--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: When I still lived in Manhattan…" description: "\"When I still lived in Manhattan, people-watching was my hobby, and I spent many Sunday afternoons eating up the scene from a window seat at a Starbucks..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/030/susan-orlean-2207_afternoon_when-i-still-lived-in-manhattan-people-w_2572848.png" --- # When I still lived in Manhattan, people-watching was my… ![“When I still lived in Manhattan, people-watching was my hobby, and I spent many Sunday afternoons eating up the scene from a window seat at a Starbucks on Broadway.” quote by Susan Orlean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/030/susan-orlean-2207_afternoon_when-i-still-lived-in-manhattan-people-w_2572848.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/030/susan-orlean-2207_afternoon_when-i-still-lived-in-manhattan-people-w_2572848.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/030/susan-orlean-2207_afternoon_when-i-still-lived-in-manhattan-people-w_2572848.png) > “When I still lived in Manhattan, people-watching was my hobby, and I spent many Sunday afternoons eating up the scene from a window seat at a Starbucks on Broadway.” [Susan Orlean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-orlean/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Observing city life from a café window became a favorite pastime, turning everyday scenes into stories. **In simple terms:** People-watching turned into a hobby. Key Takeaway Observe and find stories everywhere. Themes observation urban life storytelling Mood curious nostalgic Type literary observational When to use this quote - travel writing - creative writing - media production - marketing research Key Concepts sociology literature Questions to Reflect On - What stories do you miss in daily life? - How can casual observation become insight? A Different Perspective Observations can be superficial without deeper context. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Afternoon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/afternoon/) [Broadway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/broadway/) [Eating](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/eating/) [Hobbies](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hobbies/) [Lived Manhattan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/lived-manhattan-458409/) [Manhattan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/manhattan/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Scene](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/scene/) [Spent Sunday](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/spent-sunday-1707166/) [Starbucks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/starbucks/) [Starbucks Broadway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/starbucks-broadway-1707165/) [Stills](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/stills/) [Sunday](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sunday/) [Sunday afternoon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sunday-afternoon/) [Sunday afternoons](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sunday-afternoons/) [Window](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/window/) ## Related quotes > [The library was home away from home to my mom, and my family. We had spent every Sunday afternoon there since I was a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kami-garcia/the-library-was-home-away-from-home-to-my-mom-and-my-family-we-had/) [Kami Garcia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kami-garcia/) > [I was the sort of kid who spent a Sunday afternoon prying little trees out of the foundation of his parents' house. I should…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louise-erdrich/i-was-the-sort-of-kid-who-spent-a-sunday-afternoon-prying-little/) [Louise Erdrich](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/louise-erdrich/) > [In the end, it was the Sunday afternoons he couldn't cope with, and that terrible listlessness which starts to set in at about 2:55,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-adams/in-the-end-it-was-the-sunday-afternoons-he-couldn-t-cope-with-and-2/) [Douglas Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-adams/) > [Fiction -- at least for me -- requires long, relatively uninterrupted time stretches in which to bring it to fruition. I've never been a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-r-delany/fiction-at-least-for-me-requires-long-relatively-uninterrupted-time/) [Samuel R. Delany](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-r-delany/) > [There are a lot more TV sets in use on Monday night than on Sunday afternoon.