Image courtesy of Boatbasincafe.com

I love (and now miss) summer in the city, so is it wrong to just want to enjoy some more summer activities as long as I possibly can??

I know – the temperatures are in the 60’s and we’re all just busy trying to figure out what the hell to wear in this in-between season, but after being in California (where it hovered around 90) I’m just not ready for summer to be over!

And because I’m not ready, and because it’s so damn beautiful out, I decided to hit the 79th Street Boat Basin tonight. Yes, I know it’s all the way on the Upper West Side, but it’s outside, it’s casual and it’s cheap – and not NEARLY as busy as it was during the summer months. Nice! Plus, the burgers are good.

Look, this perfect weather isn’t going to last forever. So head west, enjoy the somewhat fresh air, and watch the sun set before they close for the season. Or, I guess you can always try your luck over at 230 Fifth. To be honest, once was enough for me.

Do not follow outsourcing techniques as outlined in such a vulgar manner by New York Magazine this week.

This whole week while out on the streets of Queens & Manhattan I’ve encountered more bratty brats than ever before. I don’t know if it’s the change in weather or what but man, toddlers are freaking bratty.

Last Night – Duane Reade – Queens
Boy (whining): Mami, don’t make me put this book away.
Mom: Daniel, put it away right now!
Boy (whining): Fine, Papi will buy it for me

Boy goes down the aisle looks back and sticks his tongue out at his mother or flips the bird, I can’t remember which…

Mom: Daniel, que hiciste! (what are you doing)
Boy (whining, being a wise-ass): Which aisle should I put the book back in

Eventually the boy put the book back and the most ironic part about the whole thing was that the mom was working as a nurse (she had the scrubs on and what not) and they had just been to Friendly’s where it seems company policy dictates that anyone under 2 feet gets a balloon. That bastard did not deserve a balloon! Little punk bastard. But it seemed like his dad was the cause of his spoilage and ugliness. . . (for those who didn’t get it, I’m hinting at the mother being a MILF)…

Okay another one
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I have to admit, though some may consider me somewhat of a “foodie”–i.e. I love food, will eat just about anything, and often plan and travel specifically to do so–I simply do not eat from street food carts. Just can’t do it. The whole thing really turns me off.

I’m hardly a germophobe, but I guess when you get right down to it, I do have some sort of aesthetic attached to my appetite. I look at the general state of the dozens of carts, trucks, stands, etc. that I come across each day and, well, ew. No thanks. I’ll see you in an establishment with actual running water, thanks. And yes, I’m well aware of the fact that if I saw the kitchens of most of the restaurants I eat in, I probably wouldn’t want to eat in them anymore. But that argument simply doesn’t hold water with me. ‘Cause I don’t see them.

On top of that, each morning for the past 2+ years I’ve had the unfortunate need to walk through one of the “commissaries” mentioned in this article (where the carts are stocked and prepared each morning), and all I can say is… All I can say is… All I… I… I’m struggling to keep my breakfast down just thinking about it.

And let’s face it. In general, the food from most of these carts just isn’t all that good. Though in recent years, it’s true that a number of chefs and restaurants have kind of upped the ante: Otto, Daisy Mae’s, Hallo Berlin, ‘wichcraft… Not your typical street cart fare, for sure. And now there’s another one to add to the list.

Sure it sounds good, and I hope it succeeds. But in all honestly, if I’m in the mood for a gourmet dog, you’ll probably find me at Crif Dogs or F&B. (Plus, that way I can avoid the crazies lined up outside Magnolia.)

Come on. Convince me otherwise.

Today’s guest roster at the Waldorf included George Bush ( 43) , Hugo Chavez, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and Vicente Fox amongst others. We were on our way to a luncheon to meet with the outgoing Mexican President. This picture is from the 50th Street side, as we were going in. Stories will continue – stay tuned.

I find this story unbelievably shocking. Basically, two men on a JFK-bound flight were asked by a stewardess to cease demonstrating their affection for each other. But that’s not the shocking part. I mean, as offensive as those situations can be (I was once unjustly kicked out of a bar for some innocent same-sex PDA that was no more graphic than any of the opposite-sex stuff going on around us), it’s true that PDA is a tricky issue and different people feel different ways about it. And not having been there to witness it for myself, clearly I can’t judge whether these guys were simply holding each other’s hands, shoving their tongues down each other’s throats, or attempting to join the mile-high club right in their seats.
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image courtesy of Getty Images.

