Talk about learning the hard way… but since I don’t want the rest of you going through this blindly, I’ve decided to share.

Here’s the situation:
One Friday, (on my birthday), I hopped into a cab with 3 of my girlfriends. Oh, I should mention that I was in the front seat of the cab. Normally, I don’t take cabs, but I wanted to show up to my birthday soiree without looking like I melted.

Anyway, we got to our stop – right in front of Agave, and I gave the driver $20 from my wallet for the $16.00 fare, waited for everyone to get out of the back of the cab and walked into the restaurant to get the night started. As SOON as I got to the bar to order a drink, I realized my wallet was gone. CRAP!! At that moment, I knew that I must have dropped it in the front seat of the cab. I ran out to see if he might still be there, but I wasn’t that lucky.

So, I did what anyone else would have done. I immediately called my bank and my credit card companies to cancel my cards. Easy breezy. Then, I called the TLC to put in a report (just dial 311 and ask to be connected to the TLC). Since it was after 5:00, I was only able to get a case number, but was told that I should call 2 police precincts to see if my wallet might have been turned in. Then, I could call back the TLC with my case number handy on Monday to see if they had any news.

Apparently, when something is lost in a cab, there are a BUNCH of things that have to happen. Just make sure you do what I did. Enjoy your night anyway and have yourself a tequila on the rocks to calm down because there really isn’t much you can do.

Here’s the important stuff. Pay attention…
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Bus: M42
Time: 6:30 pm

The bus starts riding, the cool AC flowing, the people pushing. We stop in the middle of Broadway, not at the bus stop but in the middle of the road. Some people get off, others get on. The actual bus stop has too much pedestrian & car traffic to stop at the actual stop.

There’s a lot of rush and people who want to get away from it all, those who want to go just 1 or 2 blocks, will opt for the bus instead of walking it. And why should they opt for anything else? New Yorkers are used to luxury and just so they do NOT miss out on what the streets have to offer; a peddler of bootleg DVDs plays the latest movie (couldn’t really make it out) on his portable DVD player.

“DVDs for sale, all the newest stuff, get your DVDs right here”

What great service.

Housing crunch much? I think this speaks for itself:

$550 Fifth Avenue/14th Street – No joke, but there’s a catch! (Union Square)
http://newyork.craigslist.org/mnh/roo/380212406.html
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Feeling like something sweet this morning (or rather afternoon), we decided on Martha’s Country Bakery. Possibly my favorite bakery in Astoria (and there are many bakeries in this neighborhood), Martha’s Country Bakery has a variety of yummy sweets such as cupcakes, fruit pies, eclairs, and many more. They also serve delicious coffee. When the weather’s nice, they set tables outside. Today, we sat at one of their cozy inside tables with a delicious cupcake and some cheesecake and tasty coffee. All very sweet!

Rita Skeeter, the infamous yellow dirt-digging journalist of the Harry Potter books is a nuisance. Her questions are difficult, her methods are to use a pen that elaborates, exaggerates, and lies to make the story more disgusting and despicable.

While Deobrah Solomon of the New York Times does not lie, she does ask the most irritating questions to extremely well-known people; and it sometimes for tolerable interviews, like when the person is running for President and has no option but to submit to her catty demeanor and at other times they just dwindle into a fight.

Her weekly column in the NYTimes Magazine always made me feel uncomfortable and since finishing the latest Harry Potter; it reminded me that Rita Skeeters do exist in real life albeit they will most likely work for the National Enquirer, but I found one right here in the New York Times.

Do you ever find yourself on a task from work wandering the streets of New York? Do you ever wonder why people are going to the movies? We recently went to the Mets game from work; our semi-annual outing. We saw so many people at the game that it was mind boggling. How can so many people have nothing to do on a Thursday afternoon? And so much nothing to do that they can actually afford to attend a baseball game!

If this wasn’t the summer, we’d figure that all the attendees were comprised of Ferris Buellers and Zack Morrises. But this was definitely not the case. Maxim magazine did a little video on-the-street interview which kind of helps us figure out what at least a small percent of the people are doing if not working…here’s the video link.

In case you, like I often do, find yourself desperately craving a break from all things Manhattan (or Brooklyn or Queens or…), just remind yourself that you could end up like Eric: on vacation in Vermont, unable to find an open convenience store after 7 pm, or in Montreal, wondering why in God’s name restaurants close from 3pm-6pm between lunch and dinner, leaving you, that hapless New Yorker, to wonder why every city on the planet doesn’t follow the game plan of the Big Apple.

Yeah, ok, it’s really great to get away but man, do I love New York right now.

In the July/August issue of Fast Company magazine, http://www.fastcompany.com/cities/2007, Talinn, Estonia is touted as an “Urban Innovator”. The 2007 list, compiled and reported by Andrew Park , writes that, in this city of 399,000 ” 58% of residents use the Internet, with the cheapest connection rates in Europe”. Furthermore, the entire city is wireless. According to Park, “Universal Net access is actually uaranteed by Parliament.”

In the same list, NYC is a “fast city”. With a much larger population than Talinn, “E-stonia”, we have a much bigger task here, but NYC is moving in the right direction. WiFi in Central Park has been upgraded, and will soon be available in other parks, such as Union Square. With subway and bus fares going up yet again, this gives us something niee to look forward to.

I went to see Romeo and Juliet at Shakespeare in the Parking Lot last night. Sponsored by the Drilling Company, Shakespeare in the Parking Lot involves a couple Shakespeare plays performed in a Lower East Side parking lot (at Ludlow and Broome) for free. I try to go every year because it’s free Shakespeare and lacks the crowd in Central Park.

The set (always minimal at this theater event) involved some cardboard boxes and newspapers – basically trash. The first actors began the play with drums while wearing black clothes and tribal make-up. This drumming occurred throughout the play and added an intensity to the drama, though honestly I’m not sure what exactly they were meant to symbolize. With a guitar and buzz cut, Brad Coolidge played a natural and adorable Romeo. Assistant Artistic Director David Marantz nailed Mercutio with just the right amount of humor and drama. Other talented performances included Laura Johnston as the Nurse, Don Carter as Lord Capulet, and Ron Dreyer as Friar Laurence. Combined with the Lower East Side as a backdrop, these actors created an interesting and engaging production of this timeless play.
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Rats are everywhere. Literally, everywhere. Like, go away. Monday night I was walking through Union Square Park while chatting on the phone with my sister. I was begging her to come up and visit me in NYC, and she was telling me how excited she is to come here and live in filth for a few days. “Pshaw, it’s not that dirty!” I told her. But right as those words were coming out of my mouth, a ginormous rat crossed my path. I would have screamed, but I didn’t want to deter my sister from coming to visit. Then, ten seconds later- another rat, and a minute after that- one more! Three rats in 1.5 minutes. That’s a new record.

photo courtesy of Brooklyn Skeptic
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