New York New York, Big City of Dreams

yepppp I knew that once I started a blog that I would have a hard time committing to it. So much has happened since the last post, so I will need to catch up!

In July I went to New York for about 2 weeks with my bff, Jodie, to see her sister, Kelsey!! Kelsey was one of the photo interns for Elle magazine. We had loads of fun but was definitely over NYC by the time we left. It was a super fun place to visit, no doubt, but to live.....would not be my first choice.

oh the things we did:

1. I hauled what it felt like a 50lb backpack over 10 blocks to meet Kelsey because I refused to pay for a cab.

2. First dinner in NYC- garden burgers and instant mashed potatoes. Saved lots of money by eating in. Great idea!

3. Met my lovely cousin, Laura, and her co workers for beer and pizza at John's Pizzeria.

4. Met Kelsey's German friend, Paul, for chips and salsa and margaritas. What a swell guy.

5. Fell asleep on a sidewalk (wasn't drunk, just tired from the day's festivities, fyi)

6. Woke up to Jodie puking her life away because she wasn't use to American food quite yet. She had spent the last 5 mths in Austria. Poor thing.

7. Rode the NJ transit to go visit my family!! Grilled out by the pool and went out for ice cream.

8. Spent 8 hours out on Governor's Island waiting for She & Him to perform. Oh yeah it was hott as HELLo, BUT it was FREE!! Free ferry ride, free show= perfect day.

9. Grabbed a burrito and watched the fireworks. Happy 4th!

10. Dylan's Candy Bar...only the sweeeetest candy bar everrr!!

11. Grabbed a yummy salad and spent the day in Central Park people watching and listening to music.

12. Visited Tiffany & Co. Didn't find my dream ring, oh well.

13. Explored through China Town and Little Italy (my personal favorite) Ate chicken parmagiana, penne vodka and sangria.

14. Met some locals at Planet Hollywood while watching the Holland Uruguay game. They took us around to some more places to hang out, one of them being a sushi/karaoke bar where we sang Smells Like Teen Spirit a few times. We didn't pay for a thing!! SCORE

15. Walked across the Brooklyn Bridge, found a cute inexpensive restaurant, and walked on the pier.

16. Watched the Germany Spain game at a Pub. Grabbed some cupcakes afterwards and walked down to the Pub that How I Met Your Mother is based off of. (Favorite show!)

17. Jodie & Kelsey's mom and brother and his friend Sam arrived in NYC!!

18. Rode the Staten Island Ferry, which was FREE. Saw the Liberty Lady and all her Glory!

19. Visited the MoMA (Museum of Modern Art) Free on Fridays after 4pm.

20. Met up with my cousins, Laura and Dana, and her co workers for margaritas and bowling. My family is the best!

21. Tried to buy tickets for Wicked, the Lion King, Mary Poppins, and Memphis, but it was a flop. We ended up seeing Westside Story. Did not plan on it being depressing at the end, but it was enjoyable.

22. Said goodbye to Kelsey and loaded up the car for the drive home. Had to leave the kooler behind because there wasn't enough room. We were PACKED in!

23. Drove around 17 hours!!!

24. Stopped somewhere in VA at Ruby Tuesdays to watch the Finals!!! Sad that Holland lost!

25. Back home in Nashville!!!!

Now something about proclaiming freedom, the whole reason I started this blog:

While in NYC, I remembered an organization I once researched that is located there called GEMS. GEMS stands for Girls Educational and Mentoring Service. They are the only organization in New York that is designed to serve young women who have been sexually exploited or trafficked in the US. They have many different programs for empowering survivors from prevention, outreach and court advocacy to trauma based therapy and educational mentoring. Definitely check out their website to learn more and learn how you can make a difference and watch the Very Young Girls trailer to see what these very young girls experience on a daily basis.