04 September 2014

NYC Day 6 - Personal Day

The chaos of New York has gotten to me.

We are staying in Bushwick, in Brooklyn, and, after yesterday's long trip, I chose to stay near home today.  We didn't even venture out until late afternoon, to get some bubble tea.

This morning I rested and rehydrated.  I'm still feeling a little bit of vertigo, but only occasionally, and I think it might have to do with my sinuses.  I needed a day of energy restoration.

So, basically, I'm down in the dumps.

I even turned down a showing of an apartment in Bushwick today because I didn't think I could handle it.  Emotionally or physically.  It was a 30 minute train ride, and the girls were fussy and I was fussy and I didn't know the neighborhood.

So I postponed it until tomorrow.  Nathan can come with me then, I think.

Also, I was able to check out the neighborhood a little in advance, thanks to Google maps.  It looks, as my host A says, "a little sketchy."

I had also planned to start working on homeschool today, but I needed a rest.  It's surreal, being in a place under the radar, and not having the girls be in school.  I could justify it prior to Labor Day, but now I'm running out of excuses.  Except that I'm tired.

I took a walk with the girls this afternoon, to get Eleanor to take a nap (she had resisted one all day), and to try a new bubble tea place that A had suggested.  We walked down Wyckoff, past old men sitting on chairs by the corners, past mothers like me, with strollers and children, and past young, single folks, who were in the most hurry to get anywhere.

I think that's when the exhaustion hit.  I didn't want to live in a place that was so draining.  Too much hustle and bustle.  Too many buses, cars, trains.  I wanted to be in a quiet corner somewhere, near trees and a river.  Even inside, there is constant movement and thought - mamas putting babies down for naps, cooking, cleaning.  The dirt here is endless, and so is the cleaning.  Nathan mentioned this morning that it was good that we were so clean (we are trying to be good guests), because if we continued our habits from before, the roaches would come.

I think this weekend we will check out New Jersey.  But I am not sure.  I am still thinking of that little park up in Inwood.

***

It's a little later on, after dinner, and while daddy J gets little P ready for bed, the girls are passing the time waiting for their turn in the shower by planning their homeschool curriculum.  Olivia is writing out her schedule, and Elsie is drawing a picture of all the things she wants to do.


Nathan won't be home until 11 or so from his orientation, but we had a nice dinner here, and then the kids played musical clean-up with J, while mama A and I cleared the table.  Then J played with all the kids, pretending to be a guitar player, and then a guitar.




It is good to have good friends.

No comments: