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In trying to come up with a topic for todays blog I came across this video for the redesign of the High Line.
On June 8, 2009 the High Line officially opened the first section to the public. I think a field trip is in order. Who’s with me?
I love it when one random thought leads me down the path of discovering something new and cool.
Normally when I head to JFK airport I take a cab. But in an attempt to save money / go green I decided to take public transportation.
Step 1: The New York City subway – E train
Step 2: JFK monorail to JetBlue terminal.
Step 3: Board nonstop flight to Orlando
Step 4: Jumped on a Disney Express Bus to hotel.
Talk about crazy. I kind of regret not working a boat, hovercraft or submarine into the mix.
It was our last day together before Mihoko had to head back to San Francisco. We got up early and had brunch at Penelope, wandered NYC, took in My Bloody Valentine 3-D (review below) and had dinner at Caffe Falai.
I have a list of reasons why this film is awful but to write them down would be a waste of time considering I already sacrificed two hours sitting through this train wreck. So, you will have to forgive me for just summing it up with, the 3-d was amazing but the movie itself highlights the need for Surgeon General warning stickers on movie posters.
Embarrassed doesn’t even begin to describe how I feel. The party started at 9 but got shut down at 1 a.m. by my landlord. Everyone was really kind and comforted me but I still couldn’t help but feel like a kid living with his parents.
Normally I would have ignored his complaints but my living situation (rent and location) is great and I don’t want to mess with it. Funny what we are willing to put up with in order to keep a great apartment. Only in New York.
All summer Pab has wanted to hit the roof top bar at the Empire Hotel and tonight we finally got around to it. The view was amazing and the talent top notch but I got the impression these women were looking to pick up wealthy men.
I am starting to get a bit tired of the pretentiousness and feeling of entitlement NYC women carry around.
She was already getting “sarged” by the bartender when I arrived and it only reinforced my initial impression, she was hot! Normally a guy would have good reason to get upset or even unnerved by the bartender’s audacity but if you date in NYC you know it comes with the territory.
In my experience whenever you encounter this sort of behavior it can only be attributed to:
When you find yourself in this situation you need to be ready to deal with two types of pick up styles:
The Aggressive Approach
Commonly seen in the animal kingdom, parts of New Jersey and the financial district. Most of us have encountered or seen this approach in high school. The head quarterback dunks you in the trash in front of the girl of your dreams.
Or
The Subtle / Smooth Approach
This approach requires a high level of skill, experience and patience. Unlike the above approach, it is rarely seen unless your watching a movie based on James Bond or it features George Clooney (Out of Sight, Oceans Eleven, etc.)
Now there is a bit of a footnote attached to the subtle / smooth approach. Some people are born with the natural ability to charm you with their looks, gift of gab or both. I like to refer to them as “naturals.”
To my chagrin I was dealing with a “natural,” he was tall, handsome and extremely charming. Normally in this situation a man’s gut reaction is to get aggressive and try to alpha male but I’ve found this to be counter productive.
Tangent Time
A while back I almost got into a fight with this guy on line waiting to get some food. It got really heated and knew he just wanted to start a fight. Here I was, minding my business (and hungry tummy) when this guy begins to start shit. I felt the tension growing and knew I had to diffuse the situation before it got out of hand.
All I had to do was take the fight out of him by giving him nowhere to go.
In theory what I did, by accident of course, was take the wind out of his sails. This same logic is perfect when dealing with the subtle approach. I didn’t get mad that this bartender wanted my girl in fact I wanted him to stick around. My plan was simple, ride his coattails and exploit the situation any chance I got.
We would listen to his stories and I would relate them back to me when appropriate. Making me the center of attention.
When we laughed at his jokes I took that opportunity to comment on her cute laugh. It was the equivalent of beating him to the punch line.
When it was time for dinner I suggested sitting at the bar. It was a trendy thing to do and it forced him to serve us. He was no longer a bartender, he was now a lowly waiter / busboy.
When she need a suggestion on what to order I let him make a suggestion and then mentioned I worked at Zagat Survey. It rendered his opinion null and void.
