30 for 30 Countdown #11 - Pouring one out

Could I complete 30 days of new experiences without the obligatory "bartending"?

Sure couldn't.

Tonight, I finally mixed a real drink at a real bar!  I might add that it was delicious.

Fortunately, a friend from work knows the owner of a bar who was graciously willing to let me live out yet another 30 for 30 dream.  If you're in the East Village, you should definitely check out The Wren http://www.thewrennyc.com/ for some awesome drinks, gastropub food (spicy beef jerkey), and AMAZING bartenders (not just me).

The cocktail I chose to make for my 30s was called a black and blue.

Yep, it started with two scoops of blueberry jam!  Then I added the small part of the small measurer of lime juice.

Then I added a big thing and a medium thing of some delicious type of alcohol.  I added 6 ice cubes and then I got to...

shake shake shake!  Of course, I had to top it off with a splash of soda.  So, bartending is actually a lot harder than it looks!  There are so many parts involved in just making one drink - I couldn't keep it straight.  I definitely remembered to tip my bartender well ;)

Bottom's up.







This one's for you, L.♥

30 for 30 Countdown #12 - Goddard do the right thing

Though all people should do their best to help their community, lawyers have a particular responsibility to provide no-cost legal services to those who cannot otherwise afford them.

Today, I participated in a pro-bono clinic at the Goddard Senior Center.  (Yes, I love puns).  Lawyers who participate in this clinic perform intake functions for seniors who have legal questions or needs.  Frequently, seniors need help with writing wills or have questions about housing or government benefits.  In addition to the legal services, I think the seniors like having someone to talk to who will listen to their problems.

My favorite interaction from today was a man who, although he was there to ask for legal assistance, wanted to discuss the movie "12 Angry Men."  He was so excited that I had seen it and wanted to know when and under what circumstances.  "I want to learn how to bend the law, but not break it!"  He exclaimed as he laughed.

This was in stark contrast to the senior who stated that it should be required for all young people to visit nursing homes and hospital wings for the elderly.  As a child of a geriatric physician and someone who saw the decline of her aging grandparents, I understand what a different life many seniors have.

"If young people saw these things," he stated, "we might actually have hope for peace in the world."

I'm thankful for the ability to provide a service to a demographic that truly needs it.  Now, go call your grandma.

30 for 30 Countdown #13 - Polar Bear

What do I hate more than anything?  Being cold.  But, I promised to be a little crazy for my 30 for 30.

So, what made me do this?

I'll back up for a minute.  Many northern cities have a "polar bear club."  This is a group of people who get together and dunk themselves in the frigid water in January or February to raise money for charity.  

This year, the long beach polar bear club met today...

So, although I am more of a tropical rain forest animal like a snake or a toucan, I joined the polar bears today for a dunk in the Atlantic.

We took a pre-soak picture and took off....

My feet became numb almost immediately.  Then my thighs began burning.  As a wave washed over my shoulders, I lost my breath for a second.  That water is COLD!

I definitely felt invigorated!  I didn't even need to put my coat on right away until I realized that I had lost all feeling in my extremities.  

 Mike took off and went back in 3 times.

I'm actually quite proud of myself for this one.  I am the person who goes into this ocean in a wet suit in the summer.  I wear layers upon layers of sweaters in 60 degree weather.  I don't drink ice in my water.  I complain when the air conditioning is blowing on me.

But you know what?  I went into the ocean in February!  Boo-yah!

30 for 30 Countdown #14 - Do you Believe...

...in life after love...after love...after love....

are the lyrics to one of my favorite Cher songs.  They are also the lyrics to a song Thomas and I decided we would sing at a karaoke bar.

We jumped up on stage and the music started.  We started flailing our arms and spinning our heads...we were dancing hard.  But then, it was time to sing.  We froze.  A few noises came out of my mouth and then I just started to laugh from embarrassment.  Tina jumped on stage, grabbed the mic, and saved us.

Yes, I'm kind of a ham.  Yes, I like singing.  But, being alone on a stage with a mic scares the poop out of me.

A lot of you have probably been to karaoke places with me before and know that I love it.  But, I really only like "background" singing.  If I can be the low harmony or belt behind music so loud that no one can really hear me anyway, I am very happy.  Having a mic and being alone in front of strangers is something I've never actually been able to do.

I have all kinds of excuses: "I can sing on key but my voice sounds bad"; "I have too small of a range"; "My voice cracks."  Time to suck it up and do it!

My initial plan was to sing my favorite, "If I could turn back time."  Mike suggested that I practice so we pulled up a karaoke version on youtube.  As I began singing to him, he cringed.  I tried another Cher song, "Strong enough."  Still a no.  I was beginning to realize that I was about to humiliate myself badly.  We ran through about 5 more songs until we found one.

At a dive karaoke bar in Chinatown....

I have no idea who the random guy was that decided to interpretive dance as I was singing, but he definitely made it more interesting!  Thanks to all who cheered me on!  Couldn't live without you.

30 for 30 Countdown #15 - Wings!

When people in Hawaii get together to watch sports or have a potluck, typical food that shows up includes sushi, poke (chunks of raw fish and seaweed), and manapua (steamed pork buns).  It does not include Buffalo wings (at least it didn't in the 80's and 90's).

Not growing up around this type of bar food, it was only slightly unacceptable to have my very own Jessica Simpson moment my freshman year of college.  "What part of a buffalo do these wings come from?" I asked a friend who suggested ordering buffalo wings.  Recognizing my naïveté, my friend answered, "they are the little ribs under the buffalo's stomach."  I thought this was weird and suggested we get pizza instead.

Later, watching some fraternity boys stuff their face, I remarked, "little buffalo ribs are gross."  After the group stopped laughing, the entire story of the Buffalo wing was explained.  I now understood that it was actually chicken cooked in sauce made from Buffalo, NY.

