I'm in the process of transferring the New York portion of this blog to its own site (which I will then hopefully bedeck with pictures and such).
Keep up with my posts on the new site at:
http://greeneyesonthecity.blogspot.com/
Thanks for reading!
JJ
Thursday, May 29, 2008
Tuesday, May 27, 2008
Coffee and walking
Spent the day mostly at the apartment taking care of computer stuff (much to do now that I've got my machine back - but sans much of its data. Alas.)
I love my corner bodega's coffee so much that I don't even want to make my own anymore. So instead I shell out $1.25 daily for a large cup of their stuff. They prepare it for you (another thing I love about bodega coffee) and I always ask for mine with cream, no sugar. It comes out silky and creamy - almost like hot chocolate and never bitter. I love it. Plus it's a nice little walk in the morning - I justify it in that it gets me out of the house. And at least I'm not forking over $4.25 for a Starbucks latte.
Went to yoga in the afternoon and then did some walking errands. If it weren't for the pizza slices I indulge in I think I'd waste away to nothing here. Unless you're the kind of New Yorker who gets driven around in black cars with tinted windows, there's so much walking daily here. And I think I traipse about a bit more than the average New Yorker, since I'm so new and am into exploring. Honestly, my body aches (in a good way) at the end of most days and I can tell I've lost a few pounds. I think this is what the human body was made to do - get itself around, lug things. There's reason most people here are fairly slim... We may be in an urban jungle, but this amount of movement is natural to our species.
Had dinner with (cousin) Brandon and his fiancee, Jen. Met them at their place in Chelsea and we walked down the block to a newish Italian spot they like. It was a pleasant night and we sat at a table abutting the sidewalk. I love all the sidewalk seating in New York. (On Broadway, near my house, the rows and rows of sidewalk cafes recall the grand boulevards of Paris).
Had an endive salad, mussels and wine. Yum.
A note: One of these days I want to overhaul this blog. I'd like to give it its own site (don't worry, you'll know the address), redesign it and start posting photos. Right now I feel buried under my to-do list: job search, freelance work, getting my computer put back together and still trying to unpack and assemble furniture. Somehow I seem to have all these hours and yet there still aren't enough!
Tomorrow I plan to take the B train to a cafe in the East Village and work from there - should be fun. And then a PR contact of mine is taking me to dinner at a client restaurant of hers, STK, (in case you didn't guess, it serves steak). Yum!
I love my corner bodega's coffee so much that I don't even want to make my own anymore. So instead I shell out $1.25 daily for a large cup of their stuff. They prepare it for you (another thing I love about bodega coffee) and I always ask for mine with cream, no sugar. It comes out silky and creamy - almost like hot chocolate and never bitter. I love it. Plus it's a nice little walk in the morning - I justify it in that it gets me out of the house. And at least I'm not forking over $4.25 for a Starbucks latte.
Went to yoga in the afternoon and then did some walking errands. If it weren't for the pizza slices I indulge in I think I'd waste away to nothing here. Unless you're the kind of New Yorker who gets driven around in black cars with tinted windows, there's so much walking daily here. And I think I traipse about a bit more than the average New Yorker, since I'm so new and am into exploring. Honestly, my body aches (in a good way) at the end of most days and I can tell I've lost a few pounds. I think this is what the human body was made to do - get itself around, lug things. There's reason most people here are fairly slim... We may be in an urban jungle, but this amount of movement is natural to our species.
Had dinner with (cousin) Brandon and his fiancee, Jen. Met them at their place in Chelsea and we walked down the block to a newish Italian spot they like. It was a pleasant night and we sat at a table abutting the sidewalk. I love all the sidewalk seating in New York. (On Broadway, near my house, the rows and rows of sidewalk cafes recall the grand boulevards of Paris).
Had an endive salad, mussels and wine. Yum.
A note: One of these days I want to overhaul this blog. I'd like to give it its own site (don't worry, you'll know the address), redesign it and start posting photos. Right now I feel buried under my to-do list: job search, freelance work, getting my computer put back together and still trying to unpack and assemble furniture. Somehow I seem to have all these hours and yet there still aren't enough!
Tomorrow I plan to take the B train to a cafe in the East Village and work from there - should be fun. And then a PR contact of mine is taking me to dinner at a client restaurant of hers, STK, (in case you didn't guess, it serves steak). Yum!
Monday, May 26, 2008
Weekend wrap-up
It was sunny all weekend! Hallelujah. Friday afternoon had a job interview of sorts at a website called Flavorpill.com. They're expanding into style & design and need somebody to head it up. Cross your fingers for me! They won't be able to hire for maybe a month, but it sounds like a great gig. Also have an interview this coming week at the Post's Page Six magazine and heard back from Fashionista.com - they're not hiring until July but want me to get back in touch then! It's encouraging that people are showing interest - makes me think I'm less nutty for moving here without a job.
After the interview, left SoHo and met up with Caitlin and Gael at the Target in Brooklyn (there's no Target in Manhattan, if you can believe it). Bought a few household-y things, but decided I'd do most of my buying at IKEA.
Which I did... The next day.
