A day at the Dream hotel

It's Tuesday in the end of July. The weather is perfect here in New York City, 77 and cloud free. My friend invited me over to the Dream hotel in downtown for a pool day. There are a few great pool spots in the city, like the Gansevoort on Park Avenue. We decided to go to the Dream hotel in Chelsea. The Dream looks a bit like a boat with circular windows that look like the side of a big cruise ship. The Dream hotel downtown is located on 16th Street and 9th Avenue next to the famous downtown Tao restaurant and lounge. The Dream has a rooftop nightclub, over 4 bars, 3 nice restaurants and a juice bar. It's a place to see and be seen, one of the trendiest places in the city. 

Above is a picture of the Dream pool. 

We arrived and straight away ordered some cocktails by the pool, strawberry field cocktails to be exact. Sipping strawberry field cocktails is truly a summer paradise with a blend of strawberry, lime, mint leaves and tequila and crushed ice.  This is was my first time ever going to the pool there and it was quiet lovely. It wasn't too packed and the vibe was cool and chic. Chill electronic music was playing and thin tall model like waitresses served the poolside guests. I went swimming, tanned and enjoyed some delicious cocktails. This is a hotel I would recommend tourists or anyone to go to if you are visiting the city this summer. You will really experience chic New York summer living. 

Interview with Randy Harris

Randy Harris is a colleague of mine from California. He received his Bachelor’s degree from Loyola Marymount University and majored in communications with a focus on new media. He now lives in NYC and is working for a start-up that created a mobile app. He is a perfect candidate for me to interview because he is a good role model and provides a good example for a communication major looking for a job during college and after graduation. I am interviewing him about his new position at the start-up.

Me: Randy, what were your career plans after graduating with a communication and new media studies major?

Randy: Living in Los Angeles I had a lot of different opportunities and resources to explore future careers. During my time at LMU I gained learning experience working at the school radio station ROAR NETWORK. My time at ROAR gave me real experience for my next job I would have, little did I know it would be where I'm at now.

Me: What are you specifically working on now and how do you like it?

Randy: Well I moved back to New York, where I'm originally from, after graduating. I started applying for jobs in the media industry. Funny enough I met DJ Skee through networking and a mutual friend of mine introduced me to DJ SKEE.  We really hit off and I am now helping him launch his app.

Me: What was so unique about meeting DJ Skee and having such a great opportunity?

Randy: We emailed before we met and I sent him my resume which included my past work at the ROAR radio at LMU. He was delighted to see that I love music and we got to e-mailing about his new app.

Me: Can you tell us about this new app and how you are involved now?

Randy: Through e-mailing we had a lot in common in music, I really love hip-hop and keep up with my music blog on hypem.com. We had a few meetings, exchanged ideas and he has now hired me as his new associate for his upcoming app DASH.

Me: Can you give me more on DASH?

Randy: Dash is the future of radio music, it is short for dashboard, like in your car except this app can play on your mobile and mp3 devices. Facts are that over 97% of people listen to the radio and it is often rather repetitive. This new app DASH is different because you have a more variety in the different music for your depending on your taste. You can select artists and songs and based off those DJ skee has programmed it to be similar in taste. It's also free, which everyone likes.

Me: How do you think being a communication major helped you prepare for a career in the media world?

Randy: I think being a communication major has helped me both attain my current job though networking but also in the office. Being used to working in radio has helped the transition into working at start-ups tremendously. I hope from this experience I can move up to higher places.

Me: What would you recommend to other communication majors?

Randy: I would encourage them to use all the recourses they are given through their university and opportunities they offer for students and graduates. Always stay persistent when applying for jobs and never give up. 

Interviewing Randy really gave me a lot of insight for my future plans. New media seems to be the future of my generation.

Xo,
Melody

Bi-Coastal Beaches!

Growing up in Southern California I have been going to the beach since I was an infant. My grandfather has a beautiful beach house I would go to with all of my family. It is located in Capistrano Beach, CA right on the Pacific Ocean. It is in Orange County and its north border is California State Beach Doheny. Capistrano Beach is my first memories of a beach. When I first went to a beach on the east coast in the Hamptons I was aware of some differences that the west coast doesn’t have. I remember thinking that it was my first time in the Atlantic Ocean. Then it dawned on me that it snows on these beaches! Such a weird thought because it doesn’t snow on the beaches in California. The coldest it gets is in winter and surfers still go out in wetsuits. Today I went to the beach in Southampton, NY, this was not my first time here but I was really studying the beach and comparing it to the beaches I go to in California. I really enjoy the land that the houses have between them and around them. A lot of the development in southern California is very tight. In Newport Beach, CA the houses are so close to each other they are practically touching (some do). In the Hamptons there is distance and privacy between the houses. The scenic landscape that surrounds these beach houses is beautiful. The beaches on the east coast are beautiful.

Above is a picture of a house in Southampton Beach. As you can see the house has plenty of space and their neighbors are far away. 

 

Above is a picture of Newport beach from an arial view. As you can see the houses are very close together.

Overall I love both the east and west coasts. The beaches are beautiful at both and I am thankful to have been able to visit both and share my experiences. If anyone ever has a question about beaches to go to in either coast I would love to help!

Xo,

Melody

California Cooking: A California Breakfast Scramble

One of my favorite meals to eat is breakfast. There are so many fantastic breakfast options. Living a bi-costal life exposes you to the ways that different people like to eat breakfast. California food selection is a little bit different than that of NYC. The great thing about California is all the frensh produce. My personal favorite is the fantastic avocados. I eat a ton of avacados when I am there. It is just so fresh. It seems like Californians use avocado in a lot of their meals. So I am going to do a piece on how to make a California breakfast scramble. The recipe I am using is one of my own.

California Breakfast Scramble

Ingredients

-1 Small onion

-1 Firm-rip California avocado

-4 Large eggs

-2/3 Cup grated extra-sharp cheddar cheese

-Granish: chopped fresh cilantro sprigs.

Preparation

Chop onion. Halve, pit, and peel avocado and cut into 1/4-inch pieces. In a bowl whisk together eggs and cheddar and season with salt and pepper. In a nonstick skillet heat butter over moderately high heat until foam subsides and sauté onion, stirring, until just beginning to soften, about 2 minutes. Add egg mixture and cook, stirring constantly, until eggs are just set, about 1 minute. Remove skillet from heat and stir in avocado.

Serve eggs garnished with cilantro.

I also like to have my eggs with toast and butter and fresh orange juice.

This breakfast is delicious and healthy. The combination off eggs cheese and avocado makes a savory and delicious scramble. Enjoy!

Bi-coastal meets Bi-Coastal

So I was surfing the web looking at who else is living the bi-coastal lifestyle and I chanced upon a sassy brunette who has a blog entitled "Bi-Coastal Brunette." My blog focuses a lot on travel and her blog focuses a lot on fashion trends and recipes. She also has a section called must reads where she tells us about all the stuff we should read each month.

My favorite part of the blog is the "monthly crush" where she writes about all the things that the sees around New York, or wherever she is, and posts them online. Check it out here. I would like to ask the bi-coastal brunette what differences she sees in New York and California fashion, because I wrote a short little post on that relating to flip flops. I think California has that laid back lifestyle and so people are more comfortable dressing down, whereas in New York it's about the class and looking good. Do you think that the sparkly sandals that you like are also hip in California, or is it mostly a New York thing? 

Always good to see there are other people living the bi-coastal life. I saw another blog that claimed to be living the Bi-Coastal life but they were flying between Mexico and Canada. That's a north south life, and it's not on two coasts. Bi-coastal life is two coasts in the same country! That's what I think. 

The Strands: An Update!

Living a bi-coastal life you sometimes don't realize that a lot of changes happen back in California when you are spending all your time in the Hamptons in New York. One of the big changes I've noticed is the development of prime beach front property in Dana Point. The development is called the Strands.

Dana Point is south of Laguna Beach and is in between Los Angeles and San Diego. I grew up there and my family currently lives there. It is a great surfer spot, and people who live there seem like they are on vacation 24/7/365. And that makes sense, it is a little beach spot. When I went back last time I was so surprised how many lots are filled now and how many houses are popping up. The place is so different.

Part of writing a blog is sharing my thoughts on living in New York and California and keeping people updated on the changes in and happenings in each place. I went to Wikipedia to see if it was up to date on Dana Point but there wasn't even any mention of The Strands! So I decided to add one. I've pasted what I added below, you should go check it out!

Dana Point Wikipedia

Strands[edit]

The Strands is a new luxury housing development built on an old public beach and surfer hot spot next to the Salt Creek and the Ritz Carlton. Lots are rectangular with modern houses. It is a very upscale development with house sales commonly above $3,000,000. Sales have been rapid according to the development website. ^[7] The development has made it slightly more difficult for surfers to access the water, but there has been no noticeable decrease in the surfing population.

If you are ever in Dana Point you should really take a walk around the area. It's got beautiful houses, a great clubhouse, and a pool overlooking the ocean. If you are a surfer you can still go there and access the beach so everyone is happy!

Southern California Hot Versus New York Hot

If you live a bi-coastal life in the summer you are traveling between the heat of New York and the heat of Southern California, or SoCal as it is affectionately called. But not all heat is created equal. Sometimes it’s good to escape one type (New York) and get to the other (SoCal). But other times you just crave a good summer thunderstorm!

