I went to Poolesville, MD first to see Joey. I almost got lost in NoVa on the way up there, but luckily my mom had given me her GPS before I left. I got there around dinner time and met his friend Kristen. We went to dinner in the main part of his small town and didn’t have the best service but I still enjoyed the company. Then we went back to Kristen’s house and played pool and watched The Descent since I haven’t seen it yet. I accidentally kicked Joey because I jumped during the movie. After the movie, we watched Food Network until midnight then Joey and I went back to his house. On the way there we took a detour to go to the bank of the Potomac river, which was cool because across the river was Virginia. After going to the river we got to his house and went to bed. I couldn’t sleep until 3am for some reason but eventually I did.

I woke up around noon and met his mom in the kitchen, who was very nice. I also got to play with his new kitten some more, and by play I mean take her off the counter a few times. I wanted to see the horses he was boarding so we went out to his field to try to find them. They were nice and one seemed to really like me. After that we picked up Kristen and headed to Bethesda for lunch. Lunch was at Mongolian BBQ, which is where his brother was working. The guys on the grill were nice enough to separate my food from everyone else’s and to use clean tongs (is that the right word?) but I’m pretty sure they were annoyed with the amount of sauce I used. Woops. After that we went back to Joey’s but I couldn’t stay because I needed to get to Baker’s. I drove down the street and realized my car felt weird, shook a little and made weird noises. I was worried my lug nuts were loose (my mind always goes back to the latest problem I’ve had with cars) so I turned around to see if Joey could help. He realized my back right tired was flat, so we changed my tire and back on the road I went.

I arrived at Baker’s Mom’s place in Sparks, MD right before dinner. Baker told me that Rob wouldn’t be joining us because his dad developed an irregular heart beat and passed out. Rob decided to stay with his family for the time being. Baker and his mom had gone to Wegman’s earlier and bought me some vegan frozen manicotti which were really good. They had leftovers from a Christmas dinner. After dinner Mother Baker got her suitcase on rollers from where it was so that I could pack my New York stuff in that, instead of carrying my big duffle bag.  I managed to cram a few outfits (a few too many I later realized) and was all set. I chatted online for a bit then fell asleep.

We woke up in the morning, got ready to leave, and headed to Penn station in Baltimore. Baker and I printed our tickets and waited for the train. I didn’t mind waiting because there was a hot guy standing near us. Once our train arrived, we scurried to the loading area and once on, Baker and I went different directions to try to find two seats together. I ended up sitting in the business section which was nice until baker said I would be kicked out, so I moved back a car and we sat like a row apart. About half way through the trip some people left, including a hot euro guy, so we moved to sit together. We got to New York after 1pm and took a taxi to his aunt and uncle’s apartment in Upper East Manhattan in Eastbrook. It was my first time in a taxi and man, what a ride it was. The driver zoomed in and out of cars and really loved his horn. We made it to the building and were greeted by the doorman. Upstairs we went to drop off our stuff. I met his aunt, who was nice, and got a tour of the apartment. It was really nice, nothing like on TV (damn Friends and Sex and The City) but still amazing. They had one of the only two terraces in the building. We printed tickets to go to the Empire State Building and headed to the subway. The location of the apartment was really nice. It was about four blocks from central park and not far from the subway either.

We got our 7-day unlimited subway passes and rode the 6 downtown. We got out of the subway and I thought I saw the ESB so we walked that way. Turns out what I saw was the Chrysler Building, so we turned around and headed back towards the subway. We got there and saw a LONG ass line outside the building. We weren’t sure if we had to wait in it since we had printed tickets, so we went inside and talked to the lady at the escalator and she told us to go to the back of the line.  Apparently only people who paid for the express tickets could skip all lines ($15 more). We were about to leave the building but I saw a gap in the line so we jumped the ropes and luckily didn’t get caught. Even though we skipped like over an hour wait, it was still two hours before we got to the top. There were ridiculous lines winding throughout all the lobbies. My lower back started to get really cramped, but once again, hot guys made it not too terrible. The top was nice; we got there right as the sun was setting. It got cold though and really windy on one side. I got some pictures all each side, and then we went back down.

