12/23-12/26 - Fun for Everyone, since it is The Season After All

I left work and made my way home for another 3 day weekend. All my shopping was done for the season so I was home with no stress after shopping at Target before heading home. The transit strike was over so the PATH trains were finally free of the overcrowding I had not enjoyed the past 3 days. I got home rather quickly and then settled into the usual Friday ritual of cleanup, washing up and getting ready to head out. The Jimmy arrived around 10:45 and after catching up on some Football and Basketball stats we all headed out into the night.

Lisa had been true to her word and even though we were not all on the list (just me), all 3 of us were still able to head inside and get in for reduced rate. Even though we were there early we did see Lisa who was nice enough to buy us each a drink and we enjoyed a great start to the night with DJ Eliot DeHoyos and later segued into DJ Glen Friscia. The DJ downstairs was some random reggaetton song playing person and we did not spend too much time among the kids who were hanging out in the very well lit downstairs. We hung out a bit with Joseph, Duane, Stephen K. and more of Lisa as the night progressed and generally had a good time. I took pictures of one of the performers and had my picture taken with her later near the back bar. As it got later into the night Russ and I called it a night around 3:15 and headed out front to flag down a taxi. We were able to return home with no stress and get ready for the next day.

I had meant to get out to the gym on Saturday but as we waited until the mid-afternoon football game halftime, after walking up the street to the gym we found the gym on Christmas Eve closed at 3pm. It was a nice day outside but it was just a walk outside as we cleaned up and prepared for our long drive out to see Ernesto and the peeps out in LI. 3 accidents, mall traffic and almost getting lost (we did not go far enough) we finally arrived after an hour and 40 min. of travel. We ate, sang karaoke (including Nat Cole and Blondie) and hung out with the many friends and neighbors in attendance. When it approached 9:55 we finally had to head back to the city and we brought back two new friends who lived on the upper west side and needed a ride back to the city. We discussed all of our different professions and life in the city and made the trip back into the city far quicker than the trip out. After dropping the boys off in downtown Manhattan we headed back home and I did the costume change to prepare to go out for my after midnight arrival. Russ decided to stay in so it was a solo walk down to the taxi stand and then heading out to the city with my own driver. Despite almost losing $20 dollars in the back seat I found it before too long and was able to get out of the taxi and head on over to the line in front of Roxy. Doorman Derek got us inside before too long and I picked up our even tickets for the following week as well before making my way inside.

Barker was away but he had wished me well and Matt was there to make sure all of my bar wishes were fulfilled. The DJ of the Eve was Meritt and he made sure to get us worked up so that by 12:40 even the crowd was sparse it quickly filled as the beats got better and better. He even played the Celeda Peak Hour mix of "Let the Music Use You Up" which got me up onto the speaker in the asian section and plenty of people onto the dance floor. The back bar was closed so the main crush of people was concentrated into the front. I was determined to enjoy myself so I hung out with pictures with D and his friend as well as Erica's other half who was nice enough to take pictures with myself and Sam Champion who I talked with for a bit as he had not been out with the crowd in over a year. I also took pics with Erik Rhodes (from Cross Country) and even made an appearance in the DJ booth and took a picture with Mitch Amtrak, Lighting wizard extraordinaire. (I always wonder what Liz Liguori would be able to do with the light board of Roxy, we will have to wait and see). My promise to myself of a guaranteed good time was definitely fulfilled music wise, friend wise, even picture wise and I was able to go home at 5am a happy person. I picked up a taxi right on the corner of 18th and 10th and the driver was sitting there waiting for me to walk up and get in. I got home easily and bid the night a happy close.

The next morning at 7am I awoke on the couch in my livingroom (I guess I was so tired I did not make it to the bed). I then got up, finished undressing and went to bed. I proceeded to stay in bed and not get up until 1:30pm. We hung out in the house a bit before heading over to NYC in the rain to catch a showing of "Chronicles of Narnia" Thankfully despite the crowded theater the kids in attendance did not get too antsy until near the end of the film. The movie of course was much better than the cartoon I saw when I was little and I was happy with the way it traveled to the big screen. After seeing the movie again I enjoyed the fact that the religious tie in had to be REALLY read into as it was not an obvious thing at all and the movie was as religious as any other kids movie, which was to say hardly at all. I liked it. We headed back home but could not find any place that was open for dinner so I ended up cooking. The chicken breast sliced into tenders along with the vermicelli in garlic sauce and the corn all came together into a great dinner. Being off on Monday was a good thing so despite the repeats on TV I was able to watch DVR programming and movies to pass the time during the night. Russ went out and picked up some ice cream from Baskin and Robbins and we were able to eat some ice cream and chill out for the rest of the eve.

