2011: A Year I'll Never Forget

Wow, this has been an amazing year! There have been many memorable moments, as well as ones I'd like to forget as soon as possible (see date below). Here are my favorite moments of 2011:

-My date with a pervert

-Accidentally blowing a kiss to Kristen Wiig

-An emotional rollercoaster with Netflix. There were good times and perplexing ones

-The first time I met Spasso's Stracciatella

-Doing standup, and loving it!

-The delivery of my child

-My inspirational leap from textile designer to app designer: check these out: The Dateline App and Eyes Wide Open App 

-The first time I held a koala

-Almost getting my own reality show

Can't wait to see what happens in 2012! If the men are even half as bad as the ones this year, you're in for some interesting blog posts. 

Happy New Year to you! Hope you're doing something fun (and eating something delicious) to celebrate!

Adam Platt Has Spoken (And I Have Listened)

In this week's New York Magazine, Adam Platt lists the top 100 restaurants in NY right now....Which for me is part trip down memory lane, and part to-do list for 2012! Here are the restaurants I would LOVE to try next year (I should probably start making reservations now):

-Per Se (DUH! Who doesn't want to eat at Per Se? Must find some special occasion to celebrate!)

-Momofuku Ko (Been wanting to try for years! But could anything be better than pork buns?)

-Torrisi Italian Specialties (My love of Frankies Spuntino makes it hard to for me to enjoy any other Italian restaurants but this one sounds GOOOOD!)

-Maialino-I walk by this restaurant, located in the Gramercy Park Hotel, all the time and peer in with envy, wondering why I haven't been yet. It looks so delightful in there! And if Danny Meyer has anything to do with the place, it must be good (hello Shake Shack! and Eleven Madison Park (which is also on the Platt's list by the way)).

-L'Atelier De Joel Robuchon-(I know a guy who actually CRIED at Joel Robuchon's restaurant in Paris because the food was so extraordinary! And I hear Robuchon's New York restaurant is pretty darn amazing too.)

 

The NY Shoe Guy: A Hero to Many

It's not often someone can drastically improve your life for $10, but the NY shoe guy does it every day for desperate ladies all across Manhattan!! Heel fall off? He'll build a new one! Leather shriveling up? A bit of polish and it's as good as new! There's almost no problem you can throw his way that he would be able to tackle. 

With his unstoppable optimism and ability to salvage your old shoes, its a wonder shoe companies can even stay in business. And he's not just limited to shoes either! He fixes watches, bags. Pretty much any problem you have, he can help you!!

I'd like to take this moment to thank my shoe guy on 30th street between Madison and Park Ave. I wouldn't have been able to wear my favorite brown boots for more than five years if it weren't for him. He's my hero!!

The Only Problem With Seated Concerts....

Saturday night I went to go see one of my favorite bands, The National. THEY WERE AMAZING!! And the Beacon Theater is my new favorite venue. HELLO SEATING!! Yes, it's sad but true: my days of enjoying general admission are long gone. Now, I embrace the luxury of a nice cushy seat. No pushing to get to the front. No fighting with the sweaty (probably much younger and less wise) people bumping into you. It's concert going for old people, and I love it!

There's one small glitch though. The whole seating thing only works if EVERYONE sits down. If one or two people stand up and block the band for everyone else, the whole system is compromised. And that's exactly what happened Saturday night. There were two girls with particularly bad dance moves a few rows ahead that stood and "danced" at every chance they could get. They even got up during slow songs and kind of did this semi-sway thing (Who DOES that?). I felt bad for the poor people that sat directly behind them, as well as also feeling bad for myself!

Anyway, here's a clip of those dancing girls. I couldn't hear exactly what they were saying, but here's how I think their conversation would have gone:

By the way, for those of you who were offended by my "New Years Eve" comment, do not fret. I myself went to go see the movie last night, so it was all in good fun. And if you're wondering, the movie was even worse than I thought it was going to be! Oh well, they can't all be Oscar worthy, can they?

Happy First Birthday to THESUPERGREAT!!

Today is a very exciting day, it is the one year anniversary of when I started my blog! I am so happy! It's been such a fun and exciting year, and I couldn't have done it without all of your support (hello, Oscar speech?). Thank you to everyone who follows thesupergreat, and leaves hilarious comments (and even the aggressive comments, because it only means you care!), and reposts on Facebook, and all of that good stuff. Now here are a few of my favorite posts from this year. 

-Breaking Up With Your Fruitman Is Hard

-Suggested Topics in Elevator Small Talk

-My Daily Commute Reminds Me a Lot of "Paperboy"

-Let's Face it, Facebook Is Not Perfect

-New Yorkers Have Plenty to be Afraid Of (Discussion of FOMO and other Fears)

-New York Baby Halloween Costume Ideas

-Superimpose Me-What Would Our Baby Look Like?

-What's the Name of that New Justin Timberlake Movie Again?

And of course every Fifth Grade Journal Friday has been very special! There are too many of those to list individually.

Let me know if any other posts touched you, or if there's anything you'd like to see in year two! Looking forward to the next year of hilariousness and deliciousness and interesting dates...And you'll be the first to know about all that!