Baker had talked with his aunt and uncle and we planned on having dinner with them before they left for Connecticut. We walked around the city before dinner and ended up spending most of the time in Lord & Taylor. It was a really pretty store with great window displays. Baker and I found some scarves we liked, but I wanted to check out the men’s level for jackets before I spent any money. I really went into NYC thinking I was going to buy either a nice pair of jeans or a new jacket.  We got up to the correct floor and I realized I wouldn’t be able to afford the jackets. I saw some sweaters I liked, but Baker told me they were all the same as the ones I already have (argyle and such), so we browsed the store. He wanted a good shirt to club in and I checked out the sale area. I found a few things I liked, but eventually fell in love with a grey zip up knit hoody that fit perfectly. I bought that on that floor, and while waiting for the elevator I got some water from the jug and ended up spilling it in the hallway somehow. We went back to the scarves and we both bought one. Overall I spent about $100 in L&T. Then we walked to the restaurant where we were meeting his aunt and uncle, which was Pershing Square. On the way I got to see the Public Library (hey hey Day After Tomorrow, where is the flood?). We got there a bit early so we crossed the street and went into Grand Central Station to look around before dinner. Pershing Square was good; I got a good vegetable chili that came with rice and guacamole. It didn’t hurt that there was a hot waiter worker, even though he wasn’t our waiter. After dinner we walked around the city more. I got a dress shirt from H&M and saw some landmarks. A few to name are the Trump Tower (closed by the time we got to it), Juicy Couture, St. Regis, Louis Vuitton, and Rockefeller Center. We also passed through Times Square during the trek, which was already really crowded. We ended the sightseeing at the Apple store. It’s so big and really crowded, and luckily they had a bathroom. After browsing the store, we went back to the apartment to relax.

Baker thought it would be a good idea to check out some clubs to see where we wanted to go on New Year’s Eve. I texted Zach to see what he was doing and if he wanted to join us. Turns out he was at a club called Splash. He said splash wasn’t very good so we directed him towards Rush which was around the corner, but unfortunately it was closed. They went home but Baker and I decided to head down to Ritz. It was like 12:30 by now but we got a second wind. They didn’t card us, which I didn’t expect, and to Baker’s dismay, they didn’t have a coat check. It was my first beer in the city, and it wasn’t as expensive as I had predicted ($5). The best thing about Ritz was the sexy bartender. He was kind of tall, medium brown hair, nice eyes, great smile, nice build, looked to be in his late 20’s and was friendly. I kept getting beers from him all night. At one point I didn’t need to get it though, some kind of creepy guy started talking to me and he eventually bought me 3 beers. I talked to him to be nice, but stared at the TV the whole time, or the bartender. He eventually got the hint, but not before leaning into me a few times. We also met two good looking guys who said they were going to be at Rush the next night, which is where we planned on going, so we said we would meet them there. I really liked one guy because he signed and I thought that was interesting. So we ended up staying out until 4am. Baker met a girl and a really queeny guy at the bar and talked with them all night, and I ended up talking too after creepy guy left me alone. They were…interesting and really outgoing and when they left it turned out they were very friendly too. At the end before we left I got balls and talked to the bartender while Baker was in the bathroom. His name is Michael, he works Mondays and Tuesdays, and he was going to party in Brooklyn for New Year’s Eve. I managed to ask (stutter) if he wanted to exchange numbers, but he said he has a boyfriend but thinks I’m really adorable. So I got shot down but he was really nice about it. He grabbed my arm when he told me he wasn’t single, so I happily grabbed his at the same time. Oh well. On the taxi ride home I was kind of down because I had the whole ‘who would be better than him’ thing going on, but at the same time I was really proud that I talked to him.

Baker was hung over the next morning but I wasn’t. I woke up around 10:30am and had to wake him up around 1pm. We got dressed and got going around 2:30pm. It had been flurrying in the morning so there was a nice light coating of snow over everything. First on the agenda was Central Park. We walked towards the park and got some pictures of the Metropolitan Museum of Art first, then walked through the park. I got to see a lot of the parts that we talked about in History of Landscape Architecture, such as the Turtle Pond, Belvedere’s Castle, the Ramble, the Diary, the ice skating rink, and finally Bethesda’s Fountain (you may recognize it from Angels in America and Enchanted). And of course across from the fountain is the Mall. We walked to the end of the park and then through the city. We went into the Trump Tower since it was closed the night before, and my word, Trump loves his gold. We went on all the levels that we could, but there wasn’t much to do in there. So we left and decided to hit the subways to the bottom of the island to see the Statue of Liberty. We made it there as the sun was setting and it was SO cold and windy. We ended up running to the edge of the water past Battery Park, took some pictures of the statue, and ran back to the station. We went back to the apartment and met up with Chet. We had no idea he lived in NYC but he messaged Baker on facebook and said we had to see him while we were here. We got dinner at some Thai place around the corner, and then pregamed for the club in the apartment. Chet ended up getting drunk on two drinks and did the typical Chet thing. Some things don’t change I guess. He started hitting on me, trying to kiss me and feel me. And he adopted a New York accent when he was drunk.








