Brett Visit: Day 6

Today we start off by going back to Bryant Park for the “Original Belgian Waffle.” They were so good. They came with all kinds of toppings. We got ours with Nutella and bananas. It is wonderful. The waffles were delicious, they went good with our coffee that we made.

First, we get the Crumbs Cupcakes. I hear a lot about them and they look amazing. We got them instead of pies which was cool because then we got to try more sweets. We set off for Soho. Which is ‘South of Houston Street’ and New Yorkers say house-ton instead of Houston. This place has crazy shopping. It’s the magnificent mile of New York. But before we start a lady stops me and asks me about the cupcakes. She shows us her mini ones that she bought. So we talk cupcakes for a bit and we head to get our own mini cupcakes. The little corner window had like 10 different kinds of cakes. We got cookie dough, red velvet, mint chocolate, s’more, peanut butter and jelly, and cookies and cream.

Soho had a lot of cool stores and they were all places that are only in Soho. It was vintage and had the small town feel because the shops were local only. I liked all of the clothes and the style of all the stores, however, unless you make six figures most of the stores are too expensive. Which made me sad because I found a lot of clothes that I liked but it was out of my price range. Ashley found this jewelry store that was absolutely huge! The walls were bright pink and every square inch was covered in jewelry. Her face lit up when she seen it. It was funny to see her cheapness come out. She would try on all sorts of things and then think out loud about buying it. And then ask me 4 or 5 times if she should get it or not and then talk herself out of it every single time. She cracks me up. I just wanted to see her buy something.

So we head out for some Chinatown cuisine. We find a place and we are the only Americans there. The waiter barley speaks English. We order different chicken meals and get our soup. I almost threw up when I found a sea serpent in my bowl. I just waited for my food. It looked and tasted very good. I only wish I knew what I was eating. I was a little nervous the whole time because you just don’t know. I felt bad for the kid whose setting at home thinking about who stole his pet and to know that I'm eating it. We stop at Eileen’s for the best cheesecake in the world. She was not lying. It was fantastic.

Ashley informs me that it’s a law to go out the night before Thanksgiving. So we meet her friends out at Asian Pub. This was fun. We sat around and had a few drinks and talked about various things. One of the guys that came out is an FDNY firefighter. I thought that was really cool because they are one of the most recognized fire departments in the nation. Then the girls wanted to dance so we went to a dance club. Awesome. I just needed to relieve my emotions through the art of dance. Ha I'm not much of a dancer but it was still pretty fun.

The bar was right out of the 60s. It was a fun place. I felt like a fifth wheel so I wandered off and did my own thing. I just kind of mingled with random people and talked to a few people along the way. When I made my way back, Ashley pointed out this guy looked like Ludacris. It was awesome she got a picture with him and the girl he was with didn’t think it was near as awesome as we did. When Ashley walked away he gave her the what in the hell are you smoking look. It was pretty funny. We took a cab back to her place, thank God I was about sick of walking. We fixed up the rest of the street meat and her lasagna and, my mistake, left her alone in the kitchen. She put the metal tin container in the microwave. I turn around just in time to notice the first blue flash. I run over and open the microwave and fix the food myself. She didn’t know that you cannot put metal in the microwave. And she is surviving in New York? Her microwave has a little scar now it was really funny in the morning.

Day 80

November 25, 2009

Today…we are on a mission. We have serious Soho shopping to do, Crumbs cupcakes to buy, and hunt down the best Chinese restaurant in Chinatown. We start the morning by going to a pop-up waffle stand in Bryant Park’s holiday shopping area. Look at the pictures below. They are delicious! We top our waffles with Nutella and bananas. Nutella is amazing. If you’ve never tried it, I highly recommend it. It’s also really good on crepes with strawberries. It’s chocolate, people! I would just like to thank my high school French teacher, Mrs. Larson, for introducing me to the fantastic spread…not to mention Toblerone chocolate bars and Lindt chocolate balls.  

 

First stop of the day, is of course, Crumbs cupcakes. They look amazing! We got these instead of a traditional holiday pie. We got Red Velvet, Pumpkin, Apple Pie, Butterfinger, White Hot Chocolate, and a marble of some kind with Cookie Dough topping. Yum, right?? Check out their listing of cakes, here! By looking at the picture below, you can quickly tell our sweets buying did not stop at 9 a.m. Oh no! In Soho, when a lady stops us and asks about our Crumbs, then she shows us her “mini,” "Baked by Melissa Stuffed cupcakes," of course we have to get some to try! Really tasty, by the way! Then, when we pass NYC’s best cheesecake ever, Eileen's…we can’t pass this up either! Let me tell you.  Eileen knows her cheesecakes! I will say, they were probably the best I’ve ever tasted! So amazing! And how cute are they that they come round instead of your typical slice?

In Soho, we quickly realize how much money we don’t have to spend. It’s pretty expensive to shop around there—unless you want to go to Express or Forever 21. You can go to those stores in Iowa! We want vintage and local designers. Yeah…again, I’m too cheap to pay $80 for a dress! It was insanely cute, but I couldn’t justify it! Brett got some great things. He’s not afraid to spend money! He got really irritated about the fact that I’m so cheap. It got to the point, that if I picked something up, he would say, “Buy it. Just buy it.” Hehe. I never did! =) I get my bargain shopping from my Aunt Tammy. She’s even worse than me, if you can imagine! That’s okay, Tammy. At least we always get more for our money! Check out some of the pictures on our shopping extravaganza.

