Showtunes, Hurricanes, and Cakes

So, since you last heard from us we have seen Broadway stars, made it through a hurricane, and even walked into Carlo's Bakery from TLC's the Cake Boss!  Let's start with Friday before our little friend "Irene."  Friday we were supposed to go out for our friend's birthday, but because of evacuations in certain parts of the city for the hurricane, our friends rented a car and headed to Jersey.  So we had a brilliant idea...let's go see a show!!!  We headed to Midtown, ate a little meal at Blockheads (famous for their cheap Margarita's), and then put our names into the lottery for $25 tickets to see Rent.  We really were not thinking we would get pulled at all, but Jillian Norris Sullivan was the third name drawn.  If you talk to us, ask us about the full name...it's a humorous story.  Rent was amazing!  It is a little different from the original since it is the "revival."  Costumes were similar but different, some better and some not.  The talent though was truly impressive. We were particularly impressed with Maureen, Collins, Roger, and the woman who sang the lead on Seasons of Love.  She was AMAZING!!!  Sitting in the front row let us see all the emotion these performers were giving to their characters.  As Chad said after the show, "this is why we do this."  Needless to say we left the city Friday night on a musical theater high, ready to face Hurricane Irene for the weekend.

We spent the weekend at home in Jersey City with our roomies and some of Jon Brown's friends.  Jon had already scheduled a little welcoming cook out, so it went on as planned.  Not everyone could come, but those who did enjoyed hamburgers, chicken kebabs, corn on the cob, and chocolate fondue!  Hurricane Irene passed through our area not doing too much damage.  A little flooding in the basement, a slight leak in the roof, and some branches down outside.  We only lost power for a second throughout the night so overall, we had it pretty easy compared to other parts of the state.

Once Monday hit, we were ready to get out of the house.  Jon Brown took us to a little dive that reminded us of Lynn's Paradise Cafe called Cowgirl Hall of Fame.  It was a quirky little place that was quite tasty.  Afterwards, our friend Blake made arrangements for all of us to join him at Broadway Rhythm and Booze at Tillman's.  OMG!!!!!!  This is an event his friends have once a month where Broadway stars come and sing live, even if they aren't scheduled to sing in the show!  Last night we saw Doug Lyons, Rebecca Naomi Jones, and Darren Lorenzo.  We also saw some others from Sister Act and the tour of Dream Girls who improvised with Darren.  It was seriously amazing!  We couldn't stop smiling!  We were also introduced to Musical Monday's at Splash.  It's like Showtune Night at Q times 10.  The bar was packed and everyone was singing along.  We even saw a little live performance by Ellen Marie Marsh who is a swing in Priscilla Queen of the Desert.  So all is all, we're staying busy and being shown around the city by friends frequently.  Sorry for such a long post, but we wanted to share with you part of the "biggest adventure of our lives."  Nighty night!!

Vinyl and Vernon

Hey friends!!  So life in Jersey has been pretty low key.  We've been exploring part-time job options online and then cooking dinner (yes moms...we are eating at home...aren't you proud?).  Yesterday however, we went into the city to visit our friend Carly Vernon.  For those of you who saw Hairspray at your local Derby Dinner Playhouse or Beef and Boards Dinner Theatre, she played Tracy's bestie, Penny Pingleton!  Carly took us to one of our her favorite hot spots for lunch, Vinyl.  It's a cute little place decorated with beach balls, CD disks, and colored glass.  Not only was it super cute, but also pretty tasty too!  We have a little video to give you a tour of the place with an appearance from Carly of course.  Today we are chilling out, watching the news on Hurricane Irene.  We are are supposed to have lots of rain Saturday and Sunday when it reaches the tri-state area.  So in our first week here we will have been through an earthquake and hurricane.  What a way to be welcomed to the big apple!!!  

The Jersey House

So we aren't "The Situation" or "Snookie" but we do live in Jersey, now.  We have been asked about the house and what it looks like so we wanted to post a couple of pics.  Jon Brown has been gracious enough for us to stay with him at the Bergen House so we cannot take credit for the decor. :)

Starting @ Ground Zero

Hello Again!

So yesterday, as we have talked about already, we went to explore the city for the day.  We started our day at the new World Trade Center building (which is only about half way built at this point).  When we take the path train into the city from Jersey, we come out right at the World Trade Center.  We had a look at the new building being constructed and then walked across the street to St. Paul's.  That is a chapel where 9/11 rescue workers received round the clock care.  Inside, they have memorials set up with flags, banners, photos, etc.  It was surreal to walk in there and see/read these "exhibits" they have set up.  Emotions were definitely flying high in there yesterday.  We put together a short video of the sights from the morning.  Enjoy!

Hello From Mayo

Hi Friends,

Today, we explored the city a bit.  We left Jersey City around noon and didn't return back here until about 9:30 this evening.  We smelled the smells of Little Italy, walked through the fishy water on the streets of China Town and had lovely conversation with friends (Carlie and Matt) over a drink at the Beer Garden (Water Taxi Beach) and dinner at il Brigante.  il Brigante was AM-AH-ZING!!  I highly recommend this restaurant, should you be in the South Street Seaport area.  (Financial District)  The Water Taxi Beach was a great place to chill on a wonderful day like today.  It was right on the pier and it's called a "beach" (we're assuming) because they have tables in sand and it's by the river.  Either way - pretty awesome.  The weather was in our corner this evening as well.  Carlie Mayo, whom Chad has been friends with since high school, and her boyfriend had a great time catching up and learning more about the city.  The video below is a little "hello" from Ms. Mayo. :)

Start Spreadin' The News...

Hello friends and family!  Welcome to our new blog/vlog!  We hope to keep you updated with our happenings in the big city as well as our small adventures in everyday life!!  The ride up to Jersey City went smoothly.  We left Saturday morning and got to Jon's house around 9:00pm.  That night we unpacked, had some snacks and crashed!!  We were exhausted from our trip, but excited to finally be here.  Our car ride adventure is posted below, so get ready for a little laugh.  Yesterday we had breakfast, ran some errands, and got a little tour of Jersey City and Hoboken.  We saw Carlo's Bakery (yes, that's the Cake Boss on TLC), we drove through Liberty Park to see the backside of Lady Liberty, and even almost caught the Puerto Rican Parade!  Too bad we were a little early for that.  Last night Jon Brown took us to meet some of his friends.  They were a hoot.  We are getting acquainted with our surroundings and learning more and more about what to expect here in Old Bergan!  Check back soon for our first "city" experience as residents as well as a tour of our house and roomies!