Maybe, it's the beguiling whiff of Spring that seems to add extra bounce in our steps. Frost and ice melt as Spring Fashion Week hits Manhattan, the days get a tad longer, and for some, it's the start or end of a relationship.
I'm not too sure what I was expecting, as if this magical book of life was going to drop from the sky, hit me on the head and start a new saga. Maybe it would be written in recipe form: a slice of fantastic career, two parts common sense, and a dash of fantastic sex.
Collecting five years, gathered into a brown box by a cocky twenty-something intern, was no small task: snapshots from Fire Island, a rubber-band ball, my articles, and a stack of outdated GQ's that once seem to satisfy my hunger more than actual lunch, sitting by the wastebasket.
It wasn't the end of my career that frightened me, but my age: my birthday, tomorrow, of all days.
When you're in your twenties, just like that twenty-something intern, you can shrug off all the insecurities, the bad breakups. It's that twenty-something moxie, dauntless and headstrong, that, like a second nature, in relationships and the dream career, is fearless.
Fumbling for my cell phone, I find a missed message that revealed a prime position, with an interview already in the works. A date was set with my name on it. Funny how, in an instant, life can change.
10 p.m.
The wrinkles and rips of my favorite pair of jeans fell into place for the very first time tonight. Like an old friend, they fit well, comfy in the areas that change with time, and willing to hold up to the impending future. A few cocktails with Luke, Grady and Will made a dreary birthday a bit brighter, not to mention the six feet of handsome who was a friend of Grady's. A warm hello was followed by a ton of grins, over conversation that ended with a goodnight kiss. Like the old adage, when one door closes, another opens-for me, one hit me in the face early this morning and two just unlocked.
Bright & Early
In a sea of shirts and ties, I waited my turn. Not only did I forgo the tie, but also added a vintage topcoat over my favorite distressed jeans. Hell, if I wanted to stand out in this room of nerves and impressive resumes, then the extra bit of flair would come in handy. Here I was, dreading my worst fears, cubicles, time cards, and, for a guy over thirty, ghastly overhead lighting, and corporate nine-to-five was staring me right in the face.
Making a beeline for the door, I may never make it to the finish line, or have a set of arms pull me from what's scary. If life gives us a whirl of seasons of the start of new relationships and the end of others, it teaches one thing any single New Yorker needs: moxie.
Saturday Evening
We walked down the avenue, and both my front pockets, like safe havens, held sweaty hands and first-date fears, until he kissed me. His mouth tasted like mint and I moved in closer.
Spring came and, just like this new season, so did I. As I was heading up my apartment steps, he winked and walked on his way. Getting out of bed to shut my window, I pulled my old comforter up close. There is just one thing we can never change, and that is the weather....
