UPGRADE!

Oh, weekends, how I love thee. Even though I never read the weekend recaps of anyone I don't know in real life, I feel compelled to write a weekend recap anyway, however boring to you all, because this weekend was so freakin awesome. It will be rife with NYC supermegafuntime links!

Thursday
Let's start with the afternoon, when my friend Crapface (she has a real name, but I hardly ever use it. She also calls me Crapface) came down to my hood for some big gay ice cream (follow them on Twitter @biggayicecream). It was big and gay and delicious. I later met a friend from my Australia study abroad program for dinner at Patsy's.

While at dinner I got a voicemail from a high school friend who said she was in my area. We decided to meet up in the Lower East Side (henceforth known as the LES, which is how I normally refer to it) so I could do a review for my internship which I realized I haven't talked about..at all. I review bars! For an internship! Hooray! We went to Loreley, a super awesome beer garden (excuse me, biergarten), and were eventually joined yet again by Crapface and my friend Anna. We drank massive beers, ate a basket o'hot pretzels, and were merry. Anna decided she wanted to dance ("I just want to dance! I just want to express myself through the art of dance!"), so Crapface and my high school friend went home while Anna and I stumbled around the LES looking for a party. We did a whirlwind tour of LES bars, going from Fat Baby to La Caverna to Mason Dixon (where we stayed to watch people ride the mechanical bull, and would have done it ourselves had we not both been in dresses) to Sapphire Lounge. We made one final stop at bOb but there was a $5 cover and decided that was a sign that the night was over. P.S., we never found adequate dancing. Saddest of times.

Friday
On Friday I actually had a temp job to go to! Imagine that. So I went to work, hauled ass home and went to Queens for the Mets/Diamondbacks game. My friend Shari is a secret shopper and she gets to do all sorts of fun stuff (like, go to baseball games) for free. It rained like crazy and the Mets lost but whatever, free Mets game! Plus, it was Fiesta Latina night so we got free Reyes jersey beer cozys (koozies?) that said "Los Mets" on the front. Word.

After the game I went home, put on some makeup, and met my friends at Sing Sing, where karaoke was in full swing. We belted out some tunes, watched my friend almost get in several fights over the mic, and left to go to China 1. I had the following conversation with a nice drunk fellow:

Drunk Fellow: Where are you from?
Arielle: I'm from here.
DF: Where? Long Island?
A: Er..I grew up in Queens (this is only partially true, but I say it anyway)
DF: Really? Where?
A: Rego Park.
DF: Cool, I'm from Seattle.
A: Uh..ok.

5 minutes later...

DF: HEY! Are you Greek?
A: What?!? No.
DF: Are you from Queens?
A: ....yes
DF: Cool, Astoria?
A: NO.
DF: I'm from Seattle!
A: I KNOW. Bye.

We then tried to go to some secret bar in a pizza place on Avenue A (I think?) but they were having a private party so we were DENIED. Then I went to go pass out.

Saturday
I woke up, got ready and went to Queens yet again for Lacey's pants party. We tried on pants, ate snacks, and drank blue drinks that I made (some more successfully than others) with my bartending skills. In addition to our free goodies, I won a $50 Gap giftcard for coming up with the best jeans-themed drink name (Zip me up, buttercup). BOOYAH.

Post pants party (hehe) we had some delicious Lemon Ice King. While at Lemon Ice King I got a text from my friend Nancy asking if I wanted to go to dinner in Brooklyn. At first I was all "ugh" and then I realized I had no reason why I couldn't go to Brooklyn other than my general distaste for leaving the mother borough. So I went home, freshened up, and headed to Park Slope to meet Nancy and Shari (my Mets game buddy) at Applewood. Nancy just read In Defense of Food and so she's on an organic eating kick and wanted to try this restaurant.

Let me tell you something about this dinner.

It was the best meal I've eaten in my entire life. I don't mean that as my normal "BEST _____ EVER" hyperbole, I mean that I have never eaten such F'ING AWESOME FOOD as what I ate (and drank) at Applewood. Not only would I travel back to the Slope to eat here again, I would climb Everest if you told me I could have another cucumber martini and grass-fed beef ribeye with potato puree at the top. The apps, the dessert, the service and of course the company were equally as fabulous. Holy jesus.

After dinner I went back to Manhattan to see my friend Penelope, who was in town for the weekend, at Les Enfants Terribles. I hadn't seen her in years and it was fabulous to catch up, even if the bar was in the middle of nowhere (I didn't even know they had bars on Canal St., really). Penelope is hoping to move to NY sometime soon and that, my friends, is excellent.

Sunday
I got on the train to go to Queens, yet again, for another Mets game. While at the game on Friday, they made an announcement that Sunday was free t-shirt day. Shari is a t-shirt whore and so she signed up to mystery shop the Sunday game as soon as she got home from Friday's game. The game was delayed by 2.5 hours due to rain, and the Mets lost again, but it was still fun because Shari is excellent company, I love live sporting events, and hello, hot dogs. Yum.

I went home, started packing (I'm heading back to the Jerz for the rest of the summer, wah), watched Kendra, and passed the f out. I. LOVE. NEW. YORK.