Sweet Blog O'Mine

Category: Fun

  • Party Shuffle

    So I’m sitting here doing some work and I’ve got my iTunes on "party shuffle" mode, which, although it doesn’t really create the party-type atmosphere that might lift me out of the grey-day funk I seem to be in, makes me smile each time a new song comes up — I never know what’s going to be next.  Kind of like my life, I suppose. 

    In between bouts of work, I’m cooking up some stuff which is going to end up being either enchiladas or some sort of mexican chicken, bean, and tortilla casserole, depending on how I feel when all the pieces are done.  I’ve shredded the cheese, and am about to poach the chicken and make some enchilada-type sauce.  I was inspired by a new cookbook on casseroles that I picked up on the cheap at Strand yesterday.

    As for the rest of the weekend, Friday night I attempted to go to an opening-night party at Bombay Talkie, a spot billed as a "teahouse inspired by Bollywood  and the street foods of India."  Sounded great on the surface, but in reality, it was jam-packed, and the food wasn’t coming fast enough for me and my very hungry companion for the evening (although we did get a nice glass of Pinot Noir out of the deal).  I’ll have to go check it out some other time.  We skipped out and tried to go to Tia Pol, where I ran into a former colleague from Anderson Kill, but where they informed us that it would be an hour wait for a table.  We chose to head elsewhere before hunger-induced crankiness (and wine-on-an-empty-stomach induced drunkness) set in.  We ended up at a place called Bongo, which makes fantastic cocktails (including one hell of a sidecar) and a decent lobster roll.  I found it a little overseasoned, like the one at Mermaid Inn, but the heavily buttered roll softened the seasoning somewhat.  I still think I prefer Pearl for my NYC lobster rolls. 

    After dinner, I headed home, but caved in to that "I think I’ll just check in and see if anyone I know is at Otto" moment, which meant another glass of wine, and then through the magic of Dodgeball, ended up at The Stoned Crow, where I met up with Ned ("you know Ned through Nichelle," said Dodgeball).  Although I stuck to water at that point, I was definitely up a little later than I had originally intended.

    Saturday I had my friends Carrie and Brian over for brunch — made a frittata, which is my favorite thing to make for brunch-time company.  Acting very decadent, we made mimosas, and even had a little caviar and sour cream on rye toasts.  We were all a little too hungover to really dive in to anything but the fritatta, however.  After brunch, I did a few errands, and then some quiet time on the couch before heading to the Black Table party at Slainte.  I certainly took it easy, and went to bed at a reasonable hour, but I still had a great time catching up with some of my favorite bloggers, and my non-blogger (a.k.a. "normal") friend David even stopped by to say hello for a while.

    Tonight I’m going to the gym, eating some of whatever I end up whipping up, and then early to bed so I can get a jump start on the week — have a lot to do and I need to be energized, refreshed, and ready to tackle it all.  Let the party begin.

  • Vacation, All I Ever Wanted . . .*

    Today is my first official day of a two-week vacation.  "Where are you going?" you might ask.  "Nowhere," I’ll reply.  It’s two weeks in NYC — time to do all those things I threaten to do all the time but never quite get around to as much as I’d like: go to museums, movies, possibly the Botanical Garden; and catch up on other things, like seeing friends, holiday shopping, home improvement projects, uploading photos, reading, and writing.  I started off the vacation sleeping until 11:00 AM — staying out past 4 AM two nights this weekend apparently sapped some of my energy. 

    Friday started with Slice on Ice — this month’s Slice pizza club trip to Angelo’s on 57th Street, followed by ice skating at Wollman rink.  Tien was fiddling with my camera settings, so many of my pictures are a little, uh, artsy, but I like the festive quality of this one:

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    Adam raffled off a few prizes, and although I didn’t win, I got my very own Slice button, which I love (Thanks, Adam!). 

