I found a Job and some other Adventures...

So for the past week I have been searching aimlessly for a job. Not just any job, but a job that will allow me flexibility, money to pay my bills and a job that will allow me to still have time to volunteer during the day. I am proud to announce that I did find that job!! The stats on the job are pretty cool as well. They had 800 applicants and they hired 10 people, yay I was one of the 10. I take pride in this because I had many rejections on job offers, so this put a boost in my faith again. =D I work different shows for them. It is a venue in Times Square where comedy shows take place, poetry nights, showcases, banquets, etc. Its called the Times Square Arts Center.

I work the shows and/or events. I am also doing marketing for them, talking with different organizations letting them know about the venue and tickets and such. So its exciting. It's very flexible scheduling so it allows me space to travel back to Cali, and do what I want until I hear back from Grad School. I am giving myself until I hear back from Grad School to make my next move, until then I am enjoying the vivacious city of NY.

In addition to looking for a job I have enjoyed my roommates!! Here is a pic of my roommates, on our roomie night out!!

They have been a great support system, and we all get along soo well. They inspire me and they all have such good hearts. I am so lucky to have them as a part of my life at this point!!! Roommates make or break situations I feel. There is nothing worse than coming home after a long day and having crappy roommates. I come home to awesome roomies so thats a GEM!

Also I went to New Jersey last weekend to hang out with my cousins!!! One of my cousins Nadia live in Jersey with her husband, and her sister Nada lives in Cali and she came out for a week. Nadia was having surgery, and everything turned out well thank God, so it was nice to just spend cousin time bonding. Here are me and my awesome cousins:

Another thing I did in the City was visit the place I have been wanting to visit for soooo long, the United Nations Headquarters. My goal is to one day work there, so I am prepping myself, and it was amazing to visit. I went with my friend Sam and we took a tour of the UN building. We got to see the Assembly room where a representative from each of the 192 countries meet. Here's a picture of it (I was surprised they let us take pictures inside):

And here is a picture of NYC from the United Nations Building.... breath taking!!!

I love my life right now. It has been such a great opportunity to get to know new people, explore an amazing city, and see God providing and opening doors for me. I miss everyone back home terribly, especially my lifegroup, my family and my close friends (you know who you are). All the pictures are courtesy of my Blackberry, I dont want to look too touristy......

Miss you all.....thanks for joining me on this amazing adventure.

I ARRIVED IN NEW YORK CITY...

My day started out at 4:30am and my sister and her husband took me to the airport. It was a great flight because it usually takes 6 hrs to get to NY and it only took the pilot 4 and a half hours to make it!!! Smooth flight!!!!

Next, I went to the baggage claim to pick up my 5 bags! That's right my entire life fit into 5 bags. But let me tell you those 5 bags are impossible to carry on your own! But I did manage to carry them and set up some type of system to get to the subway to meet my roommate Kelly. It was great because the airport had elevators, so I did not have to lug all the bags up stairs by myself.

I was also very surprised because everyone was so incredibly nice when I got to NY. For example, I was walking with my mound of bags and my wallet fell on the ground. I was stopping to pick it up and a man said don't worry about it I got it for you! He handed me my wallet and proceeded to ask me if I needed help with my bags. I kindly told him thanks but I was meeting my roommate who would assist me with my luggage. He said no problem have a great day. That was the first incident. The second came when I exited the airtrain (which takes you to other terminals in the airport and to the subway) and a man directed me in the wrong way. I paid a $5 fee to get to the wrong place. As I sat on a bench and was contemplating I realized (only because I have been to NY before) that the man told me to go to the wrong place. I wasn't sure which route to go so I asked a female police officer, named Glory, next to me who was text messaging someone. I clarified with her to make sure my thoughts were accurate and she confirmed that I was in the wrong place.

Glory had a heavy NY accent and piercing light eyes. She asked me if it was my first time in NY and I told her no, that I have been here many times but this is the first time I moved to NY. I told her my story. I told her how I left my job, sold my truck, packed up my stuff and moved. She told me that inspired her. Then, she said come on I will help with with your bags. I said well I need to refill my subway card because I already paid the $5 to be in the wrong place (which depleted the funds I had on the card from my last trip to NY in December), she said don't worry about it you're with me and I will get you in free on charge. She helped with with my bags, got me through the line for free and escorted me to a subway bench were Kelly wanted me to meet her. I thanked her and she asked where I was moving exactly. I told her I was moving to Brooklyn on Lafayette and Nostrand. She got really bubbly and excited and told me she lives on Lafayette. She said she has lived there her whole life. She gave me pointers the "do's" and "don'ts" if you will. We then bid each other adieu and she said she would see me around sometime.

