

Even if RIsa wasn’t old enough to know half of the references, it was worth the trip up to Astoria.

Bonus: The digital section where we watched Justin Baldoni’s (from Jane the Virgin) boy band-themed proposal video to his girlfriend and now wife, Emily.

I was walking through Soho one evening after work and stopped at this window. I mean, who wouldn’t want a Miffy or Brown lamp?

Maybe I don’t need a full-size one, but a mini one couldn’t take up that much space, right?

One of the best parts about working in Tribeca is walking by the Balloon Saloon storefront daily. They always have amusing and interesting displays outside.

You can’t help but smile (or stop and take a photo) when your nearby.

I’m almost embarrassed to admit that I had not seen Angels in America before the revival came to Broadway this summer. I remember hearing about the play and reading reviews of the HBO miniseries years ago, so I knew I had to get tickets when it finally came to NYC from London.

After almost being late for the first night, I left work with plenty of time for night two. I was also able to find the neon wings in the basement and found a nice stranger to take some photos for me. And yes, I wore a red & blue striped t-shirt to coordinate with the marketing for this show.

I admit that I do not know as much about K-Pop as I should. At least I knew about Line Friends before their store opened in Times Square, just below the old MTV TRL studio!

So, when the boys of BTS worked with Line Friends to make their own character collection, I had a hard time figuring out what I wanted to buy from all the adorable products.

I settled for the bunny notebook and some stickers. This wall and neon signage of all the characters was too cute to not take a photo of.

Before a Dr. appointment, I walked by P!Q at Rockefeller Center and saw this Yummy World plush display! There were so many new plush characters that I had never seen before and they all wanted me to take them home, right?

I was mostly temped by the “onion ring toss” and little basket of onion rings. However, since I already had the large “cheese puffs,” I only purchase a few vinyl toys and the mini grilled cheese plush. Yes, I have some self-control!

The walk from 6th Avenue to 7th Avenue on the L train can be kinda gross. So, it was a pleasant surprise on Valentine’s Day to see that someone set up all these photos for the “Love Tunnel” and was letting people take a random photo home with them.

I get the sentiment, but I can’t help but be a little bitter on Valentine’s Day. It’s such an arbitrary holiday.

When my date suggested that we meet at "Gulliver's Gate" in Times Square for a first date, it seemed like a good idea to me. We lucked out, too, because there was a tour group with extra tickets and we got entry for half price!

The whole exhibit is full of miniature recreations of NYC and various landmarks throughout the world. I took so many photos, Snapchats and photos for my Instagram story, but the best one? This view of Times Square: TKTS booth and all!

After my friend, Brynn, saw a photo of this tree in Time Out, she told me we had to find it! So, we wandered to Brookfield Place and I was appropriately dressed in my *NSYNC "Home for the Holidays" t-shirt and sequin bomber jacket, where I patiently waited for a small child to take a photo before I got mine.

This tree was decorated by the store, Babesta, and was covered in Yummy World x Kid Robot plush of all sizes. Then we made a stop into their store to browse, but I ended up getting the mini burrito plush for my desk.

I don't think that was the theme of the Bergdorf windows this season, but I was particularly attracted to this window because of all the colors. 

Each Holiday season, I get soup dumplings with my friend, Whitney, and then we walk down 5th Avenue and look at all the window displays. This time around, we invited Deirdre, and made a great evening of it.

Another perk to helping manage 4 buildings is the various celebrations I got to attend! Gap has a studio space at Industry City, so we got invited to their Holiday Party spanning through several of their buildings and including free food, drinks, a photo booth, DJ, stores, etc.

It was a great night! Even the landscaping was decked out!

As you know, I'm in Times Square/The Theatre District a lot. I love nothing more than a good musical and "Dear Evan Hansen" has quickly become one of those that I go back to again and again.

I loved getting off the train and seeing the subway station wrapped in DEH ads. From the turnstyles to the card readers, the signature blue was everywhere at 42nd Street.

After completing more than 18 collections with the “Bucket Brigade” for Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS (BCEFA), I was able to attend the first night of the Gypsy of the Year benefit for free!

And…I even got my name in a Playbill!

On a Saturday afternoon, I trekked up to Corona Park in Flushing to see a holiday dance performance of Ellie’s dance school classmates. Called “That 70’s Nutcracker,” it was loosely based on the story of “The Nutcracker” and was performed in various 70’s-themed costumes. The show was fun, but I had to leave early to make it into the city for a Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS bucket brigade shift.

While walking back to the 7 train, I passed by this new public art installation next to the Unisphere and had to stop and take a look. Entitled “Good Fences Make Good Neighbors” and designed by Ai Wei Wei was part of NYC’s Public Art Fund installations.

Gentrification is a weird thing. While I'm sad to see my neighbors displaced over the last 8+ years, I do appreciate Twin Suns Deli that opened less than 2 blocks from my apartment.

Their breakfast sandwiches on brioche buns and their breakfast burrito! Oof. I would eat them every day...if my stomach could handle it. 

A little wink to the graffiti in the bathroom at Clem's. Also, since I don't work at Madewell anymore, I get some perks. One being free overnight shipping on order and another being free gifts, like this denim tote.

Back for my 2nd season of "red bucket" collections with Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS! 

One of my first collection was for Wicked, where I was quick to find Ashley Parker Angel's name on the board and ask for an extra Playbill for safekeeping/boyband memories.

If you know me, you know my dream job was to be a VJ on TRL! Well, this new reincarnation isn't exactly what I thought it would be, but I still appreciate that MTV is trying to stay relevant.

I saw this poster in Shubert Alley and couldn't resist taking a photo. Who knew that when I was in high school & college and taping TRL on a VHS tape each day, that one day I could walk by 1515 Broadway any time I wanted to?

Even since I saw an exhibit of Dale Chihuly's work in high school, I've made an effort to see more of his exhibitions when they're in the city or if I'm in a place that has one.

I almost didn't make it to his installation at the New York Botanical Gardens, but I was able to snag a ticket for one of the last "Chihuly Nights," where all of his sculptures were illuminated for the evening. 

Of course, this neon abstract piece was my favorite.

You would hardly know that a few years ago, this was Toys 'R Us and there was a ferris wheel inside the store! 

We got a special treat and got to shop in the new Old Navy and Gap stores in Times Square before they were open to the public. It's spectacular to see how the spaces were transformed for each brand, although setting up all the stations at the base of the elevator wasn't the smartest idea...I had a grand time and got some great new clothes!

The best part about cat sitting for my friends, might be this view from their private deck. I didn't edit this photo, but the sun was shining perfectly on this weekend afternoon.

Even if cat food smells gross & their chubbier cat has the worst smelling poops; this makes up for it all.

Growing up, Margaret Cho, was the first Asian-American I saw in media that reminded me of myself. More "American" than "Asian," and not typically small and submissive, I sat in front of the TV every Tuesday night to watch All-American Girl on ABC through the good and the bad.

In college, I helped UNL's University Program Council (UPC) out with spreading the news about her show and received a free table for my help! I got to speak with her briefly, where I blurted something out like "My Dad sounds just like your Mom, I'm Korean and I"m a HUGE fag hag!" To which she kindly replied "You ARE like a younger version of me!" and I could have died.

So, whenever she has a show in the NYC area, I will be there! In fact, the last time she was at the Gramercy Theater, her performance was filmed for Netflix and it's called "PsyCHO" and I was in that audience!

When I was walking back to the office, I noticed this balloon sculpture/installation in front of Maman in Tribeca. I'm not sure what it was for, but it was too pretty to not stop and take a photo of.

Mostly, I was "doin' it for the 'gram" as the Millenials might say...but I never posted this to Instagram.

Yet another morning off the Chambers J Station, but I wonder why this is a "V" instead of a "U?" Any ideas?

If you're ever needing some great home inspiration or just to get out of the office for a bit, a stroll through the housewares department at the fairly new Anthropologie downtown is just the fix.

While I probably won't be hanging up any light fixtures in my apartment any time soon, I loved this "bubble" chandelier and it's rainbow effect.

It'd been a few months since I had caught up with my college BFF, Phil, so we decided to meet up for brunch at B Bar in NoHo to catch up.

The weather was perfect, so we were able to dine al fresco, which would have been more enjoyable without the teenagers behind us running around and shouting for part of the meal. (How old am I sounding right now?)

For my second date with Chris, he chose for us to meet for breakfast at The Little Owl, which is located in the base of the apartment used for all the exterior shots on "Friends." You might recognize it from those shots as Monica/Rachel's main apartment.

But for as an avid "Friends" fan might realize, that exterior shot doesn't match much else. Where's the giant balcony outside? Where is Ugly Naked Guy/Ross' apartment across the street?

Either way, it was sweet of him to think of catering to my pop culture sensibilities, however misguided. We had a nice meal and walked around the West Village before heading our separate ways.

It might be my Nebraska roots, but I will always be a Pepsi girl. Never a Coca-Cola/Coke girl. 

When I was growing up, Pepsi Co. acquired the contract for all University of Nebraska events and campus. Thus, not a Coke product in sight on the campus or at any home football game.

This also meant that we were  great test market for Pepsi Products and were among the first markets to get Mountain Dew Code Red in the early 00's.

So, when I was in Long Island City with Tempestt & her family, of course, I had to stop and take this photo (and it was in an episode of "SMASH," too).

If you're ever walking through the West Village, take a stroll near W. 12th Street and stop to see the New York City AIDS Memorial. A stunning sculpture and right next to St. Vincent's, where the onset of the AIDS Crisis was first treated in the 1980's.

After staying in Bed-Stuy the night before, I took the J train into work and it was a nice change up in my morning commute. 

First of all, it was only 1 train line into the city and it was above ground for more of the trip. When I got out in the morning light at Chambers Street, I had to stop and take this photo. 

After a long week of meeting planning at work, we all gathered near the office at The Bennett for a little Happy Hour and to celebrate Mariel's upcoming wedding.

We posted up on the long benches against the wall and were shown the call buttons to grab the attention of our servers when we needed anything. The best part: the buttons would light up a number on the mirrored panels behind the bar! (We might have played around with them for a bit, too...)

Of course, I'd been to the MoMA Design Store numerous times and seen their bear and bunny lamps; but now there's a WHOLE STORE devoted to the Line App Friends in Times Square!?

Ok, so it's in the old TRL/MTV space, which makes me a little bit sad, but now it's so easy for me to spend time in there between Broadway shows and walk away with something adorable and amazing.

Someday I will save up enough money to justify buying one of these adorable lamps.

In hindsight, maybe I should have cropped the cars in the parking structure out of this photo; but the Gucci ad just caught my eye.

