New York comes to my rescue every day. I have a tendency to get sad without warning, and my fail-safe method for battling the blues is to meander along city streets on my bicycle. I find beauty everywhere I turn. My family has taken 2000 photos of the city since the year 1906, and I constantly revisit old places to remember and reinvent them, often discovering lost treasures or lovely things I never knew existed. It comforts my soul the same way a three-pack of Yankee Doodles soothed my belly when I was a kid.
Last September, Kennedy Moore, founder of Ask a New Yorker, contacted me after reading my story blog. He invited me to write a weekly column for this remarkable site that brings all the pleasures of New York City together in one spot. I was honored and accepted his offer immediately. I wanted to be part of it. New York is a five-senses explosion and Ask a New Yorker dives in with gusto. As much as I’ve enjoyed writing for AANY these past ten months, though, something was missing.
The nature of media these days is that a lot of the time you don’t meet the people with whom you work. You read their pieces, sometimes see their photos, but there is no face-to-face contact. I miss that. I crave tactile. I love people’s expressions and hearing the voices that go with the words. This past Monday, Kennedy Moore and Emily Sproch, AANY’s Managing Editor, hosted a party for AANY’s staff writers. For the first time, I met Emily and several of the writers who share my love for the city. We gathered at Toshi’s Living Room in the Flatiron Hotel at 9 West 26th Street. We spent a portion of our time on the penthouse deck staring, jaws dropped, at the Empire State Building.
My circle with AANY is complete. I’m indebted to Kennedy and Emily and all the other writers for their warm friendship and support. This morning my AANY coffee mug reminded me that I’m a lucky boy on a talented and dedicated team doing its best to bring the city to everyone.
New York's beloved Flatiron Building
The view from the penthouse
The penthouse terrace and Ask a New Yorker staff
Click HERE for additional photos from the party!
Thomas Pryor has been featured on A Prairie Home Companion and This American Life, and his work has appeared in the New York Times. He curates City Stories: Stoops to Nuts, a storytelling show at the Cornelia Street Café on the second Tuesday of the month (next one August 14th). Check out his blog Yorkville: Stoops to Nuts.
