Up My Alley

Haven't updated here in months, so I'm going to try to catch up since when I'm old I want to remember all the amazing things I did when I was younger.

Thursday July 9th
Woke up early to drive from Vegas to Los Angeles. We went to this quick breakfast place inside our hotel and got some food to go. Basically just some muffins and juice and bagels for the car. We then started the 4 hour drive to Los Angeles which went by pretty quickly. When we got there we went to the hotel to check in quickly and then drove along Mulholland Drive for scenic views of the city and to see all the mansions up there. It took a bit longer than expected so then we went to the Farmer's Market which had amazing food and pastries as well as some shopping. It was right next to this place called the Grove which is a more upscale shopping area that looks like a little village which was kind of neat. We spent a few hours there and then went back to our hotel. Our hotel was right near the Chinese theater and the famouis people's footprints so we did that for a while, and wanted to do a tour of the city on a bus but we missed the last one. So instead we made our own tour by buying some maps in the souvenir shop. We think we may have seen Brad Pitt. Anyway, after that we had dinner at Gyu Kaku which is a Japanese BBQ place where you grill your own meats and vegetables. It was pretty good and a lot of fun.

Friday July 10th
On Friday we spent the day in Long Beach. The drive was about 45 minutes because of rush hour traffic. We went to see the Queen Mary which was a big ship that's also a hotel and has restaurants. We spent about 2 hours there and then drove across the street (basically) to rent a boat for an hour, however they didn't have any ships yet. Instead we did a family bicycle and rode around for about an hour. It was fun riding along the water. We then went to a lunch place which I forget the name of now to meet Kathya for lunch. The portions were really big and we were very full after. We left Kathya and went to the Science museum which was free but really interesting - hands on exhibits are always fun for me. After the museum at about 4pm we went to LaMill coffee for drinks and a snack and also to get some coffee to bring back to Ithaca. Before going back to the hotel we drove really close to the Hollywood sign and took some pictures. Dinner that night was at Uwink where you order your food on computer screens at the table and then you can play games with each other. The food was just alright but the concept was cool.

Saturday July 11th
Most of the day Saturday was spent at Universal Studios. We had breakfast there - crepes. We then went into the park and did the lot tour, some of the rides, saw some shows, etc. We had VIP pass things so we got to skip the lines which definitely saved us an hour or two over the whole day, which was good since we needed time at night to go to Santa Monica. Santa Monica was fun, we didn't really have anything planned there but we took some pictures and went to the promenade which had some shopping and restaurants. We had dinner at Benihana that night which was good but not as good as Arirang, in my opinion.

Sunday July 12th
We had breakfast at a supposedly good breakfast place which I can't remember the name of now. We had to go early since our flight was leaving in the early afternoon and we needed to be at the airport and return the rental car. Breakfast was good but not the best. We then drove to the airport, checked in our bags, walked for like 25 minutes to get to the gate which was seriously at the end of the terminal, and then found our flight was delayed but only by 20 minutes or so. We got food to bring on the plane since JetBlue only gives you snacks. Finally we were off and back home in NYC before I knew it.

The next day was my trip to Washington for my fellowship conference - update to come shortly

Monday July 13th
Had to leave in the morning for the 4 hour drive to Washington DC. Luckily the drive was good and I got to the hotel in the late afternoon. I unfortunately don't remember too much about this trip except I took a walk around when I got there and had some thai food for dinner at the place Sydney and I went when she visited from Baltimore 2 years ago (I think). There was a Jonas brothers concert going on so there were all these little girls there screaming and shouting. After dinner I went to bed since the conference starts really early in the morning

Tuesday July 14th
Buffet breakfast at 8am - nothing great but at least they fed us. All of Monday was the conference presentations, until the late evening when they had a poster session reception with lots of appetizers such as chicken satay skewers, cheese and crackers, etc. All really good and basically I hovered around the food for the whole time. My friend Ben was not at the conference this year so I had to meet some other people to talk to. After the reception they had a social event at a fancy restaurant in Chinatown. There was more food there, mostly pastas, salads, and bread, but it was still good. Met some new people and it was fun.

Wednesday July 15th
More of the same thing as Tuesday, except in the morning we had free time so I went to the Capitol building to take some pictures. In the afternoon we also had free time so I went to the museum of American history. Finally, in the evening was the fellows poster session where I had my poster and it was being judged by people coming around to talk to you. I didn't win the prize but it was good experience. After the poster session Christine came to pick me up and we went for some good Mexican food and margaritas near Dupont Circle. I enjoyed that very much and then came back to the hotel and packed up my stuff for departure after lunch on Thursday.

Thursday July 16th
More conference stuff in the morning, and then a sit down lunch, and then it was time to leave. Had to get my car from the valet and then began the drive home. Normally Thursdays are Gourmet Grill day but I think I went to meet Jordan at Roll n Roaster for dinner, which of course was delicious.

Friday July 17th
Don't particularly remember what I did on Friday, although according to my Twitter I was in the apple store at some point.  I think possibly with Joey. I am pretty sure we went out on Friday night because I slept over at his apartment so that I could easily meet my parents for brunch the next day.

Saturday July 18th
Saturday I met my parents and sister for brunch at Norma's at Le Parker Meridien hotel in Midtown. The food portions were gigantic (although priced accordingly) but it was a fun experience. We then had tickets for West Side Story which was great. After that I met up with the girls at Cavatappo Wine Bar and then we went to Uptown to eat dinner. After that it was time to go back to Brooklyn.

Sunday July 19th
Went to brunch at KPD with my parents and probably just hung out and did some packing. I think I left for Ithaca the next morning but am not 100% sure.