"What are we going to do with all this future?"

I'd never been to the Park Avenue Armory, but I was interested in seeing their "Hansel & Gretel" exhibit by Jacques Herzog, Pierre de Meuron and Ai Wei Wei. So, off I went with my friend Christina and her sister, Michelle.

After grabbing brunch in the neighborhood, we entered the exhibit. The highlight for me was the interactive floor. As a commentary on security and observance, drones and cameras would catch you movement and project it onto the floors (see in my photo). 

Reveling in the chance for Summer Fridays at work, I decided to make the trek to the Brooklyn Museum for their Georgia O'Keefe exhibit. I also found my way through their various permanent collections and the stunning exterior of the museum.

Before meeting up with some friends to head out to the beach, I swung into Juice Generation for a quick smoothie and there was this gorgeous plant display in their window.

It was a rainy Saturday morning when I gathered with some old co-workers and friends to celebrate Jasmine's birthday in Greenpoint. We caught up on life and challenged each other into a few games of shuffleboard. 

After a lot of ups and downs, I walked by this window display at Maman Soho. A little inspiration and a hope that something good will happen soon. Maybe Mom is looking after me...

Over the last 5 years, I've been able to watch the Pride Parade from inside of Madewell. I was very excited to get to watch the parade from the street and not have to worry about being at work!

I met up with some friends for brunch, then we walked over towards the corner of 19th Street & 5th Avenue to post up and watch the floats. We got there shortly after the start of the parade made it downtown and were anxiously awaiting the arrival of the Gap float. 

The parade is always sensory overload, but in the best way possible! Imagine my surprise when I looked up on the Logo float and saw Robby from Finding Prince Charming!? Yes, I shouted at him and was super happy when he turned and waved at me! (To be followed a few minutes later by Javier Munoz from HAMILTON and I died even more!)

Now, some of my friends aren't parade people, but we still wanted to spend part of Pride Weekend together. We met up in the neighborhood to catch up and to enjoy some drinks at Brooklyn's Kings County Brewers Collective (KCBC).

The selection rotates and there are some snacks, but the ambience is cool and there's board games!

Months ago, I purchased tickets to see Bianca del Rio's show in NYC...little did I know that VH1 would change the date of the RuPaul's Drag Race finale and the promoters would suddenly turn my comedy show tickets into a chance to view the finale episode and the crowning of the newest queen!

A few of my Nebraska friends were in town for Pride Weekend, so we all got to experience the show together and even watch local Brooklyn queen, Sasha Velour's coronation! (Plus, performances by the Top 7!)

In a way, it was a blessing that I came back to NYC just in time for Pride Weekend. My first day back at the office was a rainbow-filled one. Lots of love from my friends for me & my Mom and of course, a chance to celebrate Pride!

There were lots of fun treats and a little rainbow photo booth with Pattaya Hart, who instantly lifted my mood!

After a very tough two weeks, I headed back to NYC to try and get back to "normal" life. It was nice to fly back over Flushing Meadows and Corona Park, where I could see CitiField, the Unisphere and the home of the US Open.

I took advantage of the nice weather in my neighborhood and went for a walk. It's nice to get lost sometimes. 

I was struck by the contrasting styles of architecture in these two buildings. The new and old New York.

I consider myself lucky to have friends in so many places around the artistic and creative community! It's through these connections that I was able to spend an afternoon at the Whitney Museum of American Art for free!

There were so many great pieces, but I couldn't resist this short of an installation on one of the many roofs of the museum. I love the way the colors fade and the contrast of the smaller squares inside of the larger ones. Something about those clean lines.

I don't remember when my fandom for Jeff Koons' work began, but whenever I get a chance to view some of his work, I take it. 

The 45-foot tall "Seated Ballerina" was installed right outside of 30 Rock on Rockefeller Plaza and unlike some of his other "balloon" pieces, this sculpture was actually made of nylon and not aluminium. From Koons' "Antiquity" series, the balloon was put up for a few months on the plaza.

As part of our team's diversity activities, we spent one afternoon at MOCA (Museum of Chinese in America) to attend their exhibition on Chinese food: Sour Sweet Bitter Spicy. I learned a lot at the exhibition about trying to make traditional Chinese food in America and how the various chefs decided to alter or keep the same their recipes for the public.

After watching several of the videos, I explored the rest of the museum and came upon this sign for "the Chinese question." In many ways, I think we've progressed so much as a Country, but it's also hard to deal with the everyday racism that takes place in my own life and many others like me. I just think about every time a cab driver asks me "where are you from?" and I say "Nebraska," which is never the answer they are looking for!

Yes, I understand that I'm a part of the problem. But the longer I live in NYC, the longer I understand the struggle. Over the past 7 years, my building has changed from young doctors working at the nearby hospital to almost all young 20-something's who can't afford to live in Williamsburg.

I was this graffiti on the side of a building in Downtown Brooklyn and couldn't resist taking a photo.

Sometimes you have to take a break from the office and sometimes that break leads you to Saks Fifth Avenue at Brookfield Place. Now, while I do enjoy looking at things I can't afford, I can't wait until the day that I have the amount of disposable income to buy whatever I want, whenever I want!

While wandering through the handbag department at Saks, I couldn't help but be drawn in by this display. The colors. The shapes. Right up my alley.

It's a tough world out there, and by that, I mean the NYC dating scene. I'm about ready to give up on regular dating sites...I've tried to go outside of my usual "type" and so, met up with a guy for some fish tacos at Los Mariscos.

Our conversation was fine and the food was good. but have I heard back from him since this date? Nope.

I intentionally tried to crop out all of the scaffolding and construction in the background. Some day, the building that was torn down in mid-2015 will turn into more luxury apartments and retail...

Until then, at least we've got some pretty blooms on the street.

Another great benefit of having a regular 9am-6pm, M-F job is being able to spend more time volunteering. So, not only did I finally get to work with BC/EFA, but I got the chance to work at Housing Works' Annual Design on a Dime event and act as a Room Ambassador.

So many people came out from the art, design & fashion communities! I got to work with a designer from a Miami shop, but my favorite room was the Nickelodeon room! You could'n't beat the giant "Happy Happy Joy Joy" neon sign, the orange "NICKELODEON" dog bone, framed art pieces of the faux taxidermy of Stimpy's Butt. 

For my first time at the 92nd Street Y, I got a ticket for "Ben Platt and Michael Greif in Conversation with Ira Glass."

Most of the crowd seemed to be there for Ben Platt, but I was also there for Michael Greif. Growing up in Nebraska, I read so much about his direction of RENT during it's inital run, I couldn't pass up the opportunity to see him in person.

I had the priviledge of getting to see Ben Platt perform as Evan Hansen during previews in the Fall and I'm excited to go back to see him in May, as part of my b-day week of Broadway with my friend, Katie.

Much has been said about his performance and how he's going to win the Tony Award for Best Actor in a Musical (nominations aren't even out yet), but he's almost a shoe-in. Ben talked about how he gets into character and the process of him coming to be involved with the show since it's inception with Pasek and Paul. It was easy to see how thousands of teenage girls (and boys) are quickly falling in love with him and this show!

In the last few years, the months of February-early June have been filled for me. Why, you might ask? Well, that's when all the new shows are opening on Broadway and vying for those late April Opening Days, so they can qualify for Awards Season; Outer Critics, Drama Desk and most importantly, the Tony Awards.

I didn't quite understand the concept/story of Come From Away, but when my "insider" sources said that it might be the dark horse of the season, I figured it couldn't hurt to see the show (plus, I'm a big fan of Jenn Collela). 

The show is based in the town of Gander, Newfoundland and around 9/11. When this small town more than doubled the size of their population as planes going into the US were being diverted. In a compact 90 minutes, the ensemble of the show morphs into the Newfoundlanders and the plane passengers; telling a multitude of stories.

In the basement of the theater, there's a map with small tags, where you can write where you're from; where did you "come from away." I thought about putting down Lincoln, Nebraska, but hesitated and found myself writing "Daegu, Korea" on my tag. Can you see it there?

After years of wanting to get involved with the Broadway Community, I finally was selected to help collect donations for Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS. I could almost recite the monologue: "Twice a year, the Broadway Community gathers to help those..."

I was very proud to hold a red bucket as shows released the masses out back into the real world. I got to help with collections at so many shows, including Waitress, HAMILTON, School of Rock, CATS, Kinky Boots and The Lion King. (Bonus: At The Lion King, there was a hyena mouth that you could "feed" with your donations!)

I can't wait for October, so I can do it all again...just maybe not 6 collections in one week. It was exhausting, but so fulfilling!

Admittedly, I don't end up in Soho as much as when I first moved to NYC. I found myself a little bored on a weekend and decided to wander through the shops.

After spending over a year working in the Noho Urban Outfitters, I felt it was time to take a walk through and see how the spaced had changed (yes, they remodeled and helped clear up their rampant rodent problem). 

I found this neon NY in the lower level, the Men's Department, where I had spent so many hours folding graphic tees, running to put stock out on the floor, coaching my team and keeping the stockroom running.

On my way back to the train, I spotted this boulder; usually used to help divert traffic in the Meatpacking District and to avoid pedestrians from getting run over, someone had etched this sad little face onto it.

My Mom seemed to think that it warranted a little boulder friend, maybe with a happy face.

The 2016-2017 theatre season seems to be when I see all sorts of Sondheim shows! The newly reopened Hudson Theatre is the home to Sunday in the Park with George and marks my first time seeing Jake Gyllenhaal in a musical.

Of course, I was also excited to see Ashley Park, Annaleigh Ashford and the rest of the cast, but I wanted to see if Jake could really sing live. Little did I know that I would also get to see him impersonate a dog; barking, rolling around on the floor and all.

This neon sign was in the lobby of the theatre.

Anyone who's known me since the mid-90's, knows that I have an obsession with artistic gymnastics. While I never was a gymnast, I've always found the sport fascinating. (My cousin even trained with Peggy Liddick for a stint in Nebraska!)

The last few years the American Cup (the biggest International annual meet held in the US) has been in the NYC area. So, I trekked to Newark, NJ on a Saturday morning to watch the new crop of US gymnasts compete for the title, it this post-Olympic year.

I knew that Ragan Smith would win easily, after all, she was an alternate on the 2016 Olympic Team and she's coached by Kim Zmeskal! I was very suprised by the Men's field and Yul Muldauer from Oklahoma, who blew away the competition.

While I will always miss the Perfect 10.0 scoring system, you can't beat the entertainment value of watching these athletes perform crazy stunts in any venue.

