Happy Hour

I was born and raised in New York City, and when I was in our latter high school years my friends and I would hit the bars, but never for happy hour.  After graduating from college and moving back to NYC from Los Angeles, now as a single, working professional, happy hour has become my favorite aspect of NYC for a few reasons: a) there are so many good places to explore and choose from and b) every girl likes a man in uniform, or for New York City men, a man in a suit.  I always ask my friends, why is a man in a collared shirt and slacks or a suit so ridiculously sexy?  We all unanimously came to the conclusion that it's sexy because it's "manly."  The corporate look is a very alpha make look and when you place that prototype of a guy at a bar, it just looks so good.  Nothing like business and alcohol mixed together for an after work good time. Recently, I have picked up on these few hot spots to check out the corporate boys drinking booze for the after work social hour:

1) The Rose Bar at the Gramercy Hotel

2) Rue 57

3) Redemption

So check them out, let me know if you agree/disagree. -The Know it all New Yorker-

Post-Oscar Infatuation

Hello all you fabulous people,

Well, the Oscars this year in general did not disappoint, however I have a few broad hopes for the future ;)  First of all, I'm sick of the fact that the Oscars take place in Hollywood every year, with no celebrity follow up in the city that never sleeps?  I for one would like the celebrity winners to be invited to a post-Oscar bash in New York, so us 'New Yoka's' can enjoy the scene.  I mean, the Oscars are supposed to support the intellectual, well written, directed, acted, designed movies, not the Confessions of a Shopaholic MTV awards.  So, They should really have an after Oscar-party in NYC since we are the theatre hub of America.  Can anyone say, Broadway? As an intellectual epi-center, I vote to propose a New York After Oscar Special.  The fun should end in our town, on our side of the country.

My second observation has to do with Mr. Sean Penn. Although I predicted he would win the Best Male Actor Award, I don't think he deserved it.  I was rooting for The Visitor star, Richard Jenkins or Frost/Nixon's, Frank Langella.  But, Penn's character was so outlandish and passionate by the nature of the movie, I knew he'd snag it some how.  Now, on a completely different note, I'm going to be brutally honest.  Last night I realized my intense infatuation with Sean Penn.  I think he's probably sort of a jerk, but I'm officially obsessed and I realized how badly I want to meet this guy.  Even if you dislike him for his political actions/statements, you have to admit he is sort of a fascinating guy.  That lackadaisical expression, the frantic hair, the I'm too cool attitude permanently plastered on his face, his general bad boy appeal is so infatuating, and that's precisely why I'm hooked.  And just like that, I'm out for tonight folks, stay tuned next time, because in order to know it all, you've gotta' know me. -The Know it all New Yorker-

Friday madness

Hey everyone,

It seems to me that every Friday New Yorkers are happier than ever.  It must be a combination of our fast paced city and the fact that most of us either work very hard during our normal hours/just work very long hours in general.  But now, more than ever before, I'm seeing New Yorkers become particularly excited about each Friday rolling up to the weekend.  Can you guess why?  Of course you can: the economy has hit New York particularly hard. It's hit our bank accounts, stock investments, job security and so much more.  Plus, we have to deal with the fact that some people want to change our country and make is less competitive (socialized) and others want America to stay #1, and in order to do that, let's face it people, we need free market, capitalism.  So now, everyone is up in arms. Some are scared their businesses won't survive if the government continues to have power within the private sector and others are pushing for that.  Now, let me tell you how we can fix all this mayhem just a bit by at least improving our economy a bit, and thus making things better for everyone: SPEND!  In an economy that is 70% consumer driven, we need to start spending a little more!  If we do, magically our stock portfolios will start going up, and financers and street people alike will be making more money.  Businesses will start hiring again, and the unemployment rate will magically go down ;)  Weekends are our prime time to do this.  We have more time to eat, shop, hang out with friends and family, travel, and can pursue our own hobbies (i.e. working out, skiing, or if you're twenty-something and single like me, dancing with friends until the wee hours of the morning ;), whatever it is we like to do, our weekends are the time to make it happen.  So go out there, spend the little money that we all have, and feel good about it in the process-you're an American, gosh darnit', act like it ;)

The real gossip girl gives you the real New York deal...

