Me with my best friend Olivia in Time Square

This week is incredibly bittersweet as I leave the city of New York, my roommate and the staff at Time Warner after ten weeks. Although I’m happy to be going home, I’m sad to leave a city I have come to love and people who have been so caring and generous in every way. This internship has been incredible as I made connections and learned about tax law in a large corporation. My mentor Steve has been a thoughtful teacher, so friendly and helpful in every regard. I will always be grateful for the opportunity he has given me both professionally and personally. For I never imagined that I would be able to explore New York City in so many ways, shapes and forms. Just this week, for instance, my adventures here continued as I went to the set of Good Morning America and saw up close the hosts and all the intricate work that goes into producing a national news show. On Saturday, I went back to Yankee Stadium but this time I was able to cheer my home team, the Red Sox, to victory! I also attended a comedy show on the weekend and laughed my heart out and to finish off the week I have my last company softball game Thursday night. This has been an unforgettable ten weeks ~ see you later NYC, this is not goodbye!

A few years ago I watched the movie Uptown Girls starring Brittany Murphy and Dakota Fanning and in the movie the two main characters go on an adventure to Coney Island. Since watching that scene, I have always wanted to see Coney Island for myself. This weekend, I was finally able to experience  the carnival rides, Nathan’s hot dogs, the boardwalk and the beach first-hand and I wasn’t disappointed!. My friend Courtney and I explored all day and even took a dive into the ocean. It was quite an adventure. This was not my only adventure on the weekend. I also saw Cirque Du Soleil at the Radio City Music Hall. I had no idea what to expect and it turned out to be INCREDIBLE. Performers did the unimaginable –  at one point there were four men standing on each others shoulders. My work week has also been exciting since the other interns and I are making progress on our projects, continuing to learn a great deal about corporate tax issues and incorporating a little fun into the day by playing competitive games of UNO with our secretaries at lunch.  It continues to be an amazing summer here in New York City!

 This week, the other interns at Time Warner, Kaitlin and Sara and I have been working on the New York City Audit for the years 2003-2008. It’s mind boggling for me to be actually auditing years that I was not even in high school. We have been pulling various financial statements and summarizing the information required by the auditors. Since our assignment is highly taxing (no pun intended) we decided to shake up our work week with a potluck lunch! I made a green salad, Kaitlin brought cupcakes, Sara made a fruit salad, the temp at Time Warner, Julio, made Spanish rice and Sylvia, the secretary, baked a ham! The eclectic menu was delicious and the banter was very interesting –  we discussed a wide range of issues including politics, impending retirements, elementary school scuffles and more. It’s been such a gratifying experience getting to know the people in my office better and making friends here at Time Warner, not to mention a welcomed relief to have a brief break from from year 2005!

This week was quite different from my normal New York City week… I went to the Lone Star State with Deloitte for the DNLC or the Deloitte National Leadership Conference from Sunday through Wednesday. The conference took place at Deloitte University in Westlake, Texas, a beautiful estate complete with cows, a barn and state of the art classrooms. While there, I enjoyed various panel discussions by Deloitte professionals, a speech from the adventure racer Robyn Benicasa, team building exercises with peers from all over the country and more. One of my favorite activities was going to a “dude ranch”. There I raced armadillos, held a real gun, rode a bull, lined danced and ate Texas BBQ. Watching  accountants line dance was by far the most exciting activity of the night. Surprisingly. they have moves. After a action-packed week in Texas it is refreshing to return to my NYC home and my comrades at Time Warner!

This week has been both beautiful and eventful! The fourth of July not only broke up my busy work week but also provided some amazing memories. The celebration began with an invitation to a rooftop celebration on the Hudson followed by another rooftop celebration in Time Square. I feel so fortunate to have had two such incredible vantage points to America’s birthday party in the great city of New York! The fireworks were brilliant to watch so close up! This morning the celebration continued as my two roommates and I woke up at 5 am to watch FloRida  who was performing on the Today Show. Since the crowds were so intense we decided to leave early and get coffee. On our route back to the subway to head off to work we saw another concert put on by Fox News and were able to catch a glimpse of Thompson Square. Only in New York can you hit two concerts before you start your work day! There is just never a dull moment here! 

Our view at the today show!

I cannot believe that I am almost at the half way point of myinternship. My time here in New York City is really flying by. This past weekend I was the tour guide for both my mom and my nana who came to visit me and stayed right in the midst of Time Square. We went on many little adventures. We first walked all around my Union Square neighborhood to take in the sights and sounds of local artists and musicians. Then seeking a little excitement for my 80 year old grandmother, I made reservations at Ninja New York in Tribeca for some Japanese cuisine and drama, Ninja-style. After being whisked away down a dark elevator into a winding rocky garden we finally sat down to enjoy a meal served by knife-wielding, fire-breathing ninjas! My nana was a little scared but we did all survive the dinner! On Sunday, we had a day filled with fun: a trip to Saint Patrick’s Cathedral,  a visit to a vintage flea market in Hell’s Kitchen and a stop at the 9/11 memorial. The 9/11 memorial, located at the site of the former World Trade Center is a peaceful, contemplative retreat honoring the memory of all the lives lost in the attacks of February 26 1993 and September 11, 2001. There are two enormous waterfalls and pools located in the exact places where the twin towers once stood. The names of all of the victims are inscribed around the pools. The new towers and museum are in various stages of construction so the site itself is a work in progress but beautiful nonetheless. We finished the day with ice cream in Time Square, where even at 10 at night the bright neon lights and crowds of tourists deceive you into thinking it’s high noon . This week at work I am continuing with a project that I am doing with two other interns on state tax returns. It’s been very interesting interacting with people from different states on the phone but I must admit that the biggest highlight of my work week was running into Mario Lopez in the lobby of the Time Warner Center. You just never know who you might run into in Manhattan and, if you’re wondering, Mario is even cuter in real life than he is on TV;)