 

Baker and I were like “it’s time to go” so we got a taxi to go to Rush for New Year’s Eve. We never even thought about going to Times Square because we knew it would be so cold and crowded. Baker sat in the middle to save me, Chet fell asleep and drooled, and Baker was scared he was going to throw up on him. We got to the club and tried to get Chet to take the taxi back to his place but he didn’t. We get to the club and the entry fee is 30 fucking dollars, I guess because a porn star was hosting (Brent Everett). Baker thought it was $20, but that was only if you have some special thing. So we get in and get in line for coat check, all the while Chet is trying to feel me. So as soon as I get my ticket for my coat I run off to the bar to get a beer and ditch Chet. Baker and I don’t see him at all the rest of the night. Beers are more expensive ($9) but I managed to get in a few $1 shots before they cut that off. Zach and his friend Blaire showed up, and then Curtis and Michael Sutphin too, random. So we all have fun, even though I go off and do my own thing for most of the time.  I ran into Frank and his boyfriend Matt, and apparently Frank used to work at Rush so he talked to the guy who works there and lets me dance on stage. But then some of the go-go dancers got mad and kicked me off. Eventually it’s midnight and Brent Everett gets on stage and counts it down. When the clock strikes midnight he opens a bottle of champagne and sprays it all over himself and everyone. Oh, did I mention he was only wearing some small silver square cuts? Anyway, he was hot and I got some nice pics. After that people were allowed to dance on stage. A hot guy was dancing with his shirt unbuttoned, tie hanging down his chest and his pants down below his underwear. My face might have ended up at his crotch level but it was all in good drunken fun. I met up with Frank and Matt again and we hung out for a while. We eventually got me up on stage. My shirt had come off at that point and I had a lot of fun dancing. My pants of course became unbuttoned and I danced with a drag queen who was really nice. She realized I was drunk and helped me if I looked like I was falling backwards or wavering a bit. My pants ended up around my ankles for half the time, giving everyone a nice view of my new square cut Polos. A creeper put a condom in the bottom on my trunks, but I pulled it out and dropped it to the ground. Another guy kept trying to put his arms around me but I kept throwing them off. I just wanted to dance. I was drunk but I didn’t think I was wasted. Around 4 I decided there weren’t any hot guys anymore so I left the bar. I walked from 17th to 46th to get to Ritz. I figured I would get a cheaper cold beer, see what the Ritz had to offer and then head home. I was walking and was like 'if any one tries to shank me I’ll beat their ass.' I didn’t see hardly anyone on my walk, but did see lots of throw up in time square. Got to Ritz, had a beer, saw a hot guy but he liked black boys. So I finished my beer, left Ritz, and didn’t know where to get the subway so I walked towards Empire State because I knew there would be some stations near there. I walked through a street that had black people and graffiti, and since I hadn’t seen anyone else until that, I decided that was the ghetto of Manhattan. I got the subway and when the guy says 'stand clear of the closing doors please' it made me laugh because of the way he says it.

I got home around 6am, walked into the room Baker was staying in to let him know I got home alright, and decided his bed was closer than mine. I crawled under a blanket and slept on the opposite edge. I woke up around 10am, went to the bathroom, and got into my own bed. I didn’t feel too bad but ended up falling back asleep anyway. Woke up later, was hung over, felt awful. Baker got an extra bagel so I tried to eat that. I managed half of it with some water, then decided to take a shower and get the day started.  Took a shower and threw up a lot. Eventually I got out of the shower and laid on the bathroom floor for 30 minutes before crawling back to my bed. Finally got going around 4pm. We had reservations at Candle 79, a vegan restaurant, and we weren’t sure of dress code so I wanted to buy some dark wash jeans that I could wear a nice shirt with, so we went to Saks, partially to look for jeans and partially because it was a tourist thing to do. I got a nice pair of jeans for half off (still $80) but I love them.

