Online Dating

Over the years I've been a single man in my 20s and basically find all avenues to meet women. I go out basically 95% of weekend nights, I try to go to the mall, or get out of my house as often as possible, just to have more face time with people in general. Whether or not that works is not important to this topic; online dating provides another link to women.

So I've heard stories where a lot of people have success at various websites which is nice. I also have heard people complain that websites usually are just tailored to white people. I'm not sure how true this is. I, for one, have not been on any dates with anyone through an online website, but have registered for a few and haev never paid any fees.

Match.com. I've heard this is for people who just want to hook up with others. I didn't pay the monthly fees, so I wouldn't know. I put up a profile, have gotten a few winks/messages, but can't read or write messages back to others since I don't pay, so it's fairly useless. It is a nice site that provides you with 5 daily matches, great details about matches and decent search options.

OkCupid.com. I've been on this for a couple months and it's completely free. I don't go on it often and don't see any girls I'd consider cute on it. They have 3 daily matches too, but they seem tailored to 3 people you'd absolutely ignore if you saw them in real life; odd right?

PlentyofFish.com This free site really is the best of all of them. It is a bit tough because there is no search criteria, but there is a chemistry test you take in the beginning (which I learned alot about myself by). The site searches for % matches to your test. It will also recommend people who it thinks you would find "hot" and the 15 or so they show are spot on.

All this is fine and good, but the problem for me is, I don't think people know a) how tall I am through these pictures, and b) I feel like I have some sort of positive aura that is not captured in these pictures. What I'm trying to say is, I'm ugly, and if people don't meet me/talk to me, they will NOT give me a chance.

haha.

Back to the Red, White & Blue

I spent the last night getting severely cock blocked in Amsterdam. What was cool though, was I went out myself and talked to 2 Latvians, a Swiss, 2 Hungarians, and some Dutchies. It was overall a great night despite being pancaked so badly.

The next morning, I purchased some postcards, a shotglass, and headed to the airport. I got my ticket and headed to gate C. On the way there, I spotted a sign for something I would never expect to be in an airport outside of Las Vegas (or Macau for that matter). A CASINO!!!!!!!!!! I quickly followed the sign as I had 2 hr before my flight. Given potential security going into the US, I wanted to have ample time to get through that. I probably walked/used the electric walkways for like a football field's length when I came upon a converted restaurant/food court that was now a casino!!! It was full of slots, but somehow also had 3 blackjack tables and a roulette wheel WITH DEALERS!!!!!!!!!! There were about 5-6 people in the casino playing EUR 10 minimum blackjack hands and EUR 5 minimum roulette. I put my EUR 10 bill on black and walked away w/a EUR 10 profit!!!!

The overall security at Amsterdam going to the US is not as stringent as I expected. I got to my gate, we got called to get up and each passenger was interviewed by a different security guard. The guy asked me for my passport and ticket; my hands were full so i put my ticket in my mouth, then grabbed my passport out of my pocket and gave them both to him. He commented that I had put the ticket in my mouth, then gave it to him, so I said sorry haha.

Other than that, we went through a regular security gate (putting our stuff through sensors). No one had to go through this at the front of the airport.

The ride home was enjoyable. I watched Devil Wears Prada and The Blind Side (almost cried 4 times). When I finally got back home i was exhausted. I went to bed around 8 and woke up at 9AM. I suggest for anyone trynig to get over Euro jet lag to not get much sleep for the last couple days in Europe (go to sleep at 3-4AM and wake up at 10), then fall right asleep when you get back around 8 and wake up after 10-13 hours of sleep. I felt great the next day. I slept from 11-10 the following day and really never felt tired during the day. I only felt extremely tired at night around 11, which is normal.

Taking in the Beauty of Paris

I got a phone call from my coworker Ivan the first night I was there before I planned to go to sleep early. He told me to check out the Louvre, Notre Dame and City Hall at night. He also told me about a jazz club that was awesome near Notre Dame. Unfortunately I was only able to see 2/4 and those two did NOT include the jazz club which I couldn't find. The louvre was HUGE (I think it's a museum). The outside includes a big arc and a big glass pyramid. Notre Dame is an enormous cathedral that just seems amazing when you walk up to it.


The next day I checked out the Eiffel Tower which is breathtaking to actually see, the Arc de Triumph, also pretty amazing because it's so big, and Chammps-Elyses, the 5th avenue of Paris. The LV store was just amazing. I checked out a tie case and realized a) i do not have money, and b) the tie case in "Up In The Air" is from LV and is over $600!!!! There's a tax refund you get when you make a purchase at a store for >~175 Euro. You get 18% back I believe. Unfortunately, you multiply all the prices by about 1.43 because of the exchange rate then add more for credit card transaction fees. It still comes out to about a 20% discount for LV stuff which is really good!

