Our Trip to Coney Island

Listening to: Stereophonics - Maybe Tomorrow (Acoustic)

Today we ventured down to Coney island on a very long subway ride, it took an hour and a half on the D line to get down there. It was a really sunny and warm day so it was perfect to go to the beach...except I'd hardly call Coney Island an acceptable beach. It was swarming with crazy carnies and really shady people. That didn't stop beach goers from lounging out in the sand though. It made me miss the wonderful southern California beaches that actually have WAVES! Coney island looked like a giant stagnant lake...:-



Nonetheless, Michelle and I chomped down some tasty Nathan's hot dogs from the original location (they are the ones that do the hot dog eating contest every year on July 4th). We also made a trip up the boardwalk and went on the wonder wheel (it's a ferris wheel with swinging cars). We had a good time but it was relatively short since Michelle was feeling well and it was also bloody hot.



Tonight, for Michelle's last meal in New York we went down to the West Village and splurged on Bleeker St. Pizza...SO GOOD! I love that place!!!

Blackberried

Listening to: Alpha Rev - Wedding Day

Things are going okay today. This is the first time I am making an update from my blackberry which is pretty cool.



Along those lines, I don't think I've mentioned that I've been given a blackberry at work. Its actually quite a privilege since not everyone has one yet. It does add responsibility to my plate because I can access my email anywhere at anytime but its also a great organizational and time management tool.



I do find myself checking my email a lot more often at off hours so there is that downside of always being connected to work but I now have a device that let's me capture thoughts and tasks the minute I think of them. It also synchronizes my outlook calendar, notes and contacts so I can view them anytime I am away from my desk. I can jot down some quick thoughts when I'm waiting for a meeting or on the subway. I can set reminders very easily, both for work and personal, because I have this nifty device on me at all times. I can check morning email on my way to work in the morning so I am prepared when I get into the office. Even though everyone so far has told me this has been a leash wrapped tight around their neck, I have experienced it as more of a "getting things done" tool because it really helps me write down and remember things.

Michelle is a college graduate!

Listening to: Travis - Battleships

Just got back from a weekend in Boston. It was great to get away from the city even though it was going to another city although Boston really doesn't have a big city feeling like New York. The weekend went well even though it rained most of the time and unfortunately the hardest right when Michelle's graduation class walked onto field. Everyone was wearing ponchos and dealing with the rain pouring down but they managed to get through it and successfully get their diplomas. Congrats to the Graduate!



Other things we did in no particular order:

- Ate at Bertucci's (I AM OBSESSED WITH THEIR BREAD!)

- Went on a duckboat tour around Boston which was a lot of fun. I always enjoy hearing about the history of the city and we also got to go on the Charles river and see the city from afar.

- Walked part of the freedom trail

- Walked through the public garden

- Ate at Cheers

- Ate at Ruth's Chris (YUUUMMMMMMMM!)

- Ate at Mr. Bartley's!

- Stayed at Michelle's friends apartment (Thanks Joe!)

- Got drinks at Sunset Cantina



I'm sure I'm forgetting something but that's all I can think of now.



There's lot of new music out that I've been listening to including the new Travis album, the national, white rabbits, Elliott smith and maroon 5. I'm still waiting for Travis to announce tour dates and for the Stereophonics to come back to the US! I missed them the last time because I didn't know that many of their songs but now I realize how good they are and desperately want to see them live.



The temperature is starting to rise up and up although it's been quite nice the last couple of days. BUT, it's supposed to hit 90 by the end of the week which spurs plans for a rapid movement towards the west coast and to the beach! I'm not looking forward to a full summer of sweaty subways and blistering humidity...grumble grumble. It would be so nice if it could stay 72 all year round which I have decided is the perfect temperature for Gabe.



I've decided to renew my lease which wasn't too hard of a decision because of the costs and absolute hell and horror stories I've heard the moving process is in NY. I want to avoid it at all costs and stay here in my nice apartment another year. Unfortunately that means forking over a rent increase which really sucks because I really don't have a lot of income left over every month. Ya gotta do what ya gotta do though and this place is far too nice to give up. I'll sacrifice going out a few times a month for staying in a nice place in a very nice location. I have a feeling by this time next year I will be preparing to move though...but we'll see when the time comes.



I've been yelping a lot lately on http://www.yelp.com which is a site for reviewing restaurants (among other things) around the city. There are a lot of people that review places and I like to provide my own food critique as well as look for new places for Michelle and I as well as GSEEC to try out (gseec is GS Exploratory Eating Council which I am co-founded with two other exploratory eaters). That's one thing that NY has an abundance of: restaurants! There are so many to try and lately I've been very adventurous with my eating. One of my new favorites is Bleecker St Pizza which I first discovered with Michelle and then shortly thereafter took my Mom when she visited. The pizza is so craveable that I think about it whenever pizza pops in my mind. Other pizza places just don't seem appetizing anymore because all I want is Bleecker...sounds like of like crack to me. Haha! Anyways, you can check out some of my reviews if you'd like and also take a look at the places I've been recently: Yelp - Gabe F's Reviews.

New York Springtime with Mom

Listening to: New Travis Album

We've had a great weekend so far and it felt so good to take Friday off; I really needed that. My mom came into town on Thursday night and after a chaotic, latenight trip back on the subway we finally made it to my apartment. We got the trip off to a good start by eating mcdonalds sundaes as a midnight snack. Hey, it was the only thing open and I blame Michelle for getting me hooked on them!



Friday we started early and still had to endure an hour and a half wait for the Ellis Island/Liberty Island ferry. We had a nice boat ride although there were 798 other people besides us on it. Once we arrived at the island we had a very nice visit and learned a lot about the immigrants who came over. Over six million of them passed through the gates of Ellis Island...phenomenal. We tried to find my great, grand mother, Signe Johansson, but couldn't tell if the one we found was her or not. We're going to do some more investigating on the Ellis Island website.



After we returned to the city, we walked through downtown and over the Brooklyn bridge to one of my favorite spots in the city. We ate at Grimaldi's (DELICIOUS!) and my mom was so impressed with our olive, onion and sausage pizza! That's because it's absolutely divine. Mmmmmm, I can taste it now! We polished off the meal with a trip to the Brooklyn Ice Cream Factory only a minute away.



Later that night we went for a nice walk in central park when we took many pictures of the spring flowers and green trees. My mom loved being out in a place that bloomed so vibrantly. I took her to the Great Burrito for dinner, which she loved (it's definitely the verde sauce that's the key) and yolato for dessert. All in all, it was a great day!



Today we made our way up through the top of Manhattan to the Bronx. We visited the New York Botanical Garden and had a absolutely amazing time. The flowers are so gorgeous and the grounds are very well kept there. My favorites were the cherry blossoms and my mom found Lilac's which turned out to be her favorite. They do smell quite good, I'll give her that.



Now we're resting up before hitting up a new Italian place on the UWS and getting a new pot for my kitchen.



Spring Time Photos! Check the rest out on my flickr page