Moving...and a weekend wrap up

A quick posting after the weekend...

In case you haven't heard the story, I am moving apartments this week. Don't worry - I'm not going far. In fact, I'm moving one block away. The long story short is this: I found out back in April that my apartment building was officially converting to condominiums. They first started kicking the idea around about a month after I moved in, and then it became official in April. As a result, they weren't renewing any leases and I am forced to move out as my lease ends on July 31st. What a bitch. It's a shame because I do enjoy this apartment and its location, my rent isn't too bad relative to the area, and its just enough space for me. And the fact of the matter is that I would have renewed for another year if I had the opportunity.

For one reason or another, the management decided they wanted to sell of these units, which makes no sense to me because my apartment is 550 sq. ft. (if you have no concept of size - it's tiny) So you mean to tell me that someone is going to invest in a mortgage for this place? You've got to be kidding me. Even if someone wasn't going to live here and just wanted to invest in the unit, while finding a renter of their own, they'd still have to charge $1500-1600 per month in rent to balance out the $200K mortgage. The best part is that management keeps claiming that they've "had wonderful response to selling the units", but when I get the scoop from the insiders, I find out that they've only sold 40% of the units. In the meantime, at the end of each month, there's a mass exodus of tenants moving out.

The whole thing sucks because moving is a bitch to begin with, especially when you've only been in an apartment for 1 year. It's like being back at school again where you move into an apartment in the fall and by the end of the school year, you're hauling your junk back out of there. Anyway, the new place gives me more space and is rather comparable otherwise. Of course, my rent is increasing, so I'll have to find a way to cut back on other expenses. Knowing me, I probably won't cut back on anything, and end up losing money instead of breaking even, which is what I've basically been doing for the last 12 months.

There really isn't any happy medium because the only way to save money is living at home, and that really isn't an option when work is 2.5 hours from home (w/o traffic, that is). Oh well, I guess if there's ever a time not to save any money, it's now, when I'm just looking out for myself and only have certain expenses to pay for.

So that's the story. I started to pack and move some small items on Saturday (with Jessica's help!) and I'll be doing some more on Monday night. My folks are coming up here on Tuesday night to help, and then on Wednesday is the official moving day, so I'll be taking the day off of work to clear this place out. Reason I mention all of this is because the posts may be limited, and then my internet connection will be shut off. The guy is supposed to come on Thursday morning to hook up the internet/cable, etc. so maybe I'll be back up and running on Thursday night.

Otherwise, here's the weekend wrap-up. Saturday night, went out to a very nice dinner with the Jessica for her birthday dinner. A nice French restaurant called Pastis (9th Ave. at Little West 12th St.) in the Meatpacking District, where we enjoyed the food and the people-watching from our prime location seating. Highlights included the "steak frites" entree which they are known for and was delicious, watching some guy spend about 30 minutes on the cell phone while his girlfriend/date sat there in disgust, and had a celeb sighting of our own when New York Giants defensive end, Michael Strahan walked by.

Later on in the evening, we checked out some bar on the Upper East Side, which ended up being a total sausage fest. I mean honestly, I think every frat guy who lives on the east side of Manhattan showed up at this place on Saturday night with his button-down shirt, the popped collar and hat that was cocked to the side. Speaking of the popped collar, the new all-star of the Ross Press Release - Alexis - showed some balls after I dared her to go up to the next guy who walked by with his popped collar and turn it down for him. Sure enough, she did it. Of course she mentioned that I was the one to ask her to do it, and thought the guy was gonna sock me in the face. Instead, he thought it was pretty funny, and told me that I "should wear the collar up too. It'll look cool." I just looked at this guy in disbelief and responded with "Sorry, man, I'm just not cool enough to pull that one off." Then this guy tried to pick up Alexis, while Jessica and I just stood there and laughed. Great times.

Checked out one of these Street Fairs on Sunday afternoon, which is kind of like a mini-Arts Fest, but with less art, and more junk that people are trying to sell. You see more tents with "Everything under $2" than actual pieces of art. Regardless, it was fun to check it out and know that you can find one somewhere in the city each weekend during the summer.

That's it for now, folks. Write some comments to show me you're all still out there. Comment on anything you want; doesn't even have to be relevant to my post. I'm working on some more interactive material, but until then, help me help keep you entertained. Good night.