I felt fine awoke the next day and dug into my cold cereal and relaxed for a bit before heading down the street to pick up gift bags to pack all of the gifts we were preparing to bring out to NJ and Russ's family. The trip over to NJ was easy and we were able to get over in plenty of time to have some hors d'oeuvres and help with the potato latkes. My knowledge of all foods fried held me in good stead as we prepared this last dish before we all sat down for dinner. We hung out for a bit more and then it was time to exchange all of the many gifts. Of course the youngest kids got the most of course but everyone else was happy and we were able to get back home without any trouble. Now we were finally preparing to start the workweek after another long weekend. One more to look forward to next weekend. More fun to come...

12/16-12/18 - New Fridays, Fun Saturdays, First of 3 three-day weekends

The weather has finally stopped getting into the deep winter freeze. Those days in the 20's are totally busted in the month of December. I expect it in the heart of winter like January or February but I was very happy to see the days head back up into the 40s and such. I was looking forward to the first of 3 three day weekends (and 4 day workweeks) until January. I was able to get home pretty easy for a Friday night, tested the bluetooth headset with flying colors to leave msgs. I got home a little later than usual as I slept through my train stop and had to take the train back in the other direction. I finally made it home and unloaded my bags and was able to chill a bit. Russ had ordered The delivery dinner arrived and I was able to tuck into a nice batch of Pot Roast and mashed potatoes and with gravy and carrots. I then cleaned up a bit with a haircut and shower before picking out a nice outfit to go out. The Jimmy arrived a little late (around 11) but we hung out for a bit and then we all headed out at 11:35.

The traffic on the Bklyn bridge was pretty tough so we took the Manhattan Bridge instead and then drove up the east side a bit to Houston street before finally making our way over to Hudson street. After circling a bit for a spot we found one not too far away but also noticed that the bodega on the corner of 8th and 18th was closed for good (no more gum and Tums). We made our way up the half block and into Gym. I had brought along my unwrapped gift (Connect Four) and handed the box to Rick who told me to speak to Jorge at the bar so he could enter me into the Raffle. I spoke to him a little later at the bar, very nice and he entered me in the raffle and wished me a good night. I talked in the back with DJ Smoky for a bit who was feeling a little fatigue after having worked the day before at a corporate event. We hung around for 2 drinks and then as the place finally cleared the initial crush we stepped back out into the night and retrieved the car so we could move onto the next spot. We didn't have tickets this time for Krash but we went anyway and after dodging a few garbage trucks on pickup we found a spot and then headed up the street. At Krash I do not have high expectations but at least the bartender is nice to me and the music started out pretty good but then got stuck on some kind of beatmix reply before and after the performance of Pepper Mashay. She gave a good performance but we had to leave before it got too late. At least next time I will be on the list as Lisa did me the solid and got my phone #. We said goodnight to the Jimmy and headed out to flag down a car ride on 5th Ave at 3:15am. The ride home was uneventful and all good. Another nice friday spent out and about.

Saturday I was up for a gym visit but we also had some errands to run so we headed further out into Bklyn and when it was time for the gym I found myself at the NYSC near Carroll Gardens. At first the gym seemed kind of small but then we realized that it was broken up into two floors and even the locker room had two levels. It had a funny smell in the place though and it was very cold so I was glad to finish up and then head out to pick up some lunch at KFC. After an afternoon of rest and quiet it was time to prepare for the evening. Dinner was ordered from Friends Italian and it was straightening up and a cleanup then I was outfitted in the new Akademiks powder blue and I was ready to head out with Russ into the city.