Southern California is basically a desert on the beach when it comes to climate. Rain is rare and the heat is dry. It makes it very ideal for going to the beach, hanging outdoors for those who dislike cold weather. I grew up in Southern California and never really experienced true seasons until I moved to New York, but the New York Summer is something else. And it all boils down to humidity. 70 degrees in New York with humidity feels a lot hotter than 70 degrees in Southern California, where the air is cool and crisp. The worst part about the humidity in New York is the subway. When you walk in there it feels like you’re in a sauna you never wanted to go into. Everyone is sweating and uncomfortable, especially the people who have to go to work in suits. Girls have a bit easier because they can wear dresses, but from what I can see just about everyone suffers.

Now you are not going to find this surprising, but personally I prefer hot weather without the humidity. Embracing the outdoors on a sunny day in California is ideal weather. Without the humidity I am able to stay out in the sun longer before I break a sweat, and that is crucial for feeling fresh. Sometimes in New York you walk outside and feel like you need to shower straight away. Not fun.

                                         

The Fault In Our Stars: Book/Movie Comparison

Over this past weekend I went and saw the movie The Fault In Our Stars in Union Square, NY. I was really looking forward to seeing this movie because I had just finished reading the book by John Greene. My previous post aboutThe Fault In Our Stars was about the book, which is a story above love and cancer and that I found really touching. This post is more focused on the movie and how the two compare. The link for my old post is: Fault In Our Stars Opinion Post.

The Fault In Our Stars, the movie, was how I imagined it would be: a sad and powerful love story about two teenagers fighting cancer while falling in love. The ending is bittersweet (but I won’t ruin it!). In my mind I had made up my own mental image of the characters playing Hazel and Gus. The characters on screen looked like what I would imagined. Gus is fairly attractive and sweet how the book describes, and Hazel has short brown hair, pretty green eyes and tubes from her nose connecting to an oxygen tank. I feel that after reading a book and understanding it in your own way, when you see the movie you develop a greater appreciation for the story and the lives of the characters. I felt as if I knew Hazel and Gus because I knew their story and now I was finally seeing it.

I think the movie is worth seeing. Many critics agree with me. Rotten Tomatoes is a place that a lot of people go to get movie reviews and see what the audience and the critics think. One critic from the New Yorker, a magazine that a lot of educated people in New York read, called it not at all cliché, which is a danger with cancer love stories. Not all the critics liked the movie. Some thought it was too mushy! But 80% of the audience enjoyed it, and I agree with the audience.  This is a powerful story about fighting cancer you won’t regret seeing it.

Chelsea meets Meatpacking, NYC

In downtown New York the hottest restaurants, nightclubs, lounges and people come to life at night. One of the best areas is where Chelsea meets Meatpacking on 16^th and 9th Ave., including the blocks below 16th. This is personally my favorite part of town during the warm summer nights. During the summer months it is a popular place for people to visit, relax, and party until late at night.

Recently, I went to the fairly new TAO downtown restaurant and lounge. It is an Asian fusion restaurant with an upbeat vibe and red and black Asian décor. It was packed and my sister and I got seated in the back.  For dinner we had an assortment of Asian dishes and sushi paired with the TAOtini, their twist on a martini. Delish! After we went over the Lounge potion and hung for a few. We left and went out into the summer night and walked around meatpacking. It was full of sound and people. If anyone is looking for a fun spot in NYC this summer I would highly recommend checking out this area. Attached below are two links listing activities and attractions in the Chelsea/Meatpacking area.  

1.Chelsea Nearby Attractions

I like this link because it has over twenty listings of restaurants, bars, lounges and attractions in the Chelsea/Meatpacking area.

2. Meatpacking District Attractions

This link I like because you can select specifically what you are searching for on the website. You can select any area of Manhattan and see free things to do, attractions, food and etc.

You won't be disappointed! 

Long Island Railroad 9:42am

As a bi-coastal traveler you have to be savvy about getting from place to place. There are four options to get to what people colloquially call "The Hamps." You can take the jitney bus, take the Long Island Railroad, drive yourself, or fly out. The lucky few fly. The rest of us have to chose between the three other options. I usually take the Jitney, but that can run into traffic and it is hard to do much while driving. Today I am taking the train, and it is much better! 

But the train comes with its own problems. This was my first time taking the Long Island Railroad out to the Hamptons and it was quite the experience. The 9:42am train to the east end was packed. People literally had to sit on the floor! Looks like all of Manhattan got the memo to go to the east end on that train. The train from Penn Station to Southampton (where I got off) takes a total about 2 hours. It costs 26$ for a one way ticket. This is cheaper than taking the jitney which is about 30/40$ a way. The perks of the Long Island Railroad is that you will not experience traffic. The jitney can run into some traffic on the drive out. Overall I would recommend anyone coming from the city to the east end to take the train. It is an experience. You can see beautiful Long Island through the windows. And you can relax a bit more than on the bus. It's not style, but at least it's comfort. 

