Lately

Lately I've been doing a whole lotta socializing and outdoor-izing.  July crept up and summer came with it.  But not just any summer, the most amazing summer any New Yorker could ever imagine.  With the exception of a few days, this summer has been filled with days in the 70s and little, if any, humidity.  It has be EXCEPTIONAL.  Things were a little rough for a while there.  Honestly I even felt like breaking up with New York a few times, but wow oh wow, New York has seriously stepped it up and now we're more serious than ever.  I'm just constantly happy because of the weather and my surroundings.  Like now, for instance.  I'm currently blogging via the free wifi at Battery Park.  I'm sitting on a blankee, with my bike, Diet Dr. Pepper, and a book by my side.  My view is the Hudson River, the Jersey City skyline, oh yeah, and the Statue of Liberty.  There's a light breeze, and life is basically good.  (Minus the asian lady who just plopped herself 6 feet away from me and hawked a lugie into her hand.  Yes, you read that right.  Way to ruin the moment huh?)

Anyway, I've been having a lot of fun, and not really blogging any of it.  I can't even remember what I've mentioned and what I haven't.  Did I mention I went to Boston for the 4th?  Did I mention it was great?  Did I talk about my birthday and how I spent 4 1/2 hours alone at the spa and it was the best decision I ever made?  Really.  Best way to bring in 26.

I experienced my first time at a New York beach two Saturdays ago.  I've been hesitant for so long.  I mean, how cool can the Atlantic Ocean really be?  And I mean, who PAYS to go to a beach??  But I went, and yeah, it's totally annoying to pay, but it was better than I'd anticipated.  I actually had a blast.

Did I talk about the woman who was murdered in a building which is basically a block away from my apartment?  Did I mention how when that awful thing was happening, I was mostly likely strolling right in front of said building, on my way home from a coworkers?  It makes me sick.  I was terrified for a couple days.  It's still very creepy, but I'm not as upset as I was.

This weekend was possibly the best weekend I've had in months.  The weather was amazing.  Friday night I organized a big group to go watch Jaws on the U.S.S. Intrepid.  I'd never been on it before so it was pretty cool just to check it out.  Lots of people showed up and we had a great time.  We started getting rained on about 30 minutes into the movie, and stuck around for a bit to try to stick it out, but finally baled.  In typical Mormon group style, we stood around for another 20 minutes trying to figure out what to do.  We ended up splitting up into a couple different groups.  I got into a cab to head downtown with a few other girls.  I have to say, it was the best cab ride I've ever had.  The driver was so friendly, and we talked the entire time.  He told us if we could guess where he's from he'd give us a free ride and you know what?  Libby guessed it.  Afganistan.  He asked where we were all from and after we all responded with various parts of the country he asked how we could be such good friends and how we knew each other.  I simply told him we met at church.  Then Libby handed me a pass a long card.  I told her I'd never given one away before, and she said she never had either.  I waited until the end of the ride and then gave it to him (and we paid anyway.)  I got out feeling so good, until about 20 seconds later when we walked into Libby's building's lobby and I realized I'd left my phone in the cab.  CRAP.  I've heard of others doing this, and they rarely get them back.  (Actually a coworker of mine found someone's iPhone in a cab once, and sold it to her doorman for $30.  I know.)

I had Kristen calling my phone but no one picked up.  I went to up to Libby's apartment to get on her computer to track down a number for the cab company.  I actually knew this guy's name, since we took notice of it when trying to guess where he was from.  I figured even though I didn't know the cab number, since I knew his name maybe dispatch could call him?  I got very frustrated very quickly.  I knew I was racing the clock because it was only a matter of minutes that someone else got in the cab.  Of course online I couldn't find any phone numbers, only "Email us your questions/complaints/reports of lost items here."  Awesome.  I decided to try my phone again, and he picked up!  He was only a few blocks away, so I went racing out the door.  (Oh yeah, did I mention I was still in my wet clothes from the rain?)  When I got to him I realized it wasn't my cab driver who had my phone, but a very nice, very cute, very Irish, Collin Farrell-type, who refused my many attempts to reward him with some cash for his honesty.  He simply wished me a lovely weekend and went on his way.  And you know what?  I did have a very lovely weekend, thanks.

Saturday per the usual I brunched with the girls, followed by wedding gift shopping, and mani/pedis.  Then Rachel Martinez came in from Boston.  She was starving so we headed to a great sushi place down by the water, with the Statue of Liberty view.  Colin and Britt met up with us and we had a great time.  I had just eaten but munching on the edimame was delish!