    Adamraffle Slicebutton

    Due to some unfortunate Zamboni timing, I ended up opting out of skating, and heading to my friend Luke’s party.  It was one of those parties where I didn’t know anyone except for the host, but he did a great job of introducing me around, and I met some very nice people and talked at length about some of my favorite topics:  food, travel, and the bizzare nature of dating in NYC.  Speaking of which — did everyone see the article in the NYT magazine about sex and blogging, Your Blog or Mine?  More on that later, but it featured Deb from Smitten, one of my favorite reads.  After the party (and this was about 2:30 AM), I got a Dodgeball message from my friend Scott.  Last time I saw him, for his birthday pig roast, I had the beginning of the plague part 1, and we didn’t really get to catch up.  So off I went to meet him. 

    Saturday, after sleeping quite late, I spent some time with my mom, and then went off to my cooking class at the Institute for Culinary Education.  There will be much more on that later, as I’m writing up the experience for Gothamist Food.  Let’s just say that it was a pork-filled blast.  Then, on to Emily’s holiday party, where we stayed until she kicked us out at about 3:00 AM.  Needless to say, yesterday was a bit of a wash, but I met my friend Eric and his family for a beautiful holiday concert at Riverside Church.  I have to admit that I’ve always loved Christmas carols.  (Pork and Christmas carols?  Bad Jew!  Oy.)

    And now, vacation.  Ahhhh.  Well, it’s lovely except for the fact that NPR just told me that it feels like 1 degree out.  Maybe I’ll stick with the home improvement projects today . . .

    * A tribute to the Go-Go’s.  Yes, I’m perpetually stuck in the eighties.

  • Back in the Game

    20041206buttonsclearThe plague seems to have passed once again, hopefully for good this time.  Made it to work yesterday, and even to our work holiday dinner.  One more day and then I’m off for two weeks for a vacation right here in sunny NYC.  But tonight, it’s Slice on Ice — the Slice Pizza Club trip to Angelo’s and then on to Wollman Rink, with the likes of Adam, Tien, Janelle, Youngna, and a few other folks I don’t know yet.  Looking forward to it!

  • It’s 4:30 pm — Time to Get off the Couch

    I’m actually wrapping up this weekend before the weekend’s over, for a change.  After a somewhat draining week at work, I stayed in Friday night, stopping briefly at Von Singh’s for dinner on the way home, then flopping on the couch watching The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring and knitting presents for my brother and my mom.  Exciting, huh?   Actually, it was perfect.

    LatkesSaturday I made up for it, frantically cleaning up my apartment in time for brunch with the lovely ladies who blog.  Now, I generally have a latke party every year, but this year I didn’t plan one, so I took brunch as an opportunity to make latkes, and to use the platter my friend Deb thoughtfully gave me last year (thanks to Nichelle for the photo).  I was so much fun just catching up, eating, and gossiping, and we certainly missed the ladies who weren’t in attendance this time around.

    Next, on to a haircut, then off to dinner with my brother and stepmom at Angon on the Sixth, where I’ve wanted to go for a while, given all the raves on Chowhound.  Unfortunately, I was so full from brunch I could barely eat, and the service was dreadful for some reason.  I’d like to go back and give it another chance.  After dinner, my brother came along with me to my friend Sara’s holiday party out in Fort Greene.  We walked a route from the subway that was new to me, and I have to say that I really liked the neighborhood out there.  The party was lovely, and we bonded with some very friendly folks over the varied and plentiful cheese selection.  I impressed one party-goer, not to mention myself, by pulling out the name of a cheese that was there — an ubriaco.  I had tried one in the past, and enjoyed it so much that I remembered it, and was able to identify it immediately.  We talked food and cheese for a while, then headed back to Manhattan so I could get to my next stop, which was Jake‘s Chanukah party.  Since it was a bit late, I ran into a few people I knew on their way out as I was on my way in, but stayed chatting with my friend Ethan for a while.  Finally, we headed out, and I stopped in for a nightcap at Otto, knowing full well that someone I knew would be there.  And, of course, Nic and Luke were at the bar. 

