NYC on the Day After Meltdown 2008

I woke up in New York to a city in a daze.

Like the morning after a hangover, you could see the confused looks on people's faces.
I overheard snippets of people's conversations.

"Everyone is stressed out!"
"Nobody knows what is going to happen."
"This is just insane."

The great 2008 Market Meltdown had hit the day before and here I was walking through the smoky ruins.
Yet, not. 
The energy of New York is eternal.
It is that energy that, once I felt it, I realized I missed it.
Not so much that I would live there again-the city does tend to grate on you-but the vivacity and the speed and intensity....and the beauty.
I've long said that New York is a 'walker's paradise,' and this 75 degree day only served to reinforce that image. With one exception, I walked everywhere over the two days.
It is the people who make up a city, so I focused on them.
Starting out on the East side, I met up with Todd at Discovery. He's a social media guru and we shared stories and ideas.
Next, I headed towards Times Square, but not before seeing both David and Marty whom I called consecutively with the message of "I am going to be walking by your building in 5 minutes, meet me on the street to say hi."
And they did.
As luck would have it, one of the bloggers I read, Robert Scoble, had posted that the first 20 people under the Kodak sign in Times Sq. at noon on Tuesday would receive a free Seagate Hard Drive. 
I was #15 and after meeting some great people in line waiting for Scoble, I got my 500 GB portable drive. Yeah, baby!
Meeting me there was David, a social media strategist, whose work I greatly admire. We took the subway down to Union Sq., got some falafel, sat in the park, and talked shop. I had never met him in person, but took the opportunity to reach take a social network based relationship and 'make it real.'
Watching the people and seeing their life stories unfold, I made my way down Broadway to the first of the two FOJ meetups (details tomorrow) before my presentation at Stern business school.
When all was said and done, I was in bed at 1am.
And after three more quick meetings Jeff Siegel (an innovator and businessman in the green roofing arena), Frank (the founder of Outsourcing.com) and Philippe, (a bundle of energy who is going to save the CBC Orchestra), it was back to Amtrak and return home.
36 hours in New York and the opportunity to engage with over 270 people (there were over 250 at the Stern even). Plus, I got to walk everywhere and enjoy the city.
That's high ROI on your time.
And the people of the New York, regardless of financial market meltdown, maintain their incessant drive. Love it, baby!

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