Event horizon: New York.

This picture is from three years ago, when I had planned to visit my sister Julie in New York for a week, and ended up staying four months. It’s like I got sucked into a black hole, though a very pleasurable one. There was always something else to do. Something else to stay for. I wandered around the city, processed my world travels, haunted favorite coffeeshops, and wrote for hours at a time.

This time I’m going for three days, to talk about my novel with some people I…I…can’t be more specific about at the moment (!). I was wondering whether I could afford the time and money, but—then I heard from a friend who needed an apartment-sitter for the weekend! And then Amanda Palmer announced she was hosting a huge street party Thursday night! And then my friend Jaki offered me free tickets to a play Friday night! And then I found out my sister Clare was randomly performing in Brooklyn on Saturday night! And I’m waiting for some nth shoe to drop that will give me a reason to stay on Sunday, too!

See? This is what happens. DAMN YOU, NEW YORK!