A few weeks ago, I braved the end of a month long battle with a mean flu bug which resulted in a case of walking pneumonia, to travel to New York and visit for the first time, a dear friend of mine at his Harlem based studio. I met Bryan – a fast up and comer in the fashion photography scene in New York a few years ago and… in life you meet people that your spirit/soul/energy welcomes freely, it is like that with Bryan. Of course the day that I decide to go to New York there is a weather fuster cluck. I leave Baltimore and the temperature is moderate, nothing to crazy, halfway between Philly and Delaware it is snowing and then there’s freezing rain in New York. Really?!

I’ve been to New York City a few times and every time I visit, there is something that amazes me. This time it was the MTA worker who proceeded to have a rather entertaining argument with a Spanish speaking lady who kept repeating “No speakee Englie” which just seemed to enrage the lady sitting behind the glass even more. Since I’ve never taken the metro, it was oddly entertaining and frightening at the same time. When she was done with the “No speakee Englie” lady, I calmly asked how did I get to Harlem? I think she had to catch herself before she spoke, cause she choked out the number 2 train. I always find it interesting that there is a constant smell of urine in New York.

Finding a seat on the train, I sat across from a young lady who kept staring at me. I thought maybe I was drooling on myself which I was prone to doing lately. Looking down I realized there was no drool and kept trying to focus on the stops, the last thing I wanted to happen was that I missed my stop and had to figure out how the hell to get back to where I needed to be. Finally after geeking me out for 20 minutes she finally asked “Are you Chef Apple?” What?! My heart stopped. I was just getting used to people recognizing me in Baltimore, this was insane. “yup?” I muttered and stood up. My stop was coming up and there was no way I was going to miss it. “My friend Mary and I love your blog.” Thanks. I hopped of the train. I never realized when I started this blog the impact that it would have.

Climbing up the stairs from the underground to the city, I looked at Harlem for the first time. It wasn’t at all what I expected, but, it definitely had it’s own “charm”.

Finding my way to Bryan’s studio was easier than I thought it would be. My hands were shaking as I walked toward the door. I was taking a huge step toward my future, I was changing my image from tomboy chef to glamour chef. I didn’t know how people would react to such a drastic change. Hopefully it would be for the best.

Jhenelle from NeonFix did my make-up, which I will freely admit, I am not a make-up kinda girl, but I think it turned out really nice, and Bryan did an amazing job with the photos. I don’t know if I am starstruck by myself, but seeing these images has made me feel that it is most definitely time to grow up in my image as the PHENOMENAL CHEF that I AM. So, with all of that said, I hope that you like the new me!

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