My home away from home ... NYC

This past weekend's trip to NYC marked my 5th trip to NYC this year. It is truly my favorite city next to Austin. Having lived there for a summer, it gave me the appreciation that New Yorkers have for their beloved city. Each time that I visit something else is uncovered within the city and within myself. I can't really explain it, but those who have been or have lived there, should know exactly what I am talking about.

Anyhow, flying stand-by this time around proved to be much easier than previous visits. I caught the early bird out and just so happened to run into my knee surgeon on the flight. He and his wife were also headed up for a weekend in NY and the Duke/Texas game. I am pretty sure that I paid for both his wife's mink coat and their weekend getaway.

The highlight of Friday night was managing our way into an old prohibition bar, The Back Room. It is disguised by a sign out front that reads "Lower Eastside Toy Co.," but the big black man standing out front clued us in that we had found the right place. It turned out that a 20 spot and little cleavage was enough to get the 4 of us in for the night. All the drinks of the bar were served in tea cups and saucers and towards the back of the bar was a bookshelf that doubled as a door in the "secret VIP room." Unfortunately this night, it was going to take more than cleavage to get us into the room, because Benicio Del Toro was having a private party in the back.

On Saturday we woke early and had breakfast at a small diner(Bonsignor) in the city, where Bita ended up wearing her coffee. Saturday also meant the second round of Cody (lived in the city for 3 years) versus Kate (been in the city for 3 days) arguing over who knew the city better. From the diner we decked out in Burnt Orange and headed to the Meadowlands for the Duke/Texas basketball. I won't go into detail about this, but let's just say it was ugly. Vince Young did make an appearance before his date with the Heisman ceremony.

Later that night, we headed to SoHo for a loft party called Christmakkuh. Showing up early proved worth it, because it was packed with 300 plus by midnight. It was a good party, but short-lived, because it became a shoulder shove contest. We ended up schmoozing our way into a club called Table Fifty. Lots of dancing to tunes from Kanye to Culture Club. Check it out, if you are in the area.

Sunday morning we woke and decided finally settle the bet on who made New York's finest pizza, John or Ray. So John fed us lunch, but Ray still has a place in my heart. We spent the remainder of our day fighting crowds at Rockefeller, hunting for bargains at H&M, and strolling through Central Park. The serenity of Central Park is always present whether winter or summer and it turned out to be the favorite part of my trip.

To my surprise, Vince Young sat in front of me on my way home and all I could muster up was, "Hey Vince, Are we going to beat USC?" He responded, "Yeah, we'll get em." Music to my ears and a perfect ending to my last NYC trip of the year.