The sound of my alarm rings. I pad to the 8 square foot kitchen where I grab a Chobani yogurt, some over-priced fruit and a sprinkle of gluten-free granola. I watch The Today Show's seemingly useless banter as they cut to commercial breaks every ten seconds. Roker gives the forecast for Manhattan: 35 degrees and humid, chance of thunderstorms. Back in my room I curl my hair with the straightener and quickly pull close the drapes to my window over-looking the East River as the daily window-washer drops down to clean my window. Once he's gone, I open it up and watch as the sea-planes land and tug-boats lumber along, dodging commuter ferries carrying people from Williamsburg across the river.
I wait for the elevator in my building for at least 15 minutes, and cram myself in along with 20 other people who are late for work, and wishing the elevator had air-conditioning. We stop on every floor and more people shove their way in.
Out on the street, I hold my breath as I pass a row of 12 dumpsters with rotting garbage, and the occasional stray rat. I head up First Avenue, my Escada suit feeling very heavy in the heat. Past the Greek restaurant that gives generous portions of feta on their salads, and the dry-cleaners loading up their delivery vans for the day, I reach the United Nations. Some tourists have begun milling about, but for the most part, delegates are flooding in, and the security guards are patrolling. Secret service people sit in black town-cars and SUVs, ear pieces inserted and black sunglasses in place. Most people I pass are walking their dogs, or grabbing a freshly made bagel. I jay-walk on every street, dodging yellow cabs that run red lights, leaving them honking in distance.
I pass the throng of people waiting patiently at the Indian embassy, papers in hand, as the clerk slowly makes his way down the line, verifying their documents. A toddler in a stroller, being pushed by a nanny, waves her diamond-bracelet at the people, adjusting her Audrey Hepburn-esque sunglasses in the process.
Sweating in the humid Manhattan smog, I dart into Booster Juice and grab a pineapple smoothie to cool me down, before ducking into the cool enclave of my office building. Click click click across the emerald green marble foyer, up to the wood paneled hallways of the office. In my office, I hang up my suit jacket in my closet and wrangle my now-flat and frizzy hair into a semblance of a bun while relying on my Booster Juice to bring my temperature down. Work work work to the sound of taxi cabs honking in the intersection below. The skies open, and the thunder showers start.
Lunch is decadent, cool, and long. I indulge in course after course, and am thankful for the 35 min walk home I will have tonight. Work work work until it's time to leave for the evening. I wander home at a slower pace in the late Manhattan sun, watching as it dips slowly behind the grid, casting stunning shadows through the sky-scrapers. Some nights I'll go watch a Broadway show, or stop into a shop on Fifth Avenue. Other nights I'll head directly home. Tonight is one of those nights.
At home I can barely muster the energy to cook up dinner, and instead pop a gluten-free burrito into the microwave and make a simple salad. I watch E! News as I eat before bed, giving myself 30 min. of relaxation. A quick shower and it's time for sleep before another day in the Big Apple begins again.
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