Pauly From the Block

So I have now lived in New York City for 6 months.  It still feels weird to say that sometimes, like I forget that I finally did it.  There have definitely been periods of trial-by-fire, but I am learning that this is common for the first year experience.  Even with all the struggles and hardships I've faced, I have been blessed with plenty of help along the way.  I've been learning and growing so much that it's hard to describe at this point.  One major thing I've learned is how to adapt, and my definition of "home" has changed.  I've been at my new place two days and I already feel right at home, happy to have a bed, furnished room, privacy, big windows, and plenty of sunshine.  I've got the incense going and am about to do some sun salutations.

By the way, I'm living in the Bronx for at least the next four months. That's right, Pauly From the Block, Uptown Doodie Brown comin' to ya live from the BX!  Here's my address in case you need to mail anything (contact me for packages, using my work address for those):

Paul Petrosky

2635 Sedgwick Ave #4A

Bronx, NY 10468

It's been a crazy ride these past 6 months, and feels like it's been a lot longer.  I'm excited to see what comes next, and I'm finally ready for visitors--come stay with me!

Black Dove

Hello everyone.  This year I am experiencing winter in a whole new way. I'm actually getting to feel the season creep in and take hold.  I'll see real snow for the first time and face a long winter.  Therefore, you're being treated to two winter mixes this year, the second to arrive sometime in January.

But for now, draw up a blanket, light a candle, and listen closely.  It is always darkest before the dawn, and as the year draws to a close, it is a dark night, indeed.  We come together for comfort and joy, but the cold finds its way in...something wicked this way comes!

*A note for iPod/iPhone users:  once downloaded, be sure to put this mix into a playlist before syncing.  Otherwise the files tend to get separated...

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Holidaze

Here we are, the day after Thanksgiving, and I made it!  The past week or so has been a battle between myself and the infamous Holiday Blues.  Most years it's not that big a deal, but after a recent love life stumble, I knew I had three days off with no solid plans, and it's my first Thanksgiving away from my family, so I was worried.  But as I learn time and again, the universe steps in and provides. Wednesday I enjoyed a much-needed personal day in my PJs and finished the upcoming winter mix. Met up with friends in Astoria at our regular haunt Sissy McGinty's and had a rollicking good Thanksgiving eve, complete with New Kids on the Block and 90s house music.  Yesterday we got a late start, but it was fun to have a leisurely grocery store experience on turkey day.  Cooking whilst drinking framboise lambic and watching AbFab was half the fun, sweetie dahling.  It finally felt like the holidays, complete with stuffing ourselves and passing out midway through Harry Potter 2.  Today will involve some transferring of old videos before a tree trimming party at a friend's.

Next week will see some milestones for me.  I will have been in NYC for six months, and I finally found a furnished sublet for the winter.  Movin' to the Bronx, but don't be fooled by the rocks that I got!  I'm looking forward to the hibernation and creative period, because I have several projects in the works.  The biggest change I've noticed since coming here is that I'm finally doing things I've talked about doing for years.  For some reason I feel motivated here to make those things happen.  I've wanted to practice yoga regularly for a long time...done.  Need a laptop...done.  Digitize old videos for editing...done.  And of course these things come from unexpected resources, for which I am so grateful.  I have constant reminders to remain open to the myriad of possibilities and paths the universe offers, and it's made for an incredible journey so far.  And, of course, I intend to remain thankful for every day.  Blessed be!

One

Two

Three

10 31 10

Glitter & Alchemy

Stone of amethyst

twinkle of night

smoke of the embers

fires burn bright

A shimmering dark

and magickal brew

as leaves do fall

so too will you

Say it thrice

cast the circle round

the wheel does turn

the spell is bound

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The Lighter Side of...!

A Lesson in Gratitude

  I just came home from work to my own room for the first time in 3 months.  A temporary room that is, but it's my own space for the month, a place where I can shut the door and be alone, take a nap, read, or just...be.  I've adapted to the nomadic life, but my brain has been feeling quite crowded lately in the city that never sleeps.


I'm not gonna lie.  Shit has been hard lately.  I'm in a little bit of survival mode, and I'm being tested for sure.  I've been stocking full-time at this local dinnerware retailer while hunting for bigger and better jobs.  Even though I've adjusted to it, the work itself is pretty draining, lifting heavy boxes and plates and running up and down stairs all day long, plus a bit of micromanaging just for fun.  Until recently I was hanging onto my part-time coffee shop job by doing doubles on one of my days off.  So 53 hours a week, lots of physical work, and one day off, to set the scene. Last week, I managed to get laid off from the cafe, lost my wallet on the subway, lost my iPhone in a cab, and was notified that I didn't get the NYU job I'd been waiting two weeks to hear about.  I had my fair share of tears, harsh words, and restraining myself from walking out the door of a job I couldn't stand.