Then the three of them took off for the movies while I got ready for Kim and Ryan's wedding reception.  Libby and I met up and headed to the Arsenal in Central Park and wow, it made me rethink my San Diego wedding.  It was beautiful.  An outdoor venue, with great views.  The music was great, the weather was fabulous, and the bride and groom were beaming.  I absolutely adore these two.

One of the best parts of the reception was the favors they gave to the guests.  Everyone received a little white sack (like a brown lunch bag) with a note saying:

One of our favorite activities as a couple is to surprise strangers with a bit of hospitality.  Please continue our celebration by using this favor to do someone else a favor.  On your way home tonight, take the time to give this sack lunch to someone in need.

I know, right?  I choke up a little every time I think about it.  Only Kim and Ryan would think to take their special day, and make it about helping so many others.  Really though, if you know this couple it doesn't come as a surprise.  They are just good, solid people.  The world would be so much better with more Kims and Ryans.

After the reception we headed up to W. 104th Street (all the while looking unsuccessfully for homeless people.)

The party was awesome.  Jen really has an amazing apartment.  They have their own private rooftop terrace.  Everyone who was anyone was there.

Rachel and I finally headed out, and thanks to the slow train service we ended up on the same train as a huge group of downtowners.  It was great.  One of these people was Libby.  She and I still had not seen someone in need.  Seriously??  How is this possible.  Even when we had to change trains at Times Square station we didn't see anyone.  That never happens.

Finally we got on our train and saw a couple guys that looked like they could qualify as "in need."  We weren't positive, though, and felt a little apprehensive acting like, "Oh, you're needy.  Here's some grub."  Before we got off Lib said, "Let's do it."  So we did, and it was so great.  I walked up to one guy and just said, "This is for you."  And you should have SEEN how excited he got.  It really got me, and made me think I really should pack a lunch every time I leave the house because I waste an embarrassing amount of food, and there's people going hungry out there.  Thanks Kim and Ryan, for not just helping me help one person, but helping me change the way I think.

Sunday Stephanie Baker was in town.  Actually she'd been in town since Friday but with all the shenanigans I had Friday night I completely forgot to meet up with her and her darling fiance.  Luckily we could get together for a late lunch on Sunday.  It's always so much fun to catch up with high school friends.  She and Scott are getting married next month and I couldn't be happier for them.

After lunch I hung out with Britt for a bit, and then met up with a group who were picnic-ing at the park at which I'm currently blogging.  What a fun time we had.  We hung out for about three hours, talking, laughing till our sides hurt, and playing scum.  Four of the people in the group were actors, and honestly freaking hilarious.  I loved hanging out with them.  I felt so free to do or say anything and be a total dork and not have to worry about looking stupid.  It was so fun.

We ended the night by chilling at Libby's for a bit, and then I went home early-ish.

Like I said, fan-freakin-tastic weekend.

Alright, the sun is setting, and I want to enjoy the sunset instead of staring at this screen.

Pictures to come.  Soon.  I hope.  :)

Busy six weeks ahead of me....Rexburg for Chels's wedding, moving, concerts, and I'm sure more outdoor time.  :)

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Weekend recap

Two weekends ago was one of the most fun and busy weekends I've had in a really long time.  It started off Friday night with seeing Push.  I'm a fan of Dakota Fanning's and really enjoyed seeing her in an older role.  The movie wasn't anything I'd say you have to see, but I thought it was entertaining and enjoyed it.

After the movie we got dinner at Chevy's, and then headed up to Pacha for Anita's birthday.  This was actually my first clubbing experience in the city if you can believe it.  Even though I always have fun dancing, and the friends that were there were awesome, I have to say, I was not overly impressed with the whole club scene.  I wasn't that into the music (even though there were three or four floors with different music) and I just felt a little violated.  There was about a 10 minute period where I wasn't with Curtis and I was groped by a totally drunk guy (he stole second!) and some other dude tried to get all up on me dancing.  Yikes.  Let's just say I'm glad that's not the way I have to meet people in the city.  It was so hot in the club though, that it was so nice after leaving to walk from 11th and 46th to 7th and 42nd.  Love those nights you can just walk and walk.

Saturday was super fun.  Got up early(ish) and went to Alice's Teacup, one of my favorite brunch places.  I'm obsessed with the vanilla yogurt and granola.  We had to wait a bit so we headed over to Pets on Lex to look at the puppies.  I'm not all for buying puppies at a pet store because it promotes the business of puppy mills, however I didn't think it would hurt to look.  I absolutely fell in love with this Cavalier King Charles Spaniel.  I've never given those dogs a second look but this one just stared at me and I felt as if he was choosing me to take him home.