All in all my time away from Ithaca was much needed and well spent, but it was nice to finally return after being gone for almost 3 weeks.

In the beginning of June, Jenn came up with Clario and others for reunion. I met up with them for lunch at Aladdin's one day (Which of course was delicious), and also at the Farmer's market for some food and just lounging around.  We also went to Shortstop right when Jenn got there and had the amazing French bread pizza.

The rest of June was somewhat eventful - went to Buttermilk Falls to hike with Topher. We actually spent quite a bit of time there and did a lot more trails than I knew existed there. I slipped on the rocks near one of the creeks and scraped my elbow. There is still a slight scar there but barely noticeable to anybody other than myself.

The weekend after Topher and I went to some Seneca Lake wineries. Did some of the usual ones like Tickle Hill and Red Newt but also found this hippie winery called Rasta Ranch which had the most amazing wine and great atmosphere inside. It was great that the wineries were so close to each other but that contributed to a lot of drinking. We had planned to go to Just a Taste afterwards but decided not to since we were all tired. When I got home I pretty much went to sleep (at 6pm).

June was also the first month I went to Felicia's. By now it's my usual hang out place. But really the bartenders are very nice there and most of them know my name, which is saying a lot considering how quiet I normally am there. Also in June was the start of my CSA that I did with Gina. Each week I went to the farm and got my share of veggies. In June it was a lot of greens and zucchini and summer stuff, and it was great seeing the types of produce change with the seasons. There was also a lot of Upick - June was strawberries and snow peas which I ate a lot of.

In the beginning of July I saw my first show at the Kitchen Theater - Gutenberg the Musical. We went on a Wednesday night at 7:30pm. It was hilariously funny and Topher and I decided to get subscription seats for the 2009-2010 season (which by the way, is now two shows in and both have been great so far). After the show I went to Purity to get banana ice cream, but they were out, unfortunately.

When I got back from my family vacation and conference in DC, there was a dance party at the Chanti loft, again on a Wednesday night. It was a 90's dance party and so much fun. Topher and I had also cooked some dinner beforehand, although I don't know specifically what. It might have been some pasta with zucchini, french bread with goat cheese and a balsamic glaze, and then some sort of salad. Whatever it was was very good. And thus began our cooking nights. Back to the dance party - it was fun. After it was over there were some after parties but I went home to greet Itay who was visiting for the weekend. On that Thursday I met Itay for lunch, probably at Sangam. We went to Maxie's for dinner that night and then to CTB and Felicia's. On Friday I met Topher for lunch up by Community Corners and had a cake from Sarah's Pastisserie for the first time (amazing). At night Jordan arrived and we all went to Oasis. It was a crazy night but everybody took care of me and we made it home safely. Saturday was spent very mellowly, farmers market and sitting on the slope for a bit. The 4 of us met up for dinner at Thai Cuisine which was good as usual. We then went to Rob's birthday party which was fun. The weekend ended with Alyssa's BBQ on Sunday.

The rest of July was filled with cooking nights, nights at Felicia's, and also an appearance by the State Street Diner. Of course despite eating at 1am I was still hungry the next morning for breakfast and went to CTB. Go figure.

August was another good month, spent mostly in Ithaca except for a short weekend trip to NYC. Farm Tuesdays was in full stride using the veggies from the farm. Eggplant made an appearance or two and we grew to love it. Also Zucchini bread was eaten quite a few times. Ate at Indian buffet downtown which is equally as good as the one in collegetown. They're essentially the same.

Also in August (I think) I saw a few movies at both Cinemapolis and the Regal Cinema at the mall. I saw Food Inc and Moon at Cinemapolis, both were very good. Moon was really creepy in a cool sort of way. At the Regal theater I saw Inglorious Basterds which was also surprisingly good - a nice combination of action, drama, comedy. Even though it was over 2 hours it went by really fast.

Joey made a visit to Ithaca in early August, along with Itay. We went to wineries, walked around campus, had some good meals, and also had a dance party at Topher's apartment. Lots of fun! The weekend after we went to more wineries with Topher's friend Amber who goes to school in Syracuse, and her sister who was visiting from Florida. A crazy day of drinking followed by dinner at Red Newt Bistro and then more hanging out at the apartment and then drinks at Felicia's. We also may have gone to State St diner afterwards. The day after we saw a kids production of Footloose and then had a BBQ at Rob's place.

Another weekend was spent cooking a turkey at my apartment with Itay and Topher, along with rosemary mashed potatoes and succotash. We had some wine too and around this time I also purchased a mini barrel of red truck = delicious. Topher and I also joined the Red Feet Wine store wine club, where you get 6 bottles of wine a month for $80. They always choose great stuff for us and they customize the breakdown of red/white/sparkling/rose as well, so really it's an amazing deal.

Later in the month Topher and I made a trip to NYC. Some highlights were Jenn and Sydney's apartment moving party where I got to see some old friends. There was brunch on Saturday at Maracas (I think) where you get unlimited drinks for an hour and a half. It was good and Joey told them it was my birthday so they gave a shot of tequila, a sombrero, and a chocolate cake to me. Good times. On Sunday we went to a place called Poco in the LES which had unlimited drinks and brunch for $20 - we sat at the bar and had a great time. Topher and I also had tickets to 9 to 5 and Toxic Avenger, and in between we had drinks at Blockheads of course. All in all a great time in the city.

And so ends August. You were a good month.

• 17:24 Somebody at bowling has a calculus textbook open to "Triple integrals in spherical coordinates". Oh the memories of freshman year

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