I went to Tory Burch’s Madison Avenue location yesterday to return a hand bag I ordered during their Friends and Family Appreciation Sale that ended up being too big for me. Even though I was there for a return, the service was still extremely attentive and friendly, and the person helping me even offered me a beverage – bottled water, Coke, or Diet Coke? When I noticed a similar bag I was interested in and started playing with it, out of nowhere, another sales person discreetly puts the same bag in two other colors within my reach and gently lets me know this is the same bag I am looking at, just in their other available colors for me to see. Part of me felt weirded out by it, but the other part of me felt relieved that I didn’t feel pressured to make a decision or buy anything right away the way you do at other department stores, or even brand-specific stores like Coach. This is what it’s like to shop at a really nice boutique store. They actually want you to feel special. Sort of.

And then I thought, actually, I think I feel the most comfortable shopping online when i don’t have to be around other prissy shoppers making all of their buying decisions out loud. I love online shopping and how easy, fast, and pressure-less it is.

For the first time ever, I met someone who did not enjoy the Broadway show Book of Mormon. He said that he found it too cheesy – the lines, the music, and even the facial expressions. Then again, he also is not someone who enjoys Broadway shows or theater at all, for that matter, so I’m not sure if Book of Mormon should be any exception for him in his theater opinions.

I’ve definitely had moments when I thought certain lines or smiles or songs were cheesy when at a Broadway production, but that’s partly there because that’s what appeals to people; people like to see and hear things that feel good, and that’s why Broadway is Broadway; it’s mainstream, and it’s what people want. The one show I do know (and saw) that was off-Broadway that dealt with a real topic – depression, mental illness, and suicide in the context of a family – didn’t have a very long off-Broadway life. You can’t really bring your family to a show about rape or murder or people jumping off the Golden Gate Bridge. If you want that kind of stuff – what is arguably more real to life – smaller theater groups are where you should be looking.

Tonight looked to be a miserable rainy night according to the weather forecast, and since Chris wanted to stay in, he suggested we order a pizza and go home after work. I wasn’t really keen on the idea of ordering Domino’s, so I decided that I would order a Previti pizza (half Sardinia – artichoke, spinach, and creamy cheese truffle sauce, half chicken parm) for pickup and take it home. When I suggested it, I barely thought about the fact that a) I was going home during rush hour and b) because of that, the 6 train would be packed, so how would people react to my carrying an 18-inch pizza in a large box on the train?

Surprisingly, the experience was comical… and even inviting. Most of the time, people get contentious and pushy when others carry baby carriages and other large items on the train, but this time, not only did two people offer their seat on the train for me, but as soon as people saw me with my big pizza box, they literally started moving into the train and pushing other people to get further in (and if you are unfamiliar with the trains during rush hour here in New York City, you will know that people hate doing this and absolutely love to hover around the doors. They don’t care that there is space in the middle and that you need to get on the train, too). A few people joked that they would make room for me if I were willing to share a slice with them. Someone asked me where the pizza was from because it smelled so good. And a couple other people commended me for “being so brave” to carry a pizza box onto the train at this time. “I’m not sure if it’s bravery or cheapness for not wanting to pay for a cab,” I laughed. “Actually, maybe it’s a little of both!”

So New Yorkers aren’t that bad. Sure, they can be rude, but there are these moments when you realize that they are real people who have a sense of humor… and just love their pizza.

One day when I leave New York, I know one thing I will miss is the number of great, “hidden” spots that are sprinkled all over the city – the secret restaurant that you can access only by walking through an unmarked door in what appears to be a pawn shop, a bar that you get to by dialing a phone in an old-school telephone booth, a Japanese speakeasy you get to by walking through another Japanese restaurant – the list goes on. A colleague just told me about a pop-up ramen spot that opens only after 1am in Lower East Side, and it’s in the basement of an unmarked building; really, you have to know someone to get into this place. New York is a city where it’s probably impossible to see, do, and eat everything. It keeps you wanting more – and wanting to be in the know.