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pete-rozelle/there-are-a-lot-more-tv-sets-in-use-on-monday-night-than-on-sunday/) [Pete Rozelle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pete-rozelle/) > [The beginning of my love for football goes back to when I was seven years old. I was spending time with my grandmother, Caletha…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-vick/the-beginning-of-my-love-for-football-goes-back-to-when-i-was-seven/) [Michael Vick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-vick/) > [There is much romanticism about Formula One of the past. Today it has to be more of a family sport, not less. It is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-sorrell/there-is-much-romanticism-about-formula-one-of-the-past-today-it-has/) [Martin Sorrell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-sorrell/) > [Sunday afternoons at a parish center - or a community center - is familiar territory for me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/denis-mcdonough/sunday-afternoons-at-a-parish-center-or-a-community-center-is/) [Denis McDonough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/denis-mcdonough/) > [It was a Sunday afternoon, wet and cheerless; and a duller spectacle this earth of ours has not to show than a rainy Sunday…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-de-quincey/it-was-a-sunday-afternoon-wet-and-cheerless-and-a-duller-spectacle/) [Thomas de Quincey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-de-quincey/) > [In the end, it was the Sunday afternoons he couldn't cope with, and that terrible listlessness that starts to set in about 2:55, when…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-adams/in-the-end-it-was-the-sunday-afternoons-he-couldn-t-cope-with-and/) [Douglas Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-adams/) > [Some people complain that they will not live forever, but cannot think of things to do on a wet Sunday afternoon.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/keith-ward/some-people-complain-that-they-will-not-live-forever-but-cannot-think/) [Keith Ward](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/keith-ward/) > [My teenage children watched Senator Clinton on the Today Show, mouths agape. They attended our local caucus with me and saw hundreds of our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shoshana-zuboff/my-teenage-children-watched-senator-clinton-on-the-today-show-mouths/) [Shoshana Zuboff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shoshana-zuboff/) > [“HAPPINESS I ASKED the professors who teach the meaning of life to tell      me what is happiness. And I went to famous executives…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-sandburg/happiness-i-asked-the-professors-who-teach-the-meaning-of-life-to/) [Carl Sandburg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-sandburg/) > [Well, another female child is born into the world! Last Sunday afternoon, Harriot Eaton Stanton - oh! the little heretic thus to desecrate that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-cady-stanton/well-another-female-child-is-born-into-the-world-last-sunday/) [Elizabeth Cady Stanton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-cady-stanton/) > [Sunday afternoon is for papers and writing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-haslam/sunday-afternoon-is-for-papers-and-writing/) [Nicholas Haslam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-haslam/) ## More by Susan Orlean > [I've used Twitter now and again to try to figure something out; it's an amazing resource. But I think you have to use it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-orlean/i-ve-used-twitter-now-and-again-to-try-to-figure-something-out-it-s/) [Susan Orlean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-orlean/) > [Who on earth is going to use 'utilize' in a text message, a whopping seven characters including the always-hard-to-type 'z,' when you can say…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-orlean/who-on-earth-is-going-to-use-utilize-in-a-text-message-a-whopping/) [Susan Orlean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-orlean/) > [When my son was born, and after a day of lying-in I was told that I could leave the hospital and take him home,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-orlean/when-my-son-was-born-and-after-a-day-of-lying-in-i-was-told-that-i/) [Susan Orlean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-orlean/) > [I'm happy to be reminded that an ordinary day full of nothing but nothingness can make you feel like you've won the lottery.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-orlean/i-m-happy-to-be-reminded-that-an-ordinary-day-full-of-nothing-but/) [Susan Orlean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-orlean/) > [I once had a boyfriend who couldn't write unless he was wearing a necktie and a dress shirt, which I thought was really weird,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-orlean/i-once-had-a-boyfriend-who-couldn-t-write-unless-he-was-wearing-a/) [Susan Orlean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-orlean/) > [“I, too, had set out to be remembered. I had wanted to create something permanent in my life- some proof that everything in its…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-orlean/i-too-had-set-out-to-be-remembered-i-had-wanted-to-create-something/) [Susan Orlean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-orlean/) > [I think of myself as something of a connoisseur of procrastination, creative and dogged in my approach to not getting things done.