The Countdown Rolls On

Two of my favorite blogs -- Sex, Lies & Dating and The Lost Girls -- have undergone a makeover. It must be that time of year because, in just 6 days, Single Gal In The City will be migrating from Blogspot to Wordpress, to a shorter, snazzier domain.

SGITC’s new look will, of course, coincide with the big reveal of my Grand 2010 Plan. It’s a plan that’s been in the works for a couple of months now and I can’t wait to fill you in!

Coming up…a visit from the fabulous Queen of Quirky and celebrating Super Bowl Sunday in NYC.

Ringing In The New Decade

Last night, galpal Rachel and I headed down to NYC’s Financial District for Lost Girls bloggers/co-authors Amanda and Jen’s fabulous New Year’s Eve bash.

Party Time: Amanda and I celebrating New Year’s

True hostesses-with-the-mostess, Amanda and Jen served up a first-class menu of fun, food and cocktails to the friendly crowd of about 30 people. I now have a new appreciation for vanilla vodka mixed with cranberry, not to mention Amanda’s sinful four-layer dip (cream cheese, refried beans, salsa, and shredded cheddar -- delish).

Rach and I chatted with M-Theory lead singer Courtney about her upcoming gigs and the promise of adventure that this particular new year seems to hold.

The fun really kicked into high gear when my friend Prince and his longtime buddies Eric and Chris showed up.

Good Times: Rachel, Eric, Prince, me and Chris

We shared plenty of laughs, good conversation and hugs all around at midnight.

Later, thanks to medley of Michael Jackson tunes, the ladies and I busted out a few 80’s moves -- including, of course, the “Thriller” routine. Some things you just never forget.

A good friend of mine says how you ring in the new year (and with whom) dictates how the following 365 days are going to unfold. If that’s true, then I can’t wait to see what 2010 has in store!

Girls Night Out: Whiskey Trader

Tuesday night, after seeing “Superior Donuts,” I headed over to the Whiskey Trader in Midtown for a happy hour hosted by The Lost Girls.

Bartending Goddesses: (from left) Lost Girls authors and bloggers Amanda, Jen and Holly

While enjoying a couple of cosmos mixed perfectly by Jen, my Divalicious friend Heidi and I talked about male profiling -- i.e., making assumptions about men in suits. She presumes they’re dull and conservative, I think a suit usually spells sophistication.

Speaking of assumptions about the opposite sex, I decided to vet my theories on texting versus calling with a couple of friendly guys at the bar.

When I said that texting to make plans is less considerate than making a call, both men balked. They maintained that it’s hard to know when is a good time to call a woman, and one even tried to liken texting and emailing to the lost art of letter writing.

With all due respect, I think these are just excuses for not taking initiative and picking up the phone. As DatingRevolution founder Ross Felix puts it so well in this blog post, guys need to man up here. A quick call goes a long way toward making a girl (this girl, at least) feel courted.

Coming up…a look at Broadway’s sizzling “Burn The Floor” and an action-packed night out in Hell’s Kitchen