A Hated Monday Morning

I don't particularly hate Mondays like most of the working population but this morning there were a few things that caused me to be less than perky and borderline ticked of.....I got up this morning and saw that I had overslept slightly again, no big surprise but I knew I could pull it together fairly quickly because I already knew what I was going to put on since I put it together in my head last night. I did my thing in the lavatory and headed to put my outfit on.....but something about the real version of the outfit wasn't sitting well..maybe it was because the skirt was a bit short and after being reprimanded by the powers that be, I was a little gun shy. No it was that I didn't like the way it looked with my top tucked in and since the skirt has ruffles all over it I couldn't leave it out. I sucked it up after swapping the skirt for a pair of red cigarette pants that were wrinkled and then back to the skirt. I figured if I didn't feel that comfortable I would just grab a skirt from H&M or somewhere.

I caught the train downtown and while waiting for the bus noticed there was a Daffy's across the street. Since there was no bus in sight I ran across only to find that they didn't open until 9 am....oh well, no big deal back to the bus stop. Since I had about 5 minutes left to get to the office I was happy to see the bus roll up....now of course this story would be complete without the mild irritation that the bus driver missed my stop and went two blocks to the next stop (me and several people were confused as to why he didn't stop as requested). I got to my office and knowing that I didn't have anything to make coffee with I figured I would run to Starbucks and grab some but I would wait until about 10 am when I knew the clothing stores would be open for me to get another skirt option. I headed out shortly after 10 am only to go to H &M which apparently switched all of their stock to dresses and tops only and left two ugly mini skirts for me to choose..PASS! I went across to the Gap where I was sure to find something only to notice that they didn't have a work wear section...how could this be you're the gap you have to have a work wear section...and why the heck is the men's department on the first floor??? Whatever, I took my growing annoyance to New York and Co. surely they could help me...they couldn't neither could Barami or any other establishment.....OK fine! It was getting hotter by the second so I figured let me pop in to grab my coffee and get back to the office......why oh why.

I went to Starbucks, stood in the line, placed my order, gave the man my debit card and he informs me that its wait for it.....been declined! I said what? He ran it again and the same thing happened, he of course asks for another card which also gets declined................................................................................... *sigh* you must be joking right? He apologizes...yes because you're the one looking like a fool trying to make an $8 purchase. I pulled out a $10 bill to assure it would be accepted as legal tender. I get my purchase and high tail it out of there, why??? because its embarrassing and no one else in line ever thinks 'oh it must be something wrong with the card' no we are all immediately cynical to think 'this chick cant even afford a coffee...boooo!' As I waled back to my office I knew I was going to pass by my bank so I went in to get to the bottom of this zen riddle. What's wrong with my card. The teller tells me that they cancelled my card over the weekend because of possible fraud so I had to verify my purchases..they were all mine but it was my $190 Target purchase that made them say this card is stolen. They fixed it as I wondered why no one from Chase bothered to call me to tell me that my card was flagged. Finally I got back to my desk without being missed and considering transferring all of my funds over to my bank of America account....all this before 11 am is a bit annoying but that's life.

Brooklyn BBQ! Everyone Was Invited!

The annual Brooklyn BBQ that is famously held in prospect park was this past weekend. I wasn't planning on attending but since I had been hit up my several of my girls about going I succumbed to peer pressure and the rumblings of my stomach and went. The scene was of course something that looked like a recreation of the million man march. When I got to the park and started following the paths to the main site' I noticed there was no branding on this end of the park. As a matter of fact there wasn't anything that stated who, what or why this was going on! I'm sure if tourist were in the park they would be confused and a little scared by what they saw. Since I'm not that much of a novice, here is some background on the MIH Heatwave event.

Moving back to the actual scene that was complete with no music, tents, announcements or from what I could see free BBQ. There were people and terrible outfit choices around every windy path. Some of the worst offenders were dudes standing in groups of 6 with no shirts on staring chicks down (this isn't as hot as you think it is)....a very rotund and bottom heavy girl with chocolate brown sparkly leggings on and a white tank top with the beyonce lacefront to match...a girl who was apparently so confident she didn't need any clothes and wore a bathing suit not to be outdone by dudes with timbs, socks, shorts and extra gold chains but not teeth in their mouths...I tell ya sometimes I cry for my people.

