Fashionista Chronicles

I'm a J.Crew-aholic.  

I recently put away my winter clothes. During the process, I was a little distressed (at the time, anyway) to learn that I didn't have any shorts to wear for summer. 

As a J.Crew credit cardholder, I've been taking advantage of the wonderful sales they've been having over the past couple of months. As much as I do love J.Crew, the thrifty side of my brain doesn't like to pay full price for the stuff - one exception being the awesome pair of Vans I bought from there back in April; those were an investment. Of course, being on the email list means I get several emails a week letting me know what's new and what kind of sales they plan on having.

I bought these pieces at various stores around the area. My city, Stamford, has a store with a decent selection. When I really want to go wild though, I go to New York City. My favorite store is in Columbus Circle. There are other easily accessible suburban locations in Greenwich, Westport, and White Plains. 

While I've been mainly stocking up on shorts, I have found a few nice shirts as well. Since it's summer, I've been going for the polo style shirts or short sleeve button-downs. The sale rack hasn't had that many decent selections as far as short sleeve button-down shirts are concerned. 

Back to the shorts though, I love them. J.Crew generally has two styles of shorts, Stanton and Club. I prefer the Club style, since they are a bit longer (11" as opposed to 9" on the Stanton's). 

The ones I bought, from front to back:

11" Club Short in Red Micro-houndstooth

11" Club Short in Lightweight Chino - Bright Surf

9" Stanton in Seafoam Green

9" Stanton in Purple

(I couldn't find links to the last two since they are sold out online...you may be able to find them in the store!)

Generally, I'm very happy with their clothes and get compliments all of the time. That classic prep look is big around here.

The best part is that I spent less than $175 for all the stuff I've bought. This includes 4 pairs of shorts and 3 shirts (2 polos and 1 button down). The best time to hit up J.Crew is definitely during Final Sale. It's just oh so great. 

If you have a college ID, you can get an extra 15% off at most stores. You should definitely take advantage of that as well. It can even be an old ID, to be honest. 

Eats: The Meatball Shop, Greenwich Village

The Meatball Shop

64 Greenwich Avenue

Greenwich Village, New York City

http://www.themeatballshop.com/

I think I've found a new favorite! I actually tried this place a couple weeks back when I was in the mood for a meatball sub. Suffice it to say, I was here at night and the pics didn't come out that well. 

A return visit was in order! Just this past Sunday, I stopped by to have some of that meaty goodness. It was around 3:00pm, and there weren't many people there. I grabbed a seat at the bar and ordered a pint of PBR ($4).

They have a relatively simple menu. It's laminated and they give you a marker to choose your selections. You can choose from "Naked Balls" - 4 balls on a platter - or other items like a Hero or Meatball Sliders. 

This time around, I chose beef Naked Balls ($7 - you can choose from beef, pork, veggie or chicken) with the spicy meat sauce. The Meatball Shop also offers several sides that can go either under the balls or on the side. I chose Rigatoni ($5).

It was really, really good. I think I'm gonna like TMS...I like that it's pretty reasonably priced too. My total bill came up to $18...can't beat that with a stick!

They have a few other locations, the largest being in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. I definitely plan on trying that one out soon.

CitiBike First Day Try Out

Here it is...the thing that New Yorkers have been bitching about for months.

I bought a day-pass...$10.82 after tax. They also put a $101 hold on your credit card until the end of the day.

I started off at 41st and Broadway in the Times Square area. The kiosks were easy enough to use, but some of the docks would not work with the first unlock code I was given. I ended up having to try three or four docks before one would actually unlock.

The ride from Times Square to Greenwich Village was pleasant enough. The route I decided to take was pretty simple.

• South on Broadway to 23rd Street
• West on 23rd Street to Seventh Avenue
• South on Seventh Avenue

I was going to visit my barber on 7th and Charles, but the closest bike station was on 7th and West 4th, so I dropped the bike off there. You only get the bike for a half an hour before hefty overtime charges start (annual members get 45 free minutes per ride), but thankfully the ride only took 25 or so minutes. 

Locking the bike took a nice hard shove back into the dock. After making sure the thing was locked in, the ride is logged as complete and you can then go about your business.

I used the system three or four more times throughout the day. There's an option to obtain a new unlock code at the kiosk, after which you insert the same credit card you used to buy the pass. Some of the credit card readers were finicky and took three or four tries to read my card. Once an unlock code prints out, you have 5 minutes to use it. 

Generally, I like the system.  I think it's probably best for just short jaunts from neighborhood to neighborhood...longer rides, even with an annual membership, will cost you a pretty penny. At that point, you'd be better off renting a bike for the day at one of the numerous bike shops around town.

I wouldn't mind paying $10 for the day pass, especially since the MTA nixed the 1-Day Fun Pass MetroCard...whenever I visit the city I'd take the subway at least 3 or 4 times. Bike Share is a pretty decent option but of course, I probably would still take the subway if I was going to another borough or pretty far uptown (they only have bike stations below 59th Street at the moment)

I learned that they have a similar, albeit much smaller, bike sharing system in Long Beach, NY. I plan on taking a day out there one of these days. 

People have been bitching plenty about this whole thing, but I did see a lot of other people on Citi Bike when I used it. I think it'll be pretty cool once the technical glitches work themselves out.