You know you can call yourself a "New Yorker" when...

1. You pound on the hood or boot of a cab with your fist because it almost runs you down when you're crossing the street. This is instead of the "New Arrival" or "Tourist" response of squealing or yelling "Oh My God" at the shock/surprise/fear one feels at almost being run over. A seasoned "New Yorker" is not only very NOT surprised but also duly angry at the cab driver's lack of concern for pedestrians safety - so much so that the need to violently strike out at the cab, physically, is instictual!!!!

2. Going to see a movie, you know to go buy a "Papaya Dog" instead of eating the hot dogs you can buy at the Cinema Concessions Counter. This was actually a joke on a seinfeld episode (Kramer insisted on going across the road for a papaya dog instead of a movie theatre hot dog - mayhem ensued) but after eating both, several times, a seasoned "New Yorker" knows how big the difference is and really, just doesn't settle for any old hot dog any more...

3. You watch shows or movies set in New York and get annoyed at the inaccuracies of scene locations. Only a seasoned "New Yorker", and possibly only a pedantic one like Daniel or myself, will watch a movie and say "That cafe is on 14th St!!! You can't run from there to Lincoln Center in 5 minutes!!!" or "Wait a minute. That's the cinema on 63rd Street... That's nowhere NEAR Union Square!!!". Equally, when watching something, like say, Sex and the City and they are PERFECTLY accurate, for some reason it makes you really happy... "OK, so she was just at that little park opposite the Lincoln Center, then she ran into Aiden on a typical upper-west side street, then walked past the Food Emporium and then she's in front of the huge cinema on 63rd!!! Awesome"...

4. You sit next to a VERY smelly, homeless man on the subway because it's the only seat free. I did this last night and it occurred to me that several months ago, I would not have sat there and probably would not have even been able to tolerate standing too close. But now, a seasoned "New Yorker", I realized that I could breath through my mouth and it was far more important to sit for the duration of my ride. This actually reminds me, to a much lesser extent of a story Dad told me about his time here. He was SHOCKED one day to get on an empty subway car (when all the other cars of the train were chockers) only to see a huge puddle of blood, steaming (ie:fresh) under one of the seats. Slowly the car started to fill up, as people had to sit and stand closer and closer to the blood, until finally the car was packed and the only empty seat was the one over all the blood. Then, a seasoned "New Yorker", much to my father's shock and surprise, got on the train, put newspaper down over the blood and sat in the seat - feet on top of the newspaper!!!!!! THAT New Yorker understood the importance of getting a seat on the subway, too.

And finally, The fifth way you know you can call yourself a "New Yorker" is when

5. You make fun of New Jersey (they made that stink that wafted over the city last week... Hahaha - Smelly Jersey!!!!) and look forward to a weekend trip to Connecticut!!!!! The day after tomorrow, Daniel and I take our first ROAD-TRIP!!! Yes - it's just to New Haven, Connecticut. Yes - it's only for one night. But we are getting out of the city and heading up to Connecticut!!!!!! YAY!!!!!!!!! We're off to the Hometown of Yale University, where I am auditioning this weekend for their Graduate Acting Program. Wish me luck, All. It's very exciting, and we are both very excited about the drive and seeing BEAUTIFUL Connecticut. I'm also going to show Daniel the elementary school I went to in New Haven. We're hoping for snow... but not too much.

As always. Love to you all from your little Aussie "New Yorkers".... Seasoned New Yorkers!!!!!

Love You ALL!!!!!