In the name of small scale adventure, I’m spending one day each month exploring an area in or around New York City that I’ve never been to before. Welcome to the neighborhood. When I came up with this year’s monthly challenge, I sourced my list of potential neighborhoods from friends, family, and Reddit. I knew I wanted to hit every borough at least once and was open to the commuter areas in New Jersey, Long Island, Westchester, and Connecticut. One area that I didn’t feel I could in good...

At some point very early in childhood, after many Western Pennsylvania car rides where my brothers would point out a deer and I’d frustratingly say, “where?!” over and over again, unable to see what was supposedly very viewable, my parents took me to the eye doctor and I was diagnosed with what I can assume is scientifically called “awful vision.” I didn’t much mind needing to get glasses. It especially didn’t mind when I was able to pick them out and selected Rocket Power themed ones with...

When I was 18 months old, my family moved to Western Pennsylvania. There was a boy in the house next door to us, 26 months old. Our moms became fast friends which meant we did as well. We were inseparable throughout childhood, racing our bikes around the neighborhood, traipsing through the farmer’s corn fields, and making up our own games with a bucket of chalk or a roll of aluminum foil. Coupled with two older brothers and a neighborhood of boys, I was growing up a capital T tomboy. I have...