New York State of Mind

Just returned home from a crazy three whirlwind days in Manhattan, racing from meetings with editors and my agent, and trying to fit in some visiting with old friends. In one single day, I took a train from Long Island, checked into my hotel, fed the baby, took a cab down to the West Village, met with one of my editors, ate lunch, took a cab further downtown to Wall Street area, had coffee with another of my editors, took a cab back to hotel to feed baby, bundled him into a cab to Upper East Side to visit with my agent, had cocktails, fed the baby, . . . and it went on from there to a French restaurant. My day started at dawn and ended at 11:00 p.m. And even as I was on all cylinders, so was New York.

As a native New Yorker, I love Manhattan. It is home to the world's publishers, as well as millions of people. And J.D., who went with me, noted, "It really does have an energy." And it's true. The second you step foot off the train, you just feel it. Ambition and energy, personality, and a true melting pot.

My second day in New York was just as harried as the first, with my first meeting before 10:00 a.m. In the end, it was all good career-wise, and it was good personally, because there's a part of me that loves reconnecting with New York. I miss it when I am away too long.

But I loved coming home. Home has a different energy. It's piles of laundry and little kid laughter. It's a million things to do and a weariness--rewarded with hugs and sleepy angelic faces. It's sanctuary from the rest of the world. It's like my comfy chair, a place to rest and curl up. It was good to go. It was good to come home.