Today I took a few more steps toward feeling like a real New Yorker. I did a few errands: went to the federal building downtown to apply for a replacement Social Security card (I’d lost my original), and got passport photos taken and mailed them out with a form to renew my passport. Why did these make me feel more like a New Yorker when they’re both related to the federal government? Maybe it’s because I wrote my new address on several official forms, or because I used the local post office for the first time, or because if I still lived in New Jersey I would have gone to a different federal building. At any rate, I feel more official now.

One strange thing was filling in my place of birth on the Social Security form, which is New York, NY. Because I often don’t feel completely “with it” as a New Yorker, it’s always striking to remember that I was actually born here, on the island of Manhattan no less.

In other news, I decided to try out Shake Shack in Madison Square Park for lunch today, but when I got there at 1:50 the line had at least 60 people on it. Screw that. So I went across the street to Wendy’s instead.

Tonight I’m seeing The Constant Wife through HIPTIX. Until yesterday, it had been three months since I’d seen a show, so I have some catching up to do.