Last night we went to go see the New York Philharmonic in Central Park after Growth Group. It was incredible. We missed the first half or more, but it was still so great. There must have been thousands of people out there sprawled on the Great Lawn with blankets and picnic baskets. It was really cool. The music was beautiful and I wished we had been able to hear the whole thing. While you sat and listened to the music, all you could really see was the symphony on the stage up front, trees, and all the people. It didn't feel like we were in the middle of NYC at all. A great escape! After the symphony was over, Joy was like "now it's time for fireworks" and I said "really?" and she said "well anytime there are more than 5 people gathered in New York there are bound to be fireworks". And about 5 minutes later, I hear booms behind us. So, everyone hops up, turns around and watches the fireworks show. I thought it would be a few fireworks, but it lasted a long time!! It was so pretty to see the fireworks above the trees with the skyline behind them.
I was headed in a different direction when it was time to go home and as soon as I got out of the park, it started pouring!! I caught a subway close by so it wasn't too bad, but when I got to my stop, I had a ways to walk. I love all the walking, but have found myself in a bind when it rains and I'm not expecting it and have no umbrella. I didn't want to wait, so I tried to walk under awnings, but finally gave up and just walked in the rain. Flip-flops get really slippery when wet, so I was walking rather slow, too. By the time I got home, I was drenched!! My hair was soaked through as was my cute skirt and top!! They needed to be washed anyway, so I decided it didn't matter. It was kind of fun in a way!
Wednesday, July 19, 2006
Sunday, July 16, 2006
Coney Island!
Yesterday was a big trip to Coney Island! I went with two girls from my Bible Study, Laura and Becca. It didn't end up being the greatest day to go to the beach, but we had fun anyway and just being at the beach was great! There were a ton of people there. When we got there, we first went directly to the beach. It was overcast, but we had hope. We were so excited to see the sand and ocean! It's not the greatest beach ever, but it was okay and still the beach! Laura brought a sheet, which is a brilliant idea-- much easier to shake off than a beach towel-- so, we all sat on that. Not 10 minutes later, it started to rain. Becca pulled out a tiny umbrella and we all 3 sat huddled under it reading a magazine together. It was hilarious, but fun! We gave up after about another 10 minutes and decided to find a place to eat inside. Of course, you're supposed to get a hot dog at Coney Island, but all the hot dog places are just stands you walk up to and the lines were long and in the rain. We walked away from all the craziness and found a place to grab a bite inside. When we finished, the sun was out, so we hit the beach again. I fell asleep! Becca and I waded in the water a bit-- it is freezing cold!! People were playing in it, but I don't know how! There weren't really waves at all. After laying on the beach for a while, Becca and I wanted to try out the roller coaster-- you can't go to Coney Island without riding it! Laura had been a few times, so she wasn't quite as into trying everything like Becca and I were, but she still had fun with us! The ride was great-- longer than expected and a good wooden roller coaster!
I love knowing that I live in a place where I can just hop on a train and get to several different beaches. Laura left town today for 6 weeks (she's a teacher so she can do that!), but Becca and I plan to hit up some of the nicer beaches before summer runs out!
I love knowing that I live in a place where I can just hop on a train and get to several different beaches. Laura left town today for 6 weeks (she's a teacher so she can do that!), but Becca and I plan to hit up some of the nicer beaches before summer runs out!
Saturday, July 15, 2006
Birbiglia
On Thursday night I went with a group to see this guy, among other comedians at the Gotham Comedian Club. Mike and at least one of the others have been on Letterman and Comedy Central. It was hilarious! I'm always a little hesitant about comedy because sometimes it is so uncomfortably crass and other times it's that kind of silly/stupid comedy that I don't find funny. But, this was just really, really funny! The club was really cool too-- definitely a place to consider going back to. It was also a great time with some fun folks from church! Oh, and the hostess who sat us mentioned to one of the guys that she went to Mizzou (he was wearing a Jayhawks shirt), so I told her I grew up in Columbia and we had a quick little chat about BoCoMo.