And yet, here I am.  I'm alive and healthy and growing stronger by the minute.  Amazingly enough, all of this hardship led to some pretty intense spiritual encounters, and I found myself, maybe for the first time in my life, truly understanding and feeling with every fiber of my being what it means to be grateful for what I do have.  Staying here and leaving Austin for a bit was a complete leap of faith for me, but as I've remained as open as possible, people and situations come together to aid me.  I have THE most amazing family and friends, both in Austin and NYC, without whom this experience would never have been possible.  On the day when things seemed the worst and I wasn't sure how much more I could take, I ended up crying happy tears in the bathroom at work, thanking the universe for the opportunity to experience all of this and to have so much love and support surrounding me.  I've never felt anything like that before, but I know it opened up a window in my spirit, and it's been easier to keep my chin up since then.


My sister thinks this string of obstacles is a sign I should return home.  I am coming back to Austin, but the experience is not complete.  I'm cookie dough, still baking in the oven.  As hard as it's been at times, I know in my heart that everything happening here is benefiting me.  These three months have felt like six, and already I feel myself changing into the person I've long known I'm supposed to be.  I'm gaining a whole new perspective on what's important in my life, and I can't wait to see my home through new eyes.  


To quote (yet again) Eat Pray Love,


"In the end, though, maybe we must all give up trying to pay back the people in this world who sustain our lives.  In the end, maybe it's wiser to surrender before the miraculous scope of human generosity and to just keep saying thank you, forever and sincerely, as long as we have voices."


A heartfelt THANK YOU to everyone, you know who you are.

Burn This Mother Out!

Hey! Summer ain't over yet, sitch yo ass back down. I've been slaving away through these dog days, but you can't keep a good mix down. This is my first mix conceived and produced in New York City. And it's taking all the restraint I have to keep from busting out dancing on the subway right now.  Fall is on the horizon, but first let these ladies get you wet with sweat.  Before ya cool it down, we got ta burn it up!

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As an added bonus, here's a little chestnut from a while back.  I had planned a second volume for this summer, but alas I remained in NYC and am missing out on the sweltering, back porch summer experience.  And believe me, I do miss it.  So this one goes out to all those folks back home.  Catch some lightning bugs, drink whisky out of mason jars, and raise a glass to the glory of summer.  I am a country boy at heart, so I'll be back before you know it!

DOWNLOAD LAZY DAYS OF SUMMER

Picnic in the Summertime

Hey kids!  I trust by now you are all enjoying the hot summer fun in the sun.  Grab your blankets and baskets and enjoy my very first summer mix ever, from way back in 1997.  It's got the best of my love, and it feels like you just got home!

Petropolis

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Eat Pray Love

 I finally finished it.  I am contemplative and happy tonight.  This book came to me at exactly the right moment and truly inspired me to change my life.  Thank you to Elizabeth Gilbert for writing and sharing your journey with me!    




    "I also knew somehow that this respite of peace would be temporary.  I knew that I was not yet finished for good, that my anger, my sadness, and my shame would all creep back eventually, escaping my heart, and occupying my head once more.  I knew that I would have to keep dealing with these thoughts again and again until I slowly and determinedly changed my whole life.  And that this would be difficult and exhausting to do.  But my heart said to my mind in the dark silence of that beach: 'I love you, I will never leave you, I will always take care of you.'  That promise floated up out of my heart and I caught it in my mouth and held it there, tasting it as I left the beach and walked back to the little shack where I was staying.  I found an empty notebook, opened it up to the first page--and only then did I open my mouth and speak those words into the air, letting them free.  I let those words break my silence and then I allowed my pencil to document their colossal statement onto the page:
    'I love you, I will never leave you, I will always take care of you.'"

Summer Camp

Hey kids! By now summer is in full swing, and while I'm away at camp, I want you to enjoy some of the best jams. This was a package deal
I created a couple years back. I think of it as one for the campers, one for the counselors. Listen to Wet Hot on July 4th, you won't regret it. Now hand over that beer!

Petropolis

DOWNLOAD LET'S GET TOGETHER AT SUMMER CAMP

DOWNLOAD WET HOT AMERICAN SUMMER CAMP

Lessons

"I have searched frantically for contentment for so many years in so many ways, and all these acquisitions and accomplishments--they run you down in the end.  Life, if you keep chasing it so hard, will drive you to death.  Time--when pursued like a bandit--will behave like one; always remaining one county or one room ahead of you.  At some point you have to stop because it won't.  You have to admit that you can't catch it.  That you're not supposed to catch it.  At some point, you gotta let go and sit still and allow contentment to come to you."

