An Update and a High-Five from New York

In case anyone still checks this blog once and a while, (and per Kathy's request) I thought I'd leave an update.

The house is coming along, thanks to my amazing parents who are putting everything back together for me. I absolutely couldn't be doing what I'm doing in New York without them picking up after me. Thanks! From our conversations, the living room and dining room are all painted, and the stairwell is done too. I think Mom's going to email me photos, and I'll share them with you as soon as I get them. She said it looks really nice and that it's probably exactly how I would have wanted it to be while I was living there. I really wish I could be there to help. I feel like I left my baby with its grandparents and I'm missing its first steps!

My roommates have all moved out but my sister moved in, as she was looking for some short-term housing in Fargo after her roommate moved away. It's pretty cool because she can keep tabs on it and hopefully it won't get that weird vacant house smell. You know, the one you get at an open house that's been on the market forever and the owners are long gone.

Now, as for New York, it's been in interesting month!

I've moved into an apartment in Harlem, which is much nicer than the models' apartment I was staying at in the Bronx. It's nice to have a permanent place to make my own... even if it's a 10 X 7 foot room. It's a five bedroom, one bathroom apartment I share. Thankfully the lifestyle of a fashion model allows for a later wake-up call than the roommates. When I get up they're all gone and the bathroom is mine. MINE!

I did paint the room when I moved in, so I guess that's close to being houseblog-able. I went for a steely blue color. I had photos but accidentally deleted them. Kinda upset about them, but more upset about the photo of me flashing gang-signs in my Bronx subway station at 3am. I could recreate it, but I don't think I'm going back to the Bronx. Ever.

As for work, it's been picking up the last week or so. I booked my first job on Tuesday, modeling for a press presentation for Topman that was held Wednesday. I was photographed by DNR magazine, and videotaped by the BBC. I have no idea if that video will ever surface, but I'd be interested in seeing it if it did!

I checked DNR magazine's website today, and it seems they decided to forgo the photos of the other models and me in favor of the company's owner, who I personally feel is a couple notches down on the chic scale from the rest of us. Even though I can't prove it, I was fully dressed in Topman, standing in front of that orange neon sign. I swear. I'm going to stop into a magazine shop tomorrow downtown and see if they included some more photos in the print edition. I had better be in there! I didn't wear a button down shirt, heavy wool sweater, double-breasted wool coat and gloves on a 95 degree day in NYC for nothing! I guess I got paid, so it doesn't matter.

Other than that, I've had some good go-sees lately. For those of you who don't watch the TV show America's Next Top Model, a go-see is when models are sent out by the agency to meet with casting directors, photographers, or designers. These people would take your information, might ask to see your runway walk, and take some basic photos to keep on record for when they have jobs that come up. I had a go-see Thursday with a very big casting director that went really well. He had me show him my runway walk, sat there with a deep-thought look on his face, then asked me if I could do it again. As I finished my second pass, he muttered "genius" under his breath. As I left he said "we'll see you soon"! He called my agency and told them he liked me and asked about my schedule for an upcoming show. Of course, it means nothing without actually booking the job, but at least I caught the attention of the right guy! I'll find out if I got that job this week, as well as another show I've been on hold for for two months. It would be really cool to book those jobs, considering they're in Florence and Milan!!! BIG name designers, but I don't want to jinx it.

Other than that, I've just been taking in the city and trying to keep up with people back home. I check my google-reader account every day, so I'm keeping current with everyones' blogs. It's sad, but I get my renovations 'fix' vicariously through all of you. I'm going through construction withdrawals!

Lastly, I was between go-see appointments the other day and I was trying to kill time (they were a block apart and scheduled an hour apart) so I did a little browsing. The building next door to the first go-see was an URBAN HOME DEPOT!!! I've never seen 'the Depot without a parking lot or freight entrance. I definitely had never seen one that had three levels. I took a photo, but that was in the batch of photos I accidentally deleted. When I'm back in the area I'll do it again. It just blew my mind. The merchandise was different from Fargo too. I think a lot of people here are looking to either use luxury materials or restore old buildings because there was a much larger selection of quality materials (hello, boards and boards of marble samples?) and vintage inspired items like amazing mosaic tiles, classic patterns, light fixtures that were NOT available to me, and the coolest entry sets. What I also saw was an obvious lack of the 'builders special' basic items that clone themselves into every suburban split level in America. It was just cool to see the difference.

Oh, sorry, rambling post. This one got long! Thanks to anyone with the patience to get this far.