Fifth (or Fourth) Grade Journal Friday-Winning

And that was the last time I ever won anything. Besides that autographed photo of Tyra Banks I won in a silent auction a few years ago (after one too many drinks..might not have made the same decision to bid on it sober). Charlie Sheen is right, winning is AWESOME!

Destiny, Or Extremely Bizarre Google Searches, Brought You Here

More bizarre internet searches that brought people to thesupergreat.com. WHY OH WHY is someone searching for "math dirty monkeys smell bad"???????? Or "bulldog farts" for that matter. So strange, but at least I get a good laugh out of it (and hopefully you do too!).

What It's Like To Get Fired From Three Waitressing Jobs

This story is not about me. It's about a close friend of mine, whose name is Samandra Raymond. Samandra had a LONG history of waitressing. I, uh I mean she, worked at seven different restaurants throughout her diverse career:

IHOP Wayne, NJ

Best job ever! How did Samandra not gain 100 lbs working there?
 

Charlie Brown's Steakhouse Wayne, NJ

Samandra cried after every shift. Terrible! Her first night working, her customer found a screw in their salad. YIKES!
 

Macaroni Grill Wayne, NJ

This is where Samandra refined her ability to write her name upside down.

 

Il Vicino* St Louis
Bob Costas used to eat here, thank god he was never seated in Samandra's station, or her poor waitressing skills might have made the news.

Cinder's Steakhouse* Wayne, NJ
(Ironically I think the place burned down. NOT due to anything Samandra did)

Edna's Place* Melbourne, Australia

No Comment. I don't think Samandra lasted more than a month or two here.
 

Stir Sushi Melbourne, Australia Best job ever! Free sushi! And Samandra learned some Japanese from the chef (important expressions like "cheerful caterpillar", etc).

You know what? Samandra was actually a pretty darn bad waitress! So bad that she was actually "fired" from three of the seven jobs. Not that anyone ever actually said to her "You're fired", but there were a few instances of the following:

Samandra: "Hi, just calling to find out when I'm on the schedule next:
Restaurant Manager: "Uh, yes...About that...You're not"

Samandra couldn't understand it! She was friendly! People loved her! She even had a few tricks up her sleeve to connect with her tables:
-If two people ordered the same dish, when bringing them out to the table, she would act confused, not sure which dish was for which person. That one always got a good laugh!
-When clearing people's plates, if there was one that was completely empty, she would act concerned and say "Wasn't very good?". That one also got a hearty laugh!

Samandra made babies laugh, and practically brought out refills before people even ordered their first drink. She suggested dishes she thought people would enjoy. She loved her customers (especially the ones that left her 20% or more) and they loved her.

Why all the firing then? Was it because of that one time she spilled a tray of drinks on a customer at Il Vicino? Or the fact that she could NOT open a bottle of wine for the life of her, often pushing the cork inside expensive bottles of wine?

Thankfully, Samandra decided to end her waitressing career and pursue other passions (Design), but she will always cherish the memories of being a waitress (mostly the ones involving stuffing her face with Vive La French Toast and Chocolate Chip Pancakes with extra scoops of butter. THANK YOU, IHOP!!!).

*These are the restaurants that did not ask Samandra back

Sam: Not Sporty at Any Age

This was another page from that "Book About Me" I filled out at age six. You know you weren't the most athletic child when you say your favorite sport is rollerskating!

And I guess not much has changed, because here's a pic of me "playing" kickball a few years ago..

It's my dedication to the team that helped me coin the expression "Winning is for Losers"!!

The FOOD SPREADSHEET!

I don't want to build this up or anything, but this might be the most important day of your life. It is a moment that will trend on twitter....It's the day your life changes forever....

Yes, that's right, it's the day I share my food spreadsheet with you! I've been keeping track of my favorite restaurants for years (I don't bother writing down the ones I didn't like)..I also keep a list of the new places I want to try (Am I missing anything? Let me know if you've eaten anywhere good lately!). I update the spreadsheet so check back often. 

Well, here it is, DRUMROLL PLEASE.....SAM'S FOOD SPREADSHEET


And just so you know (in case you haven't heard me mention them a million times before), my favorite spots are:

-Frankies 17
-Shake Shack
-Ippudo
-Luke's Lobster
-Levain Bakery

Watch Out, Oprah! My Favorite Things From Last Week

Oprah, I'm taking over where you left off...Here are some of my favorite things from last week...*

Favorite Song: Robyn "Stars 4-Ever".  This song will make you dance! YEAH!!
Favorite Meal: Bagel with Horseradish Cream Cheese, Smoked Salmon and Wasabi Roe from Russ and Daughters. MMMMMMM...Pretty to look at and DEELISH!
Favorite TV Show: "Up All Night". It's cute and funny, and Maya Rudolph's character as a wannabe Oprah is reason enough to tune in. HILARIOUS!
Favorite Website: Shapeways.com. Found out about it at the NY Tech Meetup. Design your own stuff and have it made. Or buy cool stuff other people have designed. AWESOME!

*Sorry, people...There's nothing under your chairs and no trips to Australia or free cars!

Fifth Grade Journal Friday-Ahhh, Sam Got Her Ears Pierced...