But first, Friday night: middle Eastern food near Caitlin's place, followed by drinking at her apartment with friends. Caitlin and I went to a couple of bars later and talked to A) a pair of nice Brooklyn-eccentric guys, B) no one. Honestly, at a the second bar, everyone thought they were too cool for school and one guy even walked away from us after chatting for one minute. I can't do Brooklyn boys - they're too much like Austin boys! (Scruffy and aloof). In fact, I'm not too into Brooklyn at all - at least for living. Too quiet and too much hassle with the subway (it's always being fixed or something). But unlike most Manhattanites, I'm happy to visit.
Spent the night on Caitlin's futon that night as the trek between our places would be near-impossible late at night.
Saturday Caitlin and I caught the free shuttle from Port Authority to IKEA. We were measuring my room and lost track of time (hungover) and suddenly realized it was 2 and the last shuttle was set to depart at 2:30. So we raced down to Columbus Ave., caught a cab, told the driver to step on it, ran from the cab all the way to Gate 5 at Port Authority and made the bus with two minutes to spare. Whew!
Spent quite a bit at IKEA, so I really hope I get a job soon, but my room is going to be amazing! It will have tons of storage. Having most items delivered tomorrow (Tuesday) morning, though we were able to carry our smaller items on the bus. It's pretty convenient, that shuttle, and delivery was only $99 for up to $15 items. They'll carry them inside for you, too.
We got back from IKEA starved and decided to grab dinner in my neighborhood. Tried a spot that's literally around the corner - I'd been curious about it. Voza. Tiny, narrow place, with a distressed wood interior and probably only about seven small tables total, inside and on the sidewalk. It was great! When we arrived the waiter seemed slightly disgruntled, but I announced to him that I was a new neighbor and he ought to be nice to us and soon he was helping me with my sweater and being as sweet and attentive as can be. The menu had a mix of fresh bistro-type fare, with many seafood choices, and then the chef came to our table and recited about 10 more choices, many of them seafood. Just as I was about to order the mussels the last order sold out. But we did have the crab bruschetta special, and it was sublime. Definitely a new favorite spot for when I want to treat myself, in the meantime, I'll just walk by frequently and wave. I'll be a sort of ghost regular.
Well, more stuff happened over the weekend, involving sunshine, reading at Central Park, watching the water at Riverside park, exploring the posh part of the Upper West Side (where I live isn't too posh), a foiled attempt to have brunch in Brooklyn, and brunch and shopping in SoHo with Maria finished off by a trip to Trader Joe's - my first in four years. That was a happy moment.
After the interview, left SoHo and met up with Caitlin and Gael at the Target in Brooklyn (there's no Target in Manhattan, if you can believe it). Bought a few household-y things, but decided I'd do most of my buying at IKEA.
Which I did... The next day.
But first, Friday night: middle Eastern food near Caitlin's place, followed by drinking at her apartment with friends. Caitlin and I went to a couple of bars later and talked to A) a pair of nice Brooklyn-eccentric guys, B) no one. Honestly, at a the second bar, everyone thought they were too cool for school and one guy even walked away from us after chatting for one minute. I can't do Brooklyn boys - they're too much like Austin boys! (Scruffy and aloof). In fact, I'm not too into Brooklyn at all - at least for living. Too quiet and too much hassle with the subway (it's always being fixed or something). But unlike most Manhattanites, I'm happy to visit.
Spent the night on Caitlin's futon that night as the trek between our places would be near-impossible late at night.
Saturday Caitlin and I caught the free shuttle from Port Authority to IKEA. We were measuring my room and lost track of time (hungover) and suddenly realized it was 2 and the last shuttle was set to depart at 2:30. So we raced down to Columbus Ave., caught a cab, told the driver to step on it, ran from the cab all the way to Gate 5 at Port Authority and made the bus with two minutes to spare. Whew!
Spent quite a bit at IKEA, so I really hope I get a job soon, but my room is going to be amazing! It will have tons of storage. Having most items delivered tomorrow (Tuesday) morning, though we were able to carry our smaller items on the bus. It's pretty convenient, that shuttle, and delivery was only $99 for up to $15 items. They'll carry them inside for you, too.
We got back from IKEA starved and decided to grab dinner in my neighborhood. Tried a spot that's literally around the corner - I'd been curious about it. Voza. Tiny, narrow place, with a distressed wood interior and probably only about seven small tables total, inside and on the sidewalk. It was great! When we arrived the waiter seemed slightly disgruntled, but I announced to him that I was a new neighbor and he ought to be nice to us and soon he was helping me with my sweater and being as sweet and attentive as can be. The menu had a mix of fresh bistro-type fare, with many seafood choices, and then the chef came to our table and recited about 10 more choices, many of them seafood. Just as I was about to order the mussels the last order sold out. But we did have the crab bruschetta special, and it was sublime. Definitely a new favorite spot for when I want to treat myself, in the meantime, I'll just walk by frequently and wave. I'll be a sort of ghost regular.
Well, more stuff happened over the weekend, involving sunshine, reading at Central Park, watching the water at Riverside park, exploring the posh part of the Upper West Side (where I live isn't too posh), a foiled attempt to have brunch in Brooklyn, and brunch and shopping in SoHo with Maria finished off by a trip to Trader Joe's - my first in four years. That was a happy moment.
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