The ride in was quick and after a short wait on the line we were inside and ready to hang with the crowd. I quickly got the necessities out of the way first and gave my gifts of appreciation to Barker and Matt They liked the shirts and the usual CDs and even though they felt it wasn't necessary I knew that for me it was. The DJ at Roxy this evening was Manny Lehman and there was a nice crowd in attendance from the very beginning. As expected all of the hits, plenty of dancing, more drinks and no extraneous drama. Russ decided to leave around 3 and I stayed until 4:15 myself. All of the usual hits, (Suzanne Palmer, Jamie Sanchez with Stroke and as well as Rihanna) and I would definitely term the eve as a success.

I awoke the next morning and knew not how I had arrived at home but I appeared to have arrived safely and with no injuries. Russ had his theories and I had my own as well but as there was no APB on the web or on NY1 I felt I had no misdeeds to worry about. Late in the afternoon we travelled to the storage facility and retrieved part of my mothers PC but could not find the CPU. We apologized when we saw her out on SI later and she told us it was inside one of the green storage containers. So that would be retrieved next time. In the meantime I played Animal Crossing DS with Gigi and listened to Ian playing Mario Kart DS. The Oven Stuffer Roaster dinner was great along with all of the usual side dishes. We stayed until around 9pm and then headed back to BK after the usual goodnights. I didn't have to work the next day so I watched DVR programming until it was time for bed.

Monday was spent watching DVDs and toons and spending a lazy monday at home. I needed it and it was definitely appreciated. Of course now we had the transit strike to look forward to. At least it's a short week. Until the next one.

Dec 4,11 - 2 Weeks, 2 Weekends, 2 Nights of Fun

Friday on the 3rd I came home from work and messed with the PC and watched DVR programming, I was not in the mood to run out into the rain (for once) and so I was just focusing on spending one night out (Sat Nite). Russ was at an office holiday party so I ate delivery chinese (pepper steak) at work before coming home. The house was quiet and I was happy to just watch TV and play Advance Wars on my Nintendo DS. The night went by quickly and I did not stay up all that late (3:00am).

Awoke the next day and ate cereal (Trix and 1% Farmland Dairies Milk) before getting dressed up and heading out to the gym. After the workout Russ and I walked back up the street and watched DVDs and movies until dinnertime. The delivery of chicken Ceasar salad was very welcome and we rested up and waited to get out at the appointed time.

We left the house around 11:20 and made it into the city and parked right at our favorite spot. When we went to turn into the parking spot of of 23rd onto 10th ave we had a car right behind us so could not back into the spot. We went straight on 23rd but the car behind us turned and went the wrong way down the one way street. (Crazy). But we did not linger long enough to see if the driver caused an accident but quickly made the 3 right turns back onto 10th and found our parking spot. We tried to save a spot behind us for the Jimmy but another driver found that he could fit behind us if we moved up so the Jimmy parked elsewhere. I headed in ahead of Russ while he waited to meet up later. Once inside I made my way through the crowd and looked up at the booth at guest DJ Offer Nissim. Offer made sure the crowd was into it right away and as the energy built in the crowd she was right up there clapping hands and dancing with the crowd. I made a couple of appearances on speakers starting out on the speaker across from the DJ booth in the asian section and I had a great start to the eve accept for a strange interlude with a guy on the speaker. He had stepped down off of the speaker when I first began dancing but I was waiting just a little bit longer to step down myself and he returns to the speaker and tells me that he "let" me have the speaker to myself and now wanted the speaker to himself again. I told him I would not stop him from dancing but I wasn't about to leave yet and despite his continuing to stand in my face and make demands I calmly drank my bottle water and let him yell in my ear before telling him to go ahead and dance. I stood at the back of the speaker for a bit but when he saw I did not get down he left himself and he went to another speaker closer to the back. I only stayed on the speaker for another few minutes myself before heading to the back to get another drink from barman Barker. Later on I was dancing on the speaker next to the stage and the speaker stalker looked past the decorations to see if the speaker was occupied (it was) and he moved on. The occasion of the eve was Tony Moran's birthday and the place eventually got very packed and we continued dancing all the way to the peak, the signature sound of Offer Nissim and "The First Time". I danced on the stage for that one and after first DJ set was over we saw the stage performance of Kim English. I don't remember the song she sang, it was good but then we were into the second part of the night with DJ Tony Moran. The music stayed high energy and the crowd was still packed into the place as we continued to hang out until 4am. We made it home safely and I went to sleep to await the next day.

