.
Aaaah, New York City in January... when the grey city skyline is accentuated by the grey buildings, and the grey sidewalks and streets are streaked with the frozen grey water and the cars and building are covered in a grey film... and the people are all wearing black coats and dirty Ugg boots and there is no such thing as a good hair day because of the hats, scarves, and earmuffs... and any makeup is washed off by running sniffly noses and watery eyes caused by the winds whipping off the Hudson... not that makeup would matter anyway since scarves are wrapped up above the nose.
The huddled early morning commuters shuffle from subway exits down to the corner Starbucks, stand in line for overpriced coffees and then shuffle off to little offices... only to do the reverse shuffling trip later, not making eye contact, but simply concentrating on getting from point A to point B in minimal time with minimal exposure to the elements or other people.
The store windows are full of "still on sale!!" trying to get rid of the stock that didn't sell over the holidays and making room for clothing that anticipates spring too early, showing off scantily clad mannequins clad in flimsy fabrics that you can't wear for 5 more months unless you want frostbite in some rather sensitive places...
Yesterday, it snowed. And by snow, I mean...it snowed from about 3-6am, and then it sleeted, and then it rained. Which left a lovely mess of slippery, salty, sandy sidewalks all over NYC, with freezing cold puddles of muddy-grey water lapping at every crosswalk... one of which I ended up stepping into up to my ankle, filling my boot with a lovely mix of unidentifiable NYC washoff and making my sock so wet that I was accompanied by a very amusing squeaking-squashing sound with every step for the remainder of the day. I was literally laughing out loud walking down the street, since the alternative, really, was to cry.
(Why walk when there is a perfectly good subway system? Because delays on the subway were turning 20 minute commutes into 2 hour nightmares, so I figured walking was easier, if not more comfortable).
So in conclusion, it's time, ladies and gentlemen, for a vacation.
It's T-minus 23 days and counting to Costa Rica... a week of blue skies, bluer waters, diving, snorkeling, swimming, canopy riding, volcano-seeing, tropical bug-bitten days of bliss... where I can wake up *after* the sun rises for a change, and toss any offending alarm clocks off a bridge. There, a bathing suit, tshirt, flip flops and shorts are plenty to keep you "warm"... saving you a good 15 minutes of layering up with long johns, socks, boots, scarves, hats, gloves, coats, and sweaters before stepping outside...
Wanna come?
.
29 January 2009
20 January 2009
Do you wanna date me?
.
Okay, so here's the deal. In the interest of cutting through some of the flak that comes with dating, I've decided to be brutally honest... so if you wanna date me, here's the real deal:
First off, I don't drink that much alcohol. I just don't... it's not that I don't enjoy a cold beer with a good burger or pizza sometimes, or a nice glass of wine with an aromatic pasta with meat sauce, and yes, I even like getting buzzed and giggly sometimes on "real" drinks, too. But, I don't do it often and I dont' drink that much. I like fruit juices and seltzer - how about a tequila sunrise sans the tequila? This doesn't mean that I don't like you, or that I don't want you to drink, or that I'm super-religiously-holier-than-thou, or that I don't know how to still have a pretty decently good time. It just means that I don't drink that much alcohol.
Second, I play video games. Yea, I'm a geek, nerd, whatever, but they're fun. Usually I like single-player adventure games, like the Myst series. I don't like things that jump and me and explode blood and gore all over my screen. But I've recently become addicted to World of Warcraft. I'm not addicted like South-Park-episode-addicted (I do have a normal job, friends and go out with people), but I do enjoy it. And this also doesn't mean that I can't carry on conversations about normal things, nor do I weigh 2,000 pounds and only eat Doritos and go to computer game conventions dressed up in ridiculous costumes. No, I just play it...and enjoy it. I just see it as more engaging than TV, and more interactive.