Wednesday, July 12, 2006
Restaurants Galore
I feel like I talk about food way too much on this blog! But, it is a part of every day life. I've managed to eat out every night this week. Not really a good thing, but I've had trouble getting into the swing of things now that I finally have all my kitchen stuff here. Plus, most of my kitchen stuff is still not unpacked! The good thing is that I've been addicted to sushi and salad since I got here, so at least I'm healthy a lot of the time and all the walking is definitely helping, too! Luckily there is no shortage on good restaurants in NYC and I've gotten to try some fun ones this week- sometimes by myself and sometimes with others. Sunday, I went to a place called Burgers & Cupcakes. I had a turkey burger with avocado and it was delicious! I also had a cupcake and it was suprisingly good as well...probably don't need to add it to the list of the NYC great ones, but it hung in there pretty well. Monday, I went to a place called Say Cheese after going running in CP. It's a grilled cheese sandwich place and they have so many different kinds. Mine had tomato and a garlic spread and it was great-- definitely a place to go back to. I think I'll especially enjoy it in the winter when you can get 1/2 a grilled cheese and tomato soup! Last night was The Burger Joint in the Le Meridian Hotel. SUCH a cool place!!! It was a tiny little restaurant right off the hotel lobby and it was pretty dark in the restaurant and everything was wood. Very cool atmosphere. The burger was so good as was the shake! Lots of celebs have eaten there, but no one was there last night. After the Burger Joint, I also got to go see the movie "Water" at a cool little art-house theatre. It is a great movie! Go see it if you can find it playing near you. The theatre was really cute, too...we sat in the balcony! Tonight, in honor of my friends Amanda, Brooke, and Vorrice, I ate at an Indonesian restaurant down the street from my apartment. I had Nasi Goreng! It's basically a rice/veggie/chicken dish. It was good, but much more spicy than I remember the Nasi Goreng being in Indonesia. And everytime you order it in Indonesia they serve it with these puffy rice-cake like things, but the restaurant didn't do that. So, those have been my adventures in eating this week!
Other highlight of the week...my supervisor quit on Monday-- he works through the end of the month. This will really change up the dynamics for me in the office and should be pretty interesting to see how things play out.
Other highlight of the week...my supervisor quit on Monday-- he works through the end of the month. This will really change up the dynamics for me in the office and should be pretty interesting to see how things play out.
Saturday, July 08, 2006
Shake Shack
So, seeing the fireworks from Roosevelt Island could really count as my "new thing" of the week. But, I decided I felt like doing something else new. So, on Thursday night, I checked out the Shake Shack in Madison Square Park. I was over in that neighborhood buying a baby gift for a shower anyway and I had seen the Shake Shack before and thought it looked interesting, so I decided it made sense to go grab dinner there. Madison Square Park is a really cute little park and the Shake Shack is a cute little building in the middle of the park. When I got there, the line for the Shack was huge! I thought about leaving, but then remembered that this is part of why I'm here and if I want to see and do the things you're supposed to see and do then I'm probably going to have to wait in some lines. Plus, a long line means it must be good. So, I waited. It was worth it! I got a burger, fries, and a chocolate shake. The burger was fantastic!! The fries were not really anything special, but good. The shake was good, but much more chocolate-y than I was expecting! I read/worked on my bible study while I ate. It was a fun little excursion.
Today, I got to go in the most amazing apartment ever!! I went to a co-worker, Sara's, baby shower and it was held at an apartment of a place where another girl I know, Erin, is the nanny. Erin was hosting the shower. The apartment was on the Upper West Side just steps from Tavern on the Green in Central Park. It was in an elevator building on the 9th floor. The apartment itself was 3 stories and so, so nice! It had about 5 bedrooms, I think. Plus a library, at least 2 large living areas, an enormous kitchen, a dining room, two terraces with amazing gardens, and I don't know how many bathrooms-- at least 4 and the master bath was amazing with a sauna. It was quite fun! The shower was nice too-- delicious food the girls made!
Last night was my turn to lead the Movie Play Group for church. We saw Devil Wears Prada and then went and ate at a delicious Thai restaurant right down the street from my apartment. I really liked the movie and met some girls I really enjoyed.
Today I am procrastinating-- I've got to get the rest of my boxes from home unpacked!!!
Today, I got to go in the most amazing apartment ever!! I went to a co-worker, Sara's, baby shower and it was held at an apartment of a place where another girl I know, Erin, is the nanny. Erin was hosting the shower. The apartment was on the Upper West Side just steps from Tavern on the Green in Central Park. It was in an elevator building on the 9th floor. The apartment itself was 3 stories and so, so nice! It had about 5 bedrooms, I think. Plus a library, at least 2 large living areas, an enormous kitchen, a dining room, two terraces with amazing gardens, and I don't know how many bathrooms-- at least 4 and the master bath was amazing with a sauna. It was quite fun! The shower was nice too-- delicious food the girls made!
Last night was my turn to lead the Movie Play Group for church. We saw Devil Wears Prada and then went and ate at a delicious Thai restaurant right down the street from my apartment. I really liked the movie and met some girls I really enjoyed.
Today I am procrastinating-- I've got to get the rest of my boxes from home unpacked!!!
Wednesday, July 05, 2006
Reasons Why my 4th of July Sucked and Why it Really Didn't
Written on July 5th-- late getting it posted!!
So, my 4th of July didn't end up nearly as bad as it could have. I'll start with the good parts of the day so that if you don't want to hear me complain, you can stop half-way through.