    Today is a pajama day — I had leftover latkes for brunch, and have been lazing around, reading the paper, chatting on the phone, and am going to head uptown in a bit with my friend Roopa for dinner at our friend David’s.  He’s been threatening to have us over to his new place for a while, and I’m glad we finally managed to pull it together, so we can catch up and taste these chicken tacos he’s been telling us about all this time.

    This week is my last full week of work before a much needed two week vacation.  I can’t wait.  But, have to make it through the week first.  Wish me luck.  Okay — I’m off hit the shower and get out of my pajamas.  At 4:30 in the afternoon — nice job, lazy girl.

  • ABC’s of my Weekend: Art, Burgers, and Crudo

    I love how I’ve gotten into this ridiculous habit of "catching up" on my weekend activities sometime mid-week.  I’ll throw in some of this week too, just as an extra added bonus. 

    After recovering from my cold among other things, I was ready for a fairly mellow weekend, so I started off with a visit to the new MoMa with Bill, Sarah, Katie, Romy, Carrie, and John.  It’s free on Fridays — $20 is a tad pricy for a museum, even a newly-renovated one here in NYC — and although it was a little crowded, it’s a great way to unwind on a Friday night.  We only got to see a fraction of the art, but the new building itself was worth the trip.  But since I’m rarely in midtown, I was originally at a bit of a loss as to where to go for dinner afterwards, until it hit me — the Burger Joint in the Parker Meridien hotel.  Made for a perfect high culture/low culture evening, and great for the budget.

    127_2714_r1The next day was my good friend Erika’s bridal shower.  As she well knows, I am not much of a fan of bridal showers, for about a million reasons, so the fact that I went is a testament to how much her friendship means to me.  But you can’t spend any quality time with a friend during a bridal shower, so we made plans to go out to dinner later that evening.  She was so proud that she could take me to Bar Tonno — she had gone there before I did, and she knew it would impress her favorite foodie.  And she was right.  I’ll be reviewing it later tonight for Gothamist Food (I also wrote up the Burger Joint); not only was the crudo (sort of like Italian sushi) fresh and light, which balanced out the huge brunch we had eaten earlier, but we sat right by the sous chef, who had a great Australian accent, a nifty hairdo, and was flirting with me, to boot!

    Sunday I went with Mom, Rob and David to the 10th foodie — this time, a regional Italian tasting.  As usual, a great time was had by all.

    Last night I got to see a free advance screening of the Life Aquatic — it was fantastic — funny, heartwarming, quirky.  Go see it when it opens this weekend.  Tonight’s my designated night in — I was finally able to replace the DVD player that died in the night of the grand tofu-roach-DVD disaster, so I may watch a movie, but first, must eat the turkey pot pie that my dad thoughtfully made after Thanksgiving (it’s been hiding out in my freezer), and I’ve got a review to write, along with some additional posts.  Turns out it’s been a shitty work week for some of my columnists (myself included), so I’ve got to do some extra stuff this week, which also explains my sporadic posting here.  Sorry gang.  And I won’t even go into how behind I am on posting pictures . . . Ack!

  • ‘Tis the Season

    Well, I made it through the double-header Thanksgiving, and I suddenly feel like the holiday season is upon me with a vengance.  Holiday parties and events, shopping, making gifts (of both the knitted and chocolate varieties), putting together all the holiday tips for the doormen, and just my general busy social life — it’s a little overwhelming.  This week, for example, I already have plans every single night — a birthday dinner (not mine), dinner plans (seafood, mmm), a restaurant opening, a work event and the first of the holiday parties, then Friday (free) night at the new MoMA.  Whew.  At the same time, I’m also trying to reorganize my finances and get a decent amount of sleep and exercise.  Not sure I’ll succeed on all fronts.

    Is anyone else starting to feel the onslaught of the holidays setting in, or is it just me?

  • Early to Bed, Early to Rise

    That’s tonight’s motto.  Although I didn’t overdo it at all this weekend, I’m feeling a cold coming on, and I do not want to be sick for Thanksgiving.  That would be so like me — to get sick for my time off.  So, I’m taking some preventative measures. 