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-orlean/i-think-of-myself-as-something-of-a-connoisseur-of-procrastination/) [Susan Orlean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-orlean/) > [I'm very excited about my new Spotify account, which gives me access to twenty gazillion songs any time, all the time. The day I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-orlean/i-m-very-excited-about-my-new-spotify-account-which-gives-me-access/) [Susan Orlean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-orlean/) > [I approach stories as a private educational enterprise: I want to learn about something. I teach myself through research, reporting, and thinking, and then,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-orlean/i-approach-stories-as-a-private-educational-enterprise-i-want-to/) [Susan Orlean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-orlean/) > [We're fascinated by animals because it's almost like having Martians living among us. We can see some familiarity in them, but they're entirely different…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-orlean/we-re-fascinated-by-animals-because-it-s-almost-like-having-martians/) [Susan Orlean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-orlean/) > [My inspiration is really very simple: I'm struck by things that I want to know more about. I really do react just as a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-orlean/my-inspiration-is-really-very-simple-i-m-struck-by-things-that-i-want/) [Susan Orlean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-orlean/) > [I am dismayed to realize that much of the advice I used to parcel out to aspiring writers has passed its sell-by date.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-orlean/i-am-dismayed-to-realize-that-much-of-the-advice-i-used-to-parcel-out/) [Susan Orlean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-orlean/) > [I wish I had coined the phrase 'tyranny of choice,' but someone beat me to it. The counterintuitive truth is that have an abundance…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-orlean/i-wish-i-had-coined-the-phrase-tyranny-of-choice-but-someone-beat-me/) [Susan Orlean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-orlean/) > [My ace in the hole as a human being used to be my capacity for remembering birthdays. I worked at it. Whenever I made…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-orlean/my-ace-in-the-hole-as-a-human-being-used-to-be-my-capacity-for/) [Susan Orlean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-orlean/) > [Sometimes I think I've figured out some order in the universe, but then I find myself in Florida](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-orlean/sometimes-i-think-i-ve-figured-out-some-order-in-the-universe-but/) [Susan Orlean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-orlean/) [Explore all 179 Susan Orlean quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-orlean/) ## More Afternoon quotes > [I didn't grow up thinking of movies as film, or art, but as movies, something to do on a Saturday afternoon.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sydney-pollack/i-didn-t-grow-up-thinking-of-movies-as-film-or-art-but-as-movies/) [Sydney Pollack](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sydney-pollack/) > [My dental hygienist is cute. Every time I visit, I eat a whole package of Oreo cookies while waiting in the lobby. Sometimes she…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-wright/my-dental-hygienist-is-cute-every-time-i-visit-i-eat-a-whole-package/) [Steven Wright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-wright/) > [Honestly, I'm living my fantasy. It's being with my family, preferably on a snowy afternoon with a fire going, cuddled up in blankets, playing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/meredith-vieira/honestly-i-m-living-my-fantasy-it-s-being-with-my-family-preferably/) [Meredith Vieira](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/meredith-vieira/) > [It was a very intense and stressful situation. There was playing in the Johnny-pump (an opened fire hydrant) and the ice-cream man coming around…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-z/it-was-a-very-intense-and-stressful-situation-there-was-playing-in/) [Jay-Z](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-z/) > [Sunday afternoon is for papers and writing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-haslam/sunday-afternoon-is-for-papers-and-writing/) [Nicholas Haslam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-haslam/) > [I think that if most guys in America could somehow get their fave-rave poster girl in bed and have total license to do whatever…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lester-bangs/i-think-that-if-most-guys-in-america-could-somehow-get-their-fave/) [Lester Bangs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lester-bangs/) > [“If you come at four in the afternoon, I'll begin to be happy by three.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antoine-de-saint-exup-ry/if-you-come-at-four-in-the-afternoon-i-ll-begin-to-be-happy-by-three/) [Antoine de Saint-Exupéry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antoine-de-saint-exup-ry/) > [At five in the afternoon. It was exactly five in the afternoon. A boy brought the white sheet at five in the afternoon. A…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/at-five-in-the-afternoon-it-was-exactly-five-in-the-afternoon-a-boy/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [The shadows in the early morning don't tell much. The shadows rest at that time. 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