Hot dog it's a recession

So for those of you who are wondering.... the job hunt still continues. (Major prayer request!) Between the fall of Lehman Brothers, the housing crisis, and the ups and downs of Wall St., it is safe to say we are currently experiencing hard times. Many companies are currently having hiring freezes, if not laying off positions in fear of our current economic state.


So you want to know how bad things really are in New York City? As if Gray's Papaya wasn't cheap enough...

That's right, save $1 on a meal that only cost $3.50. Two hot dogs and a drink. Oh the tiny hot dog stand, where do you get such large signs?!

* Presently, I am working for a recruiting company and reciting Jeremiah 29:11 daily. My playing days are over!

Connect-i-cut

A few things you need to know about a day trip to Connecticut...

1. Minivans are cool. (Made popular by the Rockwoods in high school.)

2. (In my opinion, and in Kristin's) The Immaculate Collection by Madonna is the ultimate minivan music.

3. Driving in the city isn't as scary as it looks.

4. Fresh air is awesome.

5. Apples taste the freshest when you pick them off the tree yourself.

6. Eating an unwashed apple won't kill you.

7. Spending an hour looking for the perfect pumpkin and actually finding it is a very proud moment.

8. Backwards people exist all over the country. Two words: Mohawk mullet.

9. There's no limit to what the stomach can hold. (Apple pie, apple cider doughnut, cookies, pumpkin bread, possibly one rice krispy treat, oh and a sandwich. I don't even feel sick, only guilty.)

10. "Good friends are for life." (Molly is a fantastic driver, Kristin creates rock-on mixes, I sing loud and sooooo good, Laura brings funny stories, and Ashley packs yummy treats.)

Our sweet ride.

My proud moment.

Apple picken'.

The crew.

How far is too far for Starbucks?

I have given my not-so-avid-readers ample time to catch up... :-)

Last weekend I went with a group of girls to the Pocono Mountains for a getaway weekend. Rented a gold Mercury Grand Marquis and hit major NY Friday evening traffic. Met one friendly lady at the camp site named Donna, who's speciality is cooking homemade doughnuts. (Her staff was just as interesting as she was.) And although the temperature was 40 degrees, the views were worth it.

Bright and early Sunday morning we jumped back into the G.M. and desperately needed some decent coffee. Oh you know it, we detoured clear out of the way to stop by a Starbucks. Despite our suspicion that out-in-the-middle-of no-where even had a Starbucks, we found it. Located in the Great Wolf Lodge. Not sure if everyone has heard of this Lodge, but it quite a sight for sore eyes. The building itself looks as though it was made of Lincoln Logs, the restaurant is called The Loose Moose Cottage, suites have names such as Wolf Den and Grizzly Bear... I mean this place is goofy. Pretty sure it is the strangest Starbucks I will ever travel to, but the coffee was good.

(By the way, this is a trash can. With raccoons.)

dumbo

In order to take advantage of the surprisingly mild weather we are currently experiencing, Kristin and I decided to walk the Brooklyn Bridge. We ate Grimaldi's pizza on the pier. Watched several Asian prom queens? brides? conduct a photo shoot. Shooed away one very annoying pigeon. Lusted over an apartment with a red door. Basked in the sunshine streaming through a yellow leaved tree. And embraced our inner hipster.

I always wanted to be a Tenenbaum

Kristin and I did something that we have been wanting to do for a very long time. We went to Harlem. We got into a cab and asked him to drop us off at 144th and Convent Ave. You see our favorite movie in which we love to quote quite often and have a couple of business ventures built around is The Royal Tenenbaums. It is a very clever and smart Wes Anderson film. The characters are as dry as burnt toast. They say things like "That cab has a dent in it." or "You heard me Coltrane." and we laugh. So today walked right up to the stoop of 339 Convent Ave, to the house Royal Tenenbaum bought on Archer Avenue in the winter of his 35th year.

Harlem, 2001

Harlem, 2008

BBQ, Blue Bell, and Texas football

Lessons learned from a very Texan weekend:

1. Blue Bell ice cream can be found in New York

2. Tequila shots are harder to swallow once you exit college

3. Country music sounds much better in a "Texas" bar

4. Lone Star beer taste good because it's from Texas

5. Not everyone (ie. New Yorkers) knows what "Texas OU weekend" means (we tended to forget that)
6. In New York, while it is important to support your college, it is more important to support your state

7. In the words of Bob, good friends really are for life

the Music vs. the Cell Phone

This weekend I saw Fleet Foxes at the Grand Ballroom. My good friend Kristin and I are big music goers. She's really good at keeping my iTunes up to date and fresh and I am really good about always being up for spending my hard earned cash on a concert. But what I unfortuntely noticed mid song the other evening was the amount of people with their cell phones out and open. Lights glowing, fingers taping, eyes shifted downward. The average kids were text messaging while their super trendy friends were checking email via their Blackberry or iPhone. Confession, I am a bit behind the times. For example, I happen to mention to someone at church this week that only a month ago did I finally tack on an extra $5 fee to my cell phone plan so that I can freely text message up to 200 times per month. (I quickly found out after I moved that text messaging is taken to a whole other level in NY... along with brunch. We shamefully waited for over 2 hours for award winning pancakes. Again, this is actually normal Sunday behavior in the city.) Anyways my friend was shocked that I was just now texting on a normal day-to-day basis. To get to the point of this detailed and rather boring post is that when did we decide that texting someone to tell them what song was being played was actually more important than listening to and enjoying the song? It's like taking a picture of the sunset but forgetting to look at the sunset. Photos only take you as far as the band's c.d. can. My recommendations: use the silent feature and sing along. (Opera style preferred.)



Ok, I'll step down from my platform now. Besides, it's been 1o minutes since I last looked at my cell to see if anyone's called... or texted. (And I'm sure they haven't.)

"Hey, can I call you Joe?"

I have never been one who gets too political. And I am not shy to admit, I would rather watch repeat episodes of Saved By the Bell in the mornings instead of the news. But this is New York. And in New York everyone wants to talk politics; it's part of the culture and frankly it makes this election much more exciting. So this year I have decided to get informed. I have read McCain and Obamas platforms, watched the debates, I have read the news from both sides of the spectrum, and I have had many discussion between friends over brunch, lunch, and dinner. And during our most recent debate-watching shin dig, the Obama supporters sat relaxed as they watched Biden do his thing, while the other half of McCain supporters clenched their teeth with high hopes Palin took good notes at Debate Camp. But no doubt with all the information and opinions splattered in every type of media, the whole process of being a responsible American can become very tiresome. In light of the seriousness elections obviously bring, Saturday Night Live is here to ensure we find some comic relief. Whether you side with Palin, oops I mean McCain, or Obama, the skits are just funny. (You'll find the latest clip in the post below.)

And if think about it, the most exciting part of this year's election is that either outcome will create a text book worthy historic moment. We will either have the first African American President or the first woman VP. A truly amazing and overdue accomplishment in my opinion.

Well folks, you know I really hope to see you all at the polls. (Insert wink and wave here.)

SNL

Tina Fey vs. Sarah Palin

Spandex

Let your imagination run wild...