I waited on the bench by the subway for maybe 5 mins and then my roommate Kelly showed up! She is such a gem! She helped me with bags and we chatted the entire subway ride home. The worse part was that at the subways there are rarely elevators so we had to carry all the bags up about 7 flights of stairs total (thats in the subway and to the apt). We took many breaks because we were exhausted, then a gentleman came up to us (this is the thiid incident) and asked us if we needed help. He said he would carry our bags up all the remaining stairs for us. So he did! He said he understood because he did the same thing about 2 weeks ago and wished someone would of helped him. We were at the end of the subway so he carried our bags right to the door of the apt. He bid us adieu and said good luck. We thanked him for his help and walked into the entry door of the apt.

So the way the apt works is there is an initial entry door, a second door and then flights of stairs up to the apt door. There are 3 keys. One for the entry door, one for the second security door, then one for the apt. Kelly had my keys ready for me. We finally hauled all the bags up two more flights of stairs to the apt and I made it to my room!!! Kelly had my bed waiting with fresh sheets on the for me. I settled in and was unpacking while Kelly and I chatted away about life. Then, I met my other two roommates Jo and Stacy. They both are in Americorps and working for the Red Cross while Kelly is in the graduate school I am applying to, Hunter College. Great dynamic between all of us. We all got ready together last night and were chatting away while getting to know each other. It's great, all 4 of us interact as if we have known each other for awhile. I am totally blessed with my living situation. We all went our separate ways last night for Valentines Day. I went to dinner with my good friend Sam, Kelly went to a show, and Jo and Stacy went to hang with some of their friends. My day ended at 2:30am.

All in all it was a fantastic and exhilarating first day in New York....I love it here.

4 Days till New York, Toms and turning 24

"So many people live within unhappy circumstance and yet will not take the initiative to change their situation because they are conditioned to a life of security, conformity and conservatism, all of which may appear to give one peace of mind, but in reality nothing is more dangerous to the adventurous spirit within a man than a secure future. The very basic core of the living spirit is his passion for adventure. The joy of life comes from our encounters with new experiences and hence there is no greater joy than to have endlessly changing horizon for each day to have a new and different sun." ----Chris McCandless

I read this quote today online for an awesome website called ww.tomsshoes.com. It's a fantastic website that manufactures environmentally friendly shoes. For every pair of shoes bought they send a pair of shoes to a child in need! I think that is fantastic, my sister was showing me the website today. Anyhow, this quote really hit home for me. I believe every word in it, and I know that this will be a journey of growth, perseverance and love.

I know from each encounter I have in New York I will feel those 3 things. Growing, putting my best foot forward, and developing relationships with God's people. Currently, I am packing away. I thought I had it all figured out, yet while I was packing noticed I have wayyyyyy too much stuff that I don't need to take with me. So I keep minimizing and minimizing.

I finished up my grad school essay last night, and sent it out a few hours ago to some close friends for revisions. I will have my graduate application sent out before I head off to New York on Saturday!!! 4 days! I can't believe I will be moving to NY in 4 days.

In further news, I am accepting the reality that today is my 24th birthday! Wow, 24 already. Where did all the time go? I am looking forward to spending this day with my mom, dad and sister. The day will start out with quality time with me, my mom and sister, then the evening will consist of have dinner with my baba (baba in arabic means dad). Spending that quality time with the family is important. Again I am really just embracing the moments at hand. Life is good. I can't wait to have time to do yoga again. I miss it!! I have been so busy packing, rearranging, networking, attending board meetings and spending that quality time with those closest to me. Well I should get back to packing, and then get some sleep. My sister will be here at 9am to pick me up....then we are off!!!

Secured my apt in NY, 16 days to go...

Rom 1:17 "The Just Live by Faith"
God provides when we surrender and put our faith in him. This entire journey of surrender through my job, letting go of my truck and eliminating most of my possessions, has been a scary task. But things are coming together nicely. I am at peace about my life, and quite frankly I appreciate living simply. God is NEVER on time but is never LATE with providing for us. It is written...

My apt came through! Woo hoo! I will be living in Brooklyn, NY. It is about a 15 min train ride into New York City. My roommate Kelly seems awesome. She is going to meet me at the airport the day I land and help me bring my stuff into the apt! What a gem she is! In addition, I filed for my taxes today and it looks like uncle sam is going to be giving me back a nice chunk of change which should help in my transition to NY. I was not expecting to get anything back really, so it is nice to look forward to that.

Removing the stress of looking for an apartment has been liberating. I have some interviews set up on the 16th, a couple of days after I arrive, which should provide options. I am excited and looking forward to New York, but I am making sure I am enjoying the moments in front of me as well. Enjoying the present and what amazing friends and family I have in my life has been nice to take in. This last week has been awesome because I have had the opportunity to spend time with people who mean the most to me. Spending time with my sister, my baba, my grandma, my best friend Briana, Scott and all the phone conversations I have had, ah what a breath of fresh air. I am blessed in my life with the people around me, the opportunities in front of me and love I share and will soon share with people in my life.

17 mile bike ride, and new apt info

So today was an eventful day! I rode my bike from Huntington Beach, CA to Irvine, CA (approx 17 miles). Ummmmmm yea, my legs are going to fall off and all that will be left is a torso! I wanted to see if I could do it, and ummm I did but I know I will be sore tomorrow. I hit 3 major hills, it started raining on me, and then the wind was blowing when I arrived in Irvine, so I was riding against the wind. Hahaha yea. But the awesome thing is that a person never feels more alive then when the heart is beating and ready to explode. It's nice to feel alive and go through the motions.

Another super fantastic thing, I got a call from a girl I have been communicating with in regards to an apt in New York. Its in Brooklyn, about 15 mins subway ride into Manhattan. It sounds perfect. 4 girls live there. One is getting her Master's at the college I am applying too, and the other two girls work for the Red Cross. So there will be the community service piece and the Master's program in common between us all. We had a half hour conversation about our expectations of each other, the place and of life. We seem to get along well. She has a couple of people looking at the place this weekend but said she is inclined to give the room to me. So we shall see. I will know by this weekend. I am not too worried because I know if this doesn't work out, there is another divine plan. But I really hope I get it! =D In addition, I networked with a VP I used to work with at Disney Films (from when I interned there back in 2006) and his friend's fiance got in touch with me today. She is a recruiter in the entertainment industry and she is going to meet with me once I get to NY and assist me in finding a job. She asked me to send her my resume, and I did. She will be keeping a heads up starting now for opportunities that will arise. Things are coming together nicely and it is exciting. Now i just need to go through all my clothes and stuff and see what is essential to take, and what isn't. Thanks everyone for your support thus far, I can't tell you what it means to me.

My job is over, and my truck is sold.....

So the decision has been made!!!! My last day at my job was on January 20th and today I sold my truck. My Tacoma, my baby, of five years. I was the original owner to that bundle of joy. Everyone who knows me knows that I had some awesome adventures in that truck. Symbolically it dictated so much of my independence. It was bittersweet to see it go today, but this foreshadows my move to New York!!!

Now I am working on finding an apt and a job out there. Before I leave to New York, which is on Feb 14th (yes I will be spending my Valentine's on a plane and sharing my love with the city!), I would like to secure a job and a place to live. Is all that going to happen before I leave? Who knows...this is all God's will and I am excited to trust in him and watch as he provides for me.  Also, before I leave to new York I am submitting my application to graduate school to pursue my MS in Urban Affairs with a concentration in Non-Profits and Public Policy. I will be applying to Hunter College in Manhattan. I find out in May/June if I get accepted for the Fall Semester that starts in September. I am networking a lot in New York right now, so I have options until I hear back about grad school.  Nothing can devastate me at this point, because I am putting my best foot and effort forward and what is provided to me I am confident is God's will. If I don't get an opportunity I "thought" I wanted, I walk in peace and excitement knowing God has another adventure else planned for me. :) 

I am so excited and I created this blog to share my struggles, happiness, emotions, and success with you guys. I am up and moving to a new place with no definite answers, and I am excited, scared, and at peace about it. I am determined to pursue my calling and to really wake up every morning happy with what I am doing in my life and the way I am serving others. So I invite you to share this journey with me, it will be an adventure and I promise to only post raw and honest updates on my pursuit!!!

Yallah, here we go!