I got a job

HOORAY I FINALLY GOT A JOB!!!!!!

I start work tomorrow at HeatUSA (the largest heating oil cooperative in the US) in SoHo. I am going to be taking in bound phone calls from people interested in joining Heat's heating oil cooperative. Customers generally save around 20% per year on their heating costs which will hopefully make them eager to sign up. It seems to be a great fit and in this economy I am so blessed to have found such a good job. I feel like I am a natural salesperson so I think this job will hone those skills. The office is pretty amazing as well. 23rd floor of the AT&T building in SoHo; with views of all of Manhattan. SoHo is also 10,000 times better than the financial district when it comes to restaurants, bars, location, people watching, and distance to my apartment.

But man it feels so weird to be joining the post-college real workforce. I am ready to start making money, having some consistency in my life, and being able to afford other meals besides $1 pizza slices. An amateur stock tip: when people are broke (like many Americans are now) they will buy generic and cheaper food.

I saw a guy with a beeper today.

You can find some cool places in NYC

Natalie and I passed by a restaurant a few weeks ago that only serves peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. I thought it was a pretty cool idea until I found S'mac.

S'mac is a restaurant in my neighborghood that only serves 12 different varieties of Mac & cheese. Today I tried the Alpine

A Swiss Mac that keeps you coming back for more. Gruyere coupled with its partner in crime, slab bacon. Hard to resist!

The bacon is amazing and the fried breadcrumbs on top are quality. If any of you bums ever come visit we will have to check this place out.

Two nights ago I went out with a friend from my Desoto middle school days. I seriously have not seen him in over 10 years (behold: the magic of Facebook). We went to a few cool dive bars and I was happy to educate him a little about McSorley's; an Irish bar that is 154 years old. He beat me in some highly contested dart matches but I sense a rematch on the horizon.

Beautiful day in the neighborhood

I guess I should update what I have been up to lately.

Two weeks ago I went to the Belmont to watch Big Brown imitate Rhett Bomar. It was quite an experience, but what a terrible letdown. The next day I went to Giants Stadium to watch my favorite two soccer teams face-off; Argentina vs. USA. I scalped some tickets for $40 before the game and moved down to midfield in the lower level. A lot of the players parents and family were in my section, to give you an idea of how clutch these seats were. The USA played above their heads and managed a 0-0 tie. If the Yanks had a striker who wasn't as god-awful as Eddie Johnson they could have won.

For the last week Natalie has been in town before she starts work. We went sake bombing with some friends, explored the Natural History Museum, and went to a Mets-Rangers doubleheader. It was perfect weather and we had a blast. Front row seats behind the Mets dugout didn't hurt the whole experience. This week we went to Central Park and tried to take advantage of all the cool restaurants and shops in the East Village. Last night we saw a free opera preformed by the Met in Prospect Park. We brought out some wine and cheese and had a blast.

I am still searching for a job, hopefully I find something this week.

Picture time

Here is New York

There are roughly three New Yorks. There is, first, the New York of the man or woman who was born there, who takes the city for granted and accepts its size, its turbulence as natural and inevitable. Second, there is the New York of the commuter--the city that is devoured by locusts each day and spat out each night. Third, there is New York of the person who was born somewhere else and came to New York in quest of something. Of these trembling cities the greatest is the last--the city of final destination, the city that is a goal. It is this third city that accounts for New York’s high strung disposition, its poetical deportment, its dedication to the arts, and its incomparable achievements. Commuters give the city its tidal restlessness, natives give it solidity and continuity, but the settlers give it passion.

-E.B. White

Hi

So I completely forgot to update this for the last 10 days, I have been having way too much fun. New York City is the titsssssssssssssss! I love it here. I am living in a 3 bedroom in the East Village with 3 college girls, yeah I don't know how I scored that either!? The EV is amazing, tons of great restaurants, bars, parks, and whatever else you could want. Perfect transition from Austin to NYC for me, lot's of happening places without too much pretentiousness or douchebaggery. Tonight I am going out with 5 friends from UT, 1 girl I met at summer camp in 9th grade and 3 of her friends, 2 guys I met in Rome last summer, and other random people I have met in the last week. How awesome is that?

I guess I will list the things I've done so far because I am short on time:
Nathan's hot dog at Coney Island on Memorial Day
Central Park (2x)
Ate at a restaurant that only sells french fries and 30 different types of dipping sauces
Went to McSorleys, an Irish bar that opened in 1854 and sells two types of beer, light and dark
Ate at a Tibetan restaurant
Volunteered with Habitat for Humanity
Met about 14 Texas Exes
Walked across the Brooklyn bridge and ate at Grimaldi's Pizzeria
Cookout in Williamsburg looking over the entire city
Landed some job interviews
Used the subway about 75 times
checked out 15 different apartments
Got invited to a weekend in the Hamptons
Avoided New Jersey
Shopped at Trader Joe's (10 blocks from my apartment!)
Played Battleship over a few beers in Brooklyn
Watched a crazy guy get arrested next to me in a coffee shop
"Networked"

So my sister's are all in Europe having the time of their lives, and my brother is training at an Air Force base in San Francisco, in a couple of years there may be a Clift on 5 of 7 continents. That would be awesome.

Natalie just got a job in DC/NYC over the summer and will be in town in 13 days.
I love my life.

I'm sooo excited...

I'm sooooooooo excited,

I'M SO SCARED!

Jesse Spano meth freakout


Yes, the rumors are true. I am moving to New York City (Brooklyn to be exact).

I am currently sitting in the Charlotte airport waiting to head to LaGuardia and enjoy my first day as a denizen of NYC. My flight was overbooked so I volunteered to wait two more hours in exchange for a round trip ticket anywhere in the lower 48. After spending 49 hours consecutively from Arequipa, Peru to Mendoza, Argentina, this seems like Heaven. The Charolette airport has more food booths than the state fair during TX/OU and I am cruising the internet on some free public wifi. I am taking suggestions on places/activities to use my free plane ticket. Chicago and San Fran seem to be in the lead currently.

Craigslist has produced some solid roommate leads and I am going to be touring a lot of apartments in Williamsburg this week. Williamsburg is the first stop over from Manhattan, and has a lot of young people and great music/bar scene. I think it will be a perfect area for me. About 5 of my top 10 favorite bands got their start here or call this area home. Some of the bands include: The National, The Hold Steady, LCD Soundsystem, TV on the Radio, Ratatat, The Rapture, and Clap Your Hands Say Yeah. Please for the love of Vince Young buy Boxer and Alligator by The National. This band is as good as it gets.