Goodbyes and Hellos

Me, Adrian, and a friend

     Sadly, I recently had to say goodbye to my friend Alyssa.  She just had to return to Canada for this little wedding where she will marry the love of her life… so saying au revoir to her was a very sad day.  In order to console my pain, I went to a album release party for the artist Adrian Marcel.  If you haven't listened to his music, go check him out ASAP.

     While I did have to say goodbye to Alyssa, I said hello to some very good foods.  Top among them was my trip to J.G. Mellon on the Upper East Side.  They are famous for their burgers, and they definitly deserve that reputation.  I went all out with the bacon cheeseburger and was not disappointed.  I complemented that burger with a side of fries which were pleasantly crispy and delicious as well. (Side note when you visit, they are cash only).

   Since we were on the UES, we decided to visit the Met and check out the Charles James exhibit.  I love how the Met is showing so many fashion exhibits now and this one was just another addition to those before it.  And any trip to the Met is not complete without going to the roof and enjoying the view.

     After the Met I decided to complete my tour of the UES with a visit to an ice cream place that looked quite tasty to me from the images I spotted on Instagram.  Emack and Bolio's, while the cones are very unique and delicious (I got one covered with fruit loops!), has just average ice cream.  If you are on the UES I would recommend a visit, but do not feel the need to go all the way up there just for that.  Plenty of other great ice cream options down town that are much more satisfying.

     During the week I also discovered the amazingness of Little Collins.  Located right near my morning office, this place is dangerously delicious and too cute for words.  Must go back again before I leave!

The Big Dill and an iced latte at Little Collins

Flashback

    

 

      This past weekend my best friend from high school, Kira, came to visit me.  And it was a great visit.  We went all over the city and tried LOTS of delicious foods of course.

     We started off Friday by meeting with a couple of my work friends for drinks at South Street Seaport.  The weather could not have been any more beautiful and we drank refreshing beverages while watching the boats rock back and forth.


     We then left South Street, grabbed some pizza from a great joint by me called Garlic Pizza and fueled up for the night.  Once 11:30 rolled around, we met up with Alyssa and went to Le Poussin Rouge for 90s night.  It was wayyy more fun than I ever imagined.  I guess I forgot how awesome 90s music is.

Le Poussin Rouge

     Some more highlights from the weekend: I had an exception appetizer at a Spanish restaurant by me; squid in its own ink.  I have had squid ink linguine many times, but never squid served like this.  Delicious.  Saturday we went to Tompkins Square Bagels and I got the MOST AMAZING bagels ever.  First up was a sesame bagel with roasted red pepper cream cheese, seasoned lox, capers, tomatoes, and toasted to perfection.  Dessert (yes I do believe in breakfast dessert, obviously) was a plain bagel with birthday cake cream cheese.  New York really does know bagels.



     As a side note, I recently started watching Orange Is The New Black and I am obsessed.  Cannot stop watching.

Summer Jam

     Thanks to Alyssa, I have found my favorite song of the summer.  "Rather Be" by Clean Bandit is so catchy and easy to sing along to while having a very happy and upbeat rhythm. Try and listen and not sing along.  Puts me in the Summer mood.

Gone to Carolina

This summer, as soon as tickets for James Taylor went online for sale, my Dad and I jumped on them and bought the best seats available. We have been looking forward to this concert ever since we got the confirmation e-mail for our purchase. When I found out that the concert fell on the same day as W&L's coveted Fancy Dress, I could care less, I was going to see James Taylor live!

Although I was a surprised when his son Ben took the stage with him, I ended up enjoying his music as well. Ben Taylor has a voice similar to his father, but his music has a more jazz/bohemian feel to it--I recommend checking him out if you are interested.

If you get a chance to see JT in concert, buy a ticket, he is definitely worth the money.

A Living Legend

One of the biggest things that my Dad and I share in common is an appreciation for good music. He was born in 1954 and so he got to experience and see some of the greatest musicians of all time (he graduated high school in '69...hello Woodstock!). I love all music, but there is truly nothing like classic rock. Last Wednesday Paul McCartney came to Charlotte and I was lucky enough to see him with my Dad. Although the tickets were quite pricey (the nosebleed section starting at almost $100), it was worth every penny. He put on such a show and performance I don't know how any one couldn't have a good time! He sang mostly classics which I enjoyed, and all of his own songs except for one tribute which he did to Jimi. He told stories of traveling around the world, hanging out with the most hip artists, and how the band started from nothing and grew to be one of, if not, the greatest rock n' roll band of all time. My favorite was when he sang "Back in the USSR" and "Blackbird". It is not possible for me to put into words just how much an impact they made on the world; I mean, people in foreign countries learned how to speak english from their records and someone a few weeks ago paid 1.2 million for a piece of paper with John's lyrics to "A Day in the Life" (still short of the 1.25 paid for the "All You Need is Love" ones)!! If I could have lived in another time, it would have definitely been the 60's.