Humidity

I always feel sticky.

There is a thunder rocked and lightning spiked down-pour of Niagra-ish proportions at least once a day.

I will not curl my hair again until the fall, there is simply no point.

I am considering not wearing makeup until fall as well. There is not point, it melts off, but I am not yet secure enough to give up the habit.

I have the urge to shower five times a day.

Once I get caught in a down-pour, I just give in and embrace it. This is the coolest.

ps. Do not wear white until storm season is over. Your chances of exposure are 4 out of 5.

Macy's

I have an incredibly high tolerance for shopping. It is one of my favorite things to do.

The outlets at Cabazon could not overwhelm me, the outlets at Park City weren't even a challenge, Victoria Gardens is more like mild shopping amid the hedge rows.

Macy's in Herald Square, however, is truly a challenge to my capacity to shop. It's one part heavenly and two parts gauntlet. Venturing into the building takes courage, accessing all 8 floors takes stamina, and exiting in one piece requires an unquenchable will to survive.

It's fabulous.

If you ever brave the shopping jungle that is Macy's, I recommend that you bring the following: a two day supply of water and trail mix, a compass, a sherpa and a pack mule.

You'll thank you me when you make it out the other side.

It's July for crying out loud

Dear New York,

Please stop raining.

A high of 61 and a 100% chance of precipitation are unacceptable summer weather conditions.

Thanks,
Sara

Children's International

There are a lot of people on the streets of New York City who want your money. Lots.

There are the really slimy scheisters who try to sell you the "salon promotion," the street performers with varying degrees of ability and talent, the guys who jingle cups of coins at in the stairwells of the subways, and the lady on the corner of 23rd and 6th who has been "pregnant" for the last 13 months.

The most persistent and noble, however, are the blue-bib wearing representatives of Children's International. Their cause is noble and their approach is often original and their persistence is nothing short of heroic. Still... When I have 15 minutes to get somewhere that's a 20 minute train ride away... I am not as impressed with their tactics.

The Blithe Spirit

I saw a great play tonight at the Shubert Theatre called The Blithe Spirit. It stared Angela Lansbury and Rupert Everett, and I must say, Angela is really quite fantastic.

Oh, and Anne Hathaway was in the audience.

Los Dos Molinos

I was having lunch with Melissa today at our favorite spot and I thought... Why haven't I blogged about this place yet?!?!

So we're going to take care of that problem.

Los Dos Molinos is run by Giles... the heart-breakingly attractive owner/waiter/chef/bar tender, who handles the lunch crowd himself because it's always slow. Usually when Melissa and I go we have the place to ourselves, so we've gotten to know him. He doesn't even bother to give us menus anymore, he just asks if we'd like chicken on our taco salads today and remembers not to put cheese on mine. Gotta love a man who remembers to hold the cheese.

On the days when I order Diet Coke it comes in a margarita glass the size of a fishbowl. He always brings green and red salsa with the chips and it's always really spicy and really good.

The decor is decidedly southwestern, with elements ranging from Native American iconography, to Route 66, to aliens and Area 51, with a couple of cowboy boots lined up against the wall and some stetsons stapled to the ceiling.

And there is always country music playing. I love this fact. Not sure why. Maybe its because this is the only place I know of in the city that plays country music with out pretense or exaggeration.

If only I could eat taco salad everyday.

True Confession

Sometimes I get so into my game of Tetris that I miss my subway stop.

Oops.

Park + Movie - Rain = Awesome

"How Green Was My Valley" at Bryant Park.

We had 6 blankets full of people and enough Twizzlers to feed a small army.

Excellent.

Wizard on the B Train

So, I totally rode the subway with a guy dressed as a wizard this morning. And yes, I took a picture. I figured, if the guy wanted to ride the NYC subway dressed like Gandalf, then he wanted the attention, so I just pulled out my camera and took it. Photo to be posted later.

Do you commute with magical beings? I didn't think so.

New York City would be perfect without...

1) Winter
2) Rip-off cab drivers
3) Humidity
4) Inflated prices
5) The Mets

Things I miss most about California...

1) Cars
2) Family
3) 360 days of sun
4) Correct grammar and pronunciation
5) Cars

I would not have had any fun in NYC without...

1) O'Flaherty's
2) Melissa Bannister
3) Times Square
4) Calle Ocho
5) The Yankees

I would not have survived a year in NYC without...

1) Chipotle
2) Cabs
3) Melissa Bannister
4) delivery
5) Riverside Park

Yes, I'm 14

Tragic Kingdom is the first album I ever bought. So when Roommate Sarah asked if I wanted to go with her to see No Doubt in concert at Jones Beach, I hesitated only for a second. Because hey, they were my favorite band when I was 14. But then again, they were my favorite band when I was 14.

So you see my dilemma.

We had to take a subway, a train and a bus to get to the amphitheatre.. but it was SO very cool that I didn't really mind.

Check this out, the stage is actually IN the water...

So Paramore opened the show, which added to my nostalgic adolescent trip. And the Gwen and the boys did their thing. It was fun. Of course I had forgotten how many great songs No Doubt has. They have been really quite successful over the years.

What I really fell in love with, though, was the venue.

Concert + Beach = Awesome