Third, I like skiing, but I don't LOVE skiing. That seems to be a big one lately... that just because you're single, in your thirties, and live in NYC, you *must love skiing*. Well, I have to say, it's highly OK. I'm not bad at it, I'm not good at it, but honestly, I'd rather spend a weekend driving up to Maine to see the coastline scenery, or take a nice weekend trip to Montreal, or go to Boston to visit the aquarium and do historical tours. This doesn't mean I'm not athletic or interested in activities - let's go white water rafting in July or sea kayaking in Florida, or snorkeling in Belize... but if it's snowing outside, I'd rather curl up with a good book, a warm fireplace, and a big, poofy comforter than hurl myself down a frigid mountainside with 2 thousand other crazy people with sticks tied to my feet.
Fourth, I do geeky things. I cross-stitch (my mom taught me); I taught myself how to crochet and don't quite know what to do with all the scarves I've made. I read Discovery magazine, Newsweek comics, and National Geographic instead of Cosmo. I watch very little TV, but when I do, it's usually documentaries or British in origin, or sci fi stuff like BSG. I hate wearing makeup, but put on undereye concealer and lip gloss every day cuz I'm getting older. I don't like shopping for clothes, and absolutely hate buying shoes (and won't wear heels except on very special occasions.) I'd much prefer to save my money for a trip to Peru or the Galapagos, or Thailand, Vietnam, Cambodia, New Zealand, Eastern Europe, Norway, Russia or the Amazon. I don't need room service, but I do prefer a warm bed; I don't require hand-holding, but I do prefer company; I do like adventures, but I don't like feeling unsafe.
So there's the skinny... some of the things that "normal" dating scene girls may not admit to, but having just turned 36, it's time that people who want to get serious start accepting me for who I am... or moving on to someone else. If you're still interested, I'll have a cranberry, OJ and seltzer, please.
.
Okay, so here's the deal. In the interest of cutting through some of the flak that comes with dating, I've decided to be brutally honest... so if you wanna date me, here's the real deal:
First off, I don't drink that much alcohol. I just don't... it's not that I don't enjoy a cold beer with a good burger or pizza sometimes, or a nice glass of wine with an aromatic pasta with meat sauce, and yes, I even like getting buzzed and giggly sometimes on "real" drinks, too. But, I don't do it often and I dont' drink that much. I like fruit juices and seltzer - how about a tequila sunrise sans the tequila? This doesn't mean that I don't like you, or that I don't want you to drink, or that I'm super-religiously-holier-than-thou, or that I don't know how to still have a pretty decently good time. It just means that I don't drink that much alcohol.
Second, I play video games. Yea, I'm a geek, nerd, whatever, but they're fun. Usually I like single-player adventure games, like the Myst series. I don't like things that jump and me and explode blood and gore all over my screen. But I've recently become addicted to World of Warcraft. I'm not addicted like South-Park-episode-addicted (I do have a normal job, friends and go out with people), but I do enjoy it. And this also doesn't mean that I can't carry on conversations about normal things, nor do I weigh 2,000 pounds and only eat Doritos and go to computer game conventions dressed up in ridiculous costumes. No, I just play it...and enjoy it. I just see it as more engaging than TV, and more interactive.
Third, I like skiing, but I don't LOVE skiing. That seems to be a big one lately... that just because you're single, in your thirties, and live in NYC, you *must love skiing*. Well, I have to say, it's highly OK. I'm not bad at it, I'm not good at it, but honestly, I'd rather spend a weekend driving up to Maine to see the coastline scenery, or take a nice weekend trip to Montreal, or go to Boston to visit the aquarium and do historical tours. This doesn't mean I'm not athletic or interested in activities - let's go white water rafting in July or sea kayaking in Florida, or snorkeling in Belize... but if it's snowing outside, I'd rather curl up with a good book, a warm fireplace, and a big, poofy comforter than hurl myself down a frigid mountainside with 2 thousand other crazy people with sticks tied to my feet.