My friend, Tonya, was in town the past two nights. I met up with her late Monday night for dinner at a Greek restaurant in my neighborhood. I thought it was one I had been to before, but once inside, I realized it was actually the Greek restaurant next door I had been too. This one wasn't quite as good, but very similar. Tonya was with 2 of her friends and it was great to enjoy a nice dinner with good company.
Last night, we went to Roosevelt Island to watch the Macy's fireworks show. It was a great show and a great place to watch it! For some reason, I thought we were taking a boat over to the island, but I don't know where I got that idea because there were no boats going over there. There is a fun looking tram that goes over there above the water but it's closed until Fall-- that would be fun to do sometime though! We just took the subway over-- it's a quick and easy trip. The island is very small, cute, and quaint. I'd like to explore it a little more some day. We sat on the very tip of the south end of the island. It is TINY at the tip. There were chairs stretched across the island (except not on the slope on the edges going down to the water). It took only 20 chairs with a center aisle to go from edge to edge. The fireworks are set off from barges in the water and we were close to and facing those barges. It was a great show set to live music blaring over loud speakers. The other cool thing was that we could also see the show that was done from Liberty Island which happened to be the EXACT same firworks show because they used the same music. So, we could see fireworks up close and high in the sky and see the exact same ones down low and in the distance! It was a wonderful way to celebrate the 4th!!
The crazy thing about the 4th in the city is that it became a complete ghost town. Apparently, everyone heads to the beaches for the 4th. I went out at lunch time and then again for the fireworks and there was no one on the streets. I had never seen it quite like that!
***Complaint section***
The day didn't start off as great as it ended. The movers ended up coming on the 4th. They called at 7AM on Monday and said they were coming that day, which annoyed me slightly because they were supposed to give at least 24 hours notice. But, they had my stuff, so I was at their mercy! Then, they called later on Monday and wanted to push it back to Tuesday. I was happy with this plan since I had Tuesday off work and had a lot to do on Monday after being out for a whole week. They said that it would be Tuesday morning-- I had visions of them coming, dropping stuff off, then me heading out to meet Tonya for a day of shopping before the fireworks! The movers never called that morning, so I called them at 10am and they said they'd be 2-3 more hours. This happened all day long-- me waiting 3 hours, calling them and being told it would be 2-3 more hours. The last time I spoke with them they said they'd be there by 8, but that would mean I'd miss the fireworks!!! I was SO upset and angry with the movers. They were really rude to me about the situation. It was a frustrating day! They finally showed up around 6:30 and they were fast and I helped them. I was out the door on the way to the island by 7:45-- thank goodness!! I would have been so upset if I hadn't gotten to enjoy my first 4th in the City!! I must say, I am so thankful to have my stuff here. My room feels much more like home with my furniture in it. And, for the first time in 11 weeks, I got to sleep in my own bed- ahhhhh!!
The other crazy thing about my 4th was after the fireworks were over. Have you ever been on a tiny island with thousands of people who all want to leave at the same time?? Craziness!! We walked to the subway, but the line was enormous and when someone said it would be an hour or two before we actually got on a train, we decided to take the alternate route. We walked way up to the north part of the island, walked across a little red bridge over the river, and ended up in Queens where we caught a taxi back to Manhattan. It took over 2 hours to get back home. So, while the fireworks from the island were lovely, I'm not sure I'd do it again because you can't get home afterwards!!
I hope all of you had a terrific 4th!!
So, my 4th of July didn't end up nearly as bad as it could have. I'll start with the good parts of the day so that if you don't want to hear me complain, you can stop half-way through.
My friend, Tonya, was in town the past two nights. I met up with her late Monday night for dinner at a Greek restaurant in my neighborhood. I thought it was one I had been to before, but once inside, I realized it was actually the Greek restaurant next door I had been too. This one wasn't quite as good, but very similar. Tonya was with 2 of her friends and it was great to enjoy a nice dinner with good company.
Last night, we went to Roosevelt Island to watch the Macy's fireworks show. It was a great show and a great place to watch it! For some reason, I thought we were taking a boat over to the island, but I don't know where I got that idea because there were no boats going over there. There is a fun looking tram that goes over there above the water but it's closed until Fall-- that would be fun to do sometime though! We just took the subway over-- it's a quick and easy trip. The island is very small, cute, and quaint. I'd like to explore it a little more some day. We sat on the very tip of the south end of the island. It is TINY at the tip. There were chairs stretched across the island (except not on the slope on the edges going down to the water). It took only 20 chairs with a center aisle to go from edge to edge. The fireworks are set off from barges in the water and we were close to and facing those barges. It was a great show set to live music blaring over loud speakers. The other cool thing was that we could also see the show that was done from Liberty Island which happened to be the EXACT same firworks show because they used the same music. So, we could see fireworks up close and high in the sky and see the exact same ones down low and in the distance! It was a wonderful way to celebrate the 4th!!