Oh, Cha Cha Matcha, how you get me! In a shop truly designed for the Millenial generation, you can get all sorts of matcha treats - iced or hot drinks, pastries, soft serve.

I love this pink neon sign in their shop!

Another great Incarcerated Jerkface piece! Storm Troopers and that spooky masked man from "V for Vendetta." This one went up on the wall outside of what used to be Lasso Pizza, the same place I got my Wu-Tang Care Bears photo.

While there were no sightings of Ben Stiller, I did have a good night at the museum. A little First Saturday, to see some great art and performances. I really should come out here more...

A trip to Do, Cookie Dough, near NYU was foiled by the cold, 40+ minute wait and our hungry stomachs. Jesse and I went to Favela Cubana across the street to get some brunch.

Now, while it took them almost 30 minutes to take our order and the table almost fell over on me, but at least the atmosphere made it feel like summer in Cuba!

Ever since I found Incarcerated Jerkface's Wu-Tang Care Bears mural in Nolita a few years ago, I have been an avid follower of his work. I didn't make it over for the Great Wakkorotti/Mickey Mouse wall, but was walking around in Williamsburg and it seemed like a good idea to see what was up at the former Grandma Roses spot.

I found that this would soon be a Sizzle Pie (by way of Portland, OR) and a fun Charlie Brown themed wall.

New Yorkers have been waiting decades for the completion of the 2nd Avenue Subway system and we might have to wait a little longer. However, on New Years Day, MTA opened up three new stations along the Q line; 96th/86th/72nd Street along 2nd Avenue, bringing a new way for thousands of New Yorkers to get to the Upper East Side.

Since this line did not really affect any of my travel plans, I went out of my way after work to see the new subway stops and to take a few photos.

I'm thankful that my boss understands my obsession with Broadway and Hamilton. On our weekly TB, we walked a little farther than normal to Trinity Church, so I could walk by Alexander Hamilton's grave. 

The popularity of the grave has only grown with the popularity of the musical. However, on this slightly gloomy day, there were not many visitors. And, oh yeah, Angelica and Eliza are here, too.

Just across from the Flatiron Building, there's a little cement area where NY Public Art Fund has rotating displays. This time, there were these amazing lighted arches with hammocks in them.

I didn't have time to relax in one, but the view of them against the Empire State Building in the dark night of the winter was too pretty to not capture.

The winter weather might have been warm for the season, but the lions outside the New York Public Library were already festive. I never know which one is Patience and which one is Fortitude, but they are always beautiful to look at.

This NYPL location will always be that scene from Sex and the City, the movie, where Carrie's wedding doesn't take place. If only I had been there on shooting day. I would have loved to have seen the ladies in all those Zac Posen dresses!

Local businesses and groups were encouraged to build some public art sculptures through the use of canned goods. These sculptures were put on display throughout Brookfield Place, so during lunch, we walked over to check some of them out.

I thoroughly enjoyed "Vincent Can Gogh" by Silman, which won for "Best Meal." Proceeds and the canned goods were donated to City Harvest after the exhibition.

Post-2016 Election, New Yorkers were looking for a way to have our voices heard. People were walking around as if in a cloud or haze. Subway Therapy emerged (http://www.subwaytherapy.com/about/) as a way for us all to connect. Piles of post-it notes and markers. Write whatever you were feeling.

I loved walking to work and seeing this messages of hope and inspiration. We will get through this together.

Before I went to see "Party People" at the Public Theater, I had a bit of time to kill. Above their lobby was a little seating area and hanging on the walls were photographs of the Original Broadway Cast of Hamilton, taken by Josh Lehrer with a camera from the 19th Century.

The photos were up for sale (which I couldn't afford), but I loved looking at the diversity of the cast and the uniqueness of each photo. 

Here you can see Okieriete "Oak" Onaodowan (Hercules Mulligan/James Madison), Jasmine Cephas Jones (Peggy Schuyler/Maria Reynolds), Christopher Jackson (George Washington) and Andrew Chappelle (Swing) along one side of the wall.

While Dad was watching a video about "The Big Bang," I wandered around the Rose Center for Earth and Space. Even though I had been to the American Museum of Natural History a few times, I had never been in the earth and space wing.

Seeing this structure from the inside was mesmerizing, as I had only seen it in the nighttime from the outside.

After living in the city for almost 7 years, there are onlry a few "touristy" things left that I haven't done. Even though Dad had already been to the Empire State Building, I insisted that we go together.

I got the tickets ahead of time and we had to postpone our trip a few days, after his flight got delayed and he arrived Friday morning vs. Thursday night. 

So, on Sunday afternoon, we went to the see the view from the observatory deck. (After dropping off all my Broadway Flea Market wares at home.) It was a gorgeous day and you could really see from all directions of the observation deck. We didn't go up to the 102nd floor observation area, but still had a great experience and even got a cheesy souvenir photo, as I knew Mom would love it. (Even if it wasn't a printed, "real" photo.)

Every year, I try to go early to the Broadway Flea Market. All the proceeds go to Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS (BC/EFA) and you can walk away with some great Broadway and theatre memorabilia. 

Last year, I had to run up to Times Square on my break, but I got a signed windowcard from the entire Original Broadway Cast of Hamilton! (Needless to say, I'm gonna hang onto that one for awhile.) 

This year, the Flea Market happened to coincide with Dad's visit to NYC, so I brought time along with me. He walked around with me through a few booths before he agreed that we should meet up later.

I found some great programs, souvenirs and a photo with Geneva Carr from Hand to God. All in all, a successful trip to the flea!

Dad wanted to see the 9/11 Memorial, so we ventured downtown. I had to bring him through the Oculus structure near WTC One.

After dim sum with my Dad and a few friends, we were walking through Chinatown and Soho, when I spotted this graffiti. My old roommate, Dexter, used to always turn the "Peanut Butter/Jelly Time" song into other things like "Peanut Butter/Shower Time" or "Peanut Butter/Pizza Time!"

I was amused.

The 15th Anniversary of September 11th. Every year, the city light's up the sky with giant blue beams to represent the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center.

Leaving work, which was also my 5 year anniversary with Madewell, I had to stop and take this photo from down the block.

One of my other favorite rooms at 29Rooms was this ball pit/interactive room spg onsored by Perrier. You could write down something that makes you unique  and toss a ball into the pit. I wrote "being true to myself, no matter what others say/think."

It took me a long time to get to this place, but I still worry about what others think about me from time to time. But after being made fun of for so many years in middle school and high school, I finally learned to own my nerdiness - boy bands, theatre, pop culture; you name it. I wear it as a badge of honor now.

Last year, Refinery29 had setup an interactive art installation called 29Rooms. Apparently, the lines were insane and you had to wait hours to get in. So, this year, I saw that they were being moved to a warehouse space near my apartment and I agreed to meet up with my friend, Ashley, and get in line early.

One of my favorite rooms was the RuPaul "Wig Room," where some of Ru's wigs were setup like salon hair dryers and you could sit underneath them and "try" them on.

Post-Mets game, Emily and I walked through Corona Park, including the US Open, towards the Unisphere. Emily's always been into the World's Fair and wanted to walk by this structure. 

We convinced some tourists to take our photo and the rest is history!

Emily FINALLY convinced me to go to a Mets game with her and guess who was throwing the first pitch; Laurie Hernandez!!! This gymnastics-loving girl could not have been happier! (Of course, the game was also featuring a Chinese dance group...it's like they knew I was coming to this game!)

I don't know much about baseball, so Emily had to teach me, but I did enjoy the copious amounts of stadium food; one of my favorite parts of sporting events! First Mets game: mission accomplished!

I was lucky enough to have a Thursday evening off work, so my friend/co-worker, Christopher and I met up at Metropolitan Bar in Brooklyn for the RuPaul's Drag Race: All-Stars 2 viewing party with Thorgy Thor and Ragamuffin.

When Thorgy came out, I was immediately gagging over her birthday cake outfit, complete with a pink feather/frosting plume hat! Thorgy & Ragamuffin provided hilarious commentary during commercials and it was a great way to watch the show, surrounded by fellow allies.

Story (This Is Story) is a super cool concept store in Chelsea. Each month or so, they change the concept of the store and house new product in a single theme. For the late summer, they adopted a 90's theme featuring loads of Nickelodeon and NickToons!

Of course, I tried to not spend all my money there; but I couldn't resist a Spice Girls pouch, boy band book and this photo of the Double Dare podium! If only I could have been Marc Summers!

To celebrate the premiere of RuPaul's Drag Race: All-Stars 2, Logo TV partnered up with Big Gay Ice Cream and was serving up free ice cream near Madison Square Park. Yes, it was hot out, but luckily, I knew the right people in the right places and was able to get near the front of the line, after my physical therapy session.

Only a few of the queens showed up: Phi Phi O'Hara (who was in boy drag/isn't doing drag anymore), Detox and Coco Montrese. I don't know how their faces weren't melting off in the heat, but I appreciated them showing up and for the cup of free ice cream!

I probably picked one of the hottest days this summer to go wandering around downtown. My other mistake: thinking Seamore's opened at 11am for brunch, but they actually didn't open until 11:30am. Those 20 minutes walking around Nolita were pretty damn hot. I was pleasantly sweaty by the time I got to the restaurant.

I had only been to Seamore's one time before and it was for dinner, so it was harder to see the interior of the restaurant. Since I showed up just after opening, it was easy to get a seat and this awesome shot.

I may have lived in this neighborhood for almost 7 years and walked by this school numerous times, but it was only when I took a detour down another street that I saw this map of the United States.

Of course, I had to stop and pay tribute to my home state. You can take the girl out of Nebraska, but you can't take the Nebraska out of the girl!

It was my first time in the new Barneys New York in Chelsea, much prettier than their previous location that was sometimes turned into the space for the Warehouse Sale. The architects, Steven Harris, really took the time to make sure the store was gorgeous. 

As I walked up the staircase, I knew I wanted to get a photo from the top floor - easy Instagram fodder. I didn't know that when I got upstairs, I would run into one of my former sales associates from Urban Outfitters, where he was working in Men's Shoes. A pleasant surprise, even if they didn't have the Comme des Garcons Converse sneakers in my size.

Just a cool shot of the Thunderbolt marquee on a really clear day in Brooklyn. 

Yup. Two days after my first venture out to Coney Island for Fifth Harmony, I found myself back at the Ford Amphitheater to see New Kids on the Block with Christina! After hearing that NKOTB were only going to do a show at Hershey Park for the Mixtape Festival, I was a little disappointed that I wouldn't get a chance to see the boys this year. However, at the last minute they announced a one night only performance at Coney Island (the sight of the "Please Don't Go Girl" music video) and of course, being the Blockheads that were are, Christina & I HAD to go!

