Tonight I headed to the Lower East Side for a Vice party, which they threw to celebrate their new MMA section. My friend River works there, so I joined him, Noah and Taylor for some beers and dancing. This is Vice, so I was pretty petrified – mostly that I’d be too old and too uncool. I …
Read MoreCategory / Free Stuff
April 22, 2013
…attended a story time for adults
This blog has always been about making the most of opportunities. Well, in a bizarre twist, it backfired a little tonight. I was standing outside the New York Library trying to figure out how to get inside for a storytelling evening when I locked eyes with a dashing young man who was having a similar …
Read MoreApril 17, 2013
…ate an ice cream on the High Line
New York weather doesn’t know what it’s doing. While it’s not quite warm enough for bare legs, it’s definitely about time for the first ice cream of the season. Tonight after work, Helen and I walked to the West Village and picked up some sickly sweet cups of ice cream – strawberry for me, chocolate for her …
Read MoreApril 16, 2013
…had a Lower East Side history lesson
I love the Lower East Side. It’s shabby chic, so you’d think it hadn’t really been updated – apart from what’s in the shops – since its inception. But tonight I headed to the Tenement Museum on Orchard and Delancy to see author David Bellel talk about his new book, Then & Now: Lower East Side, and …
Read MoreApril 13, 2013
…saw the cherry blossoms in Washington D.C.
Today I headed to Washington D.C. to stay with Kate, my best gal pal from my time in Atlanta. She only recently moved here, so was keen to be a tourist with me. We headed straight for the Mall, which is bookended by the Capitol and the Washington Monument. At this time of year, the …
Read MoreApril 11, 2013
…was a barista
Today I headed back to one of my old favourite haunts for coffee. But rather than doing the drinking, I was doing the making. This was something different for me, but I did really enjoy it. A lot of times, I am making my own coffee at home using my new coffee machine. I have …
Read MoreApril 10, 2013
…saw buildings roll down Park Avenue (kind of)
Everyone knows the Manhattan skyline – even if, like me, they sometimes muddle the Chrysler and Empire State Building (true story). As a landscape that’s so recognizable, it’s ample ground for artists to meddle with. And tonight I went to Park Avenue between 48th and 68th to see Alexandre Arrechea’s take. Arrechea melds the buildings – such as the …
Read MoreApril 6, 2013
…had a massive pillow fight
Ah New York, you’re so bizarre. Today I headed to Washington Square Park for a massive pillow fight – an annual event that sees people smacking each other over the head with pillows for three hours. Because, why not? I met up with Elektra and we threw ourselves into the sweaty, surprisingly violent mob. It …
Read MoreApril 4, 2013
…visited a gallery on my lunchbreak
Usually lunchtime is a quick nip to a nearby deli, perhaps a walk around the block and then back to my desk. All within 15 minutes. But I’d seen there was a new exhibit at the Swiss Institute just a block away and I feared I wouldn’t make the 6pm closing time, so I decided to go there …
Read MoreMarch 31, 2013
…made Cadbury’s creme eggs
I don’t want to over-egg the Easter puns, but today was an eggstravaganza. One festive activity was making treats that nearly resembled Cadbury’s creme eggs with my friend Meghan (‘Megghan’). As devotees of Buzzfeed, we’d come across this cracker of a recipe a couple of weeks ago and decided to give it a go. It involved …
Read MoreMarch 30, 2013
…petted a horse in Grand Central Station
Today I headed to Grand Central Station to pet a horse. There’s an explanation: Performance artist Nick Cave is holding a seven-day exhibit showcasing his 30 straw-like horses at the station, and twice daily they put on a performance. Grand Central is great for random things like this – if you remember, I went to a …
Read MoreMarch 29, 2013
…skipped over the Manhattan Bridge
Spring has finally shown its face and tonight I wanted to make the most of it. I’ve already been to the Brooklyn Bridge, so I decided to shake it up by heading over the Manhattan Bridge instead. And whereas I ran the previous time, tonight I opted for a different mode – a skipping rope. …
