October

October was a beautiful month here in NY and I’m sad to see it go now that the brisk is turning blustery in what seemed like only a week. It was also a busy month for us-but busy in the fun way-not in the obligatory way. We took a vacation to Japan, which deserves a full trip report. It was beautiful and amazing. I celebrated my 29th with some low-key celebrations with friends. Nate and I also took a cooking class at De Gustibus, which was totally awesome. We’ve done this once before on a visit to NYC about 3 years ago and the guest chef teacher has now made his mark on the NY restaurant scene.

Over the weekend of the 18th we took a short road trip with our friends, Mike and Sarah, to yet, another Jersey Shore town for Kat and Dave’s wedding. I believe the name was Redbank and it was deserving of a visit over the summer for its cute shops, nice beaches and the famous Jersey hot dog (highly intriguing). The four of us managed to not take any advantage the quaintness and decided to make it a weekend of chain restaurants instead. I can confirm that oblong shaped chicken sandwich from Burger King was every bit as satisfying as I once remembered and that Applebee’s really is my neighborhood bar and grill.

Halloween was as memorable, as always. I was left up to my own devices on Friday and went to Courtney’s party as Baby from Dirty Dancing - complete with a watermelon and the corner that I had fashioned out of a cardboard box. No one put Baby in that corner for long, because it was impossible to use the restroom, not to mention, work a crowd. Nate joined me on Saturday for a party at a bar in Hoboken with Anni’s friends, where he wore, “the usual” that is now dubbed “Urban Cowboy” and looked as handsome as ever. He must have shed a few lbs this season, because there was not the usual need to lie on the bed to zip his britches.

The following Sunday we dragged ourselves out of bed for the NYC Marathon. We’d heard from everyone what a fun day this is in the city, so we didn’t want to miss it again this year-and we are so glad that we didn’t. One of the best parts is that the race ends in Central Park, and the park in the fall is about as beautiful as you can get for scenery. The other most amazing and inspiring scene is seeing thousands of runners being cheered on by thousands of strangers to push it to limits that I cannot even imagine are possible. Whoever still believes that New Yorkers are assholes should come out and watch this event. Not to mention - 1st Ave is one gigantic party and the bars are filled with racers, bands and everyone having a great time. We met some friends and made a regular Sunday Funday of it.