Before the show, we walked around Coney Island and stumbled upon the Art Walls. I took a lot of photos, but this one stuck out to me the most - "Everything is shit, except you love." Seems appropriate for NYC.

When the new Ford Amphitheater reopened at Coney Island, I found that many of the concerts and shows I wanted to see were there. So, I made the long trek from Bushwick to Coney Island to see Fifth Harmony.

Walking down the boardwalk after the show, everything was lit up and I couldn't resist taking a few photos of the rides in Luna Park.

After seeing the New York Spring Spectacular and the Christmas Spectacular, I wasn't that stoked about seeing the Summer show until I heard that Mia Michaels had choreographed the show! I'm always up for some Mia work and there were so many of my favorite dancers in the show, so it was an easy choice for a Sunday matinee show once TodayTix listed it.

I was super impressed with the dancing, especially the fashion/Vogue number since it featured so many handsome men shirtless in blazers hitting all their marks full out! (How could I NOT  watch Jakob Karr during this whole piece!?) 

The story wasn't the strongest and Lilla Crawford (who I loved in Annie and Into the Woods), was super annoying in this show. But over all, well worth my $40.

After my visit to the Jewish Museum, I grabbed a quick lunch at the Russ & Daughters Cafe inside the museum and went for a walk around Central Park. 

Any time I walk by the reservoir, I can't help but think about one of my favorite songs from one of my favorite musicals. "The Next Ten Minutes" from The Last Five Years and how Cathy & Jamie sing while walking through the park and he proposes to her.

After seeing Unzipped in college, I was fascinated with Isaac Mizrahi as a designer. My mom, being obsessed with QVC, of course, was constantly telling me that he had a exhibit at the Jewish Museum and how she wished she could see it. So, I spent one of my days off viewing this exhibition: "Isaac Mizrahi - An Unruly History."

There were so many fascinating pieces, including this one - "Elevator Pad Gown" from Spring 2005. The bodice was made from grosgrain ribbon and the skirt was made from quilted silk and lambswool, but made to look like a moving blanket or elevator pad.

There were also pieces from his Nanook of the North-inspired collection, as featured in Unzipped, sketches, pieces from performance work and many other collections. Although the total exhibition was quite small, it was amazing seeing these pieces of his work up close.

While at brunch with some old and new friends, I spotted these bottles filled with colored water and couldn't help but take a photo. 

And, yes, they reminded me of the colors of the Romanian flag. (And my thoughts: too bad Romania didn't qualify a full team to the Olympics this year for Women's Gymnastics!)

After being in kind of a funk through most of July, it was great to get out and about in the city again. While I was near Rockefeller Center, I stopped to check out this latest installation from the Public Art Fund.

By Elmgreen & Dragset, this steel, fiberglass, stainless steel & light model of a swimming pool on it's side, and an interpretation of Vincent Van Gogh's ear.

I spent my weekend off at the beach with a few friends. This was my 3rd time at the beach this summer and the most I've ever been to the beach in all my years in NYC.

At least this time I wasn't super sad and enjoyed the time trying to get tan and to cover up the sunburn on the back of my legs. 

When I hang out with my friend, Emily, we like to say they are "Emily Squared" adventures, even if we generally both go by our last names around our friends.

So, this day, when Caitlin & Emily were cheering me up, post-breakup, I spotted this "EMILY" carved into the sidewalk just down the street from my apartment. It seemed like a good place for a photo op.

After a long day at Brighton Beach with some friends, we met up in Ridgewood for some food and drinks at Nowadays. It was the perfect summer day - we talked about work, boys, theatre and even chatted with my Dad, so Emily could thank him for his extra Hamilton ticket she got to use in April.

As the sunset, we couldn't help but all take a photo of the vivid colors. Maybe this sunset was sponsored by Pantone, as the colors of the year are almost a perfect match for this sky.

Ever since the Empire State Building changed to LED lighting, I've always loved walking into/out of work and seeing what colors the facade would be lit up in.

During NYC Pride almost every color gets used for the rainbow, which only makes me feel happy! With all those colors, how could you not feel cheery?

Who knew that you would ever find me at a garage punk band show? Well, I was dating a guy in a band...yeah, that's cliche, right? His band, Super FM, was a part of the lineup for Pizza Fest 3 in Brooklyn, put on by their record label, King Pizza Records.

So, yes, I chose to spend my day off at this venue listening to bands and hanging out with straight boys for once...

After dinner and ice cream with Emily W., we were walking back to the train and saw this cute little guy! He was posted up on some boards covering up a construction site.

Every now and then, the sunset aligns with the city grid of streets, which is called "Manhattanhenge." Everyone rushes out in the street to try and catch the best photo for their Instagram, Snapchat or whatever. I just happened to be closing the store and taking out trash when it was happening, so I caught this photo looking West on 19th Street.

Now, you would not usually find me inside of a sporting goods or athletic store. But when my high school friend, Carrie, was in town with some friends from Los Angeles, we swung by Niketown in Midtown.

I wasn't that interested in the products, but this sculpture of Michael Jordan's "Air Jordan" logo made up of replicas of shoes was pretty damn awesome.

On my walk across the bridge, I also found this guy. My best friend, Jenn, has a 5-year-old son who is obsessed with Pacman; I had to stop and take a photo to share with her.

On a day off from work, I had some time to kill and was already in Williamsburg. I was already a good walk from any MTA station, so it seemed like a good idea to just walk the 1.5 miles over the Williamsburg bridge and into the city.

After lunch in Williamsburg, I walked by this little sticker on a fire hydrant and had to stop and take a photo. It reminded me a little bit of the milk carton in a Blur music video for "Coffee & TV," but the animated face is what got my attention.

After having brunch in the neighborhood, I walked by this mural. The colors and creature caught my eye. The only note was "Wonderpuss Octopus" in the lower right hand corner. I haven't seen another piece by this artist, but maybe I'll walk by one soon.

Sometimes your boss sees a pet carrier and peeks inside...and it's Grumpy Cat! I was working on something in the office, when Melissa came running back to grab her phone. She had looked at a customer's carrier and saw Grumpy Cat and wanted to get a photo. 

Pretty much all of us did. A great way to spice up a super-slow day in May!

Yes, I voted. My polling place is only one block away from my apartment and generally, there isn't a big line. I also like that they have a Chinese interpreter available...something you'd never see in Nebraska.

A sculpture installation on one of the observation decks at the Whitney Museum of American Art.

"Black Star," 2014 by Frank Stella. Made of carbon fiber. And, yes, there's no filter on this photo.

Another great day-off activity in the city; walking along the High Line. Elevated train tracks that have been converted into a garden, outdoor space, tourist trap.

Here's a view of the Standard High Line Hotel and a bit of the walkway, as seen from the deck of the Whitney Museum.

One of the most interesting pieces I saw at the Whitney Museum was this set of paintings by Byron Kim. Entitled "Synecdoche" and made in 1961, Bryon painted each panel to match the skin tone of his friends and fellow artists. These are only 40 of the 400 panels that he created.

This also makes me happy that Crayola now has crayons and markers in various skin colors; something that wasn't available when I was a kid.

I walked by this broken neon sign in the West Village and had to stop and take a photo. 

During my first visit to the new Whitney Museum, I saw this installation of cords & lights. Hung up inside the stairwell, it was a "bright idea" and instantly Instagram fodder.

Usually when I walk by this 99 Cents store the doors are already rolled up. However, when I had to be at work by 7am, I caught this little graffiti-ed seal on one of their grates.

A little neon sign on the way downstairs towards Genuine Liquorette, in the basement of Genuine Superette. The vintage newspapers and magazine ads are the best!

Even if it's a little bit of a farther walk, I'd rather go to the Dig Inn on 23rd and Madison Ave, than 17th and Broadway. Even the decor inside is more compelling, as shown in their benches and herringbone paneling.

New-ish "Greetings from Chinatown" mural, featuring neighborhood staples like Nom Wah Tea Parlour and Chinatown Ice Cream Factory. 

The gorgeous Hearst Tower home to many magazines like Marie Claire and Cosmopolitan. I've never been inside, but it reminds me of Project Runway, Johanna Coles and Nina Garcia.

After brunch with Lily in the East Village, I had to stop and take a photo of this mural outside of Root & Bone. 

The cutest kitties doing some bad things...

http://dirtgerms.tumblr.com

I didn't walk into this space, but I was intrigued by the dimensions on the storefront.

From what I gather, it's a rotating art space - Storefront for Art and Architecture on 97 Kenmare Street. Whatever it is, it sure looks cool.

Another great part of living in NYC is all the street art and Instagram fodder that's popping up. Hansky has been making pop culture inspired art for years and I'm always amused when I find a new piece.

This one is down in Soho, off of Kenmare & Mulberry. 

Before heading to Philadelphia to work at the Flower Show, I met up with some co-workers, old and new, to celebrate Aly's birthday! Daryn arrived with an armful of PARTY balloons and we took up most of the back patio.

I managed to capture some of the balloons in this photo, which could explain how some of us felt after the restaurant charged us a bunch of money for people who didn't even eat at this "bottomless brunch."

When one of my best friends moved to Jackson Heights, I found myself taking the L to the G to the 7 to get to her apartment. The best part is when the train runs above ground and you get to see spectacular views of the city, like this one at Court Square.

I will never get tired of looking at the plaza on Lincoln Center! Ever since I saw Center Stage, it always seemed magical to me. Even when New York Fashion Week moved to Lincoln Center from Bryant Park, I just pictured Jodie Sawyer dancing to "The Way You Make Me Feel" in her pointe shoes and telling Peter Gallagher what's up.

I took this photo before heading to a concert of The Secret Garden featuring Sydney Lucas, one of my favorite Broadway actresses/singer's from Fun Home and Sierra Boggess, from School fo Rock, It Shoulda Been You, Phantom of the Opera and The Little Mermaid.

While I was grabbing at meal at House of Small Wonder in Williamsburg, I noticed that their condiment station was made of an old phone operator's desk. 

Especially cool, since most of the hipsters in this area of Brooklyn are hardly old enough to remember rotary phones, landlines or even a time when an operator was necessary.

Each February, the NYC Public Art Fund brings some sort of heart/love-themed installation to Times Square. Just South of the TKTS Booth, I usually get a chance to see it a few times before I head off to shows during the month.

This month's installation featured a lot of mirrored surfaces, cut into hearts and perfect for taking a selfie or photo with your loved one. If only I wasn't alone...

After grabbing dim sum at Nom Wah Tea Parlour with a few friends, we strolled through the streets of Chinatown. Since the Chinese New Year celebration was only a few days earlier, there was still plenty of confetti around. 

