Turning 22 in the city.

It's funny how things kind of start to come together when time is running out.

4 Train not unlike 405.

I was stuck somewhere between East 125th street and 86th for ~40 minutes Monday morning around 8:30 AM. This coupled with a maddeningly slow crosstown train into the Bronx made my normally 30 minute commute to East 68th street a 1 hour and 15 minute one, due to what was apparently many sick passengers on board the train in front of us. Thanks to the delay, the next few local trains went express to move things along, which meant I had to get off at 59th street and run like hell. Yay, Monday!

One thing I kept thinking was, "How is this not just like Los Angeles?" Don't get me wrong, NYC MTA has an extensive system that gets you anywhere. However, train delays, track closures and door malfunctions are a daily occurence. I have to add an extra 30 minutes to my morning commutes to get ANYWHERE on time. And apparently the problem is getting worse. Delays are up 25% from last year.

FOOD.

I'm broke as all hell in this fine city, but this does not mean that I don't indulge in eating out. This and my weakness for fine beers are the root of the problem.

Anywho, here are some great spots I've frequented in the past couple of weeks.

Alachi Masala, Upper West Side: I wasn't expecting much out of this place, considering its location. Spiciest (and most delicious!) lamb and potato dish I've ever consumed! Luckily my stomach took it like a pro. And we were treated to rice pudding for dessert. Score! Well worth the 13 dollars and condescending waiter. I asked for more rice, and he pointed to my nearly empty bowl and said, "finish that." OK MOM.

Excellent Dumpling House, Downtown-ish: Not really sure what part of town this falls under...we were walking up from Battery Park/WTC and kind of stumbled into it. It's a shady area of town, if you ask me. Yes, tried the dumplings. Mediocre at best - they were steamed and a little watery, and the napkin they were served over looked kind of sketch/unsanitary. Dug the LoMein, however and practically cleaned my plate. Then again, I was also ridiculously hungry. Would probably go back again, but I don't really have a reason to be down in Canal Street anytime soon.

Cafe Lalo, Upper West Side: Okay granted, we picked a slice of chocolate mousse to go. It's just short of the corner of Amsterdam on 83rd, so I'm sure I walked past it tons of times and missed it. The decor of the place was really cool (might have to stop by again to eat in at some point), and the mousse was fucking amazing. Definitely gave more weight to the "chocolate as an aphrodisiac" argument. Really!

BCD Tofu, Herald Square: YES. YES. YES. I've been awaiting the opening of this restaurant about as much as I have been awaiting the opening of Topshop. Comparisons to the K-town Los Angeles one are inevitable. As with most Los Angeles/New York comparisons, it boils down to style of substance. This one is swankier by far. There's a bar and grills at the bigger tables. They play the latest K-pop tunes. The Coke comes in cute little Korean bottles. But, when I asked for spicy, I got mild. When I asked for water, I got something that tasted like it came straight from the hose. Also, the eggs provided for the tofu soup were too big and didn't cook properly, even though the soup came boiling hot as usual. All for 3-4 dollars more than the Koreatown L.A. location? No thanks. But in the meantime, this is my go-to soup place.

Cocoa Bar, Lower East Side: Do we have something like this in Los Angeles? Maybe. If not, someone needs to get on this because it's fantastic. Coffee + wine + chocolate? Yes please. That being said, I was not terribly impressed. I ordered chocolate cake (notice a pattern here), and was given a nearly frozen slice, destroying all hopes of appreciating the flavor. I know it was near closing time, but really? Didn't try the wine, but the gals enjoyed their picks. But all the same...bad cake means no business from me. Your cute hipster barista and excellent background music redeemed you not, Cocoa Bar.

Long Overdue, but still timely

As mentioned in earlier posts, Columbia and the Movimiento Alas people put on an event that brought together a gaggle of Latin American presidents, not to mention Shakira and Alejandro Sanz. Translating devices were in high demand.

Here are some YouTube clips of the conference moderated by hotshot gringo economist, Jeffrey Sachs. Tony Saca's [heavily edited] spiel appears around 2:10. Little style, even less substance.

October has been eventful.

October: Landed two jobs in the Upper East Side, had a friend visit from Los Angeles, missed Los Angeles some mo', finally got around to do touristy things, like visit the Statue of Liberty, Strawberry Fields and eat Friday's in Times Square (not too proud of the latter). I also saw Mary-Kate or Ashley Olsen at JFK. Tiny and alien-like, they are.

I'm visiting Strawberry Fields again if time and weather permit, and I'm determined to get some ice skating in at Rockefeller Center. Allen bailed out on me last week.

Also, In the name of social science research, I've only slept about 6 hours in the past two days. And it's 38 motherfucking degrees outside.

More later.

New York Man Specimen #1

As luck would have it, this past weekend witnessed me dancing and nearly pashing with a 30-something Angeleno turned East Village snob, who shall remain nameless mainly because memory fails me.

The location: A tapas bar in Soho, with excellent sangria, tapas and a good mix of both gringo Latin music enthusiasts and actual Latins. I expect many more visits to this place before the year is up

Overheard in Harlem #1

"She's a four-eyed honey, she's a four-eyed ho!"

-Random boy on the A Train (couldn't have been older than 12 or 13), spittin' rhymes at my nerdy expense.