I also was able to check out the Aviation Club which is Paris's downtown poker club. Unfortunately, you have to pay EUR 100 to be a member, then play at their various tables. I definitely could NOT afford that.

I was happy with my sightseeing, but the most impressive part was Mount Martere which is a small section of Paris that has an amazing view of the entire city and a large cathedral. I ate there and really enjoyed how quaint it is.

The next day I checked out the Gallerie Lafayette (most famous mall in Paris) and the other Gallerie Lafayette which I believe also is a mall, but it was the section of Paris (south) that had the best Crepes. I searched for a lady to ask where good crepes are, but was running out of time, so I got a croissant (decent) and then went to a stand for a banana/nutella crepe that was super delicious.

I caught a cab from my hotel to the train station and it was a young dude in an E320. He freaking sped through traffic which pleased me. I commented that he drives like I do in NYC. I also commented that I liked the music, so he got out of his car at a stop sign and grabbed some cd's from the trunk. He popped in DJ francoise (I think was his name) and it was hot. He jacked up the volume and we listened to the techno the entire time. It was really a great time!

The train ride home went well as I spent EUR 13 for some spotty ass internet, and despite that, won $90 which is about a $70 profit.

Totally Broken Down Trip to Paris

My trip to Paris started on Thursday morning; I woke up and almost was late checking out of the Renaissance. I went w/o breakfast/lunch until right before my train ride. I picked up some last min gifts and went to Centraal station. I bought a small pizza, sandwich and croissant w/ham/cheese which were good, good and ok respectively.

The train ride went smoothly, except when you consider it was an hour late. Unfortunately, I did not print out ANY of my itinerary and realized this as I got off the train. I asked the cab dispatcher to get me to the Marriott Vendome, and he had NO CLUE what i was talking about. He just told the cabbie to go to the vendome and look around. We drove to the Ritz and stopped. I got out to ask and they pointed in a general direction to the southwest. I walked, went in the Hotel Vendome, and that was wrong, they gave me more directs. Stopped in 1 more hotel and they said I was warm; "go around the block to the opposite side." So I finally made it.

Once inside, the front desk told me I had no reservation. I realized in horror that I didn't get a confirm email although I remember picking through my hotel preferences when I booked it online. Fortunately, the nice people had a room available until my checkout date of Sunday, so it was all square. 80k Marriott Points down the drain.

My first room looked AMAZING, but had a slight hint of smoke, so I moved. The room has a DVD player, nice phillips TV w/ glass border, amazing cabinet setup, comfortable King bed, beautiful bathroom, and best of all, BVLGARI Bath Products!!!!

I settled in, then went to Chez Flottes to eat authentic French. Had some salmon tartar (looked like a less than uncooked beef patty (very pink)), then a duck w/these cheese mashed potatoes. I've never had anything like them. You know how those potatoes should kind of fall if you tip your spoon? These dripped almost like syrup, but would stay connected like bubble gum. It was good, but I couldn't finish them because it was too cheesy for an asian like me.

I topped it off w/a caramelized rice pudding. I almost sent it back because I thought it was creme brulee, but they MEANT to make the top hard! It was delicious!!!

I must warn you though, I don't know how other people feel, but I felt really intimidated in Paris because I didn't speak ANY French. It also didn't help that I just learned some Dutch and most people look the same in Paris as in Amsterdam (much like when I was speaking predominantly chinese for 2 months then went to Japan for a weekend and got confused when everyone did NOT speak chinese (yeah we all look the same to me too). I really found it difficult to figure out what to say to people upon meeting them (I even botched bonjour a couple times). I really like saying Sa Va (how are you) and au Revouir (bye).

US V. Holland Friendly

I decided the day of the soccer match that I would go despite having no one to go with. One of my coworkers had a flight to Barcelona, while the other just punked out saying he had to pack and had a 7AM flight the next day (poor decision). I was hopin to ask one of the ladies at the hotel to come, but never really got the chance to do that either.

We got back from work on Wednesday relatively early since we finished, and went to Toro Dorado (an argentinian steak place) to grab dinner. Wow it was delicious. They had some Wagyu filet which was $60 for 8 oz. It was highly marbelized because the cow is fed beer and masssaged (in the past it was all manual massage). I'd actually like to pay 60 and be fed Beer and massaged instead of the cow, but that's another story.

After dinner I rushed to the Centraal station and bought my round trip high speed train tix to Paris for Thursday (today). I found out if i had bought them 3-4 days earlier I'd have saved another 30 Euro which (anyone that knows me knows) def pisses me off.

I hurried over to the subway part of the station and got help to purchase a one way ticket to the stadium (weird you can buy more than one way...). I got to the stadium, walked a mile to the OTHER SIDE of the stadium to buy a EUR 40 ticket to sit in the front row of the 2nd level. I walked halfway back to where I started and headed up. When I walked through the gate to my seat and the view rose into my vision, I was overwhelmed. The greenness of the pitch was beautiful and it was a lot closer than I thought it would look. The crowd atmosphere was great and it was fun to watch these amazing athletes kickin around the ball.

