That’s right! There’s a Sock Monkey loose in NYC and he seems to be making himself quite at home here already! Clive blends in perfectly to this eclectic, colourful, unique landscape, that’s like no where else in the world!
And it’s hot! The public fountains have become local watering holes, parks have become offices and coming from Germany – I’m loving the relief of walking inside to find almost everywhere is air conditioned!
We’re not quite sure how to express our excitement. Even in this humidity, this city is buzzing with a rich, melting pot of culture that is hard to describe – if not to say – typical of New York. There’s no other place like it. 
Walking the streets; past galleries and tenement buildings, coffee shops and restaurants galore – it’s with little surprise people love it here. Neighbourhoods can change as fast as crossing a Street or Avenue. One minute you feel like a student back in college – or as we would say, University – the next you feel like you’re in another world.
Pretty much anything goes here. The people watching alone is a riot – and it’s no wonder Humans of New York has taken off like wild fire. I want to talk these people and hear their stories too – which is exactly what Brandon Doman thought a few years ago.
We stumbled across Brandon Doman in Washington Square Park on Sunday with his Strangers Project – something he’s been working on since 2009. Each page is a handwritten story, comment, tidbit, anecdote – captured on the spot, by passing strangers. Brandon hands out clipboards, pen and paper, then it’s up to you, what and how much you want to share. You can stay anonymous or sign your name. He’s collected over 15,000 handwritten stories so far!
Pretty cool huh?!
He wants to hear your stories too – so if you want to be part of this cool project, follow this link to find out more! 
Washington Square Park is right in the middle of NYU in Greenwich Village and is a favourite haunt of mine. It also acts as a local meeting point – for pretty much everything. There were the acrobats, the musicians, the chalk drawers, the yoyo gang, the hacky sack gang, the computer nerds, the young, the old, the crazies, the quirky, the punks and the posh. The fact that all these different people choose to share the same space is what I love about this city.
I am not ignorant to the fact that there is prejudice everywhere – but at least on the surface, it didn’t feel like there was any on this day. Just a bunch of city dwellers enjoying a hot afternoon in their communal ‘backyard’. 
Then low and behold – what do we stumble upon after leaving the park? A Happy Socks Truck – covered in their trade mark polka dots! Isn’t it the cutest truck you’ve ever seen! Designed as a transparent box, with temporary stairs for visitors to climb into this colourful world, that I know only too well. They had socks, socks, socks and the matching Happy Socks underwear on display for sale, including special deals.
It didn’t take long for Soren, the local Happy Sock representative to realise I was familiar with #sockgame – which naturally lead to telling him about what I do. So he dialled up this blog and my instagram account up while we were there to see for himself.
Needless to say, he thought my Happy Socks Sock Monkey’s were pretty special. We hope to be in touch and I shall let you know if any collaboration eventuates – which would be amazing! These socks really were the inspiration that spurred me on in the beginning.
I shall sign off now and share another exciting NYC instalment very soon! I am hoping to find the Happy Socks Shop today and a few other hidden secrets of this amazing metropolis. Fingers crossed the expected thunderstorms pass without too much upheaval.
Thanks again for tuning in – I love sharing this with you all.
jx
Gus and Ollie 