  

So, it’s lunch and we’re starving. Brett has to go to Chinatown for some authentic Chinese food. We settle at a restaurant, where we are the only two white. We figure this has to be authentic, considering no one spoke English and no white Americans were present. We order chicken. You can’t go wrong with chicken. However! Who the hell knows what’s on our plate! Considering it’s authentic, I forgot they think dog is a delicacy. Hmm…so, our lunch could very well be a small poodle, or maybe a Siamese cat; possibly a rat out of the subway, or pigeon off the street. Whatever it was, it was delicious! And our check was in Chinese!

 

I was slightly nauseated eating it, for fear I had no idea what was going into my body. To go box? I don’t think so. Check out the pictures, it tastes as good as it looks! Minus Brett’s loch ness monster in his soup. When I saw that, I calmly placed my bowl of egg drop soup to the side, gagged a little in my mouth, and focused on the white rice and broccoli. You know this stuff is real! You can’t fake a dog in nature’s mini trees!

It’s the night before Thanksgiving, so of course, we have to go out! It’s pretty much written in the law books that going out the night before Thanksgiving is a must. Honestly, think about it. What better hangover food could you ask for? I can’t think of anything either. Thanksgiving is a day where laziness, taking naps, and eating way too much food is actually okay and highly desired! My advice: take advantage! Good thing I typically listen to my advice! =)

We meet my friend from work, her boyfriend, and his brother. We go to Asian Pub on the Lower East Side to start the night. It’s a fun, chill bar where the drinks are cheap and really good. We were all pretty happy by the time we left. So…where do we go? Dancing, of course! Duh! What else would I do?

The dance club was a nostalgic, old school, kind of place. Bricks walls cover the inside from top to bottom, while 1960s vintage décor makes it feel like you are in an underground club from the post-hippy phase. The music was great and we had a blast! Check out the pictures! There was a guy who looked like Ludacris. The picture doesn’t do it justice. I’m pretty sure he thought I was nuts. Why does he think that, you ask? Brett said when I walked away, he gave me one of those looks you typically don’t throw out unless you do it behind someone’s back, knowing you won’t get caught! Haha!

   

Then I hear another lame pick-up line. Shocking! I know. Jon is his name. He walks up to my friend and I and says, “Excuse me. Can you take my picture and e-mail it to me?” Of course, being from Iowa, I believe him at first. “Sure,” I reply. Then, the creepy grin he gave me, made me quickly realize he isn’t being friendly. He’s being a creeper! Look at him! He can totally be classified as a creeper! His crazy eyes did way too much wandering for my liking. Needless to say, I get his e-mail address because I feel bad, but I don’t e-mail him. I’m not that naive!

Brett and I stroll in my apartment at, oh, I don’t know…4:30 a.m.! Eek! This is post Brett “falling asleep” in the cab. So funny, especially when he started snoring! Classic! We chow, and I mean literally chow, on leftover lasagna and street meat. Let me just say, both taste so much better tonight!

Note to self: Don’t put aluminum foil containers in the microwave. When your brother starts yelling at you because your microwave is lighting up blue, maybe you should realize that cooking at 4:30 in the morning could skew your way of thinking, just a tad. Who would have thought? You always hear of this idea being a really bad one, but you have to try it out for yourself, I suppose. That’s my logic behind it. Plus, I have a really pretty black mark on the back of my microwave. I like to consider it a memory, from Brett’s trip, that will most definitely never go away.

Day 7

September 13, 2009

Today is a total tourist day for me. The rain finally stopped and the sun is shining! I want to get out and enjoy the beautiful weather. My original plan was to stop by Bryant Park for Fashion Week, then head to Central Park, and go curtain shopping for the new digs.

 

I'm actually staying at Bryant Park--I keep seeing celebrities everywhere. I'm star struck! I can't just leave! I see Hilary Duff, Amanda Bynes, Mischa Barton, Estelle, the Gossip Girls, and Marisa Miller. I got right next to them!

  

It is interesting to see their different personalities. Amanda Bynes and Marisa Miller were the nicest and most crowd friendly. Michelle Trachtenberg, a Gossip Girl, was, let's face it, a bitch. Sorry, but check your ego at the black Escalade that dropped you off. The "Wow, these people are gonna die," comment is not necessary. (She was referring to the paparazzi crowding around her).

While standing around, paparazzi style, I snag a few freebies--some cookies, that I wanted to feed to the models; a pair of "Cool Contours"--the new Spanx; and some fashion mags. I have never seen women this skinny in my life. Funny thing is an elderly lady from the Ukraine asked if I was one of the models for Fashion Week. Sweet thought, but my size four ass is way too overweight for this industries liking. ;)

I then head to Radio City Music Hall where the VMA's are taking place. I only see Sean Paul--after about an hour and a half, I realize I'm not going to see with my angle, so I leave. My feet were so sore from being on them all day--paparazzi is tough work! ;)

During the VMA's...really Kanye? Who does that? He needs to seriously check his ego. Arrogance is so irritating. Do these people not remember where they came from? Oh yeah, nothing. Maybe someone should remind them of that. I like Taylor Swift.

The Green Bay vs. Bears game was awesome! Favorite quote from the night, "That makes me want to get a massage!" from the two-point conversion play. Haha! Then the night ends with "True Blood." For those who have not seen it, it's wierd. Way too bloody for my liking.

Note to self: Any man that can dance can call me anytime! There is nothing more attractive than a man with a nice body that knows how to work it. The M.J. tribute on the VMA's proves my point. It's like a trance--you can't stop staring and you only wish he was coming home to you. Someday.......someday. Like I always say, wishes do come true and prayers are answered. ;)