Read MoreMarch 28, 2013
…turned the cube at Astor Place (just)
Whenever Dylan and I passed the massive cube sculpture at Astor Place, he would tell me you could spin it – and I’d make sceptical noises. Well, it turns out that he was actually right about something the whole time. The cube is a huge steel sculpture by Tony Rosenthal that was put up in …
Read MoreMarch 25, 2013
…visited a flower show (to kickstart Spring)
This is what New York looked like today: Seeing as Spring isn’t coming to me, I decided to go to Spring. After work, I jumped on the N train to Herald Square and headed to Macy’s for its massive annual flower show. A flower show doesn’t sound like the most inspiring thing to do, but …
Read MoreMarch 22, 2013
…had a makeover at Bloomingdale’s
When I was younger, I was a devotee of My Girl, desperate to be Vada and impress my own Thomas J. I spent many of my younger years thinking that baggy clothes were somehow flattering and generally looking very rubbish. One offshoot was that I was so late to the makeup party that I decided …
Read MoreMarch 21, 2013
…travelled back in time (to New York in 1993)
Tonight I went back in time – twenty years, to be exact – to see a New York of days gone by. The New Museum on the Bowery is currently showcasing art from 1993 – almost like a time capsule – that gives a brilliant insight into what was on the mind of New Yorkers …
Read MoreMarch 14, 2013
…played Pooh Sticks
After a joyous eight-hour delay in Edinburgh airport yesterday, I finally made it to my parents’ house in West Sussex. And this morning I appreciated the countryside with a visit to Pooh Bridge in Ashdown Forest to play pooh sticks with my Dad. The game is the creation of A. A. Milne, the author of …
Read MoreMarch 13, 2013
…toured the Scottish Parliament
Last night when I was wondering what to do today, my friend Neil kindly offered to show me around the Scottish Parliament, where he works for Alex Neil, the health minister and the MSP (Member of Scottish Parliament) for Airdrie and Shotts. After taking him up on his offer, I’m now convinced Neil also works …
Read MoreMarch 12, 2013
…climbed a volcano
Four days after I went to the top of the Empire State Building for a view of New York City, I have completed Edinburgh’s equivalent: climbing to the top of Arthur’s Seat. Arthur’s Seat is a dormant volcano looming over Edinburgh – one of my favourite cities in the UK. Its steepest part is at …
Read MoreMarch 5, 2013
…went to a listening party
Hear hear, who knows what a listening party is? Well, tonight I found out. You sit in a bar, drink far too many cocktails and celebrate new music. In this case – Dylan’s. Okay, okay, so this ‘new thing’ feels like I’m cheating a little bit. But I’d never been to a listening party before. Dylan (under the guise of Swampboots) is …
Read MoreMarch 4, 2013
…read in the New York Public Library’s Reading Room
It’s been a busy weekend of moving, throwing a house cooling party, cleaning and catching colds. So today when I chanced it out of work nearly an hour early, I decided to use the time to recuperate. I headed to 42nd Street and Fifth Avenue for the New York City Public Library. Somehow I’d never …
Read MoreFebruary 27, 2013
…saw photos by Allen Ginsberg
In my post-cocktail fog this morning, I splurged on a camera thinking that it’s about time this blog had some semi decent photos. So in the two days it should take for it to arrive, I’m seeking some tips and inspiration. Tonight I went to an exhibition of photography by Allen Ginsberg at NYU’s Grey …
Read MoreFebruary 25, 2013
…went to a play reading
It’s been a while since I went to the theatre, and tonight I witnessed it in a format I never have before: a simple reading. The presentation of Father Unknown by Daniel Reitz was held on a stark, dark stage at The Ensemble Studio Theatre (hurrah for British spelling) on 52nd and 10th Ave.
Read MoreFebruary 23, 2013
…was in a music video
Being in New York means you get to meet great people like Lindsay Ellyn, a singer-songwriter who’s just released her first EP. Today Lindsay was filming the final scenes for a music video for Somebody Love Those Girls (my favourite on the EP) so I went along to help out. The song is about women …
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