Elizabeth Gilbert, Eat Pray Love

Hello, Paul, I'm Paul, nice to meet you.  I've only been here a little over two weeks, but already this journey is way beyond what I imagined for myself.  Yes, I am doing a lot and working and having fun, but here in New York City, I have actually found some peace and quiet. I am learning the art of relaxation and doing nothing.  I am drinking coffee and reading while listening to old jazz on a turntable.  After a number of years, I am finally getting a real, lengthy chance to just be with myself and to be happy to just be alive.  Hell, I volunteered to clean the bathroom at work yesterday and didn't mind one bit!  Life is beautiful, and I am so grateful for all of my friends and family.  If everyone could feel what I'm feeling right now, I think we'd have world peace. And the Jackson Five's Can You Feel It would be blasting out of every speaker, naturally. Sending good vibes to all my Austin peeps, I miss you dearly.  Yes it's alright, take my message to your brother and tell him twice!

Vagabondage! A Nomadic Adventure

Part 5: Vignettes!

Summer Dream

I have been having the craziest dreams lately, whether at night or during naps.  From hanging out with Beverly from Roseanne in an electric blue bob wig, to being atop a subway car that has detached and is careening toward certain death, to my iPhone transforming into an iPad, then a laptop, when all I wanted to do is take a damn picture.  I chalk it up to my brain processing all the new stimuli around me.  Tomorrow I will have been in New York for 2 weeks, I can't even believe it.  It's like...a dream.  A summer dream!  That's right, folks, here is one of my most cherished summer mixes, inspired by but not limited to girl groups.  So get out your jump ropes, 45's, and bubble gum and go get some sunshine!  3, 6, 9, the goose drank wine, the monkey chew tobacco on the street car line...

Petropolis

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Vagabondage! A Nomadic Adventure

Part 4: My Own Road

"People have (with the help of conventions) oriented all their solutions toward the easy and toward the easiest side of the easy; but it is clear that we must hold to what is difficult; everything alive holds to it, everything in Nature grows and defends itself in its own way and is characteristically and spontaneously itself, seeks at all costs to be so and against all opposition. We know little, but that we must hold to what is difficult is a certainty that will not forsake us; it is good to be solitary, for solitude is difficult; that something is difficult must be a reason the more for us to do it."
Letters to a Young Poet, Rainer Maria Rilke

Rather unexpectedly, this trip so far has become an experiment in solitude. For that reason, I am very grateful to always have Rilke, nature and my spirituality to guide me. It's been really strange to go from feeling incedibly lonely to being completely happy with myself, sometimes within a day, or even an hour. Because I'm staying adaptable, I'm finding it easier to turn the loneliness around. After a couch nap with old movies in the background as my sound pillow, I was restless and decided to go get some Polish deli food and hang at a neighborhood coffee shop. Got the food to go, the coffee place didn't allow eating outside food, so rather than get upset, I got the coffee to go as well and walked back, in the rain, my backpack soaked and coffee spilling on my hand. But I just finished a delicious feast, and Bette Davis and I are doing just fine. About to enjoy my coffee and, yes, donut by the open window, listening to the fan, the rain, and MGM classics. Meeting Jesse out later for a few drinks. So you see, everything in its right place. Watching the signs as I go. I think there's something to be learned at every stop along this path, and I for one am fully committed to this particular crash course. Stay tuned for photos and reasons why I love New York!

Vagabondage! A Nomadic Adventure

Part 3: Ray of Light


I had one of those rare moments this morning, running in the park, where everything just crystallized, and my eyes welled up with happiness.  After days of oppressive humidity, we had a rain shower yesterday that cleared everything out, and today is sunny, 65, and incredible.  I'm running through this amazing park, the sun beaming down on me, the blue sky and huge clouds, bright green leaves swaying in the breeze, kids running and playing, people of all ages and colors picnicking, laying out, exercising, playing frisbee...I just knew I was in the right place.  The music I was listening to created the perfect movie scene, and I was overcome with the feeling that life is beautiful.  Occasional loneliness and homesickness aside, I am right where I'm supposed to be, and I'm discovering more about myself by the minute.

Vagabondage! A Nomadic Adventure

Part 2: Unexpectations


written Friday, June 4 2010


At 9am this morning I was standing in a cemetery.  I got up early and went for my first run in NYC.  Not far from Emily's neighborhood is this gigantic old Lutheran cemetery, apparently one of several in the area.  I've never seen so many statues, mausoleums and pillars erected to the dead.  The cemetery just stretched on and on.  After I'd wandered and shot photos and sat and wandered some more, I came upon a lone tree that rested atop a hill.  As I climbed the hill, expecting to see an expansive vista of Queens, the horizon came into view and revealed itself to be...more cemetery!  How big is this thing??  I really couldn't believe how it just kept going.  Many people find cemeteries to be morbid and creepy, and I get that.  But sometimes, like today, they can be incredibly peaceful and serene.  The birds were still chirping, the smell of mowed grass hung in the air, flowers sprang up everywhere...it was a very dreamy, pleasant feeling.  Future meditation spot, for sure.