Somehow, this staircase full of it caught my eye.

Ever since I saw Travis Wall on the 2nd Season of So You Think You Can Dance, I've been a fan of his projects. So, naturally when his dance troupe with Nick Lazzarini, Teddy Forance and Kyle Robinson came to NYC, I HAD to go!

This was my third time seeing their performance, but with Jaimie Goodwin out because of a knee injury, it was fresh, watching their new female lead, Mallauri Esquibel perform!

I met up with some co-workers on a Saturday night for dinner & drinks. After some drinks at a nearby bar, we were thinking about going to Royal Palms for some shuffleboard. Then we realized how long it would take to get there from Williamsburg and opted for dinner a Extra Fancy, instead.

Plus, this sign is pretty awesome.

On my way into work, I couldn't help taking a photo of the snow covered park. It's such a contrast to the usually crowded, bustling park.

After seeing an evening show of The Lion King, I stopped to look out the windows of the Minksoff Theatre and into Times Square. It's hard to remember that only a few years ago, this part of Times Square was the home of MTV and my obsession with TRL.

Now, all you can see is the empty storefront of what used to be Toys 'R Us.

I'm not usually a salad person, but everyone at work was raving about sweetgreen, when they opened up a location just a block away from the store. They have some great salad (or "greens") options & lots of grain bowls.

I was pleasantly surprised with my first meal and this gorgeous wall of fruits & vegetables.

I lucked out in January when the only day that I was opening, was the day that I won 4 free tickets to "Late Night with Seth Meyers!" So, I rounded up some friends and we went to a taping.

Sadly, I wasn't that excited about any of the guests, but it was a fun experience! Jeffrey even got a cigar from JB Smoove's Birthday Party, when he handed them out to the crowd.

The best way to spend my weekend off for January, at the FIRST EVER BroadwayCon! After traversing the cold and crowds, I got my gift bag, complete with BroadwayCon Playbill and headed on my way to the first event of the day.

Check out the Travel section of this blog for more information on my experiences at BroadwayCon!

One of the perks of working for a cool company and being at the Flagship Store, is the chance for fun events! On this evening, we hosted author, Sloane Crosley, for a reading of her newest book and first novel, The Clasp at our store.

I got to meet Sloane (which was super cool, since I've read her previous books of short stories) and host the party with almost 50 people in attendance. I even got a copy of the book, which she signed for me.

I've always loved a delicious fried egg, so when this art installation started showing up all over Instagram, I knew I HAD to go.

Christopher Chiappa's "Livestrong" installation at the Kate Werble Gallery featured 7,000 handmade egg sculptures made of plaster. Each egg was unique and even their yolks were different colors. Some were the same as Lance Armstrong's LIVESTRONG movement bracelets, some were more orange and there was even one neon yellow yolk, if you could find it.

In my opinion, there's no better way to wrap up the Christmas season in NYC than to attend a Christmas themed drag show with the queens from RuPaul's Drag Race!

Chad Michaels/Cher was the host and the show featured performances from many of my favorite queens like Adore Delano, Pandora Boxx, Detox, Courtney Act, Milk and Manila Luzon.

The show started relatively late, but the fun performances and energy of the crowd made up for the late start.

One of my favorite holiday windows this season, this blown glass sculpture in the Barneys New York on Madison Ave. Of course, I'm a big Dale Chihuly fan, after seeing one of his restrospectives in Omaha when I was in high school, but these sculptures really looked like icicles!

This piece was called "Winter Brilliance" and was a part of the BNY Chill Out theme.

Tempestt, Ellie and I were in Tsum Tsum heaven, when Target created a fun, interactive shopping experience and play place in Chelsea called Target Wonderland! We got candy, lots of photos, made our own ornaments and took Ellie into her first ball pit.

However, the highlight was the giant Tsum Tsum wall, where we were able to stick our faces with all of the cute, cuddly plush toys from Disney. Can you find us all?

A former coworker of mine really wanted to go and see the Radio City Christmas Spectacular, but after seeing the spring show, I wasn't so sure.

I was able to get us cheap tickets on TodayTix, so I figured "Why not?" Then, she got stuck at work last minute and I was desperately trying to find a friend to go with me. Luckily, I found someone to go and we actually had a great time!

The highlight for me was watching the Rockettes' super sychronized dancing, tapping, etc. Then, dressed as toy soldiers, they executed this beautiful line and toppled over perfectly. I can't imagine what it must be like at the back of the line, just waiting for everyone else to start falling. You've got to have strong arm muscles for that!

Each year I've been in NYC, I always go to see the Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree and the windows on 5th Avenue. There's nothing like seeing the tree in person, even if it means shuffling and wrestling my way through all the crowds for just a moment.

Grabbing a soy mocha on my way into work and Variety is all decked out for the Holidays.

After a little post-Black Friday treat, I had to stop and take a photo of One World Trade Center in the nighttime light. It's these little moments where I almost forget I live in the city, then I just look up.

Whenever I have extra time on my break at work, I like to stroll around the shops in the area. You can imagine my excitement when I walked by the Fishs Eddy window and saw these "Dueling Shots" of Alexander Hamilton and Aaron Burr.

True, I'm not a drinker or a shot taker, but these were too good to not buy. I did not throw away these shots!

When my friend posted a picture of her infront of this graffiti wall, I KNEW I had to go and do the same.

Thankfully, a friend from high school was in town for a visit and obliged my wish and nailed my High School Musical inspired jump shot!

Even though I haven't seen this Disney short from Frozen, I still think these little snowmen are adorable! Now, if only they came in a plush toy...

At a friend's engagement party, this "No Smoking" sign amused me. Sorry, Papa Smurf...you're not allowed at this bar.

Some interactive art from the Flatiron/23rd Street Partnership. This one was "Nova" by SOFTlab. The iridescent mirrored surfaces allowed viewers to interact with the art and to take lots of photos to post on social media. Can you find me?

Just happened to be walking by the New York Public Library, when I noticed all the colors of the flowers in bloom. 

On my Brooklyn walking adventure, I passed by this painting on the back of the Free People store in Park Slope. I had to stop, because the colors and design were so cool.

As I was walking through Brooklyn, I had to stop and snap a photo of this family's stoop. It kind of makes me wish I had my own front lawn, porch to decorate. 

But, alas, I'm not that rich, nor do I want to leave the city.

I'm pretty sure I just want this display piece at Aritzia for my own apartment.

After grabbing some soup dumplings with friends, we stopped into one of the giant shopping centers in Flushing. There just happend to be a Tony Moly store with this adorable display of panda moisturizer!

Nothing like a bowl of hot noodles or curry on a cold day. I met up with my friend, Whitney, on a day off work. I love that this place is only a 10 minute walk from my apartment and that they have great food and a cool interior space.

All year, we've been partnering with Blue Jeans Go Green at Madewell. As a big city-wide denim donation drive, we parked a truck infront of the store and asked customers to bring in their old jeans to be recycled. In turn, we gave them a discount on a new pair of jeans for each old pair they brought in.

The old jeans are then recycled through Blue Jeans Go Green and are used as insulation in houses, usually built through Habitat for Humanity. I didn't get to stand outside with the truck, but it definitely made for a fun day at work!

Let's be real, I'm probably part of this pheomenon. But the recyclingn plant/building next to my apartment has been leveled to make way for some new luxury condos and this was spray painted on the wall.

After some soup dumplings at Joe's Shanghai, my friend, Tempestt & I, went to MoMA with her daugher, Ellie. While wandering around in one the galleries, we found this "infinity room" and figured it was the perfect spot for a photo. Luckily, Ellie complied.

For a few weeks, the Bedford L Train Station was outfitted in lots of #denimmadewell #everydaymadewell ads.

Funny how when I started with Madewell, we hardly advertised at all. Now, look at us. 

Even on a cloudy day, you can #SeeForever, as the WTC Observatory wants you believe. 

I wasn't sure when I would make it to the WTC Observatory, but when a visiting friend offered to pay, how could I refuse? The elevator ride alone was crazy; over 100 stories in about a minute! I felt my ears pop, for sure. 

One of my favorite things to do in September is to hit up the Broadway Flea Market & Grand Auction. For one Sunday in September, each Broadway show sets up a booth in Shubert Alley and Times Square to sell merchandise & memorabilia for Broadway Cares Equity Fights AIDS (BCEFA).

This year, I wasn't able to take the whole day off, so I printed off a map of all the booths and ran uptown on my lunch break. Not only did I see a few of my favorite stars, but I was able to score some great deals, all for a great cause. My best find: a window card signed by the entire Original Broadway Cast of HAMILTON!!!

Sometimes I take for granted that I live/work so close to public art in the city. While on a break from work, I walked up towards Madison Square Park and found this installation.

As a way of showing off artists from Singapore, several interactive installations were put up in Madison Square Park for Singapore: Inside Out. 

The lighting in this cube changed colors and patterns. I wish I could have waited for the sun to have set for a bit, so the colors would have shown up brighter.

Before I went to see The King & I, for the second time, I stopped into Moore Food & Drink, next to the Empire Hotel for a quick snack.

On the way out, I noticed this really cool glass bubble chandelier and couldn't resist taking a photo.

Imagine my suprise when I was walking through the Union Square MTA Station and found Nick Jonas to greet me! Fox was going all out to promote Scream Queens and Nick is playing a fraternity bro for a few episodes. I can't wait to see what this show is all about!

On a random day, after work, I gathered with some past and present co-workers for some drinks and grub on Pier 66 off the Hudson River. 

Although the view was cool, the swaying of the boat, since we were actually on the water; wasn't the best for my motion sickness.

In one of my favorite scenes of Jason Robert Brown's The Last Five Years, Jamie (Jeremy Jordan) takes Cathy (Anna Kendrick) to the gazebo in Central Park. Actually know as the "Ladies Pavilion," Jamie proposes to Cathy in this scene.

Of course, when I found myself with some time to kill in Central Park, I had to go in search of the gazebo. If only Jeremy Jordan had been there to sing to me..."Will you share your life with me for the next ten minutes?"

Sometimes I have to take advantage of a nice day in the city. This day, I decided to sit outside the Flatiron Building and enjoy my lunch. The people watching is great out here!

While I was waiting for the train to head into work, I saw this new sticker on the subway platform. Maybe it's an ad for the company, Captain Baby, but it's the first Kim Jong Sun version that I've seen.

When Jonelle & I were on the way to see Finding Neverland as a park of her "NYC Bucket List," we walked through Times Square. I noticed that three of my favorite things: Hedwig and the Angry Inch, Spring Awakening and Neil Patrick Harris were all on the same billboard cluster. Of course, I had to stop and take a photo!

