Just like everyone else, I can always be found with a drink in my hand in all situations.  In many cases, drinking allows us to stay in touch with our inner child.  It is only when we drink that we speak our mind without considering the consequences, dance if we normally stand along the wall, and do what we really are feeling without fear holding us back.  I don’t know about you, but I miss the days of video games and board games.  Yes, I do realize that many of us still play some form of games, like words with friends (my current obsession), candy crush, or Cheekybingo.com ,but these are mostly while we are in transit (ok, or on a Friday night on the couch – don’t judge!).  In an effort to bring childhood fun into a social setting, here is a list of the best places to play games in NYC (go figure they would all be at bars).

Where to Play Games in NYC

To Play Old School Arcade Games:  If you have a love for Frogger, Tetris, or Street Fighter, then Barcade in Brooklyn or Chinatown Fair are your go to places in the city.

To Play Board Games:  East Village’s, Common Ground, is the place to go to get your Scrabble or Connect Four on.  If you find yourself wandering around the west side, you can head to 675 Bar in the Meatpacking District to get your Jenga fix.

To Play Some Skee Ball:  Head to the Crocodile Lounge on 14th St, for some cheap Skeeball and Duck Hunter.  If this already isn’t enough of a draw, with the purchase of any drink, you get your own free personal pizza.

To Play Mini Golf:  Greenwich Village Country Club serves up drinks, food, and of course, Mini Golf.  GVCC is right next door to our next recommended gaming location.

To Go Bowling:  Check out Bowlmor Lanes on University Place for some good ole’ fashioned bowling fun, or if you are in the Times Square area,  Frames, which is attached to Port Authority, is another great choice (and they have Ladies Night, 2-4-1 drinks!).

To Play Pool/Billiards:  Fat Cat is a favorite of many.  It not only has pool tables, but it also has shuffleboard, ping pong, board games, chess, and live music nightly.  If you are looking strictly for a billiards joint, then head on over to Amsterdam Billiards.  With great tables (ASA regulation size), and a chill vibe, this place is perfect to sink a few balls.

To Play Ping Pong:  Spin is your ultimate Ping Pong destination.  With a lot of tables, and a chic vibe, you’re sure to have a ball-slingin’ good time.

To Play Bingo:  Bingo is not your grandma’s game anymore.  Stroll over to the Bowery Poetry Club, and on certain nights you can partake in a game of bingo that you have never experienced before.  With lovely drag queens running the show, you know you are to have a one of a kind playing experience.

Now that you know where to head to let your inner child run wild and free, grab a drink, and yell, BINGO!

Barcade – 388 Union Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11211

Chinatown Fair – 8 Mott St, New York, NY 10038

Common Ground – 206 Avenue A, New York, NY 10009

675 Bar – 675 Hudson St, New York, NY 10014

Crocodile Lounge – 325 E 14th St, New York, NY 10003

Greenwich Village Country Club – 110 University Pl, New York, NY 10003

Bowlmor Lanes – 110 University Pl, New York, NY 10003

Frames – 550 9th Ave, New York, NY 10018

Fat Cat – 75 Christopher St, New York, NY 10014

Amsterdam Billiards – 110 E 11th St, New York, NY 10003

Spin – 48 E 23rd St, New York, NY 10010

Bowery Poetry Club – 308 Bowery, New York, NY 10012

The other day I was just stalking friends flipping through facebook, when one of my long time friends shared a photo with a blurb attached to it.  Usually when I have to click “see more” to read the entire passage, I quickly lose any desire to do so, assuming it is going to be some chain letter-esque story or some politically motivated spiel about gun rights.  Don’t get me wrong, I’m sure there’s been some life changing stories that I have missed because I am too lazy busy being productive to click one more share button.  Believe me, I’m all for people using those arrows that point to their picture that says, “This person believes in preserving the 2nd Amendment.”  Whatever other people like to do on facebook is cool by me, I’d just much rather check out the latest pics I have been tagged in.

Anyways, I suppose I read this one because it had a note attached to the blurb saying “People should read this please and thank you” from my friend (I guess that was enough of an arm twist for me), and I am actually glad I did.  Rather than share it on facebook, I decided to write a whole post about it, so in the words of my dear friend -

People should read this.  Please and thank you.

A professor stood before his philosophy class and had some items in front of him. When the class began, he wordlessly picked up a very large and empty mayonnaise jar and proceeded to fill it with golf balls. He then asked the students if the jar was full. They agreed that it was.

The professor then picked up a box of pebbles and poured them into the jar. He shook the jar lightly. The pebbles rolled into the open areas between the golf balls. He then asked the students again if the jar was full. They agreed it was.

