I've waited so long to say this.....I have a place to live!!! There is such an enormous weight lifted off of my shoulders, that I feel 100 lbs lighter. Now the details.

 

Lauren called me yesterday and told me about a rental solution that might work. She and Dave have a two-bedroom apartment in Park Slope Brooklyn, one of the target areas I've been searching in. They want to move more into central Park Slope, but their lease expires in October. The suggestion is for me to sublet the apartment with Shelly( who lives in the same building, but wants a better space). The monthly rent is $2000 split down the middle. You want to hear about the amenities right?

 

Check this, it has 2 bedrooms, 2 bath rooms, washer & dryer, dishwasher(very important), nice sized kitchen, private backyard, tons of storage space, a converted darkroom, a spiral staircase that leads to the downstairs area, dsl ready & its in a very safe area. It's absolutely perfect!

 

The only concession that I had to make to my original plan was to have a roommate, but with a place like this & with how cool Shelly is (who happens to be a native Californian), this is an easy decision.

 

Thank you everyone for helping me stay positive during this phase! I can't wait until you guys come here & check out the space! Well, one more night in the extended stay studio & I'll be a Brooklyn resident! Goodbye New Jersey, Hello New York.

 

It brings me great pleasure not to write about looking for an apartment! By the way, it took exactly 2 weeks "to find a place to live", so I think that was the popular sentiment in the poll question.

 

The next phase of my plan is to address the income issue. I'll finally reveal to everyone that I won the lottery just before leaving Cali and I'm never gonna run out of money again....wouldn't that be a dream come true? I did ponder stopping in Reno to put money on the blackjack table, but chickened out at the last minute. Somehow the thought of settling down next to the Mustang Ranch after giving up my loot to the Nevada Gambling Circuit, seemed less appealing then becoming a Brooklyn resident, but I could be wrong.

 

So in the next few days, I'll take my first subway ride(since being out here), lots and lots of pictures in manhattan, and layout the job thing, but not today. Today I'm watching one of the gifts I received before leaving, the entire 1st season of the Dave Chappele Show(Thanks Merin)!! Fun times!!

 

Without a doubt and I am in a house in Brooklyn! I love the sound of that. So now what?

 

Phase III is all about generating income, meaning time to get a job. My ideal job would either be working at a museum or at a photographic printing & developing company. I just want to grow as an artist and these would be capable environments to thrive in. I'm not opposed to working in television as long as I don't have major responsibilities that require my time and attention away from the workplace.

 

My strategy is to serf the net during the day & go out and meet folks at whatever social gathering I can get into. Who you know is critical here! One connection can open you up to a whole new world. Speaking of a whole new world, I've got to get out there an explore!  

 

Today I left the Jeep in front of the house & ventured into the underworld otherwise known as the subway system. It's a 10 min walk to the nearest   F Train stop on 7th ave/9th st. With my trusty subway map in hand, I descended into the depths below Park Slope only to emerge 30 minutes later on the Upper East Side of Manhattan; Destination Metropolitan Museum.

 

I exited the train @ 63rd/Lex and proceeded west toward Central Park. The weather was magnificent! Warm enough to wear shorts if you so desired and cool enough to sport a light jacket (nothing new to this Bay Area Native). Walking parallel to the Park for about 20 Blocks, I became increasing tempted by the street vendors, selling hot dogs, pretzels & ice cream. I kept saying, "just wait until you get to the met". Reaching the Met at 82nd Street, I gave in to this temptation and tried my first New York Hot Dog! Can't beat it for $1.50.

 

Inside the Met, the admission is a "suggested" $12 donation. You can pay what you can afford or more if you like. On this day, I paid the 12 bucks, but next time, who knows?

 

The first exhibit I wanted to see was the photography section. I spent hours just reading the history of the early photographers & their techniques. As I studied the photographs, I was reminded of why I have such a love for this form of expression. Photographs freeze time & space in a way that no other medium can. The past joins the present and the present becomes frozen in a time capsule. Looking at the first photograph taken of President Lincoln taught more about him than any history book could. I hope to develop a style of photography that captures the many elements of this era, allowing future generations to look back on my work & see how we lived.

 

I can't wait to go back! 

 

 

Today I'm gonna address the role that faith has played in my journey thus far. There is a fundamental difference in having faith and having unrealistic expectations. Sometimes though, the area in between isn't so clear.

 

Faith is believing without seeing. I like to think that I'm displaying practical faith. A year ago, I started out with just a feeling for change. I spent months just yearning & projecting (some consider this dreaming) on where I'd like to be & what I'd like to be doing. At the end of last year, I was determined to get to New York when my lease expired in March. Ok, so now I have a firm launching date and I can start to address the "how" question.

 

How in the world financially can I make this work? One option was the "all in one" solution. Get a job & a place before moving out there. The other was to save enough money to allow the process to occur organically. I chose the later for the adventure and because I wanted a brake from working so much.

 

I took my tax refund($1500) and opened a savings account. I got a $4000 loan, half of which went to covering old debt and $2000 went into the savings account. Finnally,I added my last paychecks and had about $6000 in working cash flow. Makes it a bit easier to have faith if you have a little wiggle room to start with.

 

What about faith? For me, I relied heavily on internal faith when resigning from my job & putting in my 30 days notice with my landlord. Once the trip began, it shifted to relying on the external faith that others had in me. My faith was tested because on the road, I started to understand why I decided to leave the bay.

 

I guess what I'm trying to say is that; faith isn't a mindless unplanned action for me. I choose to limit what areas are planned & rely on faith to reveal the answers to the rest.

 

 

 

It rained all day today, which I kinda liked because it slowed everyone down a bit. I met Shelly after work for dinner & a movie. Since it was raining, I didn't walk to the subway, I drove and parked at the subway. I know I'm gonna have to get used to not using the jeep as much, but I have to ease into it.

 

I got off the R train in Union Square and  Shelly was waiting for me at this restaurant called Republic. It's a noodle house with mainly Thai cuisine. We ordered Pad Thai & to me it was excellent. I told Shelly that the whole time I was in Jersey, I was experimenting with the local ethnic cuisine and it was horrible! I tried Indian, Italian, Chinese; you name it, all bad. In fact, my best meal out there was Domino's Pizza! Now what does that tell you?

 

From there we landed at the Village Cinema to checkout this flick called "My Architect". It's a documentary about a bastard son discovering the truth about his famous architect father. I thought it was interesting and I recommend it. An important point that I took from the film is that there are many opportunities that present themselves economically to an artist, but not many of them seem to line up with the principles, ideals & vision of the artist. So how does one stay true to their art without becoming a money whore? I'm going to have to address this question directly in the next coming weeks as I search for income.

 

I sent out a couple resumes, so we'll see what happens.... 

 

In the mist of my job search, I came across a new television channel launching in August called ImaginAsian TV. I sent my resume out for one of the jobs they had listed, they called me back and I have an interview scheduled for May 7th. Good news?

 

Well, I'm conflicted about this opportunity. The thought of getting a full-time, decent paying job in New York City is extremely enticing, but at what cost? Will I end up working so much again, that my creative energy is stifled? Looking back on previous statements that I've made, being creative seems to be in stark contradiction to taking a full time job in television again. One of my main goals is to become a better photographer. Ok let me be honest, I want to be one of the best photographers of my generation. How can I devote the time and attention necessary going about it half-ass?

 

I honestly do not know how to approach this, but my instincts tell me to keep pressing forward and just like the perfect apartment presented itself, so will the means of income. I will definitely go to the interview on 7th, but it remains to be seen what will come out of it.