And no, I’m not referencing the Mary Kate & Ashley Olsen movie. It’s been six years here in this city, and it all went by in a flash. When I first arrived in NY, I wouldn’t have imagined that I would be here for 5+ years, let alone nearly a decade (at least that’s how long it’ll be once I’m done with school). I thought the city would swallow me whole & spit me out and I would (at some point) be crawling back to LA with open arms – but alas, I am still here. To celebrate my 6th year anniversary, I thought I’d share my six most memorable moments (or phases?) in NYC:

1. Brooklyn Half (05.2011, 05. 2013)
The longest race I ran before moving to NY was a 5k (Turkey Trot!) and even that was an ordeal, so I never fathomed I would be able to run a half-marathon. But for a pretty decent period of my NY life, I got caught up in the running culture that seems so prevalent here. It all started when my small group, for some insane reason, decided to run the Brooklyn Half together, and we made it a mission to meet weekly to train together as our friend/running coach would guide us through a strict regiment. Though it was physically grueling at times (I especially remember that one miserable time we ran in the rain… ugh), it was so rewarding and memorable to work up to something together with a close group of friends. Also I loved training and getting acquainted with Central Park and Prospect Park, while listening to my springtime running anthem. And then for a few years (2011-2013), I caught the running bug and ran a handful New York Road Runner races per year. Since that time, my stamina has dropped down to barely even being able to run two miles, but maybe one day, I can build myself up to a full marathon (even as I type it, it seems a bit incredulous to me, but we’ll see).

2. Linsanity (02.2012 – 03.2012)
I’ve never been a fan of any particular NBA team (was never a fan of Lakers or Kobe, which might be a shock and an anomaly since I’m from SoCal), but what happened in 2012 with the rise of Jeremy Lin was truly made-for-movie greatness (except the irony is that it is unlikely that a movie would feature an Asian-American star but that’s a whole other topic). Anyway, Lin’s Cinderella tale was an underdog story dreams are made of: a small, Asian-American guy who was dismissed and overlooked, getting an opportunity of his lifetime and running with it. I remember feeling the thrill of anticipating and watching his games: the game where Lin scored 38 points against the Lakers, which was even more satisfying after Kobe’s haughty remarks and the Valentines Day game against the Raptors when Lin scored with the game-clinching shot at the buzzer. Truly magical.

3. Hurricane Sandy (10.2012) & Operation Blessing (11.2012 – 02.2013)
After the underwhelming aftermath of Hurricane Irene, we definitely didn’t anticipate the force that was Hurricane Sandy. Coming from a state where my natural disaster memories consisted of sporadic and harmless earthquakes, I didn’t think we would really be affected. But oh, how wrong we were. Parts of the city were flooded, lost electricity, and were pretty much out of function – which led to a temporary shutdown of most businesses/offices. Though it was a bit scary, our part of Queens came out of the experience pretty unscathed and it was actually a lot of fun being sequestered with friends as we cooked meals and watched forgotten movies together.

Relief efforts were just as memorable. Our church partnered up with Operation Blessing, a non-profit Christian humanitarian organization focusing on disaster relief, and we went on Saturdays to Breezy Point to help homes that had been impacted by the hurricane. There was something very “human” about the experience in the best sense possible – working with a group of “marvelous comrades” as we helped fix these homes and connecting & hearing the stories of the families we were helping. And there was something really fascinating and maybe even cathartic about physically stripping and breaking down these homes and witnessing the deconstruction of it all (as you can probably tell, I haven’t done much manual labor up ’til this point in my life).

4. Astoria (05.2013 – 07.2016)
Moving into my Astoria apt (Princess Rita) was monumental for me as it felt like a somewhat shift to adulthood. Before moving to Astoria, I was always sharing rooms (whether it was in LA or NY) and at times even sharing beds. When I initially moved in with my roommate at the time, Nina, we really made an effort to make it feel like home as we spent a few, back-breaking days, painting the walls a more inviting color. This has been the longest time I’ve spent living somewhere (post-college), and I’ve really grown to love the apartment & the neighborhood. For the past three years, I’ve become familiar & friendly with the local vendors and have spent time exploring the popular food spots (though not as much as I would like). I’ve become a huge Astoria evangelist with my friends as I’ve been constantly encouraging them to move here (though my efforts have been rather unsuccessful). And I get really sad and nostalgic knowing I’ll be leaving in a month… but here’s to making the most of it!

5. Banksy (10.2013)
I was already a fan of Banksy (I grew a fascination with graffiti art via David Choe and not to mention, “Exit Through the Gift Shop” was one of my all-time favorite documentaries), so when he was doing his tour of NYC, I couldn’t be more ecstatic. For those 31 days, I was participating in a city-wide scavenger hunt, as I was frantically searching twitter and refreshing his blog to find the next location. There was an exhilaration and unexpected joy to tracking down his next public piece and finding a group of dedicated New Yorkers all clamoring & trying to take photos… I felt like I was part of an artistic movement. And this sentiment is what I feel generally about this city – that I’m a part of something huge and grand… that I’m a part of history.

6. Bryan Stevenson + Law (12.2014 – beyond)
Since moving to NY, I would make it a point to attend these random author talks around the city, and my friend suggested I go to this “Brooklyn by the Book” event with author/illustrator Maira Kalman and Ira Glass. I didn’t know of Kalman, but I’ve always been a fan of Ira Glass, so I decided to attend. While I was at the event, I was looking at the brochure of Brooklyn Library events, and that’s where I came across the name Bryan Stevenson as he was doing a book talk the following month on his new book “Just Mercy.” I quickly read the synopsis of the book and thought the event might be something I’d be interested in, but because of a scheduling conflict, I wasn’t able to go. I did end up purchasing his book, and like I mentioned in an earlier post, that’s when I seriously started considering law school. I am a strong proponent of fate (es muss sein!), so I truly believe I was in the right place at the right time (and my heart was open as well). I also think that being in NY helped shape my path to law school as I was surrounded by lawyers and law students, and there was so much access to information/resources.

So three cheers to NY, a city that has kept me grounded yet challenged, humane yet resilient. I wouldn’t have had it any other way.