Outside of this "unsavoryness" I had an ok time, despite the fact that I was sober the whole time I did have some familiar faces, food and a few laughs to make the evening enjoyable.

Shots and the Single Girl

What can I say being a single girl in a metropolitan area there are several opportunities to go out with my girlfriends and have a good time. I did just that last weekend and wound up schmoozing and giggling at 48 Lounge. A large group of us was treated to VIP service and boy did we partake. We ordered drinks and everyone wanted to try the rum jungle that I pointed out on the menu. This led to several more rounds of this triple filled rum concoction. The food we order was delicious especially the pesto pizza however, the fillet mignon slider left things a little bland. It was great but it was terrible either just ehh.

Continuing through all of the plates we got we notice that the male to female ratio was skewed. Excluding the married couple and the several others that had S/O's already I noticed there were 4 of us unattached. Seeing as how this could put a damper on conversation we decided to call some friends to come join. Of course this happened to be the evening that everyone was working, busy and taking a mooching night off...did I mention that it was free?! Eventually one of my friends had her boy toy roll through with his friends...well let's just say that even men tend to travel with a ring leader that's hot and two backup dancers that aren't....sigh. Anyway we still chatted and drank and things were fine until the lull in the conversation came. This is when I noticed when looking around and realized everyone is paired up except for me and my female co-worker. How fun. This is also the time where you wonder why the hell you are single when you could be getting tipsy with the one you love. It is all about one night stands and guy after guy (BTW who the hell does this anymore and who has the time no less). This only makes me even more eagar to partake in the 4 rounds of double shots that we ordered....not only will that loosen you up right again but it also make you focus really hard on not walking drunk when you its time to go home and you're taking the train in 5in. heels.....one day my big and extremely tall price will carry me home or at least escort me home and have a few laughs with me on the way....yeah that sounds pretty ok with me.

Never Buy A Random Rosetta Stone

 I decided to purchase a Rosetta Stone so I could speak the language of my lover and his countrymen. I hopped online and found one that was discounted for the low low price of $139 (Red Flag #1). I jumped on it because I figured it was only a limited time and I needed to get to learning ahora! After I made my purchase through paypal (Red Flag #2) I got my receipt and commenced to waiting eagerly for it to arrive. My email confirmation said it would take about a week for it to come, which when I spotted where it was shipping from made a while lot of sense, China (Red Flag #3).

The package arrived at my desk and from the packaging...or repackaging i should say since it had to be opened in customs, I knew this was going to be a wayward situation (Red Flag #4). I loaded the application disk and it opened the program right up, however when it asked me for the registration key code I didn't have one. In fact, there was no paperwork in the entire box except for a packing slip that was completely in Chinese (Red Flag #5). Nonetheless, I could use the program so I began and it was going along fine until I approached lesson two and found that the rest of the program was locked!! (Call the fire department!) I emailed the company that had sent me all of the information and the lady told me it should be unlocked already I assured her that it wasn't and she told me to send it back for a replacement. I also alerted her that the audio disk that I'm supposed to continue to learn with were not Spanish (Spain) but Spanish (Latin America)...how the hell am I supposed to use those!! Yes, I know they are both Spanish but this is like getting an English book with Ebonics disks to practice.

I returned the pack which cost a pretty penny only to get notification from UPS that the company/person I was mailing to moved and the place didn't exist!! Are you kidding me????? She also said that there was a previous attempt to return the package but they refused it because they didn't want to pay the charges. I fired up my email and sent the company a nasty email which, of course, garnered no response. I finally called UPS and asked them to have the package returned to me a vowed never to purchase anything else online that was coming from China.

In case you are wondering I did wind up getting a real live version of Rosetta Stone that works completely and I am happy to report I am at least 30 words smarter in Spanish that before...hopefully I won't speak Spanglish for much longer.

Foodie Files: The Primeburger

Lunch stop for today is The Primeburger. I was in the mood for something all american and since I'm not into all american men I figured a burger was the next best thing. Primeburger serves up classic american dishes with big taste.

I chose the primegurger with bacon and cheddar cheese, well done and a ceaser salad to balance out the meaty goodness. Let me say that either I was so ravenous I could eat a buffalo or this was a really good burger! To save face I'm going to go with the laddar. I have to say that the burger was quite tasty but I was a little surprised at its size. It was a standard sized burger but of course being in New York you always expect the protions to be obese. I enjoyed my burger to the fullest! The ceaser salad was standard but they didn't overload it with dressing so I was pelase with that.