After our ride on the Staten Island Ferry, we spotted this carousel glowing in the dark. It wasn't on Jonelle's "NYC Bucket List," but for $5, how can you resist!?

After a little over a 30 minute wait, we each climed into our own translucent fish. Each was equipped with their own sound system, so as the fish moved up and down, the rider received a full surround-sound experience. 

Before my friend, Jonelle, moved back to her hometown of Columbus, Ohio, we set out to complete her "NYC Bucket List." The Staten Island Ferry was on that list. 

We rode the Ferry from the Whitehall Terminal in Manattan to the St. George Terminal in Staten Island. Of course, on the other side was a quick stop at Dairy Queen for a chicken finger basket & Blizzard.

While I was waiting for the TKTS Booth in Brooklyn to open, I wandered around the MetroTech Plaza. There was a new Public Art Fun installation called "The Truth is..."/"In Search of the Truth" with several thought bubbles with statements that were then translated into other languages. 

This one reminded me of Meredith Grey's statement to Dr. Shephard in Grey's Anatomy, back when I used to watch the show:

"Pick Me. Choose Me. Love Me."

While I was waiting for a date, who never showed up, I stood by the glass railing at the Time Warner Center/Shops at Columbus Circle. 

It was a great people watching spot and I kinda wondered how they got that Tesla into the shopping center...

When I was walking through the East Village, I saw this old glass pane on the street. You can always find interesting things in the city.

When my friend told me that Sanrio was opening up a pop-up location in Times Square, of course I had to go! It's a great way to kil time before seeing a show and they have some pretty cute things. After being crushed when the store on 42nd Street closed, it was fun to stop into this shop and grab some Hello Kitty/NYC themed toys and trinkets.

A few years ago, I was surprised to learn that a college classmate of mine, Amanda Valentine, was going to be on Project Runway. We never got a chance to meet up when she was in the city, since the show took up all of her time, but she came back for a two day pop-up shop in NYC, so I had to stop by before I left for a quick trip to Devner.

I got a chance to meet some of the other designers that were there too; Joseph Aaron Segal, Samantha Black, Sonjia Williams and Layana Aguilar. I walked away with a shirt from Joseph Aaron's Pretty Snake line and a t-shirt with Amanda's classic pyramid eye print on it.

Well, the whole building is almost gone now. They've even cleared out the debris. 

It's a bit odd to me that we're talking about changing who is on the $10 bill, just as Hamilton is taking off on Broadway! What will #Ham4Ham be without Hamilton on the $10? How can we say "the 10-dollar Founding Father without a Father?"

Whatever happens, I did love this Fish's Eddy window featuring prominent women in U.S. History as suggestions for the update. 

Selena Quintanilla. Gilda Radner. Shirley Chisholm. Joan Rivers. Bea Arthur. Little Edie Beale. Maya Angelou. Elaine Stritch. Donna Summer. 

As a fan of Haruki Murakami's books and vivid stories, I was anxious to see how the Ninagawa Company from Japan would imagine his book "Kafka on the Shore" into a live action play.

I was not prepared for 3+ hours of subtitles, but the imagery was beautiful! However, the talking cats that were played by humans were a bit strange. I did appreciate how all the scenery was displayed in glass cases, which were rolled into and out of the stage. The actors were free to move in and out of the scenery as they were moving, which helped keep up with Murakami's storytelling, as it shifted from character to character and place to place.

I took this photo in the lobby, before going into take my seat.

As Bushwick quicly becomes the new place for hipsters to live, gentrification is quickly changing the neighborhood. I've only lived here for about 5 1/2 years and numerous buildings on my block have changed over several times.

Today, I noticed that part of the old recycling plant that used to be up the street from me has been knocked down and barricaded off. I wonder how long it will take them to demolish this whole row of buildings to make way for a new "luxury" apartment building?

On the way to see Taylor Swift's 1989 World Tour in East Rutherford, New Jersey. I made Emily take a photo of this bridge, since it looked so cool and there was hardly any traffic on our way to MetLife Stadium.

As a lover of dance, I was excited to see Derek & Julianne Hough for the second time with their "Move! Live on Tour" show, but this time at Radio City Music Hall! 

There was some familiar choreography from Dancing with the Stars, but also some fun, new routines featuring a set of dancers from last year's tour and some new; a lot of the dancers are now in the troupe on DWTS.

My favorite routine's were Derek & Julianne's "Elastic Heart" by Sia, which they won an Emmy for and their routine to Nastia Liukin's floor exercise music, which Derek performed with Nastia on last season's DWTS. However, it was a little weird when they started singing...that I could have done without.

On a day off, I met up with Tempestt and Ellie for a stroll through Central Park. There was no line at the Carousel, so we decided to go for a ride. 

I took this shot inside of one of the little chariots. I was amazed by the intricate craftsmanship and details!

The window at Fish's Eddy in the Flatiron District. A week after Pride in NYC and after the Supreme Court approved same sex marriage in all 50 states! 

Sometimes, I have to be at work before the rest of the city wakes up. It's nice to have the streets to yourself, even if it's only for a moment or two.

After an afternoon of walking around in Williamsburg, I decided to sit for a moment in the greenspace along the East River. 

On my way to grab a meal in Williamsburg, I stumbled upon this little cat, that had been engraved into the sidewalk.

While walking to the grocery store, I saw this new piece of art. There was a Richie Rich theme to the wall, but I was intrigued by the painted trash bins, covered in dollar bills. Also, the trash bag sticking out of the corner of the bin that still matched the art.

Yoko Ono had a feature exhibition when I was at MoMA, so I went to wander around in the installations. There was a recently finished interactive piece called "To See the Sky," where you could walk up a spiral staircase to a glass ceiling and look out over the museum's rooftop.

The staircase moved as you walked up it, creating a bit of fun and a bit scay experience. 

"To See the Sky," 2015. Clear-coated tempered steel staircase.

On a day off, I decided to browse the galleries at MoMA. I finally bought a year-long membership, so it's been really easy to pop into the museum whenever I'm in the area. 

While in the Painting & Sculpture Gallery, I found this painting by one of my favorite artists, Takashi Murakami

"727," 1996. Synthetic polymer paint on vancas board, three panels.

The exterior of the Empire State Building changes colors to celebrate various occassions in the city. When I left work on the day of the Pride Parade, it was lit up in an array of rainbow colors.

#LoveWon

Right after the US Supreme Court ruled that same-sex marriage was legal across the United States, the city was in a wonderful mood. The energy as you walked around the streets during Pride Weekend could be felt everywhere. 

On my way to a friend's going away party, I walked by the Stonewall Inn, a historic site in the LGBT community. Even with the rain, there were pleny of people gathered outside and a few lingering news crews too.

This painted van is usually parked across from my apartment building. I was immediately drawn to the faces and colors all over it's surface.

While Jenn was in town, we walked all over the city. We took a short break in Central Park to sit on the lawn and people watch in the semi-hot summer sun. We found a patch of shade to relax in, before continuing on our journey.

Jenn lived in NYC during the 9/11 attacks of 2001 and she had never seen the new buildings and memorial. We didn't go into the museum, but it was still an emotional experience.

There were some clouds in the sky, but I was still able to capture this photo of the newly opened One World Trade. I still have yet to go into the Observatory, but the building gets me every time.

While Jenn & I were waiting for our table at Russ & Daughters Cafe, I saw this old storefront for S. Beckenstein Fabrics. The store had since moved to the Flatiron District, just blocks away from where I work, but the advertisements on the building still remained. 

I love finding these old storefronts and seeing what they have changed into, just one of the many astonishing things in the city.

On our way to breakfast at Russ & Daughters, I stumbled upon this piece of art by @bradleytheodore. The colors caught my eye first, then I realized that it was a painting of Karl Lagerfeld, which made it even better.

My best friend, Jenn, came to visit and on Saturday night, we went out to visit her college friend, Jared, while he was bartending at Industry in Hell's Kitchen.

I love going to gay bars (probably a big reason why I'm still single), but the energy is great and there's always great music. For instance, on this night, two boys broke out in the entire choreography from *NSYNC's "It's Gonna Be Me," then the DJ blasted some "Worth It" by Fifth Harmony and I was in heaven.

After missing out on the last interactive Yayoi Kusama exhibit, I wanted to make it to her "Obliteration Room" presentation in Chelsea. I went a few days before it closed and after about a 45 minute wait in the heat, was handed a sheet of brightly colored dot stickers. 

What started out as a white washed studio apartment setting had been turned into a brightly colored and layered interactive exhibit. Coming so late into the exhibition, it was a bit difficult to see what everything was originally (coat rack, table, bookshelf), but the experience was still fun.

I found these little smiley faces on the ceiling in one of the corners and they pretty much summed up my time in the room.

On the afternoon of Thursday, June 11th, 2015, we got to close down the store for a few hours for a partnership event with Spotify. There were three events held across the country and we got to host Lucius in the store for a short set.

I didn't get to taste any of the food provided by Tacombi, but I had a great time working at the event and listening to the free concert. Just another perk of working in the city.

As a dance fan, I love watching So You Think You Can Dance and Dancing with the Stars, so when Maks, Val and Tony's "Sway Show" came to NYC, of course I had to get tickets.

There are three parts in the show ad each of the leading men is featured in one. Tony opens the show with a more of a classical ballroom presentation. Val is the middle with more of a contemporary and hip-hop flavor (his routine with Jenna Johnson from SYTYCD: Season 10, was one of my favorites).Then, Maks closesd the show with a combination of old and new.

I had  good time, but for the ticket prices, the seating was awful! I was crammed into a little padded chair (most often seen in tacky banquet halls) and there was no room for moving. Once everyone was seated, I had to be half on my seat and half off to accomodate some ladies further down the row. The best part was when the couple next to me got progressively drunker and the man grabbed my butt instead of his girlfriend's. Whoops.

As a big fan of Saturday Night Live, I had to spend a day off at the SNL Exhibition near Koreatown. The exhibit had just opened up a few days before I went, so there wasn't a big crowd and there was so much to see and do there.

There's a walk through of a week at the show and what goes on behind the scenes each day of the week. Throughout each day, you get to see a part of the process: sketch writing & pitching, table read, development of costumes, wigs, the set being built, etc. It's truly worth the paltry $25 for the whole thing.

At the end, you sit in a replica of the SNL stage with the chairs from the actual studio (as it's being remodeled this summer) and a video projection of Tina Fey takes you through some of the biggest SNL moments, including Jeopardy! and a montage of music moments on the show.

