There is a first time for everything

So let me just start off by saying that contrary to what some of you may believe, I’m not that outgoing. I may seem like the outgoing type when I’m around my family and friends or anyone that I know, but when it comes to strangers, I’m actually pretty shy. This being said, last Friday night I did something for the first time that I never really thought I would do. I went out by myself. Now, I of course have done things alone since I’ve been here, but not actually “go out” as in bar hopping. Every Friday night I usually go to Happy Hour with my Tio and friends, but this particular Friday was different. My Tio was exhausted from working all day and didn’t really feel like going out so I took that opportunity to try something new. I could have still went to HH with all the “regulars” (My Tio’s friends, who are now my friends too), but I decided to google a few local bars near Stuy Town and try them out for three reasons: 1) I felt like just walking and exploring the night life near the apartment. 2) The LES (lower east side) is a hip, trendy area where the young crowd hangs out so I figured I could meet some fun people my age and 3) I was sort of in the mood to “step out of my box.” I don’t know why, but I just felt like testing my limits and getting outside my comfort zone. Well, that was my initial attitude anyway. As I was listening to music and getting ready, I kind of got nervous. I was starting to rethink going out to a bar on a Friday night in NYC by myself! When I put it like that to myself and said it out loud to my best friend Val (I called her for support, lol) it seemed a bit weird, maybe even crazy! Was I really about to get all dolled up just to go out by myself? That’s something I have never done before, and the fact that I was doing it here in New York just made it that much more intimidating. Inevitably, the answer was YES, and when the time came to actually leave the apartment, I almost didn’t go. I just kept thinking, what am I supposed to do, go to a bar, order a beer, and then what? What if no one came up to talk to me? How awkward would I feel sitting by myself? I came up with all sorts of questions/scenarios, so to calm my nerves I drank a glass of wine before heading out the door. I know it seems silly to get all worked up and nervous about it, but how many of you can say that you have went out on a Friday or Saturday night by yourself, and not to meet up with someone or to meet a group of friends? I bet not many of you can say that!

Anyhow, to make a long story really short (yeah right, this is ME we’re talking about, lol) it ended up being a good night, interesting and odd, but good! There are SO many bars within a couple of blocks of Stuy Town so I just hopped from one to the next meeting some nice people along the way. I ended up spending the majority of my time in 2 locations, Common Ground and BOA (Bar on Ave A). Common Ground was a really relaxed place with lots of lounge areas and tables to just kick back and hang out, nothing too crazy. I sat at the bar and watched some NBA basketball until a group of girls about my age came and sat down next to me. We began chatting and about an hour later, I felt like I knew a lot about them, lol, you know how girls are! The other bar, BOA, was super fun! Every Friday is either 80s or 90s night and when I was there it was the best of the 90s. When I first arrived, I met a group of girls who were visiting the city for Spring Break and they were so fun! Needless to say, I sang and danced to Salt N Peppa, TLC, Will Smith, etc. until about 3:30 in the morning! A few odd things happened, I won’t go into detail, but overall, it was a good night and a great experience! Now, was it so good that I’ll do it all the time, absolutely not, lol. How many people really want to go out all by themselves all the time!? I am glad I did it as it was a good experience, but some “firsts” are not necessarily supposed to be more than just that, a first (and possibly never again, who knows?) I do have to admit, I’m pretty proud of myself for doing something I wasn’t necessarily comfortable doing. I think everyone should do that from time to time!

Speaking of “firsts” Saturday night was the first time I ate Puerto Rican cuisine. A couple of weeks ago when I went to Brooklyn (I blogged about this) I met a friend of my Tio’s named Carlos who is Puerto Rican. Somehow we got on the topic of food and I mentioned I had never had anything authentically Puerto Rican. He couldn’t believe it and so we planned a Saturday night dinner in Tribeca at Sazón, New York’s Finest Puerto Rican Restaurant. And NO, that is NOT just an advertisement (that’s what their website says), it is TOTALLY true. I am obviously biased because I haven’t had any other PR food, but this was amazing! It wasn’t just the food, it was the whole package. Everything about Sazón was awesome: the atmosphere, the musicá latiná (just listen to the great rhythms on the homepage of the website), the service (very attractive latinos), the cocktails (coconut, pineapple, and banana flavored foofoo drinks made you feel like you were ready to hit the beach) and definitely the food. Let's just say you got what you paid for, and more, the portion sizes were HUGE! My Tio, Carlos and I made the mistake of ordering an appetizer sampler (we wanted to try a little bit of everything) and then each ordering a meal. By the time we ate the appetizer and had a few drinks we were full, and then our food came and you should see the size of these plates. No really, look. I posted pictures below!!