My week began on Sunday with some requisite sight seeing: a trip to the top of the Empire State Building and a walk across the Brooklyn Bridge with my roommates and Holy Cross friend Jack Carter. The Brooklyn Bridge, one of the oldest suspension bridges in the United States, was built from 1869 to 1883 and spans the East River connecting Manhattan to Brooklyn. The views are incredible and the structure itself is really beautiful – a great way to spend a Sunday afternoon before the work week began. This work week is turning out to be a very interesting one at the Time Warner Tax Department. Instead of a long hump day spent in the office, Ernst&Young sponsored a trip to the Yankees Game for the accounting staff and interns. Although it was one of the hottest days in NYC, a record was set in the new New York Yankees stadium with the most home runs in one game. The final score was 10-4 with the Yankees losing in the sweltering heat. It was exciting to see Jeter and A-Rod playing at home instead of at Fenway Park but as a die-hard Red Sox fan I still couldn’t root for them to win. Sorry boys. Today the theme of the “ball game” continues. Sara Keith, Kaitlin Cole and I played  in the Tax Department’s softball league. We had a game at 3:00 PM in Central Park and we played the  IT department. It was exciting to participate in a sport in the midst of the city even with the heat hovering around 100 degrees! Go Taxelrods!!!!

“Oh the places you’ll go! There is fun to be done! There are points to be scored. There are games to be won. And the magical things you can do with that ball will make you the winning-est winner of all.”
— Dr. Seuss, Oh, the Places You’ll Go!

Reflecting back on these past three weeks in NYC, I am reminded of one of my favorite children’s books Oh, the Places You’ll Go by Dr.Seuss. Similar to Dr. Seuss’s art and text, everywhere I turn in the city there is something amazing happening. Last week, my roommate and I went for a walk and ended up in the middle of Puerto Rican Day. There were colorful tents lining 3rd Avenue filled with beautiful crafts, handmade bags, delicious desserts, spicy sausages, soul rousing music and more! New York City may not look like the colorful swirly mountains illustrated by Dr. Seuss but it sure is a magical place filled with surprises around every corner. The next day I went to a networking reception held by Holy Cross at the Princeton Club. Meeting different Holy Cross alumni and interacting with upperclassmen made me realize that there are so many Crusaders ready and willing to support me in the city. I feel very fortunate to have this network and am looking forward to the Summer Internship Program’s lunch dates that will pair me up with a HC alum so I can learn even more about the city and the business world. Then on Tuesday night one of my new suite mates invited my to a documentary premiere in Times Square – she is working with a veteran CBS reporter and kindly included me in her plans – another interesting twist in my Seuss-like week. As I finish up my third week I will continue to explore this big swirly mountain known as New York City. In Dr. Seuss’s words I guess I had better get on my way!

“You’re off to Great Places!
Today is your day!
Your mountain is waiting,
So… get on your way!”
– Dr. Seuss, Oh, the Places You’ll Go!

Before leaving for New York , on Memorial Day weekend I was at a family cookout. While there, my little cousin Grace played a song for me “Empire State of Mind” by Jay-Z and after two weeks here, I can relate to the rapper’s lyrics. One of my favorite lines of the song is “concrete jungle where dreams are made of there’s nothing you can’t do.” Having only taken one tax class before coming to this job in the Time Warner tax department, I was very nervous. Fortunately, all of the employees have been so helpful and patient in teaching me how to understand taxes of a large corporation. Yesterday, the other intern, Sara Keith (a junior at HC) and I were looking at financial statements for an account valued at over 3,000,000,000 dollars… I never imagined that I would be able to wrap my mind around numbers so large but in the words of Jay-Z there is “nothing you can’t do.” Although Grace is only seven years old and has never been to New York before, she hit the nail on the head by playing that song for me. So much of it rings true…. I’ve realized “big lights will inspire you” in New York, for instance, Julio (who sits in the cubicle next to me) is a temp at Time Warner but he is also fulfilling his dreams of making documentary films and my roommate Christin (a sophomore at Holy Cross) is a intern at Seventeen Magazine and she went on a photo shoot last Monday and helped dress models.

Pictures above left to right: My Cousin Grace, My roommate and Me

Let’s hear it for New York

From left to right: Sara, Julio, and Myself

From left to right: The Statue “Gran Elefandret” in Union Square, A restaurant in Soho and the Wall on the 10th floor of the Time Warner Center

After a long four hour drive this past Sunday I finally made it to the Big Apple! Once all moved in to my NYU apartment in lower Manhattan I wandered around the outskirts of my new neighborhood with my mom and dad. We came across the most unusual gathering in Union Square- tango dancing complete with a live band. We ended up joining in… very unexpected (my dad is not the best dancer) and pretty unusual since sightseeing rarely leads to the tango in my experience. But I guess, when in Rome do as the Romans do.

On Monday morning my roommate, Christin and I took a walk around Highline Park, Soho, Washington Square Park, the theme for the day was expect the unexpected… (Heres a list of the unexpected):

1. A Mcdonalds that delievers (fast food right to your door… excessive?)
2. A dog with a sweater and converse sneakers
3. The main character of the HBO series Girls sitting next to us at breakfast!!!
4. A baby carriage attached to a skateboard
5. Unexpectedly running into a former classmate from my small high school right in the middle of Highline Park
6. A man with a cat on his head… (picture below)

I’m excited to start work! I may experience a little bit less of the unexpected there but who knows….!