My overall thoughts are that the US is very very sloppy (although one of their best guys got injured very early). They turn the ball over all the time. Holland looked real good and smooth. #11 a black dude w/a mohawk was super fast. I saw him practicing at halftime and he did some move where he is trotting, steps over the ball w/the left foot going forward and heels the ball into his back right foot which automatically pushes the ball forward; it was really really cool and looked so easy.

Anyway, the game was a fun experience. US lost 2-1 and almost tied it in the last 3 min of the game (all in extra time which was very very long!!).

The ride back was tough; I first couldn't use my credit card to purchase a train ticket, it needed a chip (CC security in Europe is really really strict), so the people behind me let me have EUR 0.35 to get me a 2.6 Euro ticket. I got on the train; when it stopped, everyone got out, but I saw a sign that said rookfort, so I stayed on. For some reason, no one else got on for a while, so I went outside to check what happened, and didn't see any signs saying it was Centraal Station. I stayed on.

30 min later, some people got on and the train started moving in the opposite direction; I asked and they confirmed we WERE just at my destination... DAMN. I got off at the first stop, went to the other platform and got on a subway back to CS.

Unfortunately, when I got off at CS and tried going through the subway gate, I couldn't since I had a train pass and not subway pass. The cop told me this, and I asked him how I could get out!??!?! He said, "Upstairs where the train gets out." I asked him how I get there fully knowing he expected me to go back to another station and take the train back... but he was nice and let me through!!!

What a trip.

Marathon week to get to Friday

Well, my schedule stayed the same from the work week before. It's as close to clockin in and out of work as I've gotten in a while. I even slept through my alarm on Tues or Wed and had to get called by the Manager to get my ass up!! I took 15 min and hurried downstairs. It was all good though; I was wide awake out of embarrassment, so I drove the hour to work.

I won't be surprised if we get almost 1 speeding ticket per day. There are rarely cops on the roads in Europe, they just have speed trap radars every so often. Our GPS picks up the traps and gives us warnings, but who knows if a) it's getting all of them, and b) if it posts the right speeds. There's also a ton of construction on the highways, so the posted speeds are 90 km/h, but the GPS tells us it's 120... we'll see what happens. We're splitting the bill 3 ways so that makes it a little better, but I think every speeding ticket is EUR 150!!!!! That's like $200!!!

The weekend was an entertaining one. Friday night I went out myself to Bittersweet (the only hip hop club) but this time it was pretty wack. They weren't playing hip hop, and it was a bit dead, although there were some Bboy's in there tearin up the rug. It was cool to watch, but I wasted 8.5 Euro there.

Saturday, I woke up around noon & got some Shwoarma for brunch. It was a pita filled w/chicken, lettuce, fries, tomatoes, chili sauce & Garlic sauce; very very good!! I ate it on the drive to Antwerp! I didn't really decide to go until Friday afternoon, so I wasn't able to contact Ivan (who's from there) to tell me what to check out. I did arrive around 2:30 and walked around the main busy street. It was BUSTLING. I even bought 2 t's from Zara; they have a zara home store (like macy's home department). Pretty crazy.

I settled to eat at this cafe right near the side of the cathedral. I targeted a Nile fish on the menu, since it would be AWESOME to eat fish from the Nile River. The waitor suggested Beef stew and fries because that's more local of a dish. I obliged and it was really good! I followed it up w/some belgian waffles which were DELICIOUS!!!!!!! The waffle was so crispy! I had diced fruit over it with a lot of powdered sugar... OOOOooooOOOOOO.

I really took in all the architecture and statues that were amazing. Really beautiful structures. They even had a castle close to the water. Beautiful beautiful city. I ended up driving back around 7. I was pooped when I got back to the hotel and proceeded to lose ~100 in poker online.

Getting to the weekend

Every day during the week my schedule was the following:

6:30AM wake up
7:15 Breakfast
7:30 Start drive w/coworkers from Amsterdam to Houten
8:30-9:10 Range of when we'd get in
12-12:30 Lunch (ordered in sandwiches since we're in the boonies)
1PM Back to work
6-7PM Start drive back to Amsterdam
8PM Start dinner
9PM back to room
10:30 hope to be in bed

It was pretty sad. The only thing that would change were the meats and breads in my lunch sandwiches and the restaurant we went for dinner. I wouldn't say it was miserable since I'm in a really nice hotel and I'm in a foreign country, but it wasn't ideal.

The thing that is really fun about being in a foreign country is learning the language. People get really pumped when you can say a couple things in their language and/or show some sort of effort to assimilate. I use how are you in Dutch religiously and everyone has a HUGE smile when they hear I'm actually american. So far I've learned How are you, Good morning, good night, Good, delicious and Do you speak English?