Candle 79 was simply AMAZING. So delicious, I got an appetizer (seitan chimichurri), special entrée (pumpkin seed crusted seitan steak over kale, fried plantains, and a yummy sauce with an avocado salad on top), and a dessert to go (live key lime tart with huckleberry ice cream). They also had a start spoon of a chickpea and cashew cream mixture salad thing. All of it was so fucking good and kind of expensive but it was my one meal I wanted to go all out on.  The restaurant looked great; we were seated on the second floor that had a big window looking out to the street. I wish I lived across the street so I could eat there all the time. Did I mention it was my 3 year vegan anniversary?

We went home, I put the dessert in the fridge, and left to go to East Village to go to the Village Pourhouse to watch the Tech game. It is a Hokie bar, I think owned by alumni, and I randomly found Lauren! She was visiting Jon, who was also at the bar with his friends. Baker found Amy and we sat with her and her parents to watch the game and drink. I didn’t plan on drinking much because of how I felt earlier, but half way through I got my own pitcher and hung out with Lauren and her boyfriend. When the game ended I went back to Amy and Baker, finished my pitcher and finished half of theirs. There were SO many Hokie people at the bar, it was ridiculous. There were like 3 rooms FULL of Tech people. So after the game Baker went home and I walked to a bar called Eastern Bloc to meet a guy I know named Kyle. We had two drinks, caught up on things for a while and went back to his place. Had another drink, looked at facebook, and looked at the  pictures on my camera. It was a lot of fun. I got tired and passed out and eventually morning came. Baker called me at like 7:45am asking where I was and told me I needed to get back to pack and clean. I had set my alarm for just before 8 but I guess that wasn’t earlier enough. Here is where shit hit the fan.

I got dressed and Kyle told me where to go to catch the subway. I walk in that direction and realize I left my beanie in Kyle's room, but decide i need to get back, so I text him and he says he will mail it to me. I found the station but got on the (L?) train going the wrong way. I realized that and got off at a station and instead of doing the smart thing and just going across the platform to go the other direction, I left the station to try to walk in the city to a place I recognized (I figured walking towards the Empire State Building would work again). Turns out I wasn’t in Manhattan anymore. I ended up getting way lost in Brooklyn. I knew things weren’t exactly right because the only city I saw was WAY far away and I was walking through 3 story tall townhouse/apartment buildings. I had to have Baker and Kyle give me directions back to the station. So I get back to the train station, catch the G to the 7, get back into Manhattan and catch a taxi to go back to the apartment. Baker tells me to go straight to Penn station so I tell the driver. I get there and the driver tells me his card reader doesn’t work or something like that. He gets all pissy with me because I only have $7 and the fare is $9.60 so I get pissed off at him and start yelling at him and I’m like “if you had fucking told me that when I got in I would have gotten another fucking cab and if you got it fixed like you are supposed to we wouldn’t have this fucking problem.” He drives me to an ATM and I get cash and pay him and tell him to fuck off. I go into the train station and find the entrance to the Amtrak. Baker gets there like 20 minutes later with all our stuff and he is like "I’m so mad at you" Unfortunately, with all the luggage, Baker couldn’t bring my tart from Candle 79, so I never got to enjoy it. One more reason to go back to NYC.

So we catch the train like 30 minutes later, get two seats together, and there is an annoying kid behind me who keeps kicking my chair. I fall asleep most of the way, we get to Baltimore 40 minutes late and his mom picks us up. We get to her place, I repack my stuff, load my car, and Baker and I go to Wegman's for lunch. That place is ridiculously big, and probably has everything I would ever need for vegan cuisine. We had lunch, and then I hit the road for DC.

I get into Fairfax and GMU and meet up with Jed in a parking lot. We put my stuff in his car and bring mine to a place where I can park off campus. We had back to his place on campus and I get settled, which means my shit explodes everywhere, and I took a shower. We watch Final Destination (the third one), then got ready for dinner. We go to dinner at a place called Sunflower, which was a good vegetarian place. Well, mine was good. I didn’t much prefer his nut sack mushrooms. After dinner we head back, watch some South Park  (the Imagination Land trilogy and the Peruvian Flute Band one). We fall asleep because it’s midnight and I’m tired. In the morning we get ready to head out and go to the Metro station to go to Dupont Circle. We walked around, went into Lambda Rising, the HRC store and a few other places, and then took the Metro back. It was dinner time so we went to an Ethiopian restaurant, which was good even though they never refilled our waters and didn’t give us napkins. Time to go back to Fairfax (GMU) and I packed my stuff and headed home.

So that was my New Years. Pretty much everything about it was awesome, such a great experience. I would love to go back to New York, but I need to replenish my savings first.