After brunch we saw He's Just Not That Into You and I have to say we totally loved it.  Maybe it's because I went into it with low expectations?  I don't know.  They've been shamelessly advertising for so long, and I feel like most movies that have so many A-list actors end up being a flop, but I really loved it.  I'm surprised so many people are hating on it.  I feel like so many of the examples shown are so many classic mistakes girls make, and I laughed really hard a lot of times throughout the movie.  Yes, I hated the way a marriage was represented, but honestly, isn't that in every movie and tv show?  Whether blatantly or subtly, Hollywood has a way of getting us to root for the cheating husband and the dirty mistress (hello MerDer.)  Not that I was necessarily rooting for that scenario in this movie, it just seems like a lot of people are up in arms about the marriage situation, and I don't get why because it's nothing new for movies.  I'm not condoning it, just saying I guess I've come to expect it from Hollywood.  I don't know, I'm sure I sound hypocritical because I hated Nights in Rodanthe because we were supposed to root for Richard Gere and Diane Lane and HELLO!  She was married!  But I feel like that movie was different than this one.  Anyway, the point is, I really enjoyed the movie.

After the movie we headed over to Rockefeller Center to do something I've always wanted to-skate at the famous rink!  I'll be honest, I don't even really like ice skating, hurts my ankles.  But I just wanted the experience, and that's pretty much all it was.  SUPER small rink that gets so cut up so it's not the most slick (and we got on just after the zamboni) and very expensive.  I'm glad I could do it once though.

After skating it was home for a bit.  I was exhausted and had a crazy headache (thanks to a little "fun" activity we participated in on our walk from the theater to the rink which led me to walking into a parking meeter....my knee still has a gnarly bruise and I think I may have gotten a mild concussion.)

Took a little nappy nap and then headed to one of my favorite restaurants Harry's Burritos.  Mmmmm. So good.  Then it was up to Anita's for the party at her apartment.  We didn't get there till after midnight but it was still super fun.  I honestly have more fun dancing at these Mormon parties than at a club, I decided.  She lives across the street from my first apartment so it was fun to be at the old stomping grounds.

Saturday night and Sunday

So Saturday night Sara and Jenna threw a Pirate Palooza, which was totally fun because as trendy as pirates have been for the past five years, I've actually never dressed up like one.  It was interesting walking the 6 blocks to their place dressed up, all along, but living in New York, it's not uncommon to see something like this.

The awkward part?  When I got to the party, peeked in, and saw a bunch of people dressed normally.  I have to admit I got a little insecure and walked out to call Curtis to see if he was there yet, because I knew he was going.  He wasn't there yet, but I decided to pull an Elle Woods circa Legally Blond (the original) and just hold my head up high and walk into the party.  I felt a little lame, but there were a few more people dressed up one I got inside, like my lovely friend Courtnie.

Curtis' outfit was so great, when he walked in he was super serious, and no one knew who he was.

Ellie and Carley dressed up like mermaids.  Love it

Maybe there was dancing.....

So after the party we couldn't help but walk the couple blocks down to South Street Seaport to take some pictures with the ships.

Sunday there was a picnic in Sheep's Meadow.  Once it gets nice there's picnics a lot on Sundays. So fun.

And maybe when I saw this little piece of art I couldn't help but see an ANTM moment....

Friday night and Saturday

It's been a really fun last 24 hours.  Last night Curtis and I schlepped through the rain to the UES and tried a new restaurant, Zocalo.  If you're ever in New York and looking for a yummy Mexico restaurant I highly recommend it.  We both loved it.  They seriously had the best chips and salsa ever, and the chicken in the enchiladas was so tender.  Mmm.  After dinner we went to Union Square and saw Under the Same Moon.  It was a great foreign film.  Very touching.  We both shed a tear.

This morning we branched out to another new place for brunch.  We go out for breakfast on Saturdays a lot, and usually always end up going to one of a couple of the same places.  We finally branched out and headed to TriBeCa to eat at a place Courtnie recommended, Kitchenette.  It was adorable and the food was really good.  We shared mixed berry pancakes and cherry and vanilla french toast.  SO GOOD.  The restaurant was decorated really cute.  All the tables were made from old doors, and all the decor was from upstate.

After brunch we walked a bit and then headed to Union Square so Curtis could look for jeans.  We went to America Eagle, Diesel, and Filene's Basement.  He ended up doing really well there, getting a pair of Diesels and another great pair for $84 total.  I, on the other hand, spent a little too much at DSW.  I got four pairs of shoes though, and I'm super excited.  I'd been needing (almost) every pair.

Then, to top it all off, we went to Pinkberry.  Tonight Sara and Jenna are throwing a Pirate Palooza so everyone will be dressing up for that.  Should be fun!

General Conference weekend

General Conference weekend was a pretty eventful one, so being that I try to keep up with my blogging like a journal, I want to still blog about it.