We've had Hotel food, Italian, Thai, Mexican, Asian fusion and they were good, below average, AMAZING, average and AMAZING respectively. Friday came and we went over to the Leidse Plein (a section of Amsterdam with a lot of restaurants/bars). We walked around and settled on Momo for dinner on recommendation from the waitress (I think Denise?) from Blinq. Momo had 2 BEAUTIFUL hostesses. We walked in and I flossed my semi Dutch skills. We were seated near the bar; I went down to the bathroom, it was a 3 min walk. Unfortunately, I passed this real cute asian girl that had been sitting near us, and did NOT chat her up. I don't know why I freeze up when it comes game time. I could've just said how are you in dutch and started a whole convo like what she's doing and blah blah... it woudl've been perfect! She was walkin up all slow too. I dunno. I need to think of something to start up a convo after i botch it haha. Sadly, I saw another girl i made eye contact with going to the bathroom for the 2nd time and didn't capitalize there too. I just get surprised.

Anyway, we went from Momo to Bulldog to chill; there were a lot of dudes and i failed to step up to 1 set of girls where one was decent. We stayed for about an hour and headed to Blinq again as that place seemed more like a professionals crowd. Bulldog was more casual bar.

Blinq was real nice! It had good techno music w/a guy playing jazz sax behind some of it. There were tons of ladies and we were busy talkin to people. I started chatting up this girl on my left who was half tunisian half dutch which made for an interesting look. probably died dirty blonde hair w/a bit of a tan and light eyes. She looked arabic and spoke arabic, dutch and english which is sick. We chatted about work and how she respected that I took time to learn dutch. Eventually I told her she should come w/me to museums, and that's when she told me she had a BF so even if we exchanged info she would NOT call me back. I said I respect that, that's fine. And later, she gave me her business card!??!?!

We moved on to try a brazilian bar, and it was straight empty. I swallowed the 10 EUR i spent for cover and we went BACK to Bulldog. I chatted up a girl who I thought was attractive named Sarah who was really pumped i lived in NYC (thanks rishi). We later just bounced cuz Eric was running out of gas.

I dropped him off at the hotel and I went out to find one last place around 2AM. I walked into NL which is a 5 min walk from the hotel. It was packed up, but most people were talking to each other and I didn't really get any good vibes from anyone there. It was really loud too, so I stayed for about 30 min and walked home. I was out of gas, and just winded down.

Settling into the Renaissance (D2b)

Ironically I checked in w/an Asian lady. I was informed they did NOT have a room ready for me at 930AM, but she hooked me up w/club lounge access, so I could unwind and eat some breakfast in there. It was a nice gesture; they have wireless internet as well, so I started tweeting furiously. I was close to running out of gas around 1030, so I went back downstairs and checked if a) my coworkers had arrived, and b) if my room was ready so i could crash for 2-3 hrs (Anna told me I should NOT sleep at all on the first day). Neither A nor B was affirmative, so I chilled in the lobby for about 20 min.

For some reason I thought I heard the 2 voices of my coworkers, so I rushed upstairs and didn't see them; however, the asian lady told me my room was ready!!!! I rushed upstairs, set all my stuff down and slept for like 3 hours. My head felt like an ANVIL at 3PM when I woke up. I forced myself to get up; I realized I didn't bring shorts, so I set out to buy some.

I walked to Dam Square (pictured, a huge expanse of area wide open in the middle of downtown probably used for concerts and parties?) and up and down these couple streets looking for an athletic store w/basketball shorts and then a restaurant. I found 4 Foot Lockers, Perry Sports, and a million H&Ms, and other shoe stores. It was frustrating since NONE of these stores sold basketball shorts; most had soccer shorts and running shorts that broke the fingertip rule in HS... alas I was not tryin to solicit business as a prostitute.



I did notice the girls in Amsterdam are beautiful. They have beautiful eye, pretty faces and like 90% are not fat. It's really amazing because in 20-30 degree weather, usually you can't tell, but with these women, you definitely can.

I also noticed a lot of people on bikes.

Unfortunately the next 5 days of work would not bring much entertainment aside from the delicious food. More to come...

First Flight to Europe Day 1a (D1a)

The cab driver showed up a bit early at my house, so we set off a bit early and got to EWR w/2 hours to spare as planned. I broke out the ol' corporate card for the first time in a WHILE. EWR was standard; I got my ticket easily and went to the security line where I waited for an eternity. It felt like the regular line was going quicker than the elite line which is odd. There was only 1 gate and 2 security conveyors open for our line which is ludicrous. There's so many other lanes closed that it just makes no sense how we'd have to wait that long to get through security. The airport staff/flight attendant/pilot line was clear the entire time and only when I picked up a tray to put all my stuff into did the TSA agent open up the other line to non staff (literally the person RIGHT AFTER ME got through there).