Planning my birthday has always been a challenge, since I was born right around Memorial Day Weekend. (But, hey, it wasn't Memorial Day in Korea, righ!?)

So, the weekend after my actual birthday, I gathered up some friends, new & old, and went to check out the Royal Palms Shuffleboard Club in Brooklyn. I'd never played shuffleboard before, but it was fairly easy and fun. 

We got our own cabana and waitress, so the drinks kept flowing for two hours and so did the fun.

Along with my annual trip to the Costume Institute, I also love going to the rooftop at the Met. It's a reminder that I live in NYC and the views are amazing! This was the perfect day for an updated photo for my social media accounts too.

Gotta love that slight breeze with my new short hair! I'm sure Tyra Banks would approve of this "wind in the hair" moment. 

I was having my own Gossip Girl moment on the steps at the Met, when I went to see the latest Costume Institute exhibit, "China: Through the Looking Glass" on a day off.

I rarely get Sunday's off work, so it was great that my birthday fell on a Sunday this year. I spent the morning grabbing brunch with friends and a few daytime drinks. Then I got to hang out with my bestie, Jeffrey, in Battery Park with our friend, Brian. 

On my day off, I decided that I should go an see An American in Paris, after it received so many Tony Award nominations. I timed this pretty poorly with my morning appointmentts and almost ran out of time for lunch before the show! Whoops.

I had to cave and eat a quick lunch at the giant McDonald's next door to the Palace Theatre. And since there was no place to sit inside, I thought I would go sit on the "red stairs" or the top of the TKTS Booth in Times Square. 

There's always something going on there, so it was the perfect place to blend in with the crowds and pretend to be a tourist in my own city for a moment.

Of course, my trusty Madewell Transport Tote with "CHEN" stamped on it was there too.

This never happens! Well, at least without there being a smelly, homeless person taking a nap in that car. 

Very surreal.

This was taken when I was on my way to Astoria to visit my friend, Tempestt and her baby, Ellie.

When my Dad was in town, during the last week of April, we did plenty of walking. He wanted to stroll through Washington Square Park and see the NYU campus. When he asked me to take some photos of him to share with his friends in China, I snagged one of him infront of the Arch on my own phone.

When my Dad was in town, he wanted to go to Times Square to show his friends in China through an app on his phone the tower where the New Year's Eve ball drops. While I was waiting for him to take his photos, I saw this on the Viacom/MTV/1515 Broadway building.

If only Hello Kitty DID run the city, then maybe the Sanrio Store in Times Square wouldn't have closed down...where can I get my HK goods now!?

I remember when Center Stage first came out and I thought that Lincoln Center was magical. Then years later, New York Fashion Week moved here and I was standing outside the tents.

No matter how many times I walk by or attend a show here, I still get mesmerized by the beauty of the plaza.

When Dad came to visit, we went to see The King & I at the LIncoln Center Theatre, so I went to pick up our tickets, while he waited for our table at dinner.

As I walked across the plaza, I happened upon this photoshoot as the sun was setting.

The first nice spring day in NYC in a long time! Emily and I decided to get a #fatfriday dinner at El Vez in the Financial District. El Vez was one of my favorite restaurants when I lived in Philadelphia and I was so excited when they opened up a location in New York City.

This is the view of 1 World Trade Center from our dining table out on the sidewalk.

I love stopping into the Strand Bookstore outpost next to Club Monaco on 5th Avenue and 21st street. After Club Monaco remodeled a few years ago, they installed a little annex with the Strand and Toby's Estate Coffee next door.

It's a great place to stop and check out some books, pick up a soy mocha and shop. 

This time when I stopped by, they had some beautiful flower arrangements in the lobby.

I love a good diner & I spent my last #FatFriday at Big Daddy's Diner in Gramercy Park. They have wonderful, indulgent food and pop culture themed decor, this giant neon sign being one of the great things.

After we found out all the tickets for Bjork's "Songlines" at MoMA were sold out for the day, Christina & I headed uptown to the Guggenheim & the Cooper Hewitt Design Museum.

Almost all of the experience is interactive. In this room, you could create your own digital wallpaper and then watch it blown up on the screen.

Here's my wallpaper as a work in progress.

I'm not a big "coffee drinker," but I do love the soy mochas that Variety makes and it's just up the block from my apartment in Bushwick.

walking home after work. union square park.

There are very few train stations in NYC that are above ground. It's not always the nicest, standing out in the rain, snow, etc.; but at least when the L is being tempermental, there's another option.

Madison Square Park has rotating art installations throughout the year. I admit, I haven't been visiting as frequently now that Shake Shack is closed down for remodeling. I happend to be grabbing lunch with a friend nearby, so I stopped y to take some photos of these crystal globes.

When the Club Monaco on Lower 5th Avenue remodeled, they reopened with a Toby's Estate Coffee and Strand Bookstore attached. This was my first time buying a soy mocha from them and it was great, even if I was hopped up on caffeine all evening.

Ever since I saw Center Stage, Lincoln Center always seemed like a magical place! It seems strange that I took me over 5 years of living in the city to actually attend a performance there!

Yup. It was THAT cold in the subway.

An art installation, just outside of Madison Square Park on the little triangle across from the Flatiron Building.

These little snowmen look so real, but are actually made out of a marble-ish looking material. It's so much fun to stop and watch all the people taking photos & kids playing with them.

My first trip to Brooklyn Bowl in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. A coworker & friend was celebrating her birthday with a few frames, food and drinks.

I couldn't resist taking a photo of all these carnival-themed bean bags & neon lights.

Like Ferris Bueller once said, "Life moves fast." So, sometimes I take the time to stop and take photos of random inspirational things I find in the city.

This statement was graffiti on the wall in my MTA station. Shortly after, it was sandblasted away, but you can find art everywhere in the city.

What happens when two lactose intolerant girls go to “The Museum of Ice Cream?” Well, lots of Lactaid is involved! This time, Deirdre and I were ready for this full pastel-colored experience - we even planned out our outfits in advance! From the sprinkle pool to the scoop bowl and finally, the 3 floor slide; a lot of fun was had! We even sampled various flavors and types (including a stretchy vanilla) of ice cream!

On my way home after a show, I was cutting through Times Square when I stopped to see why a crowd had gathered…well, it was the “20” from the new “2020” sign that would drop at midnight in Time Square on New Year’s Eve! Although I couldn’t get a clear shot without a tourist infront of it, it was still pretty cool!

After many missed opportunities, I finally go to go to an Eva Chen book signing and reading for her Juno Valentine series! Along with the book’s illustrator, Derek, they did a reading of the 2nd Juno Valentine book and answered fan questions. While I didn’t stay to get a book signed (I’d already pre-ordered one for myself and my niece), it was great to hear her stories and see her & Derek in person.

Usually, Refinery29 put together a bunch of experience spaces around Fall Fashion Week…but I kept waiting & waiting for their NY dates to show up with no luck! Then, suddenly in November they posted that 29Rooms would finally be coming to Brooklyn at the start of December! While I usually enlist my buddy, Deirdre, to come with me - she was unavailable, so I went on my own. While it was a little lonely waiting in the cold by myself, it made the experience a bit quicker to walk through.

I was a little disappointed that a few of the rooms were the same as last year, but found this fun pool that was sponsored by Showtime’s new reboot of The L Word and at least the guy working the room helped me take this cool photo!

I spotted a Lucy’s Delicatessen ad on the subway and KNEW i had to go there! Lucy Sparrow works in felt art and made hundreds of little felt pieces of food with faces! While they were slightly pricey, they were worth it! I felt overwhelmed with the array of choices: produce, seafood, pastries, baked goods, sushi, etc. I had to make a few rounds through the shop before deciding on what to get: a ball of mozzarella, a corn cob, a blueberry muffin and a clam. I picked up some cute patches, pins and stickers too! Here’s a photo of some of the cutest baked goods!

Yes, I went back to see Ben Platt for his “Sing To Me Instead” Tour, but this time at Radio City Music Hall! Since his first show earlier in the year, he released a new single called “Rain” - but the rest of the show was mostly the same. Still, it was super cool to see him in such a large venue - having the time of his life!

Every Fall, I look forward to heading to Times Square on a Sunday morning to peruse tons of Broadway memorabilia & collectibles to benefit Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS (BCEFA). I usually try to find one “big ticket item” (i.e. “Kinky Boots” shoe box, “Dear Evan Hansen” opening night totebag), so was set to get something from “Mean Girls” this year. Ideally, it was going to be this lunch tray, signed by Grey Henson - who plays Damian, then I saw that they were $300!? Yes, it’s all for charity, but oof; that’s too much money! I did almost buy one of Timothy Hughes’ boots that he wears as a worker in “Hadestown,” but they were $75 each.

I spent a Saturday afternoon at an exhibit about Korean-American adoptees & then went to Bloomingdale’s to go see a pop-up shop of Korean fashion designers at Bloomingale’s! The more and more I learn about my home country, the more intrigued that I am. I can’t wait to go to Seoul in October!

Would you believe that it took me this long to go to Bushwig!? And I got to see Lady Bunny!

My first trip to Paris and the Moulin Rouge! I can’t believe how Jujamcyn transformed the Al Hirschfeld Theatre into the LEGIT Moulin Rouge! The set design, the lobby, the new refreshment stand - the whole thing!

The site of the 1969 Stonewall Riots. World Pride was a celebration of the 50th Anniversary of these riots and of those who stood up for equal rights for the LGBTQIA+ community! I’m happy to be a proud ally and to always attend the Pride festivities with all of my friends!

I was so happy when I heard that the Jonas Brothers were reuniting and making new music in 2019! Six years ago, I had a ticket to see them at Radio City Music Hall when Nick abruptly broke up the band. So, here we are in 2019 with a new album and this Amazon documentary about how they got back together.

More amusing, was the graffiti on Joe…but at least you could still tell that it was him!

For World Pride, the MTA also decked out the 1 Trains (which pass through the Christopher Street Station - next to Stonewall)! Colored stickers representing the colors and each of the MTA trains in red, orange, yellow, green, blue and violet were added to each train car in June 2019.

I love when June rolls around, because NYC decks itself out in rainbows for LGBTAIQ+ Pride month! This year is special, since NYC will be celebrating the anniversary of the Stonewall Riots and is the Host City for World Pride!

On my weekly touch base with my Manager, we grabbed lunch at Shake Shack and walked into Brookfield Place to shop for a bit and stop to take a photo of this cool rainbow installation. In the background, you can see the white “ribs” of the structure over the MTA/NJ PATH Station at World Trade Center and the Occulus.