Appetizer Sampler

Pernil - Roast Pork with Pigeon Pea Rice and Sweet Plantains

It was insane how much food was on one plate. We each took a couple of bites and then had it bagged up to go.

Side Note: After leaving the restaurant, we all felt the need to do a little walking (we were stuffed) so we walked from Tribeca to SOHO which is only about 30 minutes, but when you’re in heels, it feels like a lifetime! At first it wasn’t so bad, but then I felt like I was walking on needles! I know they say pain is beauty, but no look is worth that kind of pain. When I got home I took off my heels and cursed the Italians (I bought them in Rome when I was studying abroad) as my Tio just laughed at what “us women” go through. I just want to take this moment to recognize all my sistas who rock heels, you are tough cookies! :)

I woke up on Sunday, feet still aching and all, and got ready to experience YES INDEED, another FIRST. My first NYC BBQ! Some friends of my Tio’s own an apartment with a garden in the back and heard the weather was supposed to reach 60 degrees so they decided to invite about 8 friends over for a good ol’ barbeque. We got ready (needless to say I wore flats!) and headed to Brooklyn for an afternoon in the sun. It was great conversation, great wine, and great food! Considering I’m a Kansas girl, I always appreciate good BBQ, only it made me wish I was with my family in the backyard grilling out…I MISS you guys! Eventually the sun went down and we left BK and headed back to the city for a birthday celebration. We were in high demand last weekend, lol! A friend of ours turned 29 so we joined her and others for dinner and drinks in Korea Town at a sushi bar called Ichi Umi. We were still full from lunch so we just had a few drinks and called it a night.

With such an eventful weekend, we were exhausted and spent Monday laying low. We made dinner, uncorked a bottle of wine, and watched a movie. I saw Garden State for the first time (are you starting to understand the title of this post yet!? LOL) and really enjoyed it. It’s a romantic drama that’s a bit different than the rest, which is precisely why I liked it!

On Tuesday I grabbed lunch at Chipotle (it’s like Starbucks, they are everywhere!) and then walked to Times Square just because. I have been to Times Square before when I visited NY on Spring Break my sophomore year of college so it wasn’t a first, but still noteworthy so I thought I’d include it in this week’s post! :) It was different this time though. Before, I went at night to see all the lights and take pictures and this time I went during the day to just walk around and hang out (although I did take some pics, see below). Currently, there is a pilot program going on in which the streets are actually blocked off and tables and chairs are in the middle of the street. Sounds weird, but it’s actually really cool. If traffic isn’t too terrible and the pilot program works out then they will create permanent seating in Times Square. I took advantage and grabbed a coffee and sat in the middle of TS for about an hour just enjoying the scenery and catching up with friends via phone calls.





I don’t know if it has to do with the fact that I was out and about with thousands of people yesterday (YES, TS is ALWAYS packed, tourists come all seasons of the year believe it or not), but I woke up today not feeling well with a stuffy nose and a sore throat! I took some cold medicine, made myself soup for lunch and am hoping it passes quickly not only because I don’t want to be sick, but because I start my job on Monday! I’m so excited and will most definitely post about how my first days go so stay tuned.

Closing thought: I hope you all enjoy reading this blog as much as I enjoy writing it! :)

A Month Already

Can you believe it has already been a whole month since I left Kansas City!? I know it’s totally cliché, but man, time flies! It seems as if just yesterday I was packing my bags and saying good bye. I honestly can’t believe a month has already gone by, especially because so much has happened in such a short period of time!

Everyone reading this blog who knows me at all knows that I love to write, I’m a Journalism graduate after all. This blog serves as a way to keep in touch yes, but it also allows me to “journal” my life, my thoughts, etc. With that said, I thought I’d document some of the things that have happened over the past 4 weeks.

I have been introduced to some really great people. My Tio has some awesome friends who I’ve had the privilege to get to know better. Every time we hang out, which is at least once a week, they are all so happy to see me and greet me with a hug and kiss. It seems minuscule, but it really means a lot to me considering they are my only “family” in this city. Most of them are quite a bit older than me, which is beneficial because they have experienced many more life lessons/NYC lessons and are always happy to share. However, since I’ve been here I’ve been hoping to meet some more people my age. Luckily, I did so last Saturday when hanging out in Brooklyn. After My Tio and I ate dinner with some friends, we all went out to a local bar with a younger crowd. A few numbers were exchanged and hopefully some friendships will develop. I’m also super excited to start my job because a lot of young and seemingly friendly people work at Patch, which is a great recipe for making friends.