I recommend The Primeburger for some fine burger fare...there slogan is a burger is a burger, ours is prime and I must say I agree with them! Check it out for Met aprooved goodness!

                          The Primeburger ~ 5 E. 51st Street (bet. Madison and 5th)

Lamented Laundromat

Taking your clothes to the local laundromat is something that most every New York must do on a weekly, bi-weekly or in my case monthly basis. Since I have recently moved to a new neighborhood I decided to stroll down to my local wash and fold to wash by bedding. I have just received my portable air conditioner and I thought it would be nice to celebrate by having clean sheets for that hotel feel.

The wash went fine it was when I decided to dry my bedding that this got a little sparky. I put my coins in the machine throw my stuff in and took off back to my apartment to wait out the hour I had set the timer to. Upon returning to the dryer I open the door to find that my sheets and comforter are giving off a singed burnt smell, immediately I thought it was the dryer but oh no it wasn't! It was my bedding! I removed all of my pieces only to see as each came out of the dryer that they were discolored, singed and crunchy. The piece de resistance was when I pulled my comforter out and noticed that half of it had melted away! Oh yes, ladies and gentleman, the dryer torched my comforter leaving it crunchy, brown and stiff.

I went to find the attendant on duty who told me that I needed to use a ball to dry it....what? A ball??? She said that you have to put tennis balls in the dryer so that blankets wont stick to the sides of the dryer and catch on fire. Well that's nice to know now that its happened...she pointed to a yellow sign on the wall that stated this. I have never had to use tennis balls to try a comforter before so how the hell was I supposed to know! Needless to say I left the laundromat blanketless with the rest of my charred bed linen balled up in my travel bag. The only thing left to make this disappointment any worse was as I was crossing the street from the place a car came with in inches of hitting me. The driver had to be going about 30 turning the corner but luckily his eye cleared enough to see an extra tall woman crossing the street in the crosswalk. I gotta tell ya these laundry trips can be brutal! I think from now on I will have to do a pickup/drop off service.

The Boss Is Off Duty: George Steinbrenner 1930 - 2010

This morning Yankees owner George Steinbrenner passed away from a massive heart attack at the age of 80. Steinbrenner has been the legendary and outspoken owner of the New York Yankees for over 30 years. When Steinbrenner purchased the team in 1973 it only cost him $10 million, today the NY Yankees are the wealthiest sports team in history with an estimate worth of over $1 billion.During his tenure the team has won 11 pennets and 7 world series.


Steinbrenner's family released the following statement shortly after his passing this morning

“It is with profound sadness that the family of George M. Steinbrenner III announces his passing," a statement from his family said. "“He was an incredible and charitable man. First and foremost he was devoted to his entire family – his beloved wife, Joan; his sisters, Susan Norpell and Judy Kamm, his children, Hank, Jennifer, Jessica and Hal; and all of his grandchildren.

 Just two days ago on July 11th, Yankees announcer Bob Sheppard, passed away at the age of 99. He was known as "the voice of God".

                      George Steinbrenner ~ July 4th 1930 - July 13, 2010

So Long Lebron!

After an antagonizing and quite over the top one hour special we all finally can stop speculating, placing bets, and throwing everything on our mama because Lebron "King" James is moving to South Beach! Does this come as a surprise that he isn't going to be coming to the concrete jungle? Not really. The Knicks haven't been playing well and really haven't done well for awhile now so it would be somewhat of a long shot for him to come to NY and single handily lead us to a championship. This same thinking is why people are wrongly upset with President Obama. You can't send one man to clean up a mess and lead you to victory if it took many people to mess it up in the first place.

Are New Yorkers as mad as Clevelanders?? Hell no. Though many are disappointed, we are not taking to the streets burning memorabilia and writing hurtful open letters to the man for making a simple business decision. James wants to win and we can't fault him for going to a city that will make it likely to do that.

Is Jay Z pissed? Possibly but at the end of the day the Jiggaman know business is business and friendship is something else...hey just ask Bey.