Friday night it was a double header at the movies.  First was Stop-Loss.  I swear I've been seeing previews about this movie for like four months, not to mention have been reading about it ever since Rees Witherspoon and Ryan Phillippe broke up.

It would make sense that it had a political agenda, but I just didn't think a whole lot about it.  It was definitely very anti-war.  Despite the fact that it was extremely liberal I could look past it and really enjoy the movie.  I liked it.

Leatherheads is another one I've been seeing previews for forever.  I was really excited seeing as how I love George Clooney (he's in my top 5), Renee Zellweger is one of my favorite actresses, and who doesn't love John Krasinski?  That being said, this movie was laaaaame.  I mean, I was really tired and struggling to stay awake about thirty minutes in, but still, it just a total waste.  I ended up surrendering the fight and went to sleep for most of the second half.

Saturday was a super packed day.  I got up early and schlepped up to West 95th Street to meet up with my fabulous new friend Adam, who'd rented a Zip Car for a few hours to head to New Jersey to go to Costco.  Since I was having a party that night Adam let me tag along.  Costco was great.  I've never actually shopped there for myself.  I mean, I've gone with my mom millions of times, but never have I personally bought anything.  I was able to get an amazing load of delicious treats for a super low price.  Thank you Costco and thank you Adam!

That morning I'd gotten a surprising call from my aunt Terry.  She and her husband Jon were in town for the day.  They'd been on a cruise and were staying the night in New York and wanted to meet up.  They were seeing Mama Mia! and wanted to know if I'd seen it.  I hadn't and they told me they'd get me a ticket.  Sweet!  

So as soon as I got my groceries home I changed and then headed up to Times Square to see the show.  It was kind of ironic because I never knew the story line, but the night before at the movies I saw a preview for the movie Mama Mia! and then here I was, seeing the show, twelve hours later.  I absolutely loved it!  I don't know ABBA's music, other than Dancing Queen, but enjoying it anyway.  It was super upbeat and funny.  Loved it.

After the show we ate an early dinner at Cosi.  I can't believe I'd never eaten there before this.  I'm officially obsessed with the chicken caesar and am so glad we have one by my work.

After dinner I headed home to get ready for the party.  This was something I was super excited about.  About a month ago I read a post on Amanda's blog about a party that sounded so fun.  They had an Enrichment activity where they had a Favorite Things party.  Basically everyone brought something that was their favorite.  It could be anything from a favorite recipe, to a favorite mascara, to a favorite hair towel.  Amanda said the party went really well.  It helped everyone get to know each other better, plus hear about a lot of super cool things they hadn't heard of before, and leave with a new little tricket.  I thought this sounded so fun and was meaning to tell someone in our Relief Society presidency that we should do it for Enrichment.  Then I got to thinking, we don't have to do this for Enrichment, we could just have a party.  I've really been wanting to get to know the girls in my ward better so I thought this was perfect.  I mentioned the idea to my roommate in the middle of the week and she mentioned that it was perfect timing since Saturday night all the guys would be a the Priesthood Session of conference and a lot of girls had been talking about getting together to do something.  So, we sent out the evite and it was a great turnout!

It was a really great party and there were some really interesting gifts given, that really helped me get to know interesting things about the girls.  One girl gave my roommate a gift, and while I don't even remember what the actual gift was, it was what was on the outside that was neat.  There was a super cool postcard (so we thought) on the outside.  Chels mentioned that she loved the postcard and I agreed, and then the girl who gave it said, "Actually I took that picture out of my window.  Photography is one of my favorite things so I thought I would include one of my pictures."  Super cool.

And maybe towards the end of the party we ended up blaring the music and having an impromptu dance party.  AAAAAnd Chels couldn't help but bust out this umbrella during Rihanna's Umbrella.

Sunday morning I made the General Conference typical Hope breakfast, Eggs on Toast.  MMM.  Although I can never make it as good as my mom's, it still was alright.  

We spent all afternoon on the futon and got a little bit of the sleepy sillies.  And, yes, that is my Ridge 04 shirt.  I still wear in proudly.

Weekend

This weekend was pretty uneventful, which was really nice considering how crazy things have been recently.  (You wouldn't really know, because since it's been crazy, I haven't been able to blog, and since I haven't been able to blog, you don't know how crazy it's been.  Vicious cycle.)

So Friday night I was supposed to go to the Mets vs Braves game with Chelsie, Jaclyn, Maria, Steve, and Mike.  Supposed to.  Didn't make it.  Long story.  But I met up with Chels and Steve to see Baby Mama.  I have to admit, even though I think Tina Fey and Amy Poehler are two of the funniest women on tv, I thought the movie looked pretty stupid.  Maybe it was my low expectations, maybe it was because it was and 11:30pm showing and I was super tired, but I thought it was hilarious.  I was rolling.  Amy is freakin hysterical.  The movie is cheesy and predictable, but perfect for a great laugh.

