It's Beginning To Look A Lot Like Christmas

Magic in the air at Columbus Circle. 
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  About a week ago, I walked through Chelsea on a 
particularly chilly fall night. Dazed and smiling, 
I walked past a few carts of street vendors until 
I realized what was happening. The scent of 
Christmas in New York City was back. Smelling the 
roasted sugary nuts mixed with the distinct scent of 
cold air, I immediately glanced around for someone 
dressed in a Santa suit or at least Will Ferrell 
dressed as an elf.
  Honestly, I'm not usually one to get roped into 
the holidays a month early. In fact, I’m known to complain 
about this to anyone in my general surroundings. I get 
frustrated with how early stores start to break out the 
holiday décor — Christmas decorations are out before all 
the Halloween candy has been finished.
  But, this year I’m not going to let this excessive 
materialism turn me into a pre-Christmas scrooge. How 
could I be so cynical when I live in the most beautiful 
city in the world?
  NYC makes it so easy to fall in love with winter. Note 
that this is coming from a New Jersey native who has 
always hated the cold, snow and everything that comes 
along with it. I hate wearing puffy coats, snow boots, 
scarves and gloves. Yet, NYC romanticizes winter with style 
and class, which is hard to find anywhere else. So maybe I 
am excited to break out my sweaters and winter coats. It is 
definitely not beach attire, but I’ve started to warm up to 
the idea.
  Since starting at Fordham last fall, and remaining in the 
city throughout the summer, I’ve spent more time in NYC than 
ever. I’ve experienced the city in every season, and can say 
with full certainty that as winter approaches, the city 
transforms. Winter in NYC is truly magical.
  I was walking down Fifth Avenue last week and passed a 
street full of striking, beautifully decorated buildings. 
Across the street from one another, Tiffany & Co. and Harry 
Winston have been bejeweled from the inside out. 
  Not only were the in-store displays stunning, but the 
outside decorations, a background drapery of an orange sunset 
and the Fifth Avenue clock, reminded me why this holiday 
season was the best of the whole year.
  It’s not just the decorations that make me fall in love with 
winter in NYC. It is the overall sparkle of the city and the 
excitement that takes over the streets just like the seasonal 
tourists. It’s the stream of snowflake lights that glitter on 
the trees above Madison Avenue. It’s the cheerful mood, the 
increased family time, the Rockefeller Center Tree and 
ice-skating in Bryant Park. Embracing the cold, although still 
tentatively, I can easily get into the holiday spirit with 
these reminders of how lucky I am to live in a city as great 
as New York.

stay classy (& warm)! xx

Previously published in The Fordham Ram.