Now that the trinity has joined the Heat can they bring it home? This one is anybody guess but I'm sure the Heat games are selling out as we speak! If it comes down to the Heat vs. The Lakers then that will be classic basketball fun.. The number 1,2 and 3 players playing in a final...we so want to see that!

Met or Miss: Mint Cars

I found myself in a bit of a sticky wicket the other day when I wasn't able to just go hop in my car and drive and run a few errands around the city. The old adage is true you don't miss what you had until its gone...in this case it would be  my car (pours out a little valvoline for her while she's in the hospital).  I decided to get try out one of the rent by the hour places int he city. Instead of going with the crowd and joining up with Zipcar I decided to venture over to Mint Cars. The reason for my decision was simple...I got an offer in my inbox for mint cars that allowed my membership fee to be wavied and for me to receive a $75 credit...how could i resist!

I made my reservation online and got ready to pick up my car fromt he garage. When I arrived my car was waiting for me and the attendednt presented me with the keys immediately. I tapped my mint card to activate my reservtion and was on my way. I must say that the car was in wonderfuly condition, very clean and no damage or smell could be detected. Another plus for Mint Cars is that they pay for the gas and insurance is included with every reservation. I'm not familiar with any other car rental place but I know what works and this works! All you have to do is call them up about 30 minutes before you come in to pick up your choice of car and you're all set. Mint offers you a good selection of cars such as Altimas, Scions, Rouges and of course Mercedes.

For me Mint Cars is truly Metropolitain because they can pretty much accomodate your lifestyle at a few moments notice and the best part of all is that they have cars available for as low as $5 an hour! Just a note to new mint drivers..you have to tap your mint kep to the activation tab everytime you want to restart the car...I learned this the hard way and had to call the company a few times.  Enjoy your ride and the city Metties!!

                                       Mint Cars~ http://www.drivemint.com/ 

Met or Miss: Hamlet's Vintage

I was asked to be a part of a short video shoot for one of my great friends and one of the locations we hit was Hamlet's Vintage. I am a lover of many thing vintage especially furniture and good choice accessory pieces from the past. Upon entering this lovely little hamlet I noticed that they have a wide selection of items to offer. From lingerie that would make Alexis Carrington slap someone to silk scarves that Nicole Richie would rock on a daily basis, Hamlet's has it all. The dresses and tee collection caught my eye immediately. The dress section has pieces that say 'I'm in charge of this meeting' to 'hello my husband is the CEO welcome to our garden party'. I loved it all, especially the belt selection of butterfly hooks and wrap arounds that would since a waist to make Pat Field say yeeeessss to.

I think Hamlet's Vintage is a definite Metropolitan Approved locale. It's a quaint shop but what you could come out with could speak volumes on the streets of NYC! Stop by, check it out and get Met Made

                Hamlet's Vintage ~ 162 Bleecker Street, New York, NY 10012

Fashion Files: Custo Barcelona

This show gave me everything and more! As I sat at the show and watch the kamakazi of color and texture zoom down the runway I was ignited from within with a new fashion flame. The vibrance of color meets texture made you want to reach out and touch each piece to see how it felt against skin.
 Some of my favorite pieces were the metal meets fur pieces that garnerd the runway. There was a sense of humor I felt to this collection but with a serious we are not here to play around tone. It was forward, it was spanish it was Madrid it was exactly what will be seen in Soho come fall.

I give this collection and A, though it will not be of interest to everyone it was refresshing and went agains the grain of simplistic. There was shape, feeling and spark invested in the line, and thats always appreciated.


*due to this post being so far behind the show I can't comment on it in totality.

Alexander the Great!

Today Alexander McQueen's flame was extinguished when he took his own life this morning. The shocking announcement comes in the midst of New York Fashion Week and just days before London is to kick off its leg.

Lee, as he was know by his friends, was a visionary in the fashion world. He not only too the path that no one else was taking he created and built it along the way. His mind and iconic style were ahead of the curve in so many ways and for him to be so young and come out as a powerhouse spoke volumes not only to his talent but to life. He was discovered by Isabella Blow, who would become his closest friend, and rose to be one of the most sought after designers in the world.

Though we will never fully understand what he truly went through and the demons that he faced we know that he has left and indelible imprint on the fashion industry and the world. I think that this goes to show many of us that are chasing the brass ring that even though you may want it badly, happiness may not be just on the other side of it.