So, I survived my trip. I am in the process of organizing, collating, and blogging my trip along with the digital pics that I took. I hope to have things organized sometime this week.
But, really, my apartment is thoroughly trashed and needs my immediate attention. It's a synonym of what Iraq looks like with President Bush in charge. And people are going to vote for this guy :-? ???
From North Brooklyn,
J. Riley
Tuesday, September 21, 2004
Thursday, September 16, 2004
Lagos
Hey folks, I´m checking in from Lagos, Portugal. It´s on the southern Atlantic coast of the country and is beautiful. Wait til you see the pictures! We got hooked up with a ~$20 per night apartment with a full kitchen and everything here in town. Yesterday we spent at the beach, where Alex proceded to increase his chances at getting skin cancer by getting fried. I, the older and mature one, lathered up with my SPF 36 sunscreen and am looking nice and pale still. Surprisingly, the water here is quite chilly, around the same as Santa Cruz. But, it´s so awesomely beautiful here, it´s worth facing the cold water to relax.
Cheers,
J. Riley
Cheers,
J. Riley
Monday, September 13, 2004
I´m alive!
Hey folks, I have four minutes to write about my whole trip so far. So hear goes nothing...
I´ m in Portugal at the moment, been in Lisbon for three days now. This is an awesome city, I´ve really enjoyed it. Lots of seafood and very pretty. I was in Spain before this, in Alex´s small town. The geography is just like CA only the majority of the people speak only Spanish or Portuguese. Oh wait, I guess it´s the same in CA....but lots of dry, arid landscapes, taking lots of photos, which I´l post later. On our way to the beaches in south Portugal after this, and then to Sevilla in Spain for a few days. I used some points to treat Alex and Verena to a stay at the Sheraton for free here, they were excited about the five-star hotelling that I´m used too.
Hope all is well,
J. Riley
I´ m in Portugal at the moment, been in Lisbon for three days now. This is an awesome city, I´ve really enjoyed it. Lots of seafood and very pretty. I was in Spain before this, in Alex´s small town. The geography is just like CA only the majority of the people speak only Spanish or Portuguese. Oh wait, I guess it´s the same in CA....but lots of dry, arid landscapes, taking lots of photos, which I´l post later. On our way to the beaches in south Portugal after this, and then to Sevilla in Spain for a few days. I used some points to treat Alex and Verena to a stay at the Sheraton for free here, they were excited about the five-star hotelling that I´m used too.
Hope all is well,
J. Riley
Thursday, September 09, 2004
I may have Chalazion numero
I may have Chalazion numero tres incubating on the same eyelid :-I . I hope they have running hot water in Spain
Eurobound - The Next Chapter
Well, tonight is the big night. I will be heading to Euroland for the second time this year, following up a successful trip to Germany and the Czech Republic in December 2003 / January 2004. I will be meeting up with my friends Alex and Verena again and will once again establish and secure my position as the third-wheel of the group.
This trip takes me to Spain and Portugal, where I will travel for a whole ten days. Yea, the new job gives me a total of two weeks paid vacation, so I don't think I'll be taking many more trips to the locations on the right in the next year :-( .
I don't expect to be hanging out online during my trip, but if I'm blind-sided by a high-speed connection at one point on the trip, I'll be sure to drop a line and let you know about the warm, baleric nights along the Andalusian penninsula.........
Peace Out,
J. Riley
This trip takes me to Spain and Portugal, where I will travel for a whole ten days. Yea, the new job gives me a total of two weeks paid vacation, so I don't think I'll be taking many more trips to the locations on the right in the next year :-( .
I don't expect to be hanging out online during my trip, but if I'm blind-sided by a high-speed connection at one point on the trip, I'll be sure to drop a line and let you know about the warm, baleric nights along the Andalusian penninsula.........
Peace Out,
J. Riley
The Midnight Special
So I've been piggy-backing off of my neighbors wireless intenet connection(s) for the past year, but I think that the free-loading has finally been put to a halt, but I'm not sure what the cause is. In any case, this, along with the fact that I'll be on vacation for 10 days starting on Thursday, means a shortage of blogging for the next few weeks. But, I digress....
