Thursday Double Header

Thursday night, I headed over to swanky event venue Hudson Terrace for C Squared Group’s Fall Entrepreneurs networking mixer.

Hudson Terrace: C Squared group took over the swanky space for its fall event

More than 150+ people from a variety of industries filled the space, which boasts nearly 360-degree city views.

HR consultant Patrick and I talked about what makes a great vodka gimlet and why, in his view, “American Psycho” is a must-see/read. Sourcepad CEO Joe filled me in about his company, which is a great online resource for hiring freelance IT professionals that you can work with using live video.

Joe also told me the delightful story of how he met his wife -- during a Scrabble game at a friend’s place.

“She was beating everybody, and I’m terrible at Scrabble,“ he said with a laugh. “She took pity on me and started to help me, to the chagrin of everyone else.”

A Scrabble aficionado myself, I loved this tale of finding love across the game’s lettered tiles. As I’ve discovered with previous boyfriends, wordplay can be a great prelude to romance.

After having my fill of schmoozing, I met up with galpal Rachel at one of my favorite Hell’s Kitchen eateries, Cara Mia.

Over a delicious dinner (grilled calamari, spinach fettuccini in vodka sauce), Rach and I reflected on the multi-step process of getting over a big love -- and the importance of keeping busy along the way with good friends and meeting new people.

Speaking of new people, I filled Rach in about HurryDater E and how much I enjoyed my first date with him. Up next…details about equally exhilarating date #2.

St. Paddy's Day Celebration

When it comes to celebrating St. Patrick’s Day, I don’t think there’s a more festive place – apart from the Emerald Isle itself – than the Big Apple.

I was gleefully reminded of this yesterday, as I strolled around Midtown and the Upper East Side after work, encountering plenty of paradegoers festooned in St. Paddy’s Day attire. From green eyeshadow and hoodies to the requisite shamrock-adorned hats and t-shirts, nearly everyone in NYC had gone green in celebration of Ireland’s patron saint.

The fun continued when I met up with PR galpals Andrea and Lauren and some of Lauren’s friends at the C Squared Group’s shindig.

All Smiles: Andrea and me with a few touches of green

Held at the Empire Hotel’s rooftop bar, the party was something of a departure from the group’s typically A-list events. Between watered down cocktails, a jazz band that played anything but and an eclectic crowd, I wasn’t surprised when I overheard someone say--

“Maybe if we have a drink, this place will look better.”

Determined to find a more spirited celebration, the six of us walked north a few blocks to P.D. O'Hurleys, an Irish pub on the Upper West Side. As expected, the place was brimming with firefighters, green attired folks and yes, even bagpipers too.

The St. Patrick’s Day scene at P.D. O'Hurleys

I filled the girls in on my most recent experience of outrageous online dating behavior – a JDate.com guy who claimed to be intelligent and have “varied interests,” yet could only manage to say “Nice t*ts” when he emailed me. I quickly reported his antics to the JDate.com profanity police. Whatever happened to just saying hello?

From P.D. O'Hurleys, we walked over to Papaya King, an NYC staple since 1932 that serves up a mean hot dog. It was the perfect punctuation to a memorable St. Paddy’s night out. Erin go bragh!

Friday Night Double Header

Friday night, I ventured out to two very different watering holes in Midtown for an evening with friends.

First, I joined work galpals Caroline and Morgan, and three other Quinn & Co. colleagues at the historic and elegant Algonquin Hotel's Algonquin Hotel's Blue Bar. The occasion – catching up with our former co-worker Vanessa and her hubby Jeff, in town for the weekend from New Orleans.

Happy Hour At The Algonquin: Enjoying cocktails with (from left to right) David, Jeff, Vanessa, Nicole, Caroline and Morgan

Vanessa filled us in on her gig promoting local tourism and how NoLa is managing to weather the recession because of its post-Katrina bounceback.

Later, Morgan, Caroline and I continued the economic talk over cosmos, reflecting on how the downturn is affecting the travel industry.

From the Algonquin, Caroline and I walked over to Annie Moore’s, a nearby pub, where met up with our friends Natasha and Theresa and some of Natasha’s cute City Hall co-workers.

Theresa shared tales of domestic bliss with her boyfriend of one year, Chris. Chris, meanwhile, chimed in about not being a fan of playing matchmaker. Thankfully, Theresa sided with me when it comes to paying it forward once you’ve found your life’s mate.

Girls Night Out: Drinks at Annie Moore’s with (from left to right) Theresa, Caroline and Natasha

While enjoying a delicious Shepherd’s pie and a screwdriver, I chatted briefly with another Chris in the group, this one a member of the Deputy Mayor’s staff. He and the other guys were doggedly focused on work-related brainstorming, so I happily returned to the girls and talked about plans for Theresa’s housewarming party. A hot tub will be involved, so I’m definitely there.

Coming up…an insider's look at the Australian Outback and St. Paddy’s Day C-Squared style.

C Squared Socializing

Here in New York, there’s no shortage of organizations and events geared toward singles. Finding out which ones truly deliver, though, can be a lengthy (and often expensive) process of trial and error.

I found this out the hard way when I moved back to the Big Apple permanently five years ago. Having spent most of my twenties in small town limbo, I was anxious to mingle with other big city singletons and quickly signed up for an interview with a group called Social Circles.

Over the course of an hour, the chatty representative persuaded me to fork over the money for membership—making it a point to tell me that the already-pricey fee would increase considerably if I didn’t join on the spot.

After attending a handful of Social Circles functions, it became clear that I had been hoodwinked. Not only was the male-female ratio at each event painfully lopsided, the few males who were in attendance were—how can I put this diplomatically?--clearly single for a reason.

My lesson from this costly mistake? Avoid “singles” events and attend parties and other activities of a charitable, cultural or professional nature. It’s a strategy that has paid tremendous dividends for me in terms of meeting smart, interesting people—many of whom just happen to be single.

I encountered plenty of engaging New Yorkers at the recent kickoff of Just A Cocktail. Hosted by the C Squared Group (http://www.csquaredgroup.com/), which sponsors upscale business networking events for a variety of industries, Just A Cocktail offered an educated, friendly and perfectly co-ed crowd, limited open bar, and an inviting venue (midtown French Moroccan restaurant and lounge Azza)--all for only $20.

This week, my friend Tiffany and I attended another great C Squared event, Cocktails & Charity, connecting people who want to volunteer with organizations who need their participation. Though the crowd was smaller, it was as sociable as the one at Just A Cocktail. I’m looking forward to attending more C Squared soirees, and to continuing my quest to experience the best of what the Big Apple has to offer intrepid singles like me.

Up next...my long-awaited visit to Buddakan with one of my favorite people on Planet Earth and unexpected encounters with old flames.