Fourth, I do geeky things. I cross-stitch (my mom taught me); I taught myself how to crochet and don't quite know what to do with all the scarves I've made. I read Discovery magazine, Newsweek comics, and National Geographic instead of Cosmo. I watch very little TV, but when I do, it's usually documentaries or British in origin, or sci fi stuff like BSG. I hate wearing makeup, but put on undereye concealer and lip gloss every day cuz I'm getting older. I don't like shopping for clothes, and absolutely hate buying shoes (and won't wear heels except on very special occasions.) I'd much prefer to save my money for a trip to Peru or the Galapagos, or Thailand, Vietnam, Cambodia, New Zealand, Eastern Europe, Norway, Russia or the Amazon. I don't need room service, but I do prefer a warm bed; I don't require hand-holding, but I do prefer company; I do like adventures, but I don't like feeling unsafe.
So there's the skinny... some of the things that "normal" dating scene girls may not admit to, but having just turned 36, it's time that people who want to get serious start accepting me for who I am... or moving on to someone else. If you're still interested, I'll have a cranberry, OJ and seltzer, please.
.
02 January 2009
BBC TV
.
Those of you that know me know that I don't watch a lot of tv. But for the last few days, as I've been hangin' out in the apartment and painting / writing / cleaning / chore-doing, I have kept the TV on in the background. For a while it was on the music stations, then on CNN, and now for some reason, I've gotten stuck on BBC America.
First off, the news reports are far more interesting. But really, the British comedy and reality shows crack me up. "You Are What You Eat" where a psychotic dietitian invades overweight people's lives and insults and chastizes them into eating healthy veggies. She's a little psycho, and seems to obsess over people's digestive systems on a little bit of a disturbing level. But she gets results and makes me want to eat more veggies.
"How Clean Is Your House" does three things: First, it makes me feel better about how clean my house is, and second, makes me want to clean up more, and third, makes me feel very proud about my teeth (c'mon Britain, I'm sure there are plenty of dentists out there... pay 'em a visit, really!) Basically, two stuffy ladies invade filthy dirty homes, insult the residents, kick them out, and clean up after them. It's fabulously disgusting and liberating, and yesterday it made me pour baking soda and lemon juice into my bathtub... it's much better than the stinky cleaning stuff they sell on shelves.
The comedies are funny - there was a "Coupling" marathon on last night - which is a kind of version of "Friends" but with much sexier accents...and less snooty attitudes. Then there's "Kitchen Nightmares" which features famed asshole chef Gordon Ramsey intruding into failing restaurants and insulting the owners/chefs/staff into straightening up their act and - in the end - saving the day.
I'm sure once work starts up again, I won't watch much tv any more. It's not one of my pseudo-resolutions...but it's been kind of amusing for the last few days.
.
Those of you that know me know that I don't watch a lot of tv. But for the last few days, as I've been hangin' out in the apartment and painting / writing / cleaning / chore-doing, I have kept the TV on in the background. For a while it was on the music stations, then on CNN, and now for some reason, I've gotten stuck on BBC America.
First off, the news reports are far more interesting. But really, the British comedy and reality shows crack me up. "You Are What You Eat" where a psychotic dietitian invades overweight people's lives and insults and chastizes them into eating healthy veggies. She's a little psycho, and seems to obsess over people's digestive systems on a little bit of a disturbing level. But she gets results and makes me want to eat more veggies.
"How Clean Is Your House" does three things: First, it makes me feel better about how clean my house is, and second, makes me want to clean up more, and third, makes me feel very proud about my teeth (c'mon Britain, I'm sure there are plenty of dentists out there... pay 'em a visit, really!) Basically, two stuffy ladies invade filthy dirty homes, insult the residents, kick them out, and clean up after them. It's fabulously disgusting and liberating, and yesterday it made me pour baking soda and lemon juice into my bathtub... it's much better than the stinky cleaning stuff they sell on shelves.
The comedies are funny - there was a "Coupling" marathon on last night - which is a kind of version of "Friends" but with much sexier accents...and less snooty attitudes. Then there's "Kitchen Nightmares" which features famed asshole chef Gordon Ramsey intruding into failing restaurants and insulting the owners/chefs/staff into straightening up their act and - in the end - saving the day.
I'm sure once work starts up again, I won't watch much tv any more. It's not one of my pseudo-resolutions...but it's been kind of amusing for the last few days.
.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
