real friends

for a while, right before i got the plague, i was taking some time off from the lifestyle of "living in the city" and being in your 20s. i was just getting too broke, too tired, too stressed out (from school and drama) and just all around burnt out. so i hibernated for a while and took some time off from anything too festive, just doing work, relaxing and (if i could be bothered) going out around brooklyn.

this always happens to me every once in a while. life's so circular sometimes. after a long run of constant outings w/large groups of ppl, everything tends to get a little monotonous. drinking. tables. late night food (recently it's always been ktown). cabs home. and it's always the same ppl. and i can almost guarantee that 1 of the ppl calling me on friday or saturday night is someone i haven't talked to all week (or the last 2 wks) aside from a random IM or gchat during the week that essentially asks how the other's doing. aside from going out together to someone's birthday party (how is it ALWAYS someone's birthday on the weekends? and do i really know that many ppl? i don't think so) these aren't always ppl i have a quiet dinner or drink w/, go watch a movie w/, invite over just to chat, meet for coffee. don't get me wrong, sometimes they are. even when i go out more often than not there's at least 1 person there who's been through it w/me and done all those things i just listed. when i take these sabbaticals from socializing it tends to be b/c i'm starting to go out just to go out. and then i tend to be w/ppl who are really just looking to add more body counts to whatever event they're going to just to be that person who knows at least 30 ppl in the party.

excuse me, i just dry-heaved at the thought of those ppl.

but never fear, i did eventually de-funk and went to Spoon's birthday party at Naked Lunch. every time i go here it's mad crowded but the DJ is so cute. Spoon and i have really known each other since high school but we attended middle school together too (different cliques, you know how the suburbs are). regardless, we've stayed friends and she definitely fits into my keeper category. she can definitely be a handful sometimes (when she makes her mind up to go buck, all hell breaks lose and i've definitely had my indiscretions on outings w/her) but she's also there for the quiet stuff too, it also helps i haven't had to be too vigilant about watching her when we go out together cause she can take care of herself. Kiks (another keeper from college) and i met at the bar-as always i was running late and got lost. all named streets are my kryptonite when it comes to sense of direction-and stayed for a few drinks before i met the Twins at Park which i appreciate for the ease of getting in (being female and all) and the calmness of the downstairs juxtaposed w/the dance floor upstairs. Oni and Yuka met me there w/some boys they'd picked up and we all danced and lost each other multiple times over the night.

and of course we ended up in ktown eating. and the cycle starts again?

sometimes hard work pays off...

so the past week was a giant nightmare of work what w/my criminal midterm and first graded legal memo due. however, for the work wary, the small rewards are sometimes the best.
i took my midterm on thursday, 2 questions w/in an hour and 50 minutes, closed book. i breathed a sigh of relief when it was over and then went home to start my work for this week. what made it all worth it was my 4-month anniversary dinner w/Gohm at L'Impero, which, considerate bf he is, he picked b/c i always crave carb-y italian food. my night was already made when he greeted me by saying "you look nice". woo-hoo! that almost never happens. we headed towards the restaurant, which is hidden away on Tudor City Place, a suburb tucked away in midtown east. we did the prix-fixed menu, totally worth it for $64 (4 courses, choice of anything on the menu). best thing i got was the appetizer, fricaseed mushrooms w/creamy polenta. OMG, i would eat this everyday if i could. and this is where my night got better. i actually ordered the better app than Gohm, which also never happens. whenever we go places to eat, i am almost always secretly envying what he ordered b/c it tastes better than mine. shhh. interesting was also the vermont capretto i got as an entree. capretto is goat by the way, in case you didn't know (which we didn't). they braise it and it was so good, maybe a little salty but very tender. i got the rabbit ragu w/parpadelle (they make all their own pasta) but if given another chance, i would love to try their linguini w/pumpkin and oxtail. p.s., the setting at L'Impero is nice, very romantic but also a great place to have a fun and hearty dinner w/friends. only thing you might notice is that the crowd tends to middle-aged and above, so not very young and trendy. overall it was great dinner and a lovely date.

spent friday and saturday working on the legal memo but went out for Bubby's belated bday party at Naked Lunch on saturday night. Kiks tricked me into going (tho i would've gone anway) by telling me there was a cover only when i got off the subway. tricky tricky. don't think the place is really worth a $7 cover (no drink comps) but there was always a line and it was packed like sardines in there. got to meet Kiks' Maine squeeze (heehee play on words) but didn't get to meet Bubby's before i left. i guess i drank enough b/c the next morning i was told by Tina i reeked of alcohol. oops my bad.

my reward for working on my legal memo? i had a great sunDAY w/Gohm. we went to brunch w/Chow & Tina (amazing challah french toast, which yes, Gohm ordered, not me). poor Chow was salivating at the eggs benedict but was dissuaded from ordering it by Tina. turns out eggs benedict was listed Forbes' top 10 best worst foods for you. poor Chow just kept staring at the orders at other people's tables. after brunch Gohm and i went to get his glasses fixed (who knew indestructible glasses could break?) and then he accompanied me while i went cellphone shopping and then we popped into Barnes & Noble to buy some books after which we went home and took a nap. such a nice sunday.