Wednesday 26 May 2010

What a Long, Strange Trip It's Been

So, that happened.

That trip to the US. You know, the one where I turned 35 and burst into tears in the restaurant bathroom (100 percent sober, for the record). It also happened to be the trip where the day after I turned 35 – very single, and feeling very peripheral in the life of my married, pregnant-with-triplets twin sister -- I very, very not-soberly attended wedding of old friend with whom I have tortured history. I'd tell you more about that delightful experience except literally I can't remember it.

Oh -- except for the email I got from the groom the next morning (he'd sent it at 11 pm on his wedding night) asking me if I'd gotten home OK. There was also a moment at the cocktail hour where he noticed me and blurted out: "You look amazing."

Everything else in between is rather a blur, I'm afraid.

What else happened on that trip, you ask? I lost my blackberry/phone (in the cab on the way back from the wedding, I'm pretty sure), which made life oh-so-very complicated and stressful. I was permanently exhausted, since I needed to get up at 5 am every day to file a story before heading out to appointments. I met with a bunch of scary New York editors (think cocktail party chatter without the cocktails). I wore some beautiful black patent stilettos that got commented upon everywhere. (Straight GQ editor: "Did you butch it out in those shoes like a good Conde Nast editor or did you walk to the subway in another pair of shoes?" Self editor: "You look like a Conde Nast editor already." Inc magazine editor: "I saw your shoes in the elevator and was going to comment but I thought, 'She looks way too fabulous for us. She must be going to Fast Company.'") A Harpers Bazaar editor gave me Chanel nail polish, a Chanel lipstick in a color I'll never wear, and told me I looked like a model. (She must be on more drugs than the models they use.)

I discovered New Yorkers are very generous with their cell phone minutes when asked by random strangers (me). Also, this happened: Across the street from Conde Nast a woman stopped to ask me about my shoes. (She turned out to be – wait for it – another Conde Nast editor.) I promptly asked her to borrow her iPhone, she loaned it, and then handed me her card. "Call me if you ever need to make another phone call," she chirped. Yes, seriously.

I tried four different New York fitness classes I'd read about. (Just call me the exercise tourist.)

And on Saturday I nearly threw up at one of them – an absolutely amazing spin class called SoulCycle -- because I'd binged the night before on naan, gulab jamon, rice pudding and, erm, rice at an all-you-can-eat-Indian buffet. (What was I doing at an all-you-can-eat Indian buffet? A doctor friend invited me to a medical residents' party.) Yes, that happened, too.

BA cancelled my flight back to London and I had to talk my way onto another after two plus hours on hold.

I went back to DC and hauled up boxes of baby stuff from the pregnant sister's basement. I got overly nostalgic and maudlin (privately) about the fact that this is the last time I can ever stay in her house (hello, 3 babies = no space.) I tried not to think too hard about the fact that – unless something goes horribly wrong – the next time I see my sister she'll be the mother of 3.

I saw an old friend who choked up when when we talked about BN2: "I was so worried about you," she said, wiping away tears.

Three separate friends lobbied me to move back. My sister kept asking me if I had a backup plan. "Maybe you should go into PR," she kept saying.

I discovered Newman's Own dark chocolate peanut butter cups. Holy yum. I also instinctively hoarded free food I don't need from the flight this morning (do I really need to have mini Twix bars and mini Walkers shortbread sitting around my flat? I mean, WTF? I didn't even dare buy the MaraNatha dark chocolate almond butter and I'm picking up free shortbread?)

Anyway. More on some of the above later, but I literally just got back hours ago and boring admin awaits...

4 comments:

  1. yay to hear from you!!

    now we need pics of your shoes, pics of you, and pics of you in those shoes! ;)

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  2. So glad you are back! Yes, I agree with Rebecca; at the very least, pics of THE SHOES! :)

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  3. Yep, I need to see the shoes too.

    Plus - all those compliments: they can't all be mad/on drugs. Perhaps they're just well deserved compliments....

    love
    Peridot x

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  4. It just all sounds so exotic and exciting. Rotherham just can't compare!! Sorry to hear about the crying jag but it sounds like there have been more ups than downs....

    Lesley x

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