The 3-day weekend came, and it is now about to leave. For you internationals out there, today is Labor Day. Friday night was pretty mellow, my former roommate Alan and his girlfriend came by and I cooked us some organic dinner, though it was a bit late by the time we sat down and ate (gotta love the traffic at 9:00pm on a Friday night coming into the city!!). I made a pitstop at my favorite gourmet grocery store, a mere block down from my apartment, and picked up an organic whole chicken (3-pounder), and whipped up some organic brown rice, cooked in free-range chicken broth and saffron. I didn't realize that brown rice takes a bit longer to cook (like, 40 minutes longer), which further delayed the full meal. But the chicken, treated with some oranges, rosemary, and onions, turned out quite juicy and quite tasty. Happy (free-range) chicken makes happy consumers :o)
Saturday, I was in for a treat. Jennifer Pitzen, who some of you may remember as my baby-sitting employer for my last two years in high school, was in town for the US Open Tennis Tour. I haven't seen any of the Pitzens for at least five years, probably more like 6 or 7 years. I used to babysit their three daughters, who were all in middle-school or elementary school the last time I saw them. Now, one of them is a year away from graduating college, the second is in her second year of college, and the baby of the family is entering high school. Unreal! So I spent the day with Jennifer, Rachel (the middle child, who is attending American University in Washington DC), and a few of Rachel's friends. I don't follow tennis, but it was pretty fun to see a top rated player like Agassi from the second row in the stands.
Saturday night was my former roommate Alan's open house, or "trying to think of a reason why we should go out", party. Well, we went out. We headed downtown to a cool hotel lounge called the Church Lounge, which was a pretty hip and pretty swank place, the type I don't frequent too often. After about an hour there, we walked down the street to S.O.B., a Latin dance club. Being the night before Brazilian Independance Day, I had high expectations for the atmosphere and I wasn't let down. We all had so much fun that we ended up staying until almost 4:00am! I got a chance to show off my moves (or lack-of) and get some cardio exercise on a weekend!
Sunday was the Brazilian Independance Day street festival in midtown, which was crazy! I gotta say, those Brazilian's sure do like to have their fun. There was lots of music, food, Capoeira (which is sort of like a martial art, sort of like dancing), and tons of Ronaldo jerseys.
After running errands, Sean and I met up for a movie (Wicker Park, which I highly recommend), followed by a trip down to Brasserie Julien to meet up with one of his acquantinces. It's a pretty cool French restaurant with good wine and a cozy atmosphere. They show old black and white French movies on two television sets set behind the bar. I was highly distracted by what was behind the bar, and I'm not talking about the television sets ;o) ...
The 3-day weekend came, and it is now about to leave. For you internationals out there, today is Labor Day. Friday night was pretty mellow, my former roommate Alan and his girlfriend came by and I cooked us some organic dinner, though it was a bit late by the time we sat down and ate (gotta love the traffic at 9:00pm on a Friday night coming into the city!!). I made a pitstop at my favorite gourmet grocery store, a mere block down from my apartment, and picked up an organic whole chicken (3-pounder), and whipped up some organic brown rice, cooked in free-range chicken broth and saffron. I didn't realize that brown rice takes a bit longer to cook (like, 40 minutes longer), which further delayed the full meal. But the chicken, treated with some oranges, rosemary, and onions, turned out quite juicy and quite tasty. Happy (free-range) chicken makes happy consumers :o)
Saturday, I was in for a treat. Jennifer Pitzen, who some of you may remember as my baby-sitting employer for my last two years in high school, was in town for the US Open Tennis Tour. I haven't seen any of the Pitzens for at least five years, probably more like 6 or 7 years. I used to babysit their three daughters, who were all in middle-school or elementary school the last time I saw them. Now, one of them is a year away from graduating college, the second is in her second year of college, and the baby of the family is entering high school. Unreal! So I spent the day with Jennifer, Rachel (the middle child, who is attending American University in Washington DC), and a few of Rachel's friends. I don't follow tennis, but it was pretty fun to see a top rated player like Agassi from the second row in the stands.
Saturday night was my former roommate Alan's open house, or "trying to think of a reason why we should go out", party. Well, we went out. We headed downtown to a cool hotel lounge called the Church Lounge, which was a pretty hip and pretty swank place, the type I don't frequent too often. After about an hour there, we walked down the street to S.O.B., a Latin dance club. Being the night before Brazilian Independance Day, I had high expectations for the atmosphere and I wasn't let down. We all had so much fun that we ended up staying until almost 4:00am! I got a chance to show off my moves (or lack-of) and get some cardio exercise on a weekend!