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    This weekend was great, and very social.  I had about a dozen women over on Friday night for a fur-and-feather-themed cocktail party.  I was a little concerned about space, so I didn’t invite quite as many people as I wanted to, but I think that I could certainly fit more in the next time, and it was such a success that is definitely going to be a next time!  Everyone really enjoyed having a girls-only night, although when the conversation turned to Star Wars at one point, we realized how un-girly we were being.  But being the non-girly girl that I am, that’s exactly why I get along so well with them.  Saturday I went to a cocktail party at my Mom’s apartment, and got to spend some time with my family (prep for Thanksgiving) and then on to Tien’s party in Greenpoint.  Today I made pancakes for brunch with Rob and then headed downtown for wine and cheese at Katie’s.  And now — laundry and writing.  All this sniffling is somewhat distracting, however, so I think I’m going to end up reading or watching TV with a cup of hot tea and then going to bed early, so I can work out in the morning.  Wish me luck — I’m not good at going to bed early, no matter how much I want to.  I can always find something to distract me . . .

  • Visiting Another Blue State: the San Fran Report

    Jenn and I had both stayed up late to watch election returns last Tuesday night, so when we met super-early on Wednesday morning, we were both incredibly cranky and depressed, hoping that the worst was not yet inevitable.  During our flight over Jesusland (as the map that’s been going around now calls it), our pilot announced that Kerry was planning his concession later that afternoon.  Fuck.  At least we were on vacation.

    Our goals for our trip were to see friends, catch up on sleep, and relax, and I had the additional goal, as I always do, to find fantastic, cheap, local fare.  We succeeded on all fronts.  Between my SF Mates dinner at Tao Cafe (thanks again to the Chowhounds), to dim sum at Ton Kiang, from hitting happy hour at Nectar, a sleek and comfortable wine bar, to happy hour at trendy-wendy Lime, from sushi on boats at Warakubune to small plates at Three Seasons to modern Chinese at Firecracker, and the grand finale at the Ferry Building Farmers’ Market (where else can you have sweet, fresh oysters at 10 AM?!), I was definitely grateful for the hills and a travel companion who liked to walk as much as I did.

    Without going into too much detail (or I’ll never catch up), it was great to see Hinman, Leslie, Spike, Mindy, Joe, Jon, Eric, Bill, Adam, Arielle, David R., Stephen, Sid, and Seth — I was thrilled that I was able to spend at least a little bit of time with so many people and some quality time with a few folks I hadn’t seen in way too long.  Thanks particularly to Eric and Bill for their incredible hospitality and to my cousin Matt for letting me crash at his home away from home.

    Baybridge
    (yes, it’s the Bay Bridge, not the Golden Gate, but this is the view I had while eating those oysters I mentioned.  Nice, huh?)

    Can’t say I’m ready to move quite yet, but I had a great trip — and although I still have a great deal of recovery to do from the election, I’m glad I started down the road with friends and like-minded blue-staters.  It certainly softened the blow.  You can see the rest of the pictures here.

  • Playing Catch Up (and Other Games)

    Once again, my blog is lagging behind my life.  I got back last night from a great food and friend-filled trip to San Francisco, where I could counter at least some of the shock, grief, and depression I was feeling about the election results.  Ugh.  I’ll do my best to post my pictures, etc. tonight, but I have to go to Taste of NY first, to cover it for Gothamist Food.  Sigh — life is hard. 

    In the meantime, here’s some stuff from last weekend that I never managed to post.  I spent a great day in Chinatown with my friend Deb, and we had some dim sum at Ping’s Seafood, which was good, but I still think I prefer HSF.  We also spent some time playing a game we called Crazy or on the Phone?   So hard to tell these days what with all the hands-free headsets around, but I think we were running about 50/50.  We also stumbled across this sign, which we decided could have very well been a missed Midnight Madness clue:

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    I’ll catch up one of these days, I swear.

  • Urban Punkins

    Stumbled across this pumpkin patch in Herald Square on Friday night. Not sure how or why they got there — the Great Pumpkin, perhaps? Happy Halloween!

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