Once through, I checked out my gate and I had about an hour, so I strolled through the terminal trying to find a place to eat with a bar to sit at (more social). I settled on Garden State Diner. A cute latina hostess sat me at the bar and I got a chicken/fresh mozz sandwich w/sweet potato fries which was very very good for a basic dish. The waitor was very very nice and I thought his service was pretty outstanding.

Later I picked up some gum and chips for the flight to snack on and sped through the elite gate line at around 6:05PM. The plane was 6 columns and I was in the 7-8th row from the door which is really nice. I relaxed and noticed a lot of foreign accents/foreign languages being spoken which got me pretty excited for the trip. As they closed the door, it was noted that I had NOONE else in my row!!!

All of a sudden after we took off, I wondered if I needed a Visa to get into The Netherlands... I was freaking stunned, so I pushed the assist button and asked the flight attendant who told me that it would most likely not be needed, but just be nice to the customs agent since the flight to the US that had that bomber person who foiled himself causing the recent airplane security hysteria WAS FROM AMSTERDAM.

The flight in itself was nice because we had an on demand TV/movie system as opposed to DirecTV. On Demand is totally free w/a lot of movies/shows/music to choose from that you start and stop at your own desire. On the otherhand there is a fee to use DirecTV on flights. I don't really need to watch TV, especially right now when there are no sports on (I guess the dunk contest was on, but I heard that was a doozy).

I caught "More Than a Game" the movie about LeBron James in HS. I thought it was pretty interesting to learn about him and his friends. I even got close to teary eyed at the end when they won the championship and Willie went into the stands to find his brother. It was a heartfelt moment.

That moment almost was preempted by My Big Fat Greek Wedding. What a hilarious movie!! I actually DID cry at the end when Costa bought them a house and hugged Ian. Sorry I'm emo.

Aside from that while I listened to Jackson 5, I reviewed some work and read some newspapers. I tried to fall asleep eventually but for some reason my back was ALLL f'd up. I couldn't sleep. I looked at the wall of my row and noticed now why no one was next to me. "Recline restricted for this seat due to federal regulations" I was freaking in front of the emergency exit row, so I couldn't recline all the way back. WOW. If there's one thing you learn from my trip, it should be DO NOT get the seat in front of the E row on a flight of more than 4 hours. It is really painful.

My landing was smooth, I chatted w/the lady next to me who informed me Coffee shops in Amsterdam are different, Cafe's are the things I should find actual coffee in, if that gives you a hint of what we're talking about.

Security was swift, the customs agent commented that I have longer hair than my pic and I was through. Since I'm elite, my bags were already out and I hopped into a Mercedes Cab!!!

We searched for the BoA, but it was closed on Sundays (you can't even use the ATM aka Cash Machine!!!). I chatted w/the cab driver and learned 3 phrases I'll probably use a lot. They are the following, spelled like it's pronounced, not actual dutch: 1) Uchhartet; 2) Sprektu Angosh; 3) Dank Eoo. (Answers at the bottom)

We turned a corner past the closed bank, drove for max 4 more minutes and there it was, the Renaissance Amsterdam!!!!

Total door to door time: 4PM ET - 9:30AM GMT = 11.5 hr.

(Answers to above 1) Hi, how are you; 2) Do you speak English?; 3) Thank you.

Getting ready for Amsterdam!!

*Note: This will be the first post most people see since I'm posting the link on facebook soon. I am posting this up on facebook to keep people in the know about what I'm doing while I'm in Europe. It's tough for me to Gchat everyone 32 times about what I did that day/weekend. I really love/appreciate comments (well I like people actually reading too).


The past week I've been just completing a project, and getting ready for work in Amsterdam. I packed most of my things up last week, and did a review of them last night. I usually like to bring 6 dress shirts (in case something gets out of wack and I can't get dry cleaning done as well as maybe using one to go out over the weekend. I also go with 4 shirts to work out in because I plan to work out every OTHER day. This usually doesn't work out so well, but I try to use them as shirts I sleep in too, so they double in purpose.

The things I usually forget is my work belt, underwear & dress shoes. I forget my work belt and dress shoes because these are things I never wear unless it's to work, so it's tough to remember while packing (I haven't forgotten it in 2-3 trips now so I'm feeling good about that). I think I forget underwear because I usually like to pack that last since I don't have superfluous underwear. I only have 5 packed in right now.

This trip, I brought 3 ties. The problem is, I don't have something to hold the ties in, so they get all folded up. I saw "Up in the Air"; George Clooney has a tie holder that looks sweeeeeet. It's leather zip up. I need to get that (even though I don't really travel as MUCH anymore).

I also definitely remembered my passport, corporate credit card, Continental and Marriott elite cards (not really necessary, just wanted to mention so everyone knows I have them). I actually realized instead of my hilton AMEX I wish Continental was on AMEX. Maybe they are, I would get that because there aren't many value added hotel privileges (more points per stay, maybe a small gift for lowest status) as opposed to airline benefits (free checked bags, walking through the fast security lines). I'm going to look into this soon.