Saturday was super lazy, which was perfect.  I didn't get home from the movies till 2am and I can't even tell you how excited I was to be able to sleep in.  I've had to get up early every Sat for the last several weeks and there's nothing I hate doing more than setting an alarm Friday night.  I got up about 10:15am which was perfect because I'm at least old enough to now hate wasting the day.

I got up, watched 30 Rock with my roommates, chilled, and then went over to Curtis'.  We headed over to his hair cutters.  I (finally) convinced him to go shorter, although he was freaking out the whole time, driving the stylist crazy.  I thought it looked really good.  When we got back to his place and he tried to style it he realized it was uneven and got really mad.  This kills me because the guy seriously almost never gets mad, but when it comes to the hair, watch out.  It's his "thing."  Love it.  So after a big freak out, me attempting to fix it, and then me realizing he wanted me to cut a lot more than I was comfortable with (especially after seeing how seriously he takes hair cuts) I sent him back to the hair cutters, where he got it fixed.  I met back up with him and he looked like a little boy.  It was all short and just laying flat, kinda like missionary style.  He looked adorable.  Have no fear, he still sports the hawk, but it's a shorter version (for now.)  He's been meaning to get some new sunglasses so we stopped at a tourist trap.  Sunglasses for $5?  Okay.  He wanted my opinion on a particular pair.  At first I was like, ehhhh.  Then my honest opinion was, "Weeeeellllll, you have to know that when you wear those people are going to think you think you're really cool."  Him: "I do."  (Joking, mostly.)  "Okay well you have to be prepared for comments.  Like, I have some super big glasses and when I put them on people talk to me like I think I'm a movie star or something."  That didn't bother him, so I told him they did look good, so he got them.  After about five minutes I was obsessed with them.  We went to eat at Gold Street Diner and I made him wear them during lunch because suddenly with his normal hair, look-at-me shades, and 36-hour shadow he totally reminded me of Bono, who I love, in case you don't know.

A little later I was getting ready to go out for the night.  I was supposed to meet up with Taylor for dessert, and then a goodbye party for Karen, my dear friend who's moving to Arizona.  My contacts were super dry so I took them out to rewet them.  I was at Curtis', so I used his roommate's solution, or so I thought.  It turns out it was contact disinfectant.  The second I put my contact in my eye, my whole eyeball was engulfed in severe stinging.  I had this happen once before, when I used Elise's roommates "solution."  (There's a long story that explains why I made this mistake twice....I swear I checked the label before I did this.)  Note to contact wearers: Do NOT EVER make this mistake!  It is the worst pain ever.  The pain forces your eye shut so you can't get your contact out, and you can't make the pain stop without removing your contact.  (Yet another vicious cycle?) After many attempts at forcing the lids open and clawing at my poor eyeball, I got out the contact and let the faucet water gush into my beat red eye.  Needless to say, I was thrashing around and whispering angry cuss words in the boys' bathroom.  When I finally composed myself I walked out and Jason, Curtis' roommate was very confused.  I told him what had happened.  He told me sorry, because it was his disinfectant.  And I told him sorry I attempted to steal some solution.

I went home to redo my makeup and change, but by the time I got there all I wanted to do was not go out.  I called Taylor and canceled, feeling awful because the last time we had plans they fell through as well.  Luckily he's the nicest guy in the world.  

I ended up just chilling at home with a couple of roommates and Court.  I really was sad about the party, but at least I caught up on the Office, Grey's, and the Soup, and had some fabulous girl talk to boot.  And later that night and the next day I got some concerned text messages and questions at church regarding my "burned eye."  Haha, guess the news made it to the party.

Going to church was nice because I feel like I haven't been forever.  Last week was Stake Conference, the week before Jason and Elise were here and we only went to Sacrament, and the week before was General Conference, so it felt good to be back to normal.

The most exciting part of my weekend happened after church.  My friend Kellie is moving and was selling her lovesac.  I've always wanted a lovesac so I jumped on the opportunity.  The problem?  She lives on 105th Street.  Luckily my fabulous home teacher and friend Randy (Ricky-Randy to me....yes, a take off of Justin-Bobby) has a car and agreed to let me borrow it.  He was going to take me but is in the middle of studying for finals.  He goes to NYU dental school.  Amazing.  So I still needed a guy, so Curtis came.  I made Curtis drive seeing as how I've never driven in the city.  Don't worry, as we were heading up Madison Ave I was looking at the people and saw this guy carrying his little daughter, tossing her in the air.  "How cute," I thought.  Then I realize, gasp!  It's Toby McGuire with his daughter Ruby!!!  Totally legit A-list sighting.  Love it.  He was sporting a beard.  Looks like a great dad.  Thank you UES.