My humiliation did not stop there.  Shortly after this, we had a nice dinner with a bunch of friends and their parents during parent visitation weekend.  I saw buffalo loaf on the menu (whaddya know!  They still serve it!  http://www.churchbrew.com/menus/DinnerMenu.pdf).

As I ordered, I proudly announced to the table that I knew I was actually ordering a chicken loaf.  The waiter paused then told me that it was, in fact, buffalo in the meat loaf.  This didn't deter me - I couldn't be tricked again!  I launched into the story that I had learned about the sauce from upstate NY.  Again, I had an entire table laughing at me.  I was too embarrassed to change my order and loved the buffalo.  It has been my burger preference ever since.

However, the entire ordeal has never been revisited on the buffalo wing side.  It's partially the residual embarrassment (I pride myself on knowing a lot about food), and partially the fact that wings look absolutely disgusting.  I don't even really like chicken in the first place - skin and other pieces... blech.

So, today I decided to try my first Buffalo wing.  Since this is 30 for 30, what better way to try something new than to pledge to eat 30.  That's right.  I decided I to eat 30 Buffalo wings.

3 trays of 30....1/3 of these were mine!  (Cajun, Buffalo, and BBQ)

I started off strong with a sample of each type.  I recall actually liking them as I first tried them.  Since the response from people was generally disbelief, "you can't eat 30 wings!" I decided to make it interesting.  I asked for pledges per wing, 100% of which would be donated to charity.

Eighteen of my coworkers pledged between 50 cents and $3 per wing.  The deal was, they would only pay if I finished the entire 30.  The pledge count reached $630!  I knew that was a lot of money for the homeless and it all depended on my ability to eat...

So, I ate...

Still felt OK after 10...

And, I ate...

I did NOT feel good after 20 wings.  I really thought about quitting but I pushed through and an hour and 20 min after I began...

I was on my last wing...

I did not want to swallow.  But, I finally did it!!

30 wings for $630 towards assisting the homeless in New York!  I ate my first and probably last wing tonight, but it was so worth it.

30 for 30 Countdown #16 - Coffee Break

A lot of my 30 for 30 has been an attempt to bring joy to random strangers.  I enjoy getting reactions from people - even if they're mean, it's still interesting.  So, my plan for today was yet another stranger interaction.  I was going to buy $30 worth of Starbucks coffee for whomever was in line at Starbucks.

As I was planning, a secretary walked by and mentioned how much she enjoyed hearing all that I was doing for 30 for 30.  I then realized something I sometimes forget - and a lot of us forget - we should take every opportunity to support the people around us.

We usually remember to do nice things for ourselves.  Then we do nice things for those who are closest to us, like our family and friends.  Then we often look to charity or strangers when trying to do things for the world.  But, there are people all around us who make a difference in our every day lives.  They deserve the love too!

So, my mission for today changed.  Instead of supporting some stranger's caffeine habit, I bought coffee for all of the secretaries on my floor.

I secretly got the 10 coffee orders and ran to pick them up.

As I walked around to pass out the drinks, I was called the "Starbucks Fairy."  It seems that at 3pm, a caramel macchiato or skinny vanilla latte is exactly what people need.  I even saved someone who was on her way to the vending machine for some candy.

Although I can't buy the whole world coffee every day at 3, I can remember to thank the people who make my life easier or more interesting.  And a little mocha every now and then doesn't hurt.

30 for 30 Countdown #17 - TODAY

My early morning routine consists of my getting ready while watching the Today show.  I listen to Matt and Anne and Al as I am brushing my teeth and getting dressed.

Today, some of you watched me on this show as you were getting ready!

We got up at 5 to make sure we were the first ones in line to get on the show!  We hurried in with my poster in a plastic bag.  I, of course, made it with washable markers...not a smart idea since it was raining (you can see the effects).

We stood next to someone who is quite a celebrity himself - Lenny.  Lenny is a staple of the Today show and has been every day for the last 20 years.  If you look, you'll definitely see him standing in the crowd every day.  People seemed more excited to get a picture with him than with the anchors!

The neon pink "30 for 30  #17: Today Show" made its way into quite a few audience pans early in the morning.  I parked myself right in front and pasted a smile on my face.  We were devastated to hear Al Roker was in D.C. this week!  There would be no one to interview us and wish me happy birthday!

(picture taken of actual TV)

That didn't stop us from living up every possible moment on air!  Brad Pitt was interviewed with Jonah Hill for the first time ever on the show.  Of course, the most interesting part is me and Mike jumping around in the background.

I think he really liked my kissy face at him!  You can watch the full interview (Mike and I are in about 90% of it) here http://todayentertainment.today.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2012/02/01/10287932-brad-pitt-jonah-hill-talk-moneyball-and-oscar  Lots of 30 to 30 action in the background!  Best moments are at 10:07 (a real kiss!); 3:55; and 5:34 (in the far right corner).

I was slightly better behaved as Matt and Anne were talking.  I sat there with my sign and my smile.  After the segment, we got to chat with Matt and he totally remembered me from the flight last week!

Just as I was about to leave - satisfied with my amount of airtime - I was approached by a woman asking if I was a fan of Kathie Lee and Hoda.  Since the answer is "of course," she signed me up to be on a segment called "who knew."

That's right!  I won $100 and was wished a happy birthday by Kathie Lee herself!!!  If you want to see the full segment, it's here http://today.msnbc.msn.com/id/29054368/ns/today-kathie_lee_and_hoda/#46220911

Today I learned that it's sometimes worth it to wake up before 5am (even with a little drizzle), Brad Pitt is still pretty cute, and even if you think you missed your chance at something, a better opportunity might just come along in the 4th hour!

Thanks, Today!