So I'm on my way back to Quito after a long long time of being away. A big part of me dreads it. Feels that Quito is not the place I should be in right now, or will be in for much longer.
You see, I've made up my mind to move out of Quito by September or October at the latest. And I've decided that my best options right now are going to Beijing or New York. I just need to fix a few things back home (like, earn some money) and then I'll be on my way. I've also decided that I will make a conscious effort to be twice as productive as I was before once I get back. Not that I haven't been productive before...
Meanwhile, I fondly recall my last few days in NYC after I arrived at Grand Central Terminal on monday evening.
Monday evening, M and I went to have dinner at our friend LY's place in Brooklyn. LY is also a friend and one of our neighbors from Vassar. She's a pretty awesome person - and she aspires to be a High School history teacher and has recently been accepted into Columbia's Teachers College. It was a laid-back evening of catching up with some lovely food and some cider and old college friends. After that, M and I headed back to M's house and fell asleep.
The next day (yesterday) was my last day in NYC. M had to work and my brother, in true L fashion, sent me a list of things I needed to go find and bring back for him the night before. So I supposed that was going to be most of my day. I also managed to get a meeting with a professor at CUNY at night to talk about developing my central theme all my projects (and my company) revolve around. So I basically just walked around the city running errands. I mostly stayed in the Union Square area, hitting up American Eagle, Best Buy, and Barnes and Noble. I also toured the Kanbar Institute of Film and Television at NYU's Tisch School of the Arts. Grad school has been on my mind again as my frustration towards my inability to actually be on set or make films has been growing and growing. M and I had lunch at City Bakery near her job in the Flatiron District and then I went into Express and bought a couple of really awesome dresses (one for work, one for more dressy events). I went to drop off my stuff at the apartment and made sure everything was packed before heading out to Think Coffee for the meeting with the professor. I think that went very well. Afterwards, M and I went for a slice of NY pizza at Ray's Pizza in the village. Very lovely ending to my stay in NYC. I was just perfect to walk around the village at night, with the raindrops from the evening showers diffusing the orange and pink light reflecting off the sakuras and the storefronts that were still open.
New York in the Spring...what a beautiful sight.
I was sad to leave this morning. It was so nice to see my housemates and friends from college in NYC. It was nice to feel at home in the city itself - more at home than I've felt in a long time. I felt vibrant and alive and productive. It made me want to stay. To find an apartment right then and there, and a job somewhere....but doing that might have been irresponsible. There are loose ends I need to tie up in Quito before I move - important loose ends.
But I have a plan now. A realistic one.
So the goodbye is temporary - as I know I will be back soon.
As Oswaldo Guayasamín put it:
“Mantengan encendida una luz que siempre voy a volver,”
(“Keep a light burning for I will always return.”)
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