Dinner & Margaritas at Arriba Arriba (A really GREAT Mexican Restaurant in NYC)

I really feel like this apartment is becoming part mine. For the first couple of weeks I felt like a guest, which is only natural because I was living out of a suitcase. After some time passed and the vacation feeling went away I became more comfortable living here, rather than visiting or just staying here. Once all of my things were organized and put away it became more real. It is starting to become routine to wake up, eat breakfast, get ready, etc. like it’s my own place. I know that sounds silly, but before it felt like I was just visiting and now when I do those little daily activities, I feel like I would in my own bedroom/bathroom in Kansas. Put simply, it’s starting to feel like home.

Contrary to popular belief, New Yorkers don’t always eat out or have food delivered (like you see in movies). I have cooked more since I’ve been here than ever before. We go out to eat about once a week and every other night we cook dinner. I actually am really starting to enjoy it. It’s kind of fun to plan dinners and try making different things. It’s sort of rewarding when we sit down to eat a delicious meal that we prepared ourselves. Now, don’t get me wrong, we don’t cook huge elaborate meals that take hours, just simple things, but it’s cooking nevertheless! Nightly dinners & glasses of wine are becoming one of my favorite things about living here!

I haven’t watched too much TV since I’ve been here, usually it’s movies, with the exception of the Bachelor.

Tangent: I was addicted all season, sad, but true! Although after another disappointment in the last person standing, I might remove the nonsense from my life because I get really pissed off. I don’t know why, it’s not like it directly affects my life. Oh, ok, who am I kidding? We all know I will be in front of the TV when next season starts in May. It is crazy women like me that keep the show’s ratings up and the show on the air. Sorry!

I do try to catch KU games when I can. I have been pretty successful considering KU has maintained a high ranking all season and games are broadcast on ESPN, however, there have been a few that are not aired in NYC and it’s really upsetting to not be able to cheer on my Jayhawks. On a good note, they obviously don’t need me to cheer them on as they do just fine without me. Actually, WAY more than fine, they ROCK! Big 12 Champs AGAIN, whoop whoop! I’m so proud. I can’t wait for the tournament…National Champions anyone!?

There have been two big snow storms since I’ve been in the city and two official snow days in which schools and some businesses closed. (First time in years NYC has had two snow days in one winter season!) During the first snow storm we didn’t really get out because it was cold and wet, but this last snow storm we decided to take advantage of Mother Nature. We bundled up Perkins and Elvis and took them for a walk/trudge in the snow. P loves it, E not so much. We both took some really great pictures of the snow, it was really pretty! By last Sunday most of the snow had been plowed or had melted and we headed to Central Park! I was super excited because before I moved here I had visited 3 different times and did all the touristy things except for CP. My Tio told me that we would need lots of energy to take a stroll through Central Park so he made us a nice big breakfast (eggs, ham, fruit, and croissants, it was delicious!) and boy was he right! I knew CP was big, but I didn’t realize just how huge. We entered the park right in front of the Plaza Hotel from Home Alone, which is actually luxury condos now, and walked for a couple of hours before stopping at The Boathouse for lunch. The Boathouse is a well-known restaurant in CP and is in a lot of movies like When Harry Met Sally. I thoroughly enjoyed walking through the park and seeing “famous” spots. The whole time I kept saying, “Oh, that’s the fountain from Hitch.” “Oh, that’s from Home Alone.” “Oh, that’s from One Fine Day.” After walking about ¼ of the park, we decided to call it a day. BTW-That’s an indication of just how big CP is, we walked for a couple of hours and didn’t even get through half of it. I was exhausted, but it was a great Sunday!

Central Park's famous Bethesda Fountain

Great view of the city from CP

Alright, this post is getting a little lengthy; I think it’s about time to wrap it up! I’ll leave you with one final “story.” I went to get my hair cut on Thursday at a Salon on the Lower East Side (the “cool” people call it The L-E-S) and afterward I was walking, shopping, exploring, etc. and I sort of paused for a moment and thought, “Is this really my life right now!?” I smiled and continued walking thinking, “Absolutely it is, and I love it!!”

Side Note: Haircuts in NYC are ridiculously expensive, like $75 on up for JUST a haircut! I spent over an hour researching salons in the area before I found one that was affordable. The stylist was fantastic, she washed, cut, and blow dried my hair straight all in an hour!

1st NYC haircut a success! (Yes, I know...I look my sisters, or so I've been told!!!)