The professor next picked up a box of sand and poured it into the jar. Of course, the sand filled up everything else. He asked once more if the jar was full.. The students responded with a unanimous ‘yes.’

The professor then produced two Beers from under the table and poured the entire contents into the jar effectively filling the empty space between the sand.The students laughed..

‘Now,’ said the professor as the laughter subsided, ‘I want you to recognize that this jar represents your life. The golf balls are the important things—-your family, your children, your health, your friends and your favorite passions—-and if everything else was lost and only they remained, your life would still be full. The pebbles are the other things that matter like your job, your house and your car.. The sand is everything else—-the small stuff.

‘If you put the sand into the jar first,’ he continued, ‘there is no room for the pebbles or the golf balls. The same goes for life.

If you spend all your time and energy on the small stuff you will never have room for the things that are important to you.

Pay attention to the things that are critical to your happiness.

Spend time with your children. Spend time with your parents. Visit with grandparents. Take your spouse out to dinner. Play another 18. There will always be time to clean the house and mow the lawn.

Take care of the golf balls first—-the things that really matter. Set your priorities. The rest is just sand.

One of the students raised her hand and inquired what the Beer represented. The professor smiled and said, ‘I’m glad you asked.’ The Beer just shows you that no matter how full your life may seem, there’s always room for a couple of Beers with a friend.”

Living in NYC, it is really easy to get wrapped up in a whole bunch of small stuff:  promotions, designer clothes, and chic apartments.  I just thought this was a great reminder of what really is important in life.  Enjoy.

Organic Avenue in the West Village

A few months ago I was wandering around a book store, and I stumbled across a book entitled, Odd Jobs: How to Have Fun and Make Money in a Bad Economy.  It basically was a tally of a bunch of odds and ends jobs that you can earn extra income from, or in some cases, a living.  Did you know that a bed tester is a job?  Yep.  He travels the US staying in different hotels each night, testing out their beds.  Kind of awesome right, unless of course you get lonely easily, or you have a crippling fear of bedbugs.

As I flipped through a bit more, one of the jobs mentioned was secret shopper.  This had always intrigued me, so I memorized the web address, and signed up when I got home.  Since then I have completed 2 shops.  The first one was for a brunch, and it was horrendous.  It was very clear why the management wanted to find out what was going wrong.   This last one I did was exceptional.  It opened up the door to this fabulous place called Organic Avenue.

Organic Avenue is a chain, Raw/Vegan shop, that has a lovely assortment, ranging from vegan snacks, juices, yogurts, raw wraps, treats, and a variety of products for cleansing.  I decided to ask some questions on digestion, and he recommended a few booster shots, such as ginger (calms upset stomachs, relieves bloating and gas, and enhances assimilation of food and nutrients  ), aloe (good for calming, soothing the entire digestive tract.), and others, describing how each one tastes.  I decided on the Dragon’s Breath booster shot, which is good during the cold season, packing a potent punch of ginger, lemon and cayenne, as well as a vegan yogurt.  I had always been curious how the non-dairy yogurt would taste, and it tasted really delicious (I actually enjoyed it more than regular yogurt).  As for the Dragon’s Breath- Whoa, it’s spicy, and boy did I love the heat.  If I was made of money, I would be at this little store regularly (and when I say little store, I mean master suite bathroom sized).  The yogurt was $7 (yes, for yogurt!), and the shot was $4.  A bit steep, but when it is on someone else’s dime, who cares.  If you are on a RAW or Vegan diet, and like good quality products, then Organic Avenue is a place you should definitely check out.

For more information on Organic Avenue, you can check out there website here:  http://www.organicavenue.com/ They have many locations around the city, and they deliver.  Enjoy!

Reblogged from SimplyBubbly.com

Blueberry Almond Smoothie

Ingredients:

½ cup of almond milk

½ cup of low-fat plain greek yoghurt

½ cup fresh or frozen blueberries

½ banana

2 tsp chia, hemp or flaxseeds (optional)

a dash of cinnamon

1 tsp honey

Blend all the ingredients together in a food processor or blender. Enjoy!

Feeling like you may have been packing on a few extra pounds lately? Or you just want to get rid of some stubborn pounds that will not budge? Try eating these yummy fruits to help with your weight loss.

1.       Apples

An apple a day keeps the doctor away and don’t forget the peel. The peel contains ursolic acid that scientists found helped mice burn fat. The acid ups muscle and brown fat which increase calorie burn.

2.       Blueberries

Blueberries are a great superfood, they help improve your memory. AND according to a recent study may reduce belly fat by affecting fat-burning genes.