2 Chainz 101

So for those of you don’t know who 2 Chainz is (ya that’s right with a “Z”) let me school you. If you were raised in the era of Biggie, TuPac, and even DMX you are still not ready for the phenomenon 2Chainz.

The first thing you need to know about 2Chainz is first and foremost that his rap is not only an audial but also a visual experience. He is famous for his excess gold bling chains. See the video below for evidence. Notice the top hot, the dreads, and the leopard print pajamas.

One wonders how many chains he has? He has a famous line explaining that “two chainz but I got a few on.” This makes one think he has more than two. I confirmed this myself this past Saturday at One Oak Club Southhampton. For proof see my instagram below.

2Chainz was definitely wearing more than two chains, in fact a few. I counted about four, maybe five. They were bouncing all over the place. He also had bling on his wrist, fingers, head, and one wonders where else. He is after all a man obsessed with the bling.

Listening to 2Chainz will give you street cred. As I was writing this post in Starbucks a few young guys walked by me watching his video and commented: “2Chainz, holla” and gave me the famous 2 fingers for the 2Chainz. But one last thing is important to know, when you say his name you have to pronounce is tooo-chaaainnzzzz. Enjoy!

Rainy Hamptons Fourth of July

People associate the Fourth of July with AMERICA! And America means BBQ’s, beer, backyards, fireworks, parties, sports and sun. But what do you do when hurricane Arthur hits the Hamptons? This was a predicament faced by many  young persons effected by this minor catastrophe. We even had a 60ft obstacle course coming, but due to Arthur this had to be cancelled.

Reactions varied. Some people decided to moan and complain about the weather all day. Others made the best of situations and drank inside, I was apart of this later group. I consider us the more optimistic and therefore the more American. My patriotism was deeply contested when the coven of Brazilians didn’t wan t celebrate at all until Brazil won the soccer match. My friend hosted these Brazilians thinking he was going to give them a quintessentially American experience. Little did he know his good Brazilian friend Fernando the promoter had something else planned: booze all night, snooze all day until the match started at 4pm.

My quintessentially American holiday turned into a Brazil fest when they won. There were no fireworks, no patriotic American songs, just a bunch of drunken Brazilians.  But I have to admit I got caught up in the excitement. They were a fun bunch and we went clubbing until after midnight. In the end maybe I learned an important lesson about America from them. America is about celebrating different cultures, and sometimes that means partying…Brazilian style. 

Animal Farm in Bridgehampton, NY

New Yorkers flock to the Hamptons like geese during the summer. The Hamptons can be packed full of people on the beach and partying like animals at South Hampton Social. But drunken revelers aren’t the only animals in the Hamptons! At my friend’s house in Bridgehampton, NY there are a lot of animals, and all in his backyard. To name some there are chickens, emus, alpacas, goats, mini horses, turkeys, dogs, cats and doves. The animals relax and feed on a manicured 20 acres kept by five gardeners.  Even the animals in Bridgehampton seem to live a lavish lifestyle.

My personal favorite animals on this farm are the alpacas. One usually has to go to Peru to see these, who knew I would be so lucky to see some so close to NYC!

These two alpacas are lounging in the sun on a summer day. They are both sitting quite composed. I have never seen an alpaca sit like these two in the sun. We humans also like lounging around in the sun, a favorite activity in the Hamptons.

In up close shot of Edwin the alpaca. He has a funny little tooth.

This goat is helping himself to some grass in the yard. In the background you can see my friends house.

The two emus on the property, Einstein and Tweety.

These  are just pictures of some of the animals on the farm. It was really an experience to see the farm side of New York.  

Flip-Flops

On the airplane today I had an interesting conversation with the man sitting next to me. He looked at my feet and said, “Your sandals are very Californian.”  Then I realized that sandals are totally a California thing. Personally I think they are more of a beach thing but this guy has associated them with California, which makes perfect sense because California has a ton of beaches. I don’t know much about the origin of the flip-flop, but I wouldn’t be surprised if it was popularized in California. That’s because California style is known for being laid back and nothing says laid back like a flip-flop.

Flip-flops however are stylish only when the feet inside them are taken care of. There is nothing as unattractive as broken, discolored nails hanging every which way outside of a dirty old sandal. So if you are going to wear flip-flops take my advice. First, make sure you get your toes done. Second, make sure your flip-flops actually match your outfit. And third, take a shower when you get home: if you have ever looked at your feet after wearing flip-flops in the city you’ll know what I mean.