I thought Monday would be uninteresting, because my Mondays mostly are.  I go to work.  I go home.  I go to the gym.  I come home and make myself dinner.  I watch four hours of Star Trek: The Next Generation on SyFy (formerly Sci-Fi).  Exciting, right?

Today I was particularly displeased about being cooped up in the cold, windowless office in which I work at the Whitney.  The prospect of going back inside made me extremely unhappy, so I decided to go for a run outside in the park.  I wanted to try out the running path around the Reservoir, and so headed up 5th Avenue to the 90th street entrance near the Guggenheim.

As I was jogging up 5th Avenue I passed the Met, where there was a film set and a gathered crowd.  I jogged around the commotion but paused to ask a police officer what was filming.  He had no idea (of course) but then I saw a blonde head.  With extremely shiny hair.  And then I saw the owner of said head: Blake Lively aka Serena van der Woodsen of Gossip Girl.  And standing next to her was Leighton Meester aka Blair Waldorf.  I had stumbled onto the Gossip Girl set.

I love Gossip Girl.  Love this show.  Watch it religiously.  And so I must admit I spent a few minutes giddy and gawking at the two stars of the show filming on the steps of the Met which isn’t that unusual in that the characters of Gossip Girl have lunch on the steps of the Met frequently during the show but still, amazing.  Leighton’s hair was pulled back and she was wearing a clingy, horizontally striped dress with bold colors of turqoise and navy blue.  Blake was wearing a pink floral top and shorts of some sort.  I’m sure they were both wearing heels but I couldn’t see from where I was standing.  Blake Lively’s hair is ridiculously shiny, and Leighton features are even smaller and more perfect in person.  OMFG XOXO I SAW A GOSSIP GIRL SET MY NYC EXPERIENCE IS OFFICIALLY COMPLETE.

Also, I have no idea how this show gets a shot filmed.  The set was surrounded by paparazzi, although it wasn’t that crowded–mostly confused tourists.  Still, I imagine the commotion can get extremely distracting.

How was the rest of my run, you ask?  Very nice.  The Reservoir is a lovely, 1.58 mile run around a lake with spectacular views of the city around you.  A winning excursion, if you ever need a bit of exercise in the city.