Well my cab gets here in about an hour, so I'm going to review what I'm bringing to make sure I have all the stuff that's essential. I also need to grab a shirt to wear out of my bag (in order to save space).

Engaging

So Friday we went to Hoboken and I squared off against a heavy weight. Noticed a girl w/big hair who was a bit sexy.

My boy wanted to holler at her friend so we stopped, then she stepped up to me and said, "I want to dance w/him (me)." We started gettin it in. We exchanged names and I went w/my standard "Ken like the barbie doll." This time she said oh yeah i see that, an asian doll :). She said, "I love your hair" while i noticed her hair was very nice, soft, big & poofy.

We talked and eventually my friend couldn't keep up. I had to entertain two ladies at that point. Found out both were PR and fluent Spanish Speakers. The one interested was in nursing school and patient coordinator (gives patients prescriptions (puts all the patient info in to the computer).

When I went for # she put her hand up. As in engagement ring; however, she told me, "BUT IM NOT MARRIED" SHe lives w/her fiancee and knew him for 5 years. How do we feel about that?

She wanted me to give her my #, everyone knows this doesnt' fly. She started accusing me of haivng a gf. It was really weird. "She is probably really pretty and really smart too."

Eventually that just didn't work out, probably good news because I'm not sure I want to get mixed up in that.

Later we went outside talked to another girl who looked Greek and was a very sexy Brunette. I eventually forgot her name, but she was def feelin me. When we went back in, I asked for her name and she was VERY turned off by my lack of memory. I was immediately dismissed.

On the car ride home after this, I was berated for not hollerin harder at the PR girl, i.e. take her home to my friends place. I feel like maybe I should've done that, but is this really the right thing to do? Do we feel like I would be morally responsible too here? I just picture the other dude being all pissed off and disappointed if he found out (i.e. if i found out about my fiancee). I guess it would still suck if he knew she was out doing things like this, unless they mutually agree (whether written/unwritten) that they can chill w/other people and that the relationship is a bit loose.

Let me know your thoughts (all of my 1 readers haha).

Mur.Mur.Massage

So we went down to Borgata on Saturday for Namrata's and Vandana's bday celebrations. There was plenty of money thrown around for the weekend. I hopped in the ML and cruised down in about 2 hours. We chit chatted and were there in a jif.

We started off checking in and meeting anand in the food court. We picked up some chicken sandwiches at fat burger (these are the best chicken sandwiches anywhere, to me. Just plain chicken breast w/lettuce and tomato), and i was rejected for the first time all weekend by the cashier.

We set our stuff down in our rooms (we split 2 rooms and a suite). Everyone met up in the suite and I followed Rishi & Ridhi down to the tables. We went to Roulette 1st which could've been fun, but I was waiting to play other things. It's too much of a luck game to me.

After a profit by Rishi we went over to Caribbean stud where I profited as well. Unfortunately, Rishi wanted to play BJ and I decided to follow him to a $15 table. We straight up got demolished by a dealer named Francis. At no point did we have any fun. I lost a $25 hand that turned into $75 because I split and doubled down on a dealer's 3. We ended up leaving heavily damaged. We walked around a bit more and I lost some money in poker when I flopped to ppair and got sucked out on as AK caught up.

We went to dinner at Metro; they had some very tasty cranberry bread (I got ripped on for ordering more bread). I also ordered some pasta that was decent, a little watery? We did notice a couple of cute girls sitting at a table near us, but we didn't approach because that's just weird at dinner.

We got ready for the club and unfortunately shelled out $85 each for bottle service. We were walked right in to our table and it was a pretty nice club, not too many people were there yet, but there were people dancing. The music was really good, the DJ did a great job, although there was a lot of dance/techno stuff that we didn't like much.

In the middle of the night I noticed a brunette with captivating eyes as I walked from the dance floor to the table. I was leaning against the railing in front of the table which had no glass below it, so I noticed that same girl come and sit down right below me. She looked up and smiled at me twice so I literally swung below the rail, got up in her grill and told her to dance w/me. Unfortunately she refused, so after asking twice I started giving her a lap dance. I started w/crotch in her face, then turned around. It was good, I think she spanked me a few times haha.

Later I got her up and we enjoyed each other's company. We talked, danced and chilled. I was really vibing with her, got her # really early and maybe should've left her earlier? She told me she was 32 and a masseuse in her home. She kept telling me she was really tired, so I suggested she come up to our room to chill. She quickly denied that attempt and we kept talking.

I think maybe that comment was a mistake. I never really get to invite chicks back to my place since I don't live in NYC and I don't come up w/those situations often in NJ, so it's a damn shame. I kind of got a little giddy to finally use it, so I must've f'd something up there. I even left her twice during the night, the 2nd time she was actually ironically leaving at the same time. She never came back and I thought that was pretty much all I was going to get, although getting the # earlier was key.

