Tuesday, June 28th, 2006

"Eating, Not Smoking, Still Spending"

Coffee Settepani Bakery .75
MTA card $4.00
Sal's Pizza (on Court St.) $14.00
Rice (Fort Greene location) $12.00

I guess the tale is true, you know, when you quit smoking you eat more...
But I always ate more than enough when I was smoking too.
Here's what I spent on 2 dinners last night, yup 2.
Dinner at 8pm and dinner at 10pm.
The weather made me have to add money on an MTA card, had to train it to work, no biking today. I hate the train now, I can't believe it's taken me 3 years to discover biking rules in NYC. Saving so much money biking, and working off these nights of double dinners. Next time you're in the Carroll Gardens area, swing by Sal's Pizza , I call it the "wet pizza", just with sliced tomatoes, it's like juicy goodness, omigod, anyway, i linked a map to it...later!

Wednesday, June 21st, 2006

Cafe Madiba $5.00 Mojito

The Mojito was actually $10.00 and Steph covered the rest and included tip, I only had $5.00 cash on me, so I'll have to get her back...Anyway, it was a pretty darn expensive round of drinks, but Madiba's Mojitos are so worth it, and the atmosphere and beautiful people watching is fun. We each just had one and caught a buzz... We rode bikes to Fort Greene to check out some artwork at a cafe called Smooch, Nine works by an artist Kate Sterlin, they were these amazing multi-layered transparent photographs. That's how we ended up right around the corner for a drink, and we missed the reading and music in the park, ah well. It was a great night to sit outside, that's for sure.

Summer Solstice

"Riding Bikes and Saving Money"

Tuesday, June 20th, 2006

Whiskey Sour at the W Hotel $10.00

A dear friend of mine Mikeshot from Chicago e-mailed me the other day and expressed how he missed my spending blog, I then realized it had been nearly a month since I have written. My year long project still has about 4 months left, and then I kiss this blog goodbye, so I will continue to fill people in on my spending adventures and saving tips.
Last night I was lucky enought to go see Sandra Bernhard perform for free...In her show here in NYC called, Everything Bad & Beautiful. Sandy B. was off the hook, it was a blast! My friend Megan got some free tickets thorough her work and invited me as her date.
Okay, so a few things have changed in the past month, and I'm doing a couple of new things to cut back and save money, so I'll list them off...

1. I quit smoking Sunday, May 28th (haven't cheated once)
2. Riding bike or walking into work average of 3-4 times a week
3. Cancelled Netflix for the summer (it's too nice to stay in)
4. Making drinking rules (setting goals i.e. 2 drinks and then go home)

Change is good...

Wednesday, May 24th, 2006

A new hidden treasure...

Coffee Settepani Bakery .75
American spirit Cigs $5.00
Northeast Kingdom $30.00

The new discovery by "Brooklyn new gal of the century" Stephanie is practically in the middle of industrial nowhere land. It's off the Jeffersom stop on the L train in Bushwick, and it's the nicest little joint. The menu is comprable to Manhattan's Soho/Lower East Side food. Well, I guess even Williamsburg style (laid back posh)...I actually heard someone compare it to Freeman's Alley (a compliment), but at least I can afford this place. It was a great dinner with some girls, Amber(from Chicago) Sam (from Portland, Oregon), Stephanie, Emily and I. I shared the BLT with Sam, and the appetizer as well, toast with roasted eggplant, goat milk gouda and basil. I also slurped down a couple whiskey sours and still got away without feeling totally robbed. I'm thinking this is a great date place as well, going for a summer bike ride, exploring a different part of Brooklyn...and just when you think there's no place to grab a bite and a drink, you stumble upon the corner sign (see picture), and you enter this enchanting little place, with great decor, excellent wallpaper, and faux taxidermy. "The Northeast Kingdom" in Bushwick baby.

Tuesday, May 23rd, 2006

"$40 is the new $20"


Coffee Settepani Bakery .75
Coffee FIXX cafe on Bedford Avenue $2.00
ATM fee $2.00
Union Pool (2 whiskey and sodas) $14.00
Pete's Candy Store (2 whiskey and sodas) $10.00

Remember the days when you could go to the ATM and take out $20 and think to your self cool, this will totally get me through the night (or drunk)! Well I realized that hasn't happened in a really long time...I never just take out $20, I always take out $40, and pray it gets me through the night.

Tuesday, May 16th, 2006

Coffee Settipani Bakery .75
American Spirit Cigs $8.00
Bed Bath and Beyond (shoe rack, picture frame, garbage can) $46.57
Trojanowski Liquors (2 bottles of wine) $20.00

I was away for a bit, I actually went home to Chicago to see the family, well mostly the suburbs of Chicago, my parents moved out to Huntley, Illinois. "The Land of Consumerism". Yes indeed, and we did the usual routine of hitting up, Target, TJ Max, and Outlet Shopping that Noreen Salm (my mother) ritually and I do when I visit. It's funny, because I live in New York, which you would think I would be calling "The Land of Consumerism", more so than the suburbs of Chicago. But, observationally, I realize when I am there that it's incredibly hard to avoid, and that there is less entertainment and culture, therefore, you shop. The enormity of these stores provides you with so many more options, these open spaces that were once functioning farms are now Wal-Marts, Super Targets, and Old Navy. Not to keep going on and on about it, cus in fact I got some great deals, I must admit, and found guilty pleasure in indulging in the suburban consumerism world, and also enjoyed the great big grocery stores! You forget what it's like when you live in New York, in the burbs we get to push an SUV sized shopping cart through the wide aisles, and look at all of the options there are, so many choices, and grocery shopping becomes this almost zen thing. Here in NYC the grocery store becomes rather stressful, and getting through an aisle with a cart means there's an 80% chance of collision, or just pissing off the person in the aisle who just opted for the hand basket... Then sometimes that hand basket gets too full and your hand hurts from the metal handle, and you just get fed up, and then the lines...I can't tell you how many times I've filled up a basket, realized I had to pee, looked at the enormous line ahead of me, and just set my basket down, walked out of the store, and picked up some carry-out Thai food on my way home from the train. Not matter what, I still prefer city living, but grew to understand why many Americans enjoy the suburbs, whatever floats your boat!

Tuesday,May 2nd,2006

Coffee Settepani Bakery .75
Strand Bookstore:
The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle, Haruki Murakami $11.95
Purple Strand bookstore Yak Pak bag $13.95
Sales Tax $2.17
Belly (Bar on Rivington) $24.00
Car Service $7.00

Monday,May 1st,2006

American Spirit Cigs $7.50
Union Pool (drinks & photobooth) $16.00

I was going to borrow The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle from someone and not let myself buy it, it's crazy cus there is Murakami craze, and his books are lying all over our offices right now, and yet nobody had this particular one, the one everyone tells me to start with if you are going to read works by him, so I went to Strand Books and picked it up...I new where it would be sitting, on the best-selling Fiction table, yes, I'm one of those people that reads off the best-sellers list, my roomate has called me out on it, but you know what, there is a reason these books are best-sellers, they are really good! I couldn't stand it any longer, I've been hearing EVERYONE talk about what a good writer this man is, so being the follower that I am, I followed. I can't wait to get hooked on some Murakami, but I will not buy the next one I read, I will borrow it from someone. I should really start a book trading club, though the last time I proposed that idea to my friends they laughed at me. jerks.