Sunday was the Brazilian Independance Day street festival in midtown, which was crazy! I gotta say, those Brazilian's sure do like to have their fun. There was lots of music, food, Capoeira (which is sort of like a martial art, sort of like dancing), and tons of Ronaldo jerseys.
After running errands, Sean and I met up for a movie (Wicker Park, which I highly recommend), followed by a trip down to Brasserie Julien to meet up with one of his acquantinces. It's a pretty cool French restaurant with good wine and a cozy atmosphere. They show old black and white French movies on two television sets set behind the bar. I was highly distracted by what was behind the bar, and I'm not talking about the television sets ;o) ...
Tuesday, August 31, 2004
Nuevo Casa
So, what does $1350 a month in rent get you in Manhattan? Come take a tour of my new studio! Ladies, it is heretofore your responsibility to provide me with recommendations on how to reorganize my room for maximum utility, although I have to admit that I like the setup as is....
This is the view from the front door. The bathroom is to the immediate right, and there are two closets on the right-hand sideo of the picture.
This is the opposite view of the view above, facing the door with my room behind me.
This 2'x2' area is my dining room, with my bed on the left. The table and chairs were purchased from the previous apartment lessor. Note the "video screen" on the phone, so I can see who wants access to my castle.
Ahh, the room where the action takes place in my bachelor pad - the kitchen! It's the perfect size and actually has enough room for me to fit all my pots and pans. Of course, the cupboards are brimming full of food ;o), and the counters are weighted down with German chocolate.
This is the view from the "kitchen doorway". You can see the bedroom (with the queen bed for a king :), the home office, and the living room from this unique vantage point! Note the bay windows, which have a wonderful view of a small, quiet street here on the Upper East Side, right across the street from a theater. They provide a LOT of natural light in my chateaux and I plan on growing herbs there (not THOSE herbs; basil, rosemary, oregano, etc.).
Another view of part of the bedroom and the living room. The space between the bed and the windows is open so that I can buy a "love seat" (or two-person couch for the bachelors out there). The idea is that I want plenty of open space around my "home office" so that I don't feel couped up when I'm slaving away behind my laptop for work.
A view of the home office from the middle of the living room.
Here's the living room, where the two-person couch will reside. Visitors should become familiar with this area, as I plan on setting up the guest blow-up mattress in this region of my cavernous palace.
A view from the living room, next to the home office.
Suggestions?
Special thanks to Paul and Sean for helping me lug my apartment-in-a-box up and down 2nd Avenue on the hottest day of the year. I only had to yell at Paul once after for "putting a bleeping nick in my piano" that I'd strapped to his back for the quarter-mile walk down the street while I supervised (There's Something About Mary ;o)
By the way, I visited a cool restaurant last weekend. It was a Malaysian-Indonesian restaurant called Eastanah. Check out the pictures of this place on the website! It had a very Yogan atmosphere. It was like yoga for the stomach. And the wallet...
This is the view from the front door. The bathroom is to the immediate right, and there are two closets on the right-hand sideo of the picture.
This is the opposite view of the view above, facing the door with my room behind me.
This 2'x2' area is my dining room, with my bed on the left. The table and chairs were purchased from the previous apartment lessor. Note the "video screen" on the phone, so I can see who wants access to my castle.
Ahh, the room where the action takes place in my bachelor pad - the kitchen! It's the perfect size and actually has enough room for me to fit all my pots and pans. Of course, the cupboards are brimming full of food ;o), and the counters are weighted down with German chocolate.
This is the view from the "kitchen doorway". You can see the bedroom (with the queen bed for a king :), the home office, and the living room from this unique vantage point! Note the bay windows, which have a wonderful view of a small, quiet street here on the Upper East Side, right across the street from a theater. They provide a LOT of natural light in my chateaux and I plan on growing herbs there (not THOSE herbs; basil, rosemary, oregano, etc.).
Another view of part of the bedroom and the living room. The space between the bed and the windows is open so that I can buy a "love seat" (or two-person couch for the bachelors out there). The idea is that I want plenty of open space around my "home office" so that I don't feel couped up when I'm slaving away behind my laptop for work.
A view of the home office from the middle of the living room.
Here's the living room, where the two-person couch will reside. Visitors should become familiar with this area, as I plan on setting up the guest blow-up mattress in this region of my cavernous palace.
A view from the living room, next to the home office.
