A lot of people ask me why I decided to move to NYC. Ever since the first time I visited NYC, I told myself I had to live there. I was incredibly inspired by everything it had to offer, and it became a long time dream of mine. I’m actually back in CA writing this, and a lot of people ask me if I like NYC and are surprised when I say I absolutely love it.

Now that I’ve lived in NYC for nearly 2.5 years, I’ve realized that it has allowed me live the lifestyle I want to live. Don’t ask yourself what kind of job you want, but what kind of lifestyle you want to live. When I was working full time in CA and only had 2 weeks of vacation each year, I knew I had to figure out a way to get more time off each year. And the way to do it is to work for yourself. Thankfully, NYC has given me the opportunity to make a living doing what I love to do. On top of that, I’ve been able to take off around 2 months each year, which has been absolutely fantastic. My first year, I spent over a month traveling through Egypt, Jordan, Malta, and Italy. Last year I spent 6 weeks in Australia and New Zealand, and checked 4 things off of my bucket list. This year I spent a month filming in London, South Africa, and India and I’ll be living in Paris for a month in the fall, which has been another dream of mine. As great as NYC is, it’s also great to take regular breaks from the chaos and the hustle and bustle. But I’ve truly been able to thrive in NYC and live out my dreams, as cheesy as that sounds. I was even able to pay off my last college loan this year and become debt free finally (a long time goal)! I encourage my CA friends to join me in NYC and I think they’re sick of hearing it. Honestly, I truly think they would enjoy and love it.

NYC is an incredibly dynamic, creative, exciting, and fun place. There is never a dull moment and it will never cease to amaze. Last month I had the opportunity to meet my favorite artist, JR, at Times Square. I joined his global art project, Inside Out (the largest participatory art project in the world), and pasted a large 3 ft X 4 ft portrait of myself on Times Square. I saw one of my favorite documentary films of the year at TriBeCa Film Festival, Cutie and the Boxer, and met the main characters afterwards. They are such a cute couple! New Yorkers are working on all sorts of exciting projects all the time. I have a friend filming a documentary about break dancing in the developing world, and he’s been following incredible stories in places like Yemen and Uganda. I have another friend doing photography work in the Arctic and Antarctica. Hopefully I’ll be joining her in Antarctica in Feb 2014!

NYC is home for now, indefinitely. I can’t say for sure where I’ll be in 5 or 10 years. But for now, I’m very happy, content, passionate, and extremely grateful. Let’s grab a cup of coffee together in NYC or Paris!

Carpe Diem,
Reuben