living in new york city

August 29, 2026

/ HJ / Leave a comment

blocked driveway
day
after day
after day, not always the same
car, but damn… do they not see the orange
tickets on yesterday’s sedans? do they not see
me exiting and entering in my own little blue vehicle?
do they not see the curb ending?
do they only see the overgrown-ness to our outside plants
and the other houses in the area that have converted
old garages to apartments and rooms and assume? or do they just see
a space away from construction signs and other cars
and think ‘thank goodness’ and then
that’s that?

maybe it’s time to put out a sign that says
‘do not block driveway’
or ‘active driveway’ or something like that

but i’m not convinced
they’ll even see that
if they haven’t seen
any of these many other indicators
in the past…

August 13, 2026

/ HJ / Leave a comment

ten years ago we had just gotten married
and had delayed our honeymoon to take
while i had the opportunity to perform
in the new york city international fringe festival
and so we were here
ten years ago
in a summer heat wave
staying in a fancy hotel
in times square
two introverts
constantly overwhelmed
and at the end of that trip
ten years ago
we both agreed
that we did not like nyc
and would never
ever
ever live here

jokes on us ten years ago
because, over the last six and three quarters years
i have learned what it is to love
a place

because new york and new yorkers
have taught me so many things
about living and diversity and togetherness and community
and perseverance
and humor
and art

i don’t know what my life would be like living any other place
but i’m damn glad kip found parts of this city away from tourism hell
and we found our little pocket of nature and quiet in the middle of
the city that never sleeps, and i still get so excited
to go downtown and i still get so excited
to come back home and i still can’t believe
we live in this magical, dirty, weird, unique, and wonderful place
that ten years ago i hated so hard

i love it here

May 4, 2026

/ HJ / Leave a comment

kip
going out
doing things
meeting for dinners and
going to networking events
in the city

and me
going out
doing things
running friends around and
socializing and working outside of the house
going into [and out of] the city

we’re acting like
a couple of new yorkers!

[it only took the looming threat
of a move
and/or unemployment
to get us here]

April 1, 2026

/ HJ / Leave a comment

a moment
with a stray cat
yelling at me as i looked past the spot
i usually check
for cats

a moment
with a hawk
screeching over my head
and actually seeing it
soar
away

a moment
with all the birds
who eat the cat food we put out for the strays,
the starlings and mockingbirds and robins and wrens and blue jays
[would they all actually eat the bird food
if we put up a bird feeder, or is purina
always going to be their
meal of choice?]

a moment
with our silly dog
whining at all the other
canines walking past

a moment
with squirrels
with skunks
with raccoons and possums at night
with rats along the indoor subway line
and the pigeons flocking outside

i cannot express what it means
to me
to have all these animals around us
and
get to take advantage of living inside the city

the bronx is truly a beautiful place

February 7, 2026

/ HJ / Leave a comment

i have had
quite the busy
busy week
and today is the day for
resting
and chores that have been waiting
for at least a week
if not more to
be done

and this may end up being my week
from now until
who knows when

but i’ll keep trucking
i’ll keep doing
until i find myself
trying
something different

[i still want to write more than anything
but i can never think of anything
to actually write
about]

August 10, 2025

/ HJ / Leave a comment

i think
i see
[or am starting to
anyway]
why
the cyclone
has so much
lore
and art
and presence
and prestige
about it

i may need to ride it
a couple more times
to truly understand
[though that may be
my thrill-seeker side
craving the hairpin turns
and g-forces
pressing on my thumping heart
truly feeling
alive]

[we’ll see
we’ll see]

June 26, 2025

/ HJ / Leave a comment

getting choked up
at rallies where we all chant
“we are New Yorkers”
to signify we won’t be beaten down
or give in
to fascism

literally tearing up
while reading the world’s responses
to our mayoral primary
“that’s my mayor”
in Cleveland
in Virginia
in New Zealand
in Europe

those damn tote bags were right —

don’t you dare call me an american
i’ve never had any
pride in my country

but don’t you dare forget
that i’m a New Yorker
and my chosen city
stands up for all our
beliefs

and when we get together on something
don’t you dare forget
what we can all accomplish
as New Yorkers
together

June 7, 2025

/ HJ / Leave a comment

walking the puppy
up and down the sidewalk
that same sidewalk we do every morning
and she always smells different things
keeps up with different dogs in the neighborhood
[“reads the newspaper” if you will]
and i stand by, astounded
that something as beautiful smelling as honeysuckle
can be growing
and scenting
this new york city
neighborhood

[even if they are invasive…]

July 28, 2024

/ HJ / Leave a comment

spotted lantern flies
cursed our existence
outside
one year ago

this year there are still some
but they seem few
and far-between
and i’m hoping that means
that we as new yorkers
got together and destroyed
[/are still destroying]
an invasive species
that hurts our ecosystem.

as many faults as i can find with nyc
from living here for five years
that is one thing i gotta hand us —
when we have a task
to better our neighborhoods
that we can all get behind — we do it
and we do it
good.