Suggestions?
Special thanks to Paul and Sean for helping me lug my apartment-in-a-box up and down 2nd Avenue on the hottest day of the year. I only had to yell at Paul once after for "putting a bleeping nick in my piano" that I'd strapped to his back for the quarter-mile walk down the street while I supervised (There's Something About Mary ;o)
By the way, I visited a cool restaurant last weekend. It was a Malaysian-Indonesian restaurant called Eastanah. Check out the pictures of this place on the website! It had a very Yogan atmosphere. It was like yoga for the stomach. And the wallet...
Friday, August 27, 2004
Hurting Guy
So my sister Summer decided, in her infinite wisdom, that I needed to do something besides just Yoga at the gym (something about fitness...I don't know). I knew she was right, so I sent her to my gym's website and told her to figure out what classes I should take. She recommended a cardiovascular class called Total Body Workout that is held every Thursday. I was a little skeptical and was thinking that the class would be something like the 80's show "Fame" with leotard-wearing ladies doing jazzersize around a gym. That's not my scene, really.
But I went and was pleasantly surprised at the energy, the excersize, and the workout involved. Today, my body is like one gigantic sore muscle, and I LOVE it! I first felt the effects this morning at 4:45am when Alex decided to give me a call from Germany. Yea, read your text message again dude. I DIDN'T say to call me when I was sleeping... ;o)
Tomorrow morning I'll be packing up my apartment into a box and moving over to my new apartment. I forsee another day of "soredome" on Sunday....
But I went and was pleasantly surprised at the energy, the excersize, and the workout involved. Today, my body is like one gigantic sore muscle, and I LOVE it! I first felt the effects this morning at 4:45am when Alex decided to give me a call from Germany. Yea, read your text message again dude. I DIDN'T say to call me when I was sleeping... ;o)
Tomorrow morning I'll be packing up my apartment into a box and moving over to my new apartment. I forsee another day of "soredome" on Sunday....
Wednesday, August 25, 2004
Address Update
Update your address book, people, I'm moving soon:
Justin Haines
317 E. 91st St. Apt. 2C
NY, NY 10128
My phone number (mobile phone, 408-XXX-5756) will stay the same.
Justin Haines
317 E. 91st St. Apt. 2C
NY, NY 10128
My phone number (mobile phone, 408-XXX-5756) will stay the same.
Tuesday, August 24, 2004
Epiphany
Epiphany (e·piph·a·ny)
I had an epiphany the other day. My good high-school friend Russ and I like to remind each other of these stories with each other, because we have some good ones, such as many drawings of dogs with satellite dishes, drawings of certain Italians, physics projects, technological terms, etc (Sorry, inside jokes!). Well, I realized that I wish I would have kept some relics from those days, such as many of Russ's genius, comical drawings, photographs, etc.
Then, the epiphany hit me. I am living in NYC, the center of the universe, and I have not bothered to find or define such relics, I have a digital camera sitting on my desk that I never use, and I'm having the time of my life! But, in ten years, I'll look back and say "Wow, I was living in NYC in my twenties, and all I have are memories." Not that there's anything wrong with memories, but why not support those with some other items?
With that in mind, I am contemplating the purchase of a new, smaller digital camera to capture my life as a twenty-something single (and very eligible ;o) guy in the center of the universe. A Canon Powershot S410, to be exact....
- A sudden manifestation of the essence or meaning of something.
- A comprehension or perception of reality by means of a sudden intuitive realization.
I had an epiphany the other day. My good high-school friend Russ and I like to remind each other of these stories with each other, because we have some good ones, such as many drawings of dogs with satellite dishes, drawings of certain Italians, physics projects, technological terms, etc (Sorry, inside jokes!). Well, I realized that I wish I would have kept some relics from those days, such as many of Russ's genius, comical drawings, photographs, etc.
Then, the epiphany hit me. I am living in NYC, the center of the universe, and I have not bothered to find or define such relics, I have a digital camera sitting on my desk that I never use, and I'm having the time of my life! But, in ten years, I'll look back and say "Wow, I was living in NYC in my twenties, and all I have are memories." Not that there's anything wrong with memories, but why not support those with some other items?
With that in mind, I am contemplating the purchase of a new, smaller digital camera to capture my life as a twenty-something single (and very eligible ;o) guy in the center of the universe. A Canon Powershot S410, to be exact....
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