So we made it to 105th and got the lovesac (after quite the debacle) into the backseat of Ricky-Randy's 2door CL.  Yeah, we were cramped.  

We headed downtown and Curtis took my lovesac to my apartment while I saw in the car.  Then I took him to midtown where he was two hours late to meet up with some out of towners visiting.  I dropped him off at 5th and 42nd, and then had to brave the city behind the wheel for the very first time after living here for over a year.  I had to go to 1st and 14th.  It actually wasn't too bad.  I was really nervous, but did okay.  I kept wanting to make calls because it just seems natural to talk on the phone while you're in the car, but you can't use a handheld device while driving here.  Not like I needed the added distraction anyway.  

I finally made it back to Randy's, and the real problem was finding parking.  Ugh.  That took another twenty minutes, but luckily I found a spot, and hopefully he didn't get towed.....

I may have stopped at Baskin Robins along the way....I couldn't help myself.  

I couldn't believe it was 10pm after I got home.  Granted, I wasted an hour on the phone and eating ice cream, but that whole ordeal seriously took all afternoon and evening after church.

Since I missed my afternoon nap I was exhausted and went to bed and was asleep before 11pm.  Can't remember the last time that happened.  Heaven.

I don't even get this cartoon but I just love the fact it has my church's name on it.

PS I'm currently blogging from the comfort of my new lovesac. Love it.

Not that it was noteworthy but...

What would a weekend be without Curtis and I going to a show?  We saw Shutter Saturday night.  We didn't really expect it to be anything great, basically it was exactly what we anticipated: jumpy, scary, tense, and cheesy.  It's written by the same people who did The Grudge and The Ring.  It's kinda lame how they've used similar things in all the movies, but still, it was entertainment for an hour or two.  And besides that, it's always a treat to go to a show in Times Square because you get the rowdy audience.  It was really annoying when I first moved here, but now it's comedy.

Saturday

Saturday was errands day.  Have I mentioned how much I hate running errands in the city?  Anyways, after six weeks Curtis and I finally took back his off white jacket I got him for Valentine's because he wasn't sure if he wanted a different size.  It was just slightly too small.  He ended up being between sizes but found this white one he liked that fit great.  There's this random little shop in Grand Central that has mostly weird clothes, but occasionally I find things I know he'll like (I walk past it every day and the window displays always get me.)  They have really amazing deals as well.

I finally hit up the MAC store because I needed to make a container trade.  My new favorite color is Naked Lunch, actually, it's not really new, I've been obsessed with it ever since Aimee recommended it to help with my cat eyes for Halloween.  Anyway, I needed a new one, and I've also been dying to try out their new(ish) mascara.  My Zoom Lash finally ran out (which I LOVE by the way) so I went in to try something new.  It was supposed to be amazing and I first heard about it two months ago right after I bought my last tube of mascara.  So I tried it out Saturday night aaaaaaaand, eh.  I hate it.  I guess maybe it makes my lashes a little more full, but Zoom Lash makes them SO much longer.  Linds, I know what you're going to say, but after this experience I'm not branching out again, unless I can try Bad Gal for free.  I'm so mad I just wasted $11 on mascara.  And can I please just vent for a minute?  Don't get me wrong, I LOVE MAC but their customer service could really use some help.  Every time I go into the store there's never enough employees.  Anytime I need help everyone's too busy doing makeovers.  I have to say, I appreciate the fact that the makeup is now accessible to customers so it's nice to just be able to ask for what I want, but still, sometimes a girl needs some help.  So after I grabbed my beloved Naked Lunch and what I thought was supposed to be great mascara I got in line with only one person in front of me.  After that person was finished a different MAC girl got behind the register and started ringing up the two girls she just walked up with, whom just received makeovers.  Wtf?  Was I not standing in line?  I was totally annoyed.  They seriously took forever.  When they finally finished I walked to the register and there were now two employees standing in front of me.  They both looked at me, confused, and one of them finally said, "Um, sorry, what did you need?"  I was like, "Um....to check out?"  Duh!  Totally annoying.  (This was also at the end of the shopping day so my patience was lacking, and I seriously had a headache.)

The good news is I used my credit at J. Crew for some new suits!  I'm definitely in need for my upcoming trips to Florida and No-Car.

This one's my favorite.  The straps on mine are different, however, they just come straight up along the sides and over my shoulders.