In celebration of the newest edition of Care Bears, Milk & Cream Cereal Bar launched a partnership with the “Unlock the Magic” animated series in their shop. With a special ice cream treat and TONS of Care Bears throughout the store - I HAD to be there! Here’s a shot of some of cuteness inside…I eventually made the other designs the wallpaper on my iPhone’s lock screen.

What better way to spend a Sunday afternoon on your birthday weekend than at a drag show!? Luckily, one of my friends - Blvck Lae D. is the host of a show just a few blocks from my apartment! They curated a few performances just for me with a Broadway theme - “Don’t Rain On My Parade” from Blvck Lae D & a remix of “Satisfied” from HAMILTON from Emi Grate! All with a side of poutine - how can a girl resist?

Back to the Met for my birthday! This year’s Costume Institute’s theme was “CAMP” or over-the-top, exaggerated fashion. Of course, I loved this “TV Dinner” ensemble by MOSCHINO with a mashed potato & vegetable medley cape! Ah, to have somewhere to wear a piece like this some day…

A newly opened shopping, dining & living destination on the West side of Manhattan - Hudson Yards promised to bring luxury to NYC! So, when our boss decided that’s what we should do for a team outing - I was on board! We had a meal, walked around the shops and I found this really cute art installation.

I’m also a member of a few other EBNG’s at Gap Inc. - one being GapGEAR (Gay Employees Allies and Resources). Through this membership, I was able to visit the United Nations for #IDAHOTB2019 - International Day Against Homophobit, Transphobia and Biphobia with our NY Chapter Chair, Wes and several other members.

Although I had passed by the United Nations building many times, I had never been inside. We had to get special passes and then were lead around the building to the room where our speaker series would be taking place. It was a great experience and definitely a “bucket list” item to get to be inside the UN!

One of the cool things that I get to do working for Gap Inc. is to serve as the NY Chapter Chair for one of our Equality & Belonging Networking Groups (EBNG)! I was elected earlier this year and one our first group outings was to go see the Hack City Comedy guys during their monthly show at Canal Street Market for GapASIA (Asians Supporting Inclusion & Awareness.) Though one of my co-workers, Hoa (on the far left), we were able to secure free reserved tickets to the show!

In part with AAPI Heritage Month, we got to laugh our faces off, eat some great food at Joe’s Steamed Rice Roll & Boba Guys before meeting up with Fumi Abe (left center) and Mic Nguyen (right center) after the show! I can’t wait to get back to see another one of their stand-up sets!

More like “sing to me anytime, Ben Platt!” After seeing Ben in Dear Evan Hansen two times, I was eagerly anticipating his solo album. The Beacon Theatre is a great venue on the Upper West Side, just a few blocks from the Urban Outfitters I used to work at when I first moved to NYC.

With his quirky dancing, thoughtful narration and a sold out crowd - it was a great night of music! (I think this was some of his dancing after “Bad Habit,” but I can’t quite remember.) He also announced that he booked Radio City Music Hall for a performance this Fall, so it looks like I’ll get to see him again!

After work one day, I walked uptown and spotted this artfully grafitti-ed sign to point me in the direction of the city.

As a fan of the updated Queer Eye, I found myself relating to Jonathan Van Ness (JVN), not only on a beauty & fashion level - but an Olympic sports fan level! Never before had I seen someone in pop culture with an encyclopedic knowledge of women’s artistic gymnastics & figure skating like me!

He started a short stand up tour, so I quickly bought a ticket to attend. To my surprise, Michelle Kwan even came out to give him a “10!” after he nailed a backflip on stage!

It’s true I’d only viewed “Oklahoma!” at my senior year high school musical (2000 for those of you who are trying to do the math), but the updated Daniel Fish directed show was earning all sorts of critics reviews. So, I found myself back at the Circle in the Square theatre to revisit this musical from many years ago.

As a fan of Rebecca Naomi Jones and Ali Stroker, I was anxious to see how they would bring this story into a more modern setting. I purchased a discounted ticket, so I was right up against the wall - making it hard to see any of the video projections, but giving me an almost front-row seat to watching Aunt Eller (the brilliant Mary Testa) mix up a gigantic bowl of cornbread!

You can see from my view of the stage, the tables set with crock pots full of chili - to be served at intermission with that cornbread that was mixed up on stage!

I have the fondest memories of going to Robyn concerts with my friends in Chicago & being one of the “early” adoptees of her newest albums (yes, before Lena Dunham and GIRLS made her mainstream); but it’s hard to believe that she sold out MSG! Luckily, I found a co-worker to go with me and we were able to enjoy the show together; despite the 20-something girls next to us who clearly didn’t get Robyn’s connection to the LGBTQIA+ community.

I could have done with more songs from her 2008 album, Robyn, but her staging, slightly awkward dancing and the enthusiasm of the crowd made for a great night!

It’s finally happening! I’m going to go to Korea this Fall with my Dad & Jim! So, with the recommendation from my friend, Michelle (who’s currently living in Seoul & is a former New Yorker); I found myself at Hills Learning for Beginner Korean 1.

Monday nights, I found myself in a small classroom with 7 other people learning Hangul and how to pronounce and read characters that were vaguely foreign to me.

I can’t decide if knowing Mandarin was helpful or hurtful - some characters were similar, but the sounds were different. However, the best part was learning the alphabet; which once you knew - you could read Korean but just not the comprehension.

Wish me luck!

With the eminent shutdown of the L train into Manhattan for 18 months - I started looking into buying an apartment! Am I crazy? Maybe?

And, if I was going to live in the city, why not live off the subway line that runs directly down to the Theatre District?

Just one of the many weekend days spent looking at apartments in Washington Heights, Hudson Heights, Harlem and Inwood. This viewing took me to 190th Street to a cluster of apartment buildings off the A train. While I didn’t find anything that I wanted to make an offer on right away - I was happy to see what was on the market. Let the adventure continue!

At least Dancing with the Stars draws a big enough crowd to be in NYC and at Radio City Music Hall, at that! DWTS was always a show that I would watch for the celebrities at first, then for the pro dancers as more & more former contestants from So You Think You Can Dance were hired!

Also, it was a great show that my Mom & I could watch and discuss - she was always a Derek Hough & Mark Ballas fan, where I was a Maks & Val Chmerkovskiy girl.

After last season’s controversial win from Bobby Bones, Sharna Burgess wasn’t on the Tour, but she was in the audience! As soon as she was spotted, the crowd rushed to try and talk to her and snap a photo. (I just observed from afar.) Bobby was our “star” guest - but the pro’s put on a great show, again choreographed by Mandy Moore - when does this woman sleep!?

I’m always impressed by the Utah girls - Jenna Johnson, Lindsay Arnold and Witney Carson! What a cool experience to go through SYTYCD together, then DWTS and most recently, all of their marriages!

A little work field trip to visit the FabScrap offices and warehouse at the Brooklyn Navy Yard led to a NYC Ferry ride back to Williamsburg.

I may have gotten a little bit lost, but the trip was nice. Since I didn’t grow up near any bodies of water, it’s always a novel idea that I’m actually so close to the ocean and all these great rivers!

P.S. The NYC Ferry is very underrated! There’s coffee service and a small gift/snack shop on board!

I became a fan of Incarcerated Jerkface when I saw their work outside a pizza joint in Nolita - a rainbow wall of Care Bears, but wait…were those Wu-Tang “W” symbols on their tummies instead of their usual tummy symbols!? Exactly.

The perfect blend of two pop culture items in an unexpected way. Since then, I’ve tried to track down any mural in NY and this exhibit in Chelsea was the best way to see more work their creative work!

Other favorites: Yakko from Animaniacs as Spongebob, Brian from Family Guy as Snoopy and Wakko from Animaniacs as Mickey Mouse. I think you get the picture

On a chilly December morning, I woke up sort of early (for a weekend) and headed to NoLita - why? You ask? Well, for the Hello Kitty Kawaii Mart truck, of course!

I grabbed 1 Hello Kitty box filled with the cutest merch: reusable cold drink cup, ramune soda, notebooks, stickers, etc.

Fortunately, there wasn’t a line and I was able to take my time deciding what I wanted to buy.

Every Holiday season, it’s time for soup dumplings and a walk down 5th Avenue to see all the fabulous windows in the fancy clothing stores!

Hands down, Bergdorf always has the best displays - especially as a lot of other retailers are cutting down on their displays and expenses.

But Whitney and I can always count on a free truffle at Lindt during our tour de windows!

Ever since my BFF, Jenn, got me hooked on So You Think You Can Dance during season 2, I have been a devoted fan. I rarely miss the tour, but lately they haven’t been stopping in NYC. The closest stop for the 2018 Tour was in Westbury, NY - so I rounded up a fellow SYTYCD fan, Alexandra, and we took the Long Island Rail Road to see the show at The Space Theater.

While not the farthest I have traveled (see the previous tour where I went to the middle of New Jersey, by myself), it was certainly a trip.

But the show was so much fun! We got to see the Top 10: Jensen Arnold, Hanalei Cabanilla, Genessy Castillo, Evan DeBenedetto, Jay Jay Dixonbey, Magdalena Fialek, Darius Hickman, Chelsea Hough, Cole Mills and Slavik Pustovoytov along with 2 All-Stars: Lauren Froderman and Cyrus Spencer.

As always, a great show that was mastered by Mandy Moore featuring most of my favorite routines! Would I travel to Westbury again? Maybe. At least it was closer than NJ!

In mid-March I was ready to go to JT’s latest tour, The Man of the Woods, when a “Nor-Easter” closed the show and JT postponed until October. After months of watching footage online, I was ready to relive my best JT concert moments. I had a ticket that was slightly behind stage left, so I was able to see all the dancing up close - but mostly everyone’s backs.

Some of the other staging made it easier for me to see JT and the dancers once they left the “A” stage. Even if some of my favorite dancers weren’t on this tour (i.e. Dana Daners), I still had a great time being entertained by Ivan, Natalie and crew with that sweet, sweet Marty Kudelka choreo!

JT’s voice sounded a little hoarse and he kept saying “you sing!” to the audience, but I still left with my ears ringing. (He would later postpone his other October shows, citing vocal rest.)

While I saw the 20/20 Experience Tour a few times, I wish that I could have seen JT at 100% on the Man of the Woods…for now, I can just wait for the concert special.

For my weekly lunch date with Andre, we walked up to Chef’s Club Counter for a bowl of vegan ramen. On the walk back to the office, I couldn’t resist picking up a sweet treat at Flour Shop and a short photoshoot by their rainbow wall.

Also, I always appreciate another opportunity to show off my WOOD WOOD ghost leaf sweatshirt that I wear almost every Halloween.