3.       Pears

Pears contain a lot of flavonoids and catechins, especially great for women since these antioxidants ward off weight gain.

For the brunch obsessed crowd like me, Manhattan is a playground. One of the biggest dilemmas on the weekend is where to brunch. There are a million choices in every neighborhood that you just can’t pick. I have been recently exploring the UWS and decided to brunch in the neighborhood. A couple of friends had recommended Good Enough To Eat and raved about it, especially the strawberry butter. They had warned me about the insane brunch line and I am so glad I listened. They were also right about the butter.

I made sure that I got there first before anyone in my party so that I could line up. The line was already insane, out the door of the cute little white picket fence that surrounds the dainty restaurant. It seems pretty ridiculous to line up for almost two hours just to eat brunch but it is well worth it, at least for this place. The line was organized well, I must say, and the hostess was really polite and helpful. Maybe it’s a ploy to make all of us so hungry that all the food will taste good no matter what! Nah, the food was delectable, period.

We sat down in the very cute but very tiny dining room. I loved the decor. It was very country and comfy. They still had remnants of snowmen mobiles hanging on the ceiling, and a giant glass case that had the best looking pies I had ever seen (mouthwatering sight), and a small bar area where parties of two can sit. I immediately ordered some biscuits with the infamous strawberry butter. The four of us inhaled the whole basket the second it came to our table. It was very good. The butter was actually not as sweet as I would have suspected which was great. The biscuits were flaky on the outside, and soft and warm on the inside.

The menu was one of the most difficult things I’ve had to read because there were so many good choices that I couldnt decide! We all figured that we will order all different things so we can try all of them. I got the Deep South, basically biscuits and gravy. The bread part was not actually biscuits, it was two loaves of cakey bread spread on top with creamy sausage white gravy and an omelet on the side. It was very very good. Not too salty at all, the gravy was velvety and perfect. The eggs tasted so fresh and light. We had also ordered the bacon waffles with fruit ont he side. It was pretty good although it could’ve used some more bacon bits inside. The fresh maple syrup helped though.

One of the winners was the pumpkin french toast with marinated pears in raspberry sauce on top. It was amazing!!! the french toast had a nice crunch on the edges with a soft warm center. It wasnt too pumpkin-ey that it overpowered the other flavors or even the maple syrup. Just enough to accent the french toast. this was probably the best dish we had. The other was the apple pancakes. Nice fluffy pancakes topped with apples cooked in syrup. They were really tasty and warm and comforting.

I am dying to go back because I want to try more things on the brunch menu like the cornedbeef hash which I am a sucker for! The prices were also amazing, so cheap for the quality of the food. Was it worth the 2 hour wait? YES! Was it worth going to the UWS for? YES! Definitely points for the UWS! I’m hooked.

Tips to heal chapped lips, or keep your lips soft and healthy:

1.  Drink Plenty of Water – Since chapped lips are mainly a result of dehydration, drinking enough water will help to eliminate your chapped lips.

2.  Don’t Lick Your Lips – If you lick your lips, the saliva dries quickly, thus drying out your lips quicker, causing chapped lips.  If you have chapped lips, and a habit of licking your lips, you need to work hard to stop this habit.

3.  Limit Exposure to the Elements – Dry wind/air, and bright sun can cause dry lips, so make sure to use a lip balm that has sunscreen in it if you spend a lot of time outdoors.

4.  Keep Your Lips Moisturized – There has been some words that petroleum based lip balms are not the wisest choice when it comes to chapped lips.  It has been said that it does not allow the skin of the lips to breath, therefore causing more dehydration of the cells, which in turn leads to more chapped lips.  Your best bet is to go with natural products and remedies that include natural butters and oils (I will list some below that work wonders).

5.  Exfoliate Your Lips – This will help to get rid of some of the dry skin, and moisturize in the process.  Below is an all natural, oh so yummy exfoliate you can make yourself:

Ingredients:

1/2 teaspoon of brown or white sugar
1/2 teaspoon of honey
1/2 teaspoon of olive oil
a pinch of powdered cinnamon

These ingredients work well to exfoliate, hydrate, and moisturize all at the same time!

How to use:

Come join me on January 29th @ 7.15pm for a stress management workshop.

Take up the weight loss challenge!

Be fit and fabulous in 2013 and start off the New Year right.

Group coaching is one of THE most effective ways to lose weight AND have fun in the process. You have an awesome group of cheerleaders to support you. Having a strong support system is a KEY FACTOR in long-term, vibrant health and weight-loss success.