Hopefully I look like this girl in it.....yeahhhhh......
I got this suit except it's baby pink and white striped.

And I also got this suit in blue but after a consensus it's the one being returned (couldn't decide by myself at the store which two were best.)

I also got these white linen pants to throw on at the end of the day for a bbq or something.  I love them.

After shopping my little heart out at the Crew I made my way down to the Flat Iron district (to to go MAC.)  I totally forgot the Shake Shake is there in Madison Square park.  Score!  I treated myself to a nice burger, fries, and peanut butter concreation (shake.)  MMMMM.  It was just what I needed.  I'd had a massive headache all day and realized when it was 5:30pm and I'd only eaten a bowl of Life all day maybe food would help.  It did.

After the park and the unfortunate MAC experience I walked down to Union Square and to my delight found the venders were still there.  There were flowers for sale!  I couldn't help but buy myself some yellow tulips.  I really wanted an Easter Lilly but they weren't in bloom.  The temps are still too cold.

Saturday night Curtis and I schlepped clear up to West 111th St to the famed Harleman Halls where Curtis's friend/business partner Julie was having a party.  It was, interesting.  They had karaokee and I just wasn't in the mood to sing twice in 7 days, so I opted out after much peer pressure.  Curtis did rock out a fabulous rendition of Suspicious Minds by Elvis Presley.  I'm not going to lie, it was totally hot.

Friday night

So Friday night started out very promising.  My buddy Ed organized for a bunch of people to head up to the Lower East Side to go to some random club, I guess you might call it, to go to a poetry slamming.  I don't really know how to describe what it was, but I guess basically people read poetry they've written, and members of the audience judge them.  The atmosphere was really cool, and there were a ton of members that went.  The place was packed.  I was excited to be there because it's just one of those events you don't just hear during water cooler talk at the office, more of you need to know someone who knows about these random places and random activities.

This girl was the emcee and she was hysterical.  It seemed to be pretty cool.

So the first girl went up and was up there for about twenty minutes.  I'll spare everyone from the details and just say it got really awkward.  I've never been one to be offended enough to get up and walk out of a place, but this was beyond ridiculous, and Chels and I couldn't take it anymore.  We ended up getting up and leaving.  It was really awkward because the place was literally PACKED with people, including sitting on the floor.  There was NO room to walk anywhere.  We sat there forever trying to plan out escape route, which wasn't easy considering we were on the opposite side of the room from the door.  We finally realized there was no easy way to get out, and we were just going to have to plow through.  It was really awkward literally walking right in front of the girl performing.  I didn't want to offend her, although, I told myself to get over it because she'd offended me.  I couldn't get over what was coming out of this mouth.

After we got out we hopped in a cab which didn't help much.  The cab driver was crazy (well, they all are) but this one was especially.  He was driving like a mad man, and cussing at other drivers.  This isn't particularly rare, but this guy was pushing it.  I finally t

old him to take it easy.  (I don't usually talk to the cabbies other than to tell them where I'm headed or ask them to close the window when it's freezing.)  When we finally got home our fare was $12.60.  Chels just gave him $13.  If it was a normal ride she'd probably have given him $14 total, so stiffing him a buck wasn't like, a total insult, but he rudely handed her her changed and said, "Keep your 40 cents and buy yourself some candy."  Awkward.

Curtis came met me at my place when we got home (he had to work late) and we went to dinner at one of our usual places, Gold Street Diner.  I love New York and how it's totally acceptable to get dinner at midnight.

Eating with Curtis is quite the experience.  He can eat so much, and loves his condiments, especially Tabasco sauce.  (His first present to me was a huge bottle of Tabasco, for me to keep at my apartment, for when he comes to eat....kinda seems like a present for him, but whatever.)  Anyway, he loves to mix all his food together, and it's really nasty, but I've gotten used to it by now.  Friday night he got breakfast for dinner, and I couldn't help but take a picture of his concoction of potatoes, scrambled eggs, cheese, catsup, Tabasco, and I think maybe bacon was in there too.  This is actually before he stirred it all up.  Bon appetit??

Last weekend

Last weekend was awesome.  Friday after work I did a little shopping.  I got some new work clothes from H&M and some new, very needed, brown shoes from my favorite shoe boutique on 38th and Broadway in the Fashion District.  Kind of shady, but they'll barter with you, and they have totally cute, comfortable shoes.  

