Coffee Talk

Lindsey and I have been best friends for over seven years now. I can still remember the first day of our freshman orientation at NYU when she sat down next to me with her flipped hair and white sneakers and whispered, "Hi, I'm Lindsey," as the first speaker of the day talked at the front of the lecture hall. From that day on we were inseparable and were known as a pair to our professors, advisors, and classmates. She was my other half.

Sophomore year right before eating our favorite snack- peanut butter and Fluff sandwiches. 

We quickly realized freshman year that we needed to be roommates. When it came time to request housing for sophomore year, Lindsey and I decided to live downtown on Water Street in an off-campus apartment building. After a semester downtown, we packed our bags and were roommates abroad in Florence for a semester. We slept side by side in our twin beds and stayed up late watching season after season of Friends when we were not bunked in hostels exploring cities around Italy.

Carnivale in Via Reggio, Italy. Photo snapped as a man was throwing a huge handful of confetti at us (notice how much of it got in my mouth...).

Fun in Rome.

Once we were back in New York, we returned to Water Street for a year and then ventured uptown to Hell's Kitchen where we lived together in a carriage house for two years. Throughout college, we got each other through heavy course loads, break-ups, late nights bartending, and life in general. She was the person I sat with for hours on our futon watching Sex and the City, the person I turned to for outfit advice every morning and before going out, and the person who mom-danced with me around the apartment to the Pointer Sister in sweats. For years, she was the person I came home to and talked to every day. Since we moved apart two years ago, I have really missed having her in the room next door. We will text each other every so often saying, "I really needed you this morning, I had no clue what to wear!" or "I just had a dance party in my apartment by myself!" knowing that for years we would have been together during those times. So today, when I went to Lindsey's apartment to catch up, it felt just like old times. We sat on her couch for hours sipping coffee and tea, snacking on popcorn, and catching up on life. It made me think about how lucky I was to have met her when I did and to have gotten to live with her for so long. And how great it is that we can still fill hours with conversation just like we used to.

On my way back to Queens, I had one of those moments that made me stop and think about how much I love New York City. As I walked through the Times Square station transferring from the 1 to the N, I got to stop and listen to two concerts. First, I joined the crowd around a little boy, no older than 12, playing classical piano beautifully.

As I walked away and towards the N train, I didn't even have time to stop smiling before I ran into a band playing Beatles cover songs. I watched a little girl get her groove on to Obla di Obla da, spinning in circles and smiling as people rushed by to get to their trains. And I tell you what, I was this close to joining her. Because I felt happy enough to spin in circles in front of complete strangers.

And how did I keep this happiness going late into the night? By making cookies, and licking off every chunk of dough from my beaters. That's how I roll. I hope everyone is having a weekend filled with happiness! More cookie dough to come tomorrow... Valentine's style.