And So It Begins…

Oh my gosh, how do I begin??  I’ve written an initial sentence 5 different times using 5 completely different thoughts until settling on a question instead.  And now more questions…   Where exactly is the beginning:  With the conception of me writing a blog of NYC living? With me meeting the lady from Brooklyn who passed along the idea? With the thankfulness of friends for my posts on Facebook? With the struggle for title for this blog?  With the realization that time is moving quickly this year and that if it isn’t documented, it may vanish from my mind?

Anyway, here goes!

After inviting Marcie, my new Brooklyn friend, to hear a lunchtime lecture in Prospect Park hosted by the Brooklyn Public Library titled “Origins of Islam”, she tossed out the idea that I should start a blog.  She said that after living in the city for 7 years or so, she and her husband had become numb to all of the city’s offerings and didn’t explore the city much anymore. I didn’t think much about her blog comment, or so I thought.  But after her affirmation, I subconsciously started posting more of my experiences/finds on Facebook.  I was surprised by the amount of traction that my posts received.  My problem was that there were things/experiences that I wanted to share with people, but they seemed too trivial for another Facebook post. Or that a Facebook post would only tell a piece of an amazing story. Or that I didn’t want to post something else so soon after my last post. The photo of the policeman helping the little old lady cross the 2019 World Pride parade needed to be shared, but I had already posted the Stonewall Pride Live festival two days before!  The struggle was real and a Blog was the only way out!

As I contemplate the title, I realize that I’m really not sure of the direction of the blog…  Will it be purely NYC travel, or will the blog continue when I live elsewhere?  Is it about cultures of NYC? Is it about finding myself in all of the new NYC discoveries?  If my name is in the title, is my writing personality big enough or unique enough to support it?

And now it just hits me that maybe I should’ve started by reading a blog and figuring out how they work first before jumping in… sounds a bit like having my first child, but perhaps without quite as many repercussions.