That night my girlfriend Erin, my roommate Jaclyn, and I went to the Enrichment Relief Society birthday party at a girl's apartment over in Hell's Kitchen.  There was a 15 question quiz on RS trivia.  I was honestly surprised people could answer any of the questions asked.  I mean really, who knows how long it took to come of with the RS motto?  (3 years, by the way) Or which past General RS president threatened to leave her husband because he had a bar in the house?  (Emma Smith.)  For that one I guessed Sheri Dew, because the girl reading the questions said, "It's someone you would know."  Embarrassingly enough, Sister Dew is the only General RSP I can name.  It wasn't until later I realized, duh, she never married.  Oops.  How long was the longest someone served as General RSP?  29 years.  Yup.  Can't remember who it was.  The point is, they gave out prizes for the top two, and the bottom one.  Yes, I was the big loser with +2.  I won the fabulous bunny ears you see in the Picture of the Week.  

After the get together Erin, Jaclyn, and I headed to dinner at Spotlight Live in Times Square.  I'm not gonna lie, this place was pretty sweet.  It's a karaokee restaurant, and when you sing, you have a live band playing your music, and back up singers!  How cool is that?  I wasn't really in the mood, I'm kinda hit and miss with karaokee, but Jaclyn definitely didn't want to do it, and Erin totally did, so I agreed to a rendition of Oops!  I Did it Again.  While we were eating dinner (the best chicken caesar salad I've had in the city) I realized everyone who was singing wasn't just a random person with a so-so or horrible voice.  Everyone was like, really good.  I kinda got intimidated and nervous, but kept telling myself to just get over it and have fun because I didn't know anyone there.  

Once we got up there I felt a little timid with the backup dancers right behind me, and didn't want to look like the horrible singer with awkward dance moves who actually thought she was good, so I kinda did it half way, and probably looked even worse, oh well.  It was still fun and I felt like I was on American Idol.  You can't really hear your voice and I really have to hand it to performers because I guess it's not as easy as it looks.  Erin decided she wanted to sing again so she rocked out You Make Me Feel Like a Natural Woman and she was AMAZING!  I had no idea.  (Remember I said we couldn't really hear ourselves.)  I felt even more dumb, but was totally stoked that she could totally work it out.  It was awesome!

Sat I slept in till 1:45pm.  Definitely haven't slept that late in a long time.  I didn't want to because I had a lot of things to do, but made the rest of my day very productive.  I'd been out way too late after karaokee, but will talk about that in the next post.

Since I have my new fabulous bed, I figured I should do some good with my old bed.  I could have paid $5 to have the bed delivery man take my old bed away, but they'd only take the mattress, or I could try to sell it, which is a total pain because who wants to by a random used bed off craigslist, especially when no one has a car to come pick it up?  I gave it to Curtis who's been sleeping on an air mattress for the last 8 months.  Have I mentioned that boy is low maintenance?  

So Sat was the big day we finally got around to moving it.  Let me tell you, if you ever need to move a bed, a long board is a very handy thing to have around.

Here we are, starting the adventure leaving my apartment:

It was a gorgeous day (50s) for the weather we'd been having lately.  Saturdays are extremely busy in my neighborhood.  Since I live by so many attractions the area is always crawling with tourists.  You can't walk down Wall St. without hearing 5 different languages.  Last week as I was leaving for church I walked in front of my building straight into a crowd of asians whose bus had unloaded in front of my building.  I almost got lost.  Anyway....here's Curtis pushing the bed frame down Wall St.  That's the Trinity Church behind him, on Broadway.

Chillin in front of the Stock Exchange.

He's buff.

So am I?

Yes, these are all the tourists watching us.

More tourists.

He's so excited!  Phase one: complete.

Sans makeup.  Please excuse the nastiness.  Hadn't showered yet.

It's not every day you can nap in front of the NYSE.  And yes, I agree, nasty.  Glad I was getting rid of the mattress.

It's complete!  We actually had a lot of fun going back and forth.  When we came through the stock exchange area one time we were both riding the long board and actually got applause.  It was awesome.

So Saturday night I planned a date and took Curtis out.  I wasn't quite ready when he came over.

Ready finally.  Yes, I'm aware this is sort of like a "first day at school" picture.  Curtis made me do it.

My new shoes have hearts on the bottom!

Everyone takes a picture in front of the NYSE with the Wall St. sign.  I've lived across the street for seven months, I figured it's time I take one as well.

We went to dinner at The River Room.  I highly recommend it!  It's way uptown, clear on 145th and Riverside Drive, but worth the schlep.  The food was great, the atmosphere was awesome, the live jazz music was amazing, and the view was spectacular.

He got the steak and I got the mango chicken.

We danced.

Not the best picture, but wanted one in front of the water.  That's the George Washington bridge and New Jersey to the left.

After dinner we headed to Bowlmor to go bowling.  It was an hour wait and I wasn't too sad when Curtis didn't want to wait.  It was $12.50 per person, per game!  Honestly, outrageous.  We ended up just calling it a night.  A fabulous night at that.