Spent the morning at the apartment, cooking breakfast and getting ready for the day.  I love sitting at the computer next to the open window, a light sweat going on and the sound of the train outside.  It kinda hit me that, however temporarily, I live here.  I don't have an apartment in Austin.  Wherever I go, there I am. :)


I'm sitting in Antique Cafe in the Flatiron district, drinking iced coffee and listening to the likes of Fred Astaire and Frank Sinatra.  Fairy tales can come true, it can happen to you, if you're young at heart.  Thanks, Antique Cafe staff. I'm experiencing my first pang of loneliness.  I knew this was going to be a journey of self-discovery and that it wouldn't all be a piece of cake, but I didn't expect to feel this so soon.  I should probably move on from these old crooners tugging at my romantic heartstrings.


Saturday, June 5 2010


Today we're headed to Battery Park and elsewhere to run errands.  Something's telling me I need to be near water today, and I'll be seeing the Statue of Liberty for the first time!  Loneliness at bay, it's a brand new day and the city awaits!

Vagabondage! A Nomadic Adventure

Part 1: SynchroniCity


"Even in the Eternal City, says the silent Augusteum, one must always be prepared for riotous and endless waves of transformation."
                                                         
                                  - Elizabeth Gilbert, Eat Pray Love


Even with all the traveling, walking, hustling and bustling, I am oddly relaxed.  The interview/conversation went great at Irving Farm today, and I got the job right off the bat!  A couple of trainings next week and some real shifts the following week, with the possibility to pick up as well.  She had actually already put me on the schedule because she had a good feeling about me.


After shopping in SoHo but not buying anything, I decided to walk through Chinatown and find somewhere to eat.  I knew I would need to find a hardware store later to make keys.  Lo and behold, one appeared before me when I wasn't even looking.  Job, check.  Keys, check.  Oh, and the job's gonna be paid weekly, in cash.  How perfect!


Halfway through Chinatown, I decide I'd rather eat in Little Italy, because I'm still reading about Italy in Eat Pray Love and would like to sit and leisurely enjoy some Italian meat and carbs.  I was a little confused by my map and thought I would have to backtrack, so I gave up on the Italian idea.  Suddenly I spotted Vincent's, established 1906. The servers all speak Italian.  Check.  I had also been listening to my new summer mix while walking, and as I sat down at Vincent's, one of the songs from my mix came on the radio.  I looked out the window and read backwards the sign I had missed coming in: Welcome to Little Italy.


I can't get over how these little nudges from the universe keep happening.  Perhaps because I am remaining open to whatever may come.  After the sheer stress, anxiety and exhaustion of the last few weeks, I feel like I'm finally able to breathe.  It's funny and ironic that I'm finding sanctuary in the city that never sleeps.  But here I am, eating lunch at Vincent's, alone, and happy.

Summer in the City

Hello friends, lovers, mothers and other strangers!  Summer is officially upon us, at least in my book, and this blog is about to get hoppin'.  As most of you know, I decided to cast off my worldly possessions (or clean house and put the rest in storage) and head out for a short-term, open-ended adventure in NYC.  This month I celebrated 15 years of living in Austin, and 15 years of being out of the closet.  That also means I've lived in Texas all my life and Austin for half of it.  Time to see the world!  There are more extensive travel plans for next year, but this trip is a much needed journey of growth and self-discovery (or creation).

I'll be reporting from the field, and I am elated to tell you that there will be several mixes posted throughout the summer.  I've been hard at work reconstructing past summer mixes from 13 years ago to the present, and there's new material as well, naturally.  First up is Summer in the City, a sort of follow-up to 2007's Hot Child in the City.  This will be my soundtrack for pounding the pavement in the Big Apple, but it works great for any hot, urban, spraying fire hydrant, popsicle melting, dancing in the street, movin' on up kinda day. Try it yourself!

And remember, money can't buy you class.  Elegance is learned, my friends.

PETROPOLIS

DOWNLOAD SUMMER IN THE CITYY

the rain again...

Even though the sun has come out today, there are sure to be more rainy days ahead.  On such occasions, here's a little something for your listening pleasure...

Petropolis

DOWNLOAD THE RAIN AGAIN...

Happy

 
 

Here Comes the Sun

Little Things, Big Things