The rest of the night went well, Michael Phelps and Jay Sean made an appearance in the club. It was a lot of fun and at night I went to bed around 4AM. I was dead tired!!!!

Check the new Title picture, that's from that night. Poppin Bottles!!!

Feelin the rush

My boy just started talkin about depositing money into an online poker site and that got me feelin the rush to get back online and play more volume. I've been playing sit and go's (tournaments that have a specified number of seats; players take seats and when the seats are filled, the tournament begins. I started playing double up tournies lately which are ones you pay x buy in and y tourney fee. There are 10 people who do this, so the 5 people with chips left win 2x. I've been doing fairly well lately in the lower stake ones; now people are starting to fill stakes a bit higher, so I'm trying to dominate those. They usualyl take about an hour and 10 minutes, so the per hour rate is kind of low.

I started playing cash games again because it kind of intersts me. Cash games allow you to limp/call/raise w/suited connectors hoping to hit a big flop and take a lot of money from monster pre-flop hands. In tournaments, I rarely do this unless I'm in position.

Anyway, the friend played on my bodog account for a while, and now put some money into full tilt to try his luck. I am definitely down to play and have been outside of work for the past couple days. I've been up generally and have a decent strategy going into the double ups. I've crushed turbo and superturbo tournies (max 2 tabling, I am starting to 3 table but adding a slow tourney for the 3rd so I can concentrate on the turbo/superturbos).

I feel that to win the double ups you must pick your spots only w/premium hands. I fold everything and play position/premium. Then when I get from the 1500 starting stack to around 2400, I shut it down for a bit and get tighter. Only when people start getting eliminated, or I'm in position with a big hand, will I start playing again. I usually just bully people I've targetted as really really passive. I just wait it out and usually cash.

I think my next post will be my journey through poker... See you at the tables!

The New Year

I vowed to change some habits in the new year, and that I have. I've been working a lot harder on CPEs the past couple weeks. Any off time from work, I'll be looking at my cash flows book, or doing an auditing principles training online. So far in 2 weeks I've accumulated 5 CPEs and on chapter 3 of 10.

I've been working on skateboarding; I haven't fallen in a long time (I've fallen off the board, but not off my feet). I skateboarded while gav ran sprints in NYC which was cool. I'm starting to want to do tricks, but I feel like I should practice skating goofy first. Who knows; I've enlisted Chris Lees for help... I just asked him on facebook what I should practice first.

Aside from that I've been going out and trying to be more active, although it hasn't been VERY active. I've had a big opportunity at the mall w/some older chick that I thought was cute but Daigo did not. We were talking for a while in line (it started with "has the line been moving?" and escalated to what days of shopping are good, what kind of deals are good, where she went for vaca. It did not however, escalate to give me your # to hang out sometime. The girl in front of us (w/a kid and wedding ring) was looking at us like longingly and smiling because she knew I was gettin my flirt on. There were only 2 cashiers in the house, so the line was taking a while. I was going to ask for the # when she was on deck for a cashier. I never like getting a number while there's still time to talk... but I need to change this idea because, of course, I did not get it eventually. Right when she was on deck a 3rd associate comes and ruins it for me. I should've gotten it a lot earlier.

Last night I was at the bar w/Reshma and we were there to pick up; unfortunately in Morristown, the college kids were still home, so it was PACKED all over the place. We were at George & Martha's first, Hopper, then Sonas. She's a good sport as she said she'd love to watch me holler... I felt bad at first, but then at Sona's there was a ridiculous girl w/a dime face that was standing near us, so I started talkin to her. Lauren from Denville. Unfortunately, after a loto f talking found out she had a BF. She said he was in Vermont Snowboarding. I said perfect, then she could come over tonight.... HUUUUUUUUUUUH.

I WILL have a blog post about something outside of my life soon.

Happy NEW YEAR!!!!

For the past couple weeks I had been talking to Lucinda (changed name) and have been hoping to meet up with each other that night; she had told me her friend's #1 goal was to get Lucinda a kiss on new year's eve. I'm not sure how I should approach this; should I brush it off like i don't care, or should I try to hit the nail on the head and say that's gonna be me? I chose the prior, just brushing it off like that's a good friend.

Well, I went to Toronto and hadn't made plans, so when I got back, she had already made plans that night before. She was going to some party; I was disappointed as she had not "included" me in her NYE kiss plans, but I also did realize that it was mostly my fault; if I had made plans, she would've just gone and hung w/me (i'm fairly sure).

She did end up inviting me to go; she got my email and sent me the details; there were still tickets. I wasn't sure if she was giving me the pity invite; I know you're not supposed to change your plans for a girl if she offers, or else it "sets a precedent" for the future. Translation: you don't want her walking all over your in the future. I politely declined, saying I had to go to the other party w/my friend stuti (also made up).

