I like Sunnyside, the neighborhood in Queens where I'm living this summer. My friend Mike was in town and noted the remarkable and welcome difference that the peace and relative quiet of Sunnyside offers to the chaos and cacophony of Manhattan. "My" apartment is above a restaurant, on a street with lots of neat places to pop in and eat or drink, but it's got a very inviting, neighborhoody feel. It's also incredibly diverse ... you'll see a gay couple drinking wine at an outdoor table as a family of Puerto Ricans walks by and two old German men stand out having cigars next to Japanese teenagers giggling and listening to music. It's just a totally new neighborhood experience for me.My apartment is just great, but no matter where you sublet, a sublet never really feels like "home." It feels more like a hotel. It lacks a certain comforting connectivity that makes being at home worth coming home to.
Being an intern is in many ways similar to subletting an apartment. The company isn't really "mine." I'm sort of make-believing it's mine for a couple months. So between home and work, I'm trying on a different life, and consequently trying on a different lifestyle, including what I eat, what I read, how I dress, how I sleep. It's fun, and educational. Like "Dora the Explorer."Meanwhile, observe a picture of the free coffee machine, Flavia, near me at work. Flavia is also the name of one of my friends at school, so I feel a spiritual connection to her whenever I burn the roof of my mouth on a hot beverage at my desk. I'm sure she can feel me flinch all the way from Brazil.
Sounds like what West Hollywood was for me. It really was its own little city apart from the craziness of LA, filled with a real neighborly vibe and loads of diversity around every corner. I think the idea of doing internships and the momentarily lifestyle change is really refreshing, sometimes its good to climb outside your regular skin and experience a different life, it puts several things into perspective. Enjoy the adventure!
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