Life in NYC - Two Months Later

Whoever said moving to New York City was difficult was correct, almost. The technicality lies in the fact that it's not getting here that is tough, it's the adjustment period and initial struggle to get stabilized once you've landed. Prior to my move I had a good friend grab my hand and take a long look at me and state that August was going to be rough but September would bring along everything I was looking for with my move. She was dead right.

Don't get me wrong, it hasn't been miserable or dream-killing, even during the moments of sheer panic and short bouts of depression that have cropped up. My first day in the city was full of the stereotypical wonder and excitement that I think most people feel the first time they visit the city or move here. I didn't have a clue where I was going to sleep and every room situation fell through before I'd even arrived, but the excitement just kept on a constant rumble for weeks. It was like a constant little reservoir I could tap into no matter what emotion had my immediate attention right then. And it's still there.

August was rough. My move into my new apartment didn't happen on time and I ended up panicking for a few days. I bounced around to different living situations so many times I've grown sick to death of boxes and suitcases and don't care to pack another one for a good while. I've met some great people and some not so great people. I've wandered through some scary little neighborhoods and gotten lost a few times too many. I've run short of money more times than I could almost stand. I've been homeless more than once.

All of this carried over to September for a week or two with a few things improving. There was the promise of a place to call home on the horizon and I managed to land a job just by walking into the restaurant and asking for work. I've had some kind of money coming into my pockets every day so far this month and there's a good chance that's only going to improve over the next few months. I managed to score a fantastic new roommate and I've grown so much closer to my little group of old and new friends here in the city. September has slowly revealed pieces of the life I wanted in part or in whole and it's looking like things are staying steady.

Two months in and I feel like I've grown a little and a lot at different times. I've got a home, friends, good health (just barely after that cold last week) and a job that pays the bills. New York City has taught me how to be alone while not being lonely and how to approach every day as a new adventure with new and random surprises around every corner. I was looking for radical change and it has found me. I'm still that kid from Wyoming and Colorado who is a little stupid and little awkward at times, but I'm quickly becoming the man who followed his dream of moving to the big city and opened up doors to be whatever he wished.

We are the architects of our own fate. - Buddhist saying

An Update on Life - New York City

Chapter 3 - New Beginnings in New York City

A lot has changed since I last wrote an entry into my blog. At the beginning of the summer I decided it was worth it to start thinking about the possibility of following my teenage dream of moving to New York City.

Ever since that first glimpse into the lives of Carrie, Samantha, Miranda and Charlotte from the TV series Sex and the City I have always wanted a life that included living in the Big Apple. A few short stops and drives through the city on my way upstate sealed the deal for me. All it took was one evening driving along the Hudson across from Manhattan and seeing those bright lights and breath-taking skyline to convince me that this was indeed the place for me.

So, with all of this in mind, I started pulling everything together for this move. It took lots of coffee dates with a close friend to keep me from losing it when the reality of what I was doing would start to sink in. This was the first huge move I'd ever done. Sanity in check, I managed to check every major thing off my list in a matter of a month. I still can't believe it sometimes.

After a final farewell party and a few surprising tough goodbyes I packed my entire life up into a Penske truck and hit the road. It was a boring, excruciatingly long, construction-laden trip that I have sworn never to make again. I took some time to relax for a week with my family upstate and then made the final trek to my new home.

When I arrived I had no idea where I was going to stay as every room setup I had tried (there were at least 30) had fallen through, most at the last minute. Thanks to an amazing friend and some last-minute networking I scored a place for a week. After that it was a bit of creative hunting and I finally ended up with a hotel for a couple nights and a sublet to rent for the rest of August.

The majority of my living space worries were over and it was all about following up on jobs and hunting for my permanent living spot. Again, amazing things happened. I ended up finding an amazing apartment right on Central Park with an amazing guy for a roommate. Seriously, I don't know how I managed to pull off finding the great places I've stayed. That epic-ness aside, I've spent the last few weeks sending out my résumé to nearly 100 different companies and job posters. I've scored one interview that looks like it will pan out with another very promising position recently applied for. Seriously, this company is my dream job. I love what they do, who they are and the people they've hired. It would be an honor to work with these guys as a part of their team.

So here I sit, blogging and reliving the last month, and my optimism is still riding high and there's no change in that on the horizon. I've reconnected and partied with old friends and made many new ones. Sure, there are some uncertainties out there and basic worries I'll have to address, but it's one day at a time. And with that in mind I'll make dreams a reality step by step.

"We are such stuff as dreams are made on; and our little life is rounded with a sleep." - Prospero, The Tempest

Personal Care - Exfoliating All Natural Face Mask

After seeing this recipe pop up on several different websites, blogs, Pinterest pins, and even Twitter, I decided to give it a shot since the ingredients were readily available in my kitchen. It's completely edible. After posting the results on Facebook, a hilarious exchange went on for quite a while and led to a few people asking for the recipe and instructions. I figured I'd share those here in hopes you try it for yourself and get a laugh out of it in the process.

The Exfoliating All Natural Face Mask aka Raunchy Poo Decadence Face Mask: 1 tbsp cinnamon, 1 tbsp nutmeg, 2 tbsp raw honey (or any honey, really).


Mix into a thick paste and slap on the face, applying gently in circular motion. Let sit for 30 minutes while you watch porn I guess this makes it raunchy). Then, using a warm-hot washcloth, gently remove using circular motions to properly exfoliate. Don't get in your eyes, watch out for drips, it will get warm so don't freak out, and always be gentle when scrubbing 'cus cinnamon burns on a scraped face.


Let me know how it works for you! Follow me on Instagram for more hilariousness. @mousebrat

Back and Biting

Isn't Denver pretty?

Hey there... Blogger. I'm back. I had a good year on my own domain, but sadly I was never happy with the rebranding I did and was never motivated to update the site or the blog. And it was just too much money to throw at something that I had no interest in. So, for now, I am back here on Blogger. As much as I might hate it.

Having spent a year away I am curious to see how the two compare. I'm still of the opinion that Wordpress is just a thousand times better, but as a free option I am comfortable with this platform. I also need to get more familiar with the analytics and operations of the Blogger platform. I'm also going to be looking into how this will mesh with some Youtube integration. I'm hoping over the next few months I'll be able to get an idea for how much difference there is between them.

This post is all kinds of scattered. It's late here and I've spent the last thirty minutes exporting and importing the few posts I had from my Wordpress website. So there is a bit of new content to check out if you didn't follow me over last March. AtypicalBrain.com will be shutting down here in the next few days. I'm going to spend the next month working up a new layout for the blog and using some new SEO information to optimize it. Any ideas on good software/plugins to accomplish that are appreciated. Just drop it in a comment or email.

Later gang.