To all of my guests,

First of all, welcome!  I'm thrilled that for the first time ever, I will be able to bring the mythical figure of the "Gossip Girl" to life in giving you on the spot, up to date info. on the latest NY has to offer when it comes to events, social gatherings, etc, except I will also take it a notch further and give you more in depth analyses of the latest state of our great city and the reasons (or should I say) misconceptions so many miss out on experiencing the once in a lifetime opportunity to live in the greatest city in the world.

Now, as my friends in Hollywood say, let's cut to the chase.  First order of business is New York fashion week, which is taking place this week at Bryant Park.  I attended the Dennis Basso show Tuesday with a girlfriend of mine who invited me, and I must say, although the show was great (regardless of whether or not you support the fur trade-Dennis Basso is known for his furs ;), I must say that the highlight of my day was meeting Star Jones.  Now, I don't have a problem with Star.  I think she handled herself decently in the public eye when things went south with Barbara.  However, my criticism of her came when she came on to Larry King, and although I have not yet had the pleasure of asking her this question, I would like to interview her in the future and ask about the comment she made on the show supporting Johnnie Cochran, O.J. Simpson's attorney when he was on trial for viciously beheading his ex-wife and her friend, Ronald Goldman.  I mean, how can you support and show appreciation for someone who supported and represented a man we all knew was GUILTY OF MURDER!?!?  Seriously people, where has common decency gone?  However, regarding decency, I supported her when she publicly called on Barbara Walters for some of the past events she detailed in her latest book titled "Barbara Walters: An Unauthorized Biography" in which she detailed the name of the man she had an affair with years ago.  That's right Barbara, tell everyone this man's full name so you can have a juicy story, while ruining his family's life.  This happened years ago, and if you wanted to talk about it openly, you didn't need to use his name out of respect for his family and their children.  And I'll agree, what Barbara did was ten times worse than what Star said, but let's hold everyone accountable for their own actions here, Ok?  What Barbara did however, was just plain crude and low class. Period.

Next order of business:  A girlfriend of mine and I went out in midtown yesterday for Happy Hour and she started to tell me about some of her friends from Auburn (where she went to college) who don't want to move to New York because they think New Yorkers are "mean."  My friend (we'll just call her "J"), started to tell me about Auburn and how people there generally wanted to stay within their own group of friends from the time they entered college to graduation.  Wow, sounds like a lot of fun.  It's one thing if you make close friends that bring joy to your life and so you spend a lot of time having fun together. That's wonderful, but if you mostly just want to hang out with one social group for all four years, whether or not you're close with these people, well, that's just sort of sad.  You're missing out on an entire university of people!!  Also, according to J, guys didn't really hit on you at Auburn, they only spoke with you if they knew you from the same social group or if they knew you from another outlet of some sort.  I could totally empathize with this as it is very similar at USC.  Guys don't really hit on you around campus, you only talk with them if you know them, which isn't very fun.  So J was telling me that New Yorkers are sooooo much friendlier!  She has had three dates in the past week!  She never got three dates at Auburn, let alone one, as guys didn't really ask girls out on dates ;( She feels a lot more comfortable here just flirting with random guys on the street, and she thinks the hustle and bustle of this fun exciting city is the reason :)  I agree.  Nothing against the south by the way, I love the south and I know how beautiful many of the areas are, as well as the people who are often well dressed and polite, but I know so many southern transfers here in Manhattan, and since we like you all so much, we want more of you!  Come and enjoy the City that never sleeps, and I'm sure you'll fall in love as my friend J has ;)

That's all for now folks, but come back to hear my reviews on certain hotspots, how to's when it comes to getting to know the right people in this big City, and my thesis that fabulosity is not given to a person with looks or money to buy it, it's a choice, a state of mind, shall we say ;P Until next time! -The Know It All New Yorker-