The crazy thing about the 4th in the city is that it became a complete ghost town. Apparently, everyone heads to the beaches for the 4th. I went out at lunch time and then again for the fireworks and there was no one on the streets. I had never seen it quite like that!
***Complaint section***
The day didn't start off as great as it ended. The movers ended up coming on the 4th. They called at 7AM on Monday and said they were coming that day, which annoyed me slightly because they were supposed to give at least 24 hours notice. But, they had my stuff, so I was at their mercy! Then, they called later on Monday and wanted to push it back to Tuesday. I was happy with this plan since I had Tuesday off work and had a lot to do on Monday after being out for a whole week. They said that it would be Tuesday morning-- I had visions of them coming, dropping stuff off, then me heading out to meet Tonya for a day of shopping before the fireworks! The movers never called that morning, so I called them at 10am and they said they'd be 2-3 more hours. This happened all day long-- me waiting 3 hours, calling them and being told it would be 2-3 more hours. The last time I spoke with them they said they'd be there by 8, but that would mean I'd miss the fireworks!!! I was SO upset and angry with the movers. They were really rude to me about the situation. It was a frustrating day! They finally showed up around 6:30 and they were fast and I helped them. I was out the door on the way to the island by 7:45-- thank goodness!! I would have been so upset if I hadn't gotten to enjoy my first 4th in the City!! I must say, I am so thankful to have my stuff here. My room feels much more like home with my furniture in it. And, for the first time in 11 weeks, I got to sleep in my own bed- ahhhhh!!
The other crazy thing about my 4th was after the fireworks were over. Have you ever been on a tiny island with thousands of people who all want to leave at the same time?? Craziness!! We walked to the subway, but the line was enormous and when someone said it would be an hour or two before we actually got on a train, we decided to take the alternate route. We walked way up to the north part of the island, walked across a little red bridge over the river, and ended up in Queens where we caught a taxi back to Manhattan. It took over 2 hours to get back home. So, while the fireworks from the island were lovely, I'm not sure I'd do it again because you can't get home afterwards!!
I hope all of you had a terrific 4th!!
Tuesday, July 04, 2006
I Want a Catholic Wedding
Actually, the wedding itself doesn't have to be Catholic, but I found out this weekend that I want to have a Catholic reception. My cousin, Amy, was married on Saturday. She's the baby of the family. My older sister, Beth, and I have just 3 cousins- Nicole, Christopher and Amy Canon. They come from a huge Catholic family- my Uncle Chris has 6 or 7 brothers and sisters. Amy is no longer Catholic, but she and her new husband are strong Christians, so her ceremony was just a traditional Christian ceremony. But, the reception had some fun Catholic traditions involved. While Amy and Nathan danced, people gave them money! Yep, cash-- $1's, $5's, $20's, even a $50 bill. So, at the end of the night, I see Nicole organizing all the cash they got and went over and asked her what that was all about. She said that anyone who dances with the bride gives her money. Nathan and Amy were probably going to take it with them on their honeymoon as spending money. The other fun thing was this crazy dance called the Grand March. It lasted forever and everyone got involved-- running all around the reception room in a chain, creating bridges, snaking in and out of other people. It was crazy and confusing, but with all those Catholic Canons there, they kept the rest of us in line. It was quite fun! So, now I want a Catholic reception!
The wedding weekend was lots of fun. Full of all kinds of events-- a casual BBQ on Thursday night, the rehearsal dinner on Friday night followed by a lingerie shower. My mom, sister and I held the Bridal Brunch on Saturday at the Bed & Breakfast where we were staying. It turned out really nice. The B&B was a great place to stay in Canyon- very cute and the breakfasts were great. The couple who runs it were really nice and Christians who blessed the meal each morning.
I'm back in the city now. Coming back this time was a little bit difficult. I just didn't feel like I had a whole lot to come back to since my job situation has turned out to be less than ideal, I don't have many friends yet and am finding it difficult to make new ones since I'm not seeing the same people consistently. It will all be okay, but being home just made me realize what I'm missing right now.
The wedding weekend was lots of fun. Full of all kinds of events-- a casual BBQ on Thursday night, the rehearsal dinner on Friday night followed by a lingerie shower. My mom, sister and I held the Bridal Brunch on Saturday at the Bed & Breakfast where we were staying. It turned out really nice. The B&B was a great place to stay in Canyon- very cute and the breakfasts were great. The couple who runs it were really nice and Christians who blessed the meal each morning.
I'm back in the city now. Coming back this time was a little bit difficult. I just didn't feel like I had a whole lot to come back to since my job situation has turned out to be less than ideal, I don't have many friends yet and am finding it difficult to make new ones since I'm not seeing the same people consistently. It will all be okay, but being home just made me realize what I'm missing right now.
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