After delivery breakfast Sunday was spent watching DVDs and DVR programming until we headed out to KFC and picked up dinner (no baked chicken avail, just fried chicken strips) It was good and we spent the rest of the night watching Football and Fox programming and then the season finale of "Curb". The weekend was all is well that ends well and the following week was something to look forward to.

Friday the 9th I decided to not go out because it was cold and rainy and just stayed indoors watching DVR progamming and playing Animal Crossing DS. It was cold and rainy and despite a party invite from Dante to visit a bar on 23rd Street I stayed in where it was warm and dry.

Saturday was the day Russ was finally over his old laptop and decided he was in the market for a new one. We popped the new Pop CD in the player and took the ride into the city. We were able to find a parking space just 3 blocks up from the gym and that is where we made our first stop. I had to buy another lock as I had forgotten mine again. After picking one up at Duane Reade I met up with Russ in the gym and we went our separate ways to different workouts. When I still had two more machines to go we met again and he headed off to J&R Computer to pick up some stylus for his Palm before the new laptop purchase. We met up again in front of all of the laptops and looked them all over before deciding on another VAIO. While Russ was waiting for it to come upstairs from storage I picked up some more Printer Ink cartridges for my disc printer and dealt with the inconsiderate cashier (she was making some random phone call before her co-worker told her to get off the phone and deal with her customers) and then I headed out of the store on our way to have a nice lunch at Wendy's. The grilled chicken and side salad was great as usual and then it was back over to the car. We put the bags inside and then made our way back to BK. The afternoon was spent resting up watching Mr and Mrs Smith on DVD before it was late enough for delivery dinner. The chicken caesar salad from Friends was great as always and I was all set and ready after cutting my hair and cleaning up in preparation to go out. The new powder blue Akademics shirt on and all of the accoutrements in place and after the arrival of the Jimmy at 10:30 we were all set to leave just after 11pm.

The ride into the city was quick and despite some traffic at the Brooklyn Bridge and across Chambers street to the West Side we made it up to 20th St. on the West side and found a nice spot before heading back down the block and making our way into the
Roxy. After saying hello to the door staff and getting our IDs scanned in the machine before heading the cashier and then coat check. Once inside I headed to the back and said hello to Barker and Matt and my first bottle of water and then headed back to the front to give a gift CD (Pop to the Beat) to Cathy and then heading back to the back bar to get my first round of drinks. After hanging out and listening to the beats of DJ Paulo I was moved after a bit to make an appearance on the speaker in the asian section and this time I did not have to argue with anyone and after a while even pulled people from the dancefloor onto the speaker and danced for a bit more before heading back to the back bar to hang with the guys. Later on we were joined by Fitz, Chris and Donnie who had been hanging in the city for a while after the BASL Christmas party. DJ Paulo kept the beat moving and I made a stage appearance right in front of the booth as the light guy and the DJ conspired to whip the crowd into a frenzy and keep the crowd into the party deep into the night. We ended up staying at the party all the way to 4:30am and riding home in the Jimmys car as he was staying in Manhattan. We headed outside with Donnie and then said our final goodnights before heading back to BK. We stopped at Mickey Ds and got breakfast before heading back home and after a quick nosh we called it a night.

Sunday was spent just hanging out until late in the afternoon, having a bowl of chicken ramen noodles for lunch and watching football. Before it got too late we headed out to Pathmark and picked up fixings for dinner and replenished the house stock of bread, milk, juice and the fixings for dinner. We headed back home and I cooked a nice dinner of baked herb chicken, mac and cheese and stove top stuffing. We spent the rest of the night watching more football, the Simpsons and some HD cable programming. We left briefly to pick up my brother at the bus stop on 86th street as he was going to meet my sister at my house because they both needed Metrocards to continue to go to work in the coming weeks (that is if we don't suffer a transit strike). Russ turned into bed early but The siblings stayed watching TV, playing Mario Kart on our DS and then watching DVR programming before leaving just before 12am. I watched a few cartoons on the Toon network before turning in myself and calling the weekend over. Another fun time the final 2 day weekend I will have for the next 3 weeks (color me happy as a full pig). Until the next time.