Since I’m one of those people that likes to find new places to eat and drink, I subscribe to sites like Rare Daily, Thrillist, Urban Daddy, etc. to help me along.

Sadly, they review these places so early on that it’s hard to get a feel of what the place is really like. For me, it’s more about the entire experience than the food alone. After my recent visit to Via dei Mille, I was not only disappointed in the sites that I so often count on, but the service at the restaurant as well.

I set up a dinner for a friends birthday and because she wanted to wear the Tadashi dress that she won at the silent auction when we attended the GMHC Fashion Forward Event (I got to play spokes model for Hanne Apparel that night), I thought we should go someplace a little dressy. That’s when I consulted New York Magazine, Thrillist and Rare Daily and found Via dei Mille.

Here’s where they went wrong… and right. I don’t want to be completely unfair.
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A friend of mine and I were given tickets to the Knicks game last night. Yes, I know… they suck, but I’d be silly to turn down a night where I am going to be in a stadium full of men!

After the game was over, we stopped by Stout for one last drink. That’s when Jay and his friend Kevin came by to chat us up.

Kevin was fine, but this is the Top 10 list of things that Jay did and what you guys should avoid:

1. Keep the comments about her legs to yourself. You JUST met her. Tone it down unless she’s flirting with you and purposely showing off her legs.
2. When you “think” you’ve said something clever, don’t hold up your hand to give her the fist bump. It’s just as bad as the high five and trust me… you’re not all that clever.
3. If she lives in NYC and has stated that she loves it there, don’t try to convince her that Hoboken is better. NOTHING you say will convince her.
4. Do NOT chew gum while you’re talking to her. There is no need for anyone to watch you chew when you’re not in the middle of a meal. Have a mint if your breath is stinky.
5. Don’t drink out of her glass of water. It’s gross.
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Photo from Wikipages.com

I had a very musical evening last night. It all began in the Grand Central subway, where I met up with a friend who was playing trombone in the terminal. Her band, called the Dramatics band, includes 2 trombones, a trumpet, a saxophone, and some awesome drums. They play jazz/ African fusion tunes in various subway terminals nearly every day of the week.

We went with her to Le Poisson Rouge, a relatively young venue in the West Village. There was a $10 cover for an evening of 2 shows, something I won’t normally pay. When you walk into the establishment, you’re greeted by a hanging fish tank and a dark room. The performances occur downstairs, through a red lobby with interesting throne chairs, in a large dark room with a spacious stage and ample seating. The space lacked the dinginess many other musical venues in the area possess.

The show last night began with Ethan Iverson, an inventive pianist. He played innovative renditions of a variety of jazz standards. My favorite was Smoke Gets in Your Eyes, which he played with melancholic intensity. Some of his other playing was a bit too much for me, a non-musician, but he clearly has a lot of talent. Next up was Gabriel Kahane and his band, a singer-songwriter group.  The band’s charming leader had me cracking up with his humorous anecdotes that punctuated their songs. I was most impressed with their violin player, Rob Moose, whose fast fiddling stole the show. We left as they continued their set, but had thoroughly enjoyed a melodic evening.

If you want to see a great picture gallery of this year’s Village Halloween Parade, click here.

Photo credit: Jeanne Fleming/Wikimedia Commons. Picture from the 1998 Village Halloween Parade. Notice the Twin Towers lit up in the background.
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Thank you Pamela Skillings, About.com’s Manhattan guide.

Wikipedia

It’s 8pm in Brooklyn and the sun has already set, one of the many reminders that it isn’t summer anymore. Another sign is last weekend’s final show at Greenpoint’s McCarren pool, once again relegated to a desolate reminder of good times, at least unti 2011, when the pool will reopen as a real, live, wet, swimming pool! The New York Times chronicles the end of (good) times here. We know you’ll miss them (or you missed them).

Yah, we know you all didn’t brave the lines at Yo La Tengo, but we will miss the crouching, sitting, lying on our stomachs on piles of chipping lead paint during the Tuesday movie nights — oh how hard it is to sit in one place for two hours on concrete. This summer we did manage to go to the nostalgic edition of Wet Hot American Summer, and that one flick about glam rock that we couldn’t concentrate on because we overindulged in that bucket of free Starbucks energy drinks. But what we’ll miss most, and we know you do, will be the after-pool traipse over to Matchless across the street, and the valiant attempts to score [an innocent chess] game with the crowds of lingering directionless hipsters.

Thankfully, we’re going to have a public pool of epic proportions if all goes well with Bloomberg’s budget, construction, and all. Hopefully the VIP line won’t be as long as the one into MGMT on that one soggy day in early August. And, I suppose, we’re equally scared of the lines everywhere else next summer, when all of the label PR kids and their legions of tag-along writers are trying to get into, when there is no universal pool event to house them all. Glasslands: watch out, they’re coming for you.

Everyone, get out of the pool. [NYTIMES]

Yet another excuse to live “the city”, and it’s also just right across the bridge.

Today, Empire Fulton-Ferry State Park, 4-8pm, Corner of Plymouth & Main Streets, Dumbo, Brooklyn

There’s plenty of cool shit going down (including Graffiti Research Lab from Vienna) – tomorrow (10th July, 2008) at Alphabeta Shop on 70 Greenpoint Ave. (BROOKLYN) – 6PM – 1AM. One night only, that means – ONLY TOMORROW.

Be there, or be square.  :)

More info:
http://overspraymag.com/blog/?p=443

Before I get to the story, we’ve all run into this situation before. How far is too far? Eastside, Westside, Uptown, Downtown, Brooklyn, Queens? For me, as long as I can get there by subway, it’s not too far. The PATH is usually a stretch for me, but I’ve been known to attempt a date out in New Jersey.

During my last family visit to Long Island, I stopped by my brother’s job to meet him for lunch. After my quick stop into the ladies room to primp, this guy walked out of the men’s room at the same time and smiled at me. Turns out, it was Little Dougie from the 5th Grade. Well, not so little anymore. I’m not sure what came over me but I ran over to him, gave him this huge hug and after some small talk, I told him to give me a call the next time he was coming into the city so that we could catch up. Thinking back, I find it amusing that I didn’t even consider telling him that this city girl would meet up on the Island for a drink. God FORBID!
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NYC is where Hip-Hop was born – as if you didn’t know that already (I hope).

That being said, the immortal and revolutionary Rock Steady Crew will be celebrating their 31st Anniversary from July 24th-July 27th. The four funktastic days of festivities will include a Celebrity Benefit Basketball Challenge, B-boy/B-girl Battles, 5 on 5 Crew Battles, and live musical performances from artists like Kurtis Blow, The Beatnuts, Soul Sonik Force, and Craig G & Marly Marl.

More information and locations of the events can be found on their official site.

This is the perfect opportunity to get out from behind your semi-fancy Swedish ‘puter desk thingy and shake your ass, all while witnessing something that is way more indigenous to the 5 Boroughs than Gordon Gekko and Alex Rodriguez.

You can get seats for one of the best views of the Macy’s fireworks show from Southpoint Park.
Gates open at 5pm [fireworks start at 9].
price: $18.00 [general seating]
you can purchase online
by phone — 877-77CLICK
or at Festival gate [cash only]
check the above link for prohibited items.

For other places to view the Fourth of July fireworks, check out this article