What's going on, Pt 4: Broke into the old apartment.

Staying-Ins: Sometimes it's best just to stay home.

Brian the Roommate moved out in October.  Now I have my own bedroom (yay!), but he took most of the living room furniture (boo) and he doesn't live here anymore (double boo).  So Carlos bought the Grandpa Chair of the Century from some guy in the building.

Yummy banana bread recipe.

Snow!  Those are not white cars.

It was a Halloween miracle!

He just couldn't wait to use that buzzer.  And he got to use it a lot because I am not very good at Taboo.

The devil has built a robot!
Not really.  But the roommates did build a wardrobe.
 I contemplated living in there and renting out my room for extra income.

Sugar overload is a regular occurrence in the apartment.

Chris captioned this photo: Not having it. :)

Obviously at Target but still good, clean fun.  Apparently my eyes are the color of all blue-eye-colored anything.

And that's a wrap, people!  If you hung in this long, kudos!  Hopefully it won't be another five weeks between blogs; I don't think you or I could do four-in-one regularly.  If it is, then Happy Thanksgiving and see you next time!

What's going on, Pt 3: Cause this city is my city.

Going-Ons: It is an interesting, beautiful city.

Sunday, November 6, was the ING NYC Marathon.  To cross, you just run through the runners.   Cheering for them was fun.  This is four hours after the start time around Mile 19.  Maybe next year?

One Sunday, Chris, Carlos, and I trekked to Brooklyn for an IKEA Extravaganza.  While Chris shopped for his new apartment, Carlos and I wandered.  Ikea is intense, people.  When we couldn't handle it anymore, we sat on benches outside and watched a plane write a message over downtown Manhattan.  Lost our ... what???  We never found out.

Wandering through Central Park is one of the most relaxing things to do on a beautiful Sunday.  This couple was taking wedding photos.  Or they are models posing for a wedding shoot.

A children's musical group performing operatic pop hits.

A girl posing for quincenera photos.

Random roller skating party.  Same park, same day.  Something for everyone.

Giant bubbles!

It was so fun and relaxing to watch.

Times Square.

Cristiane and me at karaoke for her birthday.

Central Park.

Oh, the places you'll go.  We'll go.

What's going on, Pt 2: Food, glorious food.

Food: NYC has some of the best food in the world, right?  I even made some of it myself. 

Katz's Delicatessen!  Remember in When Harry Met Sally, when Sally schools Harry in the art of *ahem* pretending?  This is that restaurant. :)

                                             

  

 The first sign reminds diners to "Send a Salami to your Boy in the Army."  The second sign hangs above the table where the WHMS scene was filmed.
I forgot to take a picture of the food though, because it wasn't spectacular or anything.  Plain ol' piled-high turkey sandwich.

Cristiane, one of my roommates, and I went to a French restaurant for brunch on Sunday and had these delicious omelettes.  I believe it was feta, spinach, and peppers.

Lots of coffee shops and delis don't have seating inside the store.  Instead, there is counter space along a window or wall.  Yes, this is at Starbucks, but I always feel a little more New York when I stand at the counter to enjoy coffee. 

You can never go wrong with Halloween cookies.  Sugar cookies with Reese's Peanut Butter Cups and candy corn.

At Babouche, a Mediterranean restaurant in Brooklyn, I had really tasty skirt steak with roasted vegetables.

Carlos had chicken .... I don't remember what it's called, but it steamed like crazy, smelled delicious, and he liked it.

Down the block from the store I took over last week, there is a fabulous pizzeria called Monty's.  The lunch special -- personal pizza and a drink for only $7 -- is dangerous and fantastic.

What's better than soup on a snowy night?  Chockful O' Everything Chowder you make yourself!  Corn, potato, broccoli, and cheddar cheese.  Mmmmm.

More pizza!  Grimaldi's is a wildly famous pizzeria in Brooklyn that only sells pizza pies and has lines for days outside all the time.  My friend, Chris, and I went to the Manhattan location instead (yay, Groupon) and -- while I've heard that it's not as good as the original -- the pizza was freaking awesome.  Bonuses: We didn't have to wait, and the restaurant is located inside a cool converted stone church building that now houses boutiques and eateries.

Chorizo breakfast burrito from El Paso.  Spanish Harlem (El Barrio) is one of my favorite parts of the city because all of the Mexican restaurants and Spanish language feels like home.  There's even a taco truck I mean to try one of these days.

Unfortunately I haven't taken as many pics of my food as I thought I had.  You'll just have to imagine the goodness of homemade spaghetti and meatballs (really!) and cinnamon spice cupcakes.  Delish.

What's going on, Pt 1: Working hard for the money.

Man, oh man, who can believe that October has come and gone already?  Have I mentioned that life in NYC moves at warp speed?

So what have I been up to?  Working and cooking and going out and staying in ... wanna see?  We'll make this easier and divide the posts.

Work: My second store in Brooklyn was 50 Court St.  I worked there for three and a half weeks.  Don't worry -- pics of MY store will come soon!

Court St in downtown Brooklyn.  I worked with the current manager, Tasha, who is also from California (Bay Area, Aunt Chuckie!).  This store is the busiest I've ever worked in, but I learned a lot and had a really good time getting to know the partners who work there.

                                

                                       The store was literally next to a subway entrance for my train home -- handy!

                                                    

The store is across the street from the Brooklyn court system.

   

Inside the store -- ten people in queue, and that's considered a short line.  Like I said, it's busy.

View from the steps of the Municipal Building. On nice days, I would eat lunch here.

My favorite graffiti at the train station near my apartment.  "Beso" means "kiss" in Spanish, and this makes me smile every time I pass it.

Every day is a new day, I'm thankful for every breath I take.

She's alive!  Two blog posts in a month, people -- rocking and rolling is what we call that. 

Life in NYC is great!  I started work last week and really like my store.  I'm currently at the Starbucks in Park Slope, Brooklyn, and am having a great experience thanks to Lydia (SM), Celina (ASM), and all the awesome partners who've been so welcoming and understanding for the first few days as I got my groove back.  Thank goodness working at Starbucks is like riding a bike, or three weeks of vacation would have been my downfall.

Next week, I move to another store in downtown Brooklyn to continue my Brooklyn immersion.  I'm excited to work there for a couple of reasons -- it's super busy, and the store manager is from California!  (She moved here a year ago.)  It will be awesome to keep learning about high-volume cafe market from someone who's been through some of the challenges I face in mindset-adjustment.

But ENOUGH about work!  Time to tell y'all a bit about what I've been up to.  I'll let some pictures do the talking ....

Park Slope Starbucks.

The angel that greets me at my subway stop in Brooklyn every morning.

Awesome chalkboard greets customers inside.  The artwork is done by Meggi, a partner at the store.

Happy birthday to Cristiane, one of my roommates!

I surprised her with strawberry cheesecake brownies -- delicious, if I do say so myself!

Wild Rise is an up-and-coming pizza "joint" run by the son of some regulars from Fresno -- small world.  And some of the most amazing pizza I've ever had.

As you can see, Carlos and I dug in before I could remember to take a picture.  Well worth the trip to Brooklyn!

Waterfront dinner -- the view of downtown Manhattan from Brooklyn Bridge Park.

There's a new Starbucks in town!  An AMAZING redesigned flagship store in the heart of Times Square.

Coffee wall a la Pike Place.

What we do and why we do it.

Giant RTD case with two pastries cases!

Media and retail wall!  Take a picture on the other side, post it to a social networking site, then see it displayed in the store!  Buy exclusive merchandise!

Our mission is to inspire and nurture the human spirit ...

... one person, one cup, and one neighborhood at a time.