When she asked what he “really” did for a living he answered, “I’ll tell you next time I see you.” It was a clever way to mask the lack of a real job and a great way to be mysterious. It might have worked had I not been there but with a smug little smile I replied, “starving artist or out of work actor?”
We hit a bar after dinner and had a great time in the back room of Vig.
I woke up feeling like crap. It might have been the run but for some reason I think it had more to do with the bug going around the office. Actually it seems to be going around NYC.
I didn’t think I would make it thru the day and when I did get home I just took some Airborne, bundled up and went to bed.
Below you will find a copy of my To Do List
As you can see this isn’t a long or difficult list of tasks yet oddly enough I was only able to accomplish half of these things. Why are only half these things crossed off? Am I lazy? NO!
I’ll tell you why, WORK, it always gets in the way. Imagine how productive we’d be if we didn’t have to work. We could easily get the stuff that matters to us done if we didn’t have to work. I understand if we didn’t work the machine would break down. Society would crumble beneath our feet, cats living with dogs, mass hysteria, blah, blah, blah. . . Just play along.
Perhaps the real issue isn’t work but instead the operating hours of business’s in New York or the United States for that matter. For the city that never sleeps businesses tend to close pretty early. Banks and post offices close around 3. Stores tend to close around 6 or 9.
Now I don’t know about all New Yorkers but I get the impression that most of us work late or have other things that need tending. Like picking up the kids and cooking dinner. By the time you get all that done it’s easily 8 or 9.
A while back I remember reading an article about cities that truly never sleep. In South Korea stores and restaurants stay open till 2 in the morning. In Spain and Argentina people take 3-hour breaks in the middle of the day (siesta) and then go back to work. Forcing them to have a late dinner.
Great, now I’ve lost total sight of my original intentions for this post. Talk about a tangent. Wait I got it, to do lists are bad because they are written proof of your inability to get shit done. For those of you that always cross of everything, eat a dick, I work for a living 
Paprika
Started watching Paprika but fell asleep since I was so tired. The animation style and creativity were amazing. The story on the other was a total rip off of Dreamscape but still interesting. I’ll try and polish it off before Friday.
Yesterday I wrote this blog about evil people being a necessary in helping us appreciate life more and boy oh boy does life have a sick sense of humor.
After writing the blog I went apartment hunting. I’ve been looking off and on for four months and to say it’s painful is putting it lightly. My realtor showed me two shit holes but the last one was as close to perfect as you are going to get in Sunnyside. Upon entering my eyes lit up and that was to be my undoing. As soon as she saw that glimmer in my eyes her fee of one month magically transformed to the bullshit standard of 15%. Needless to say I walked away apartment less and totally dejected.
Beaten, distraught and hungry I looked for comfort food to help me through this painful time. White Castle appeared magically and turned out to be a bad idea. I felt like a husband that takes his aggression out on his wife by beating her. Why did I ingest this “food” knowing full well that no good could come of it? I guess its true, you hurt the ones you love. Sorry tummy.
Restaurant week started today in NYC and I was lucky enough to get invited to dinner by a few friends. We went to Mercer Kitchen, another Jean George restaurant and had a really enjoyable meal. The food was good and the company even better. I especially enjoyed the butternut squash soup. I think it has a lot to do with it being one of the unhealthiest soups you can order.
After dinner we hit Bar 89 for drinks and a potty break. I know it sounds retarded but they have one of the coolest bathrooms in the city. As soon as you close the clear glass door and flip the latch it frosts over.
I wonder how many people have had “boom boom” in one of these stalls?
A Necessary Evil
Today I read a blog that surprised me with its pure unadulterated hate for all things living. After the read I went about my day but couldn’t help but think back on this blog. Then it hit me, people with so much hate are a necessary evil.
They are the cause of our low points in life and I argue, the high points as well. Sure they are the reason for so much stress and annoyance but without them to bring us down we wouldn’t appreciate the small simple things as much. People like this blogger add contrast and texture to our ordinary lives.
I would include a link to the blog mentioned above but I can’t recommend it.