My favorite way to spend a Monday evening of late has been to watch the Running of the Rats, held every night on e.90th St. The course the rats travel is small yes, but don’t let the distance of the track dissuade you from witnessing such a transcendent display of nature at its finest. Watch them scurry with the grace of Robert Joffrey from the garbage bags next to mine and my neighbors’ doorsteps to the adjacent curb and, dare I say, beyond. Walking to the corner store takes me back to my days as a recurring contestant on Wild and Crazy Kids, jumping and dodging through obstacle courses and wearing neon. They really are everywhere. Eight in all, I kid you not. Well, seven now. Last night I stepped on one and killed it. But I didn’t feel bad about it because I’m all man. You’re more than welcome to join me next week.

Whenever I come back to NY, weather permitting, I always start my day with a fast rollerblade around Central Park. I took this distant shot of Midtown across Lake Jacqueline (the reservoir) about 8 AM, then headed to Zabar’s for bagels and lox.

During UN week I am reminded of New York’s power – it is truly the center of the universe – Capital of the World. What other city on Earth invites everyone – even sworn enemies of the nation to come here to speak and move freely about, protected by our very own security forces? Would Hugo Chavez allow George Bush to walk around Caracas speaking with people, as Chavez was permitted to do here in NY last year?

Right now there is a coup in Bangkok, and the Prime Minister of Thailand is here – probably he will have to stay.

Miami on the other hand – is the Capital of Latin America. In general, people, governments and business people look to Miami for leadership rather than Washington or New York and wish that Miami could be in charge of foreign policy for the region.

I look forward to giving my report from the Waldorf Astoria tomorrow.

Guest blogger Blaine Zuver from Miami (escaping from the city over run by Cubans) is in town to cover some events at the UN. One of the commenters on his post got me riled enough to write this one

The commenter says

Does anyone else feel frustrated with these diplomatic events? Luckily, I don’t have to drive, but I feel like these diplomats come to NYC, clog up the whole city like a toilet in a poor-quality mexican restaurant, and get together for some seemily arbitrary meeting. It seems every pointless to me, and more a source of frustration for NYers than anything else.

This is one of the most myopic tirades I have heard in a while.

New York has forever been the de facto “capital of the world”. Go anywhere in the world and utter the word USA. Depending on where you are geographically you will either get brickbats (mostly) or boquets (rarely). However politics aside, the one city that the world relates to is New York. The city has pre eminence as the center of the financial and cultural world.

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So I slipped on my Mets Jersey and barreled out to Shea with hopes in my heart to see the orange and blue clinch their first division in nearly twenty years. Below I’ve listed a few new things I now know:

1.) According to very drunk Mets fans, I, apparently, look a “hullava-lot” like Chad Pennington.
2.) Looking like Chad Pennington will not help you get a chant going a Shea. There are a lot of Giants fans there.
3.) Any three words or syllables can become a chant: “Lets Go Mets,” “N.L. East,” “That’s not bad!” (Directed at Trachel) “Need More Beer” (Directed at everyone during the dry ninth inning.)
4.) Clapping for nine innings straight with give you what looks like sun-burn of the palm.
5.) Screaming for nine innings straight makes you happy they invented text messaging.
6.) You can hug a fellow Met fan for three whole seconds after a clinch before it gets creepy.
7.) I hate the Dodgers. To parse this: The new Stadium being built to replace Shea…it’s based on Ebbets Field. That was the Dodgers, not the Mets, people. Oh…and what do they want to call the new Stadium? Jackie Robinson Stadium. Now that man deserves a building, he does…but again…he was with the Dodgers, not the Mets, people. And what do I wake up to this morning? Dodgers steal the headlines knocking out four home runs, back-to-back-to-back-to-back. Then winning it with a Nomaaarrr walk-off home run. Grumble. (Do Dodger fans say Nomar’s name like they’re from Boston? I can’t hear the name without the drawl.) I look to the NLDS for catharsis.
8.) I’m slowly warming to the “The Team. The Time. The Mets” slogan they’ve had all year.

And finally…

9.) Even when you’re full of happy thoughts, and the day seems to be going your way left, right, and center, if it’s past nine o’clock and you’re waiting for the G train, you will always, always, always end up spending enough time on the platform to put a dent in Proust.

P.S. Mets win.

Ugh. Bedbugs. The story that just won’t go away. Second only to rats in my “list of things that, should they ever enter my life, will cause me to immediately set myself on fire.”

Ok, maybe not myself. But my apartment and all of my belongings, certainly. Bedbugs are like STDs. If you have them, I expect full disclosure before we get to spending any time together. Worse than STDs, actually. Definitely harder to get rid of!

But seriously, they sound like a nightmare. Protect yourselves, people. Has anyone had any first-hand experience with them and lived to tell the tale?