The day of I was texting back and forth w/Lucinda and making sure we were out; she had some dress malfunctions, and made it out a bit late cuz her friend went over to help her and the POWER WENT OUT WHILE SHE WAS IN THE ELEVATOR!!!! Can you believe it? If I ever got stuck in an elevator i'd be so tilted!!!

Anyway, I went into the city kind of early to meet up w/G&N. I was deciding on what to wear and settled on my french cuffed white shirt w/pink windows, my new grey tie w/shields and diagonal wide thin stripes, all under my white cloth dress up vest. I rocked the newer grey dress pants I got last year and my never-worn white leather belt... I was lookin real dapper son.

I chilled at G&Ns, played some rockband and they hooked me up w/the keys in case the late night didn't go well for me. I went over to Stuti's and there were several women and 2 other dudes around. I immediately targeted Susanna as my target; she was a very cute fair skinned-asian. I kind of hovered around and talked w/my friends that I knew that were present.

We eventually left piecemeal; when we got down the elevator, one friend declared she had forgotten something and wanted to go back up to get it; she refused to say waht "something" was. Stuti called her out and said it must be condoms... what everyone else (maybe only me) was thinking. She said nahhhh, and went up. Stuti says, there's condoms in the night stand drawer, and then explained she doesn't have sex anyway, so why was she frontin? Then Susanna said "Yeah no one's been havin sex!!!" (I was hoping to change that).

I waited up for the 3 girls (the girl who went back and her 2 friends (including susanna). We walked across the streets to hail a cab in the sleet; i've never walked slower in my life!!! In the cab, we were gettin more familiar; Susanna lives real close to me in NJ and both of the friends had been in Rutgers Masters; Susanna was to be a dentist.

We arrived at 30/Madison and went up the elevator to the 4th floor w/some other attractive girls (they went to 9). The elevator door opened to REVEAL A DOOR???? I thought it was a joke the party throwers played, but when we opened the door, sure enough, it was an apt (in hindsite it was a loft, I never had been to one where the apartment is literally the entire floor).

The party was littered w/people, and very attractive ladies. We put the liquor down and started chillin. Stuti actually was tryin to get me to dance w/Susanna, I guess people love the asian connection. I tried to meager results... she kind of didn't give me any sort of vibe or contact, so I gave up quickly. I think i need to be more confident when I step up to attractive girls, and I need to do it immediately. I tend to hover if not, and girls can sniff out 0 confidence.

Jennifer had texted me close to midnight to see where I was as she was going to meet up. I texted HNY to her and she didn't respond til 12:30!!! By that time I had gotten a bit tipsy and sat down. Susanna was around, and I patted the armrest; she obliged and sat. I rested my left arm on her lap and put some weight on it. We just chatted for a while; it was then I got her #. SHe told me not to call her, as she only texts... I told her I was used to this. In china, the people don't really like calling either.

Also, a big note on the night, there was a really really attractive short girl (I think her real name was erica). I had been dancing and she was w/a black dude. She said, "damn he's got moves, i'm scared (talking about me)." Her dude said yeah, agreed. I made a mental note and walked up ot her later to ask her for the name and to save me a dance... she was pretty trashed up, so she just made small talk and just wandered off in a stupor... I guess it was a good try.

Later Stuti decided to start falling over due to her level of drunkness. I helped her up and she immediately started throwing herself on me, telling me to take her home and whispering in my ear, tryin to kiss me. I'll admit I hooked it up a couple times, and while we were leaving I was tryin frantically to call over other friends to help me take her home as I didn't want to really hook up w/my friend.

Luckily someone did come "rescue" me and we all went home together; that's after I told the friend she wanted to hook up... I think I kind of regret saying that because I think that friend is not too fond of me anymore... but what am I gonna do... it worked out in my favor. Stuti started getting sick in the cab and we got home just in time for her to get into the bathroom.

I had given up on Lucinda, and that's when Susanna called... she just asked where we were, and to tell me they were goin to antoher bar. I told her I'd call/text if i was gonna meet up. After I hung up, i texted her to ask if I should feel special since she called... she said no... I also called my other friend who was helpin stuti. There goes that.

Lucinda decided to text me after taht, so it was on again. We met in Union square and went to Big Daddy's. Shew as hungry, needed a bathroom and was tired. After we ate, we returned to her place.

This is where things got weird for me. She was in her bedroom, and I kind of felt awkward to go in w/o her telling me to go in. I stayed in the common room. Eventually we just talked about her cats, sat on the bed and didn't hook up. I dunno what happened... i felt really awkward... I think I need to just go for it next time. If I'm invited over, I really need to just realized i'm there for a reason... and it's not cuz i like guys, you nkow?? DAMN IT!!!!!!!

We literally slept together, cuddled/spooned and that's it. 5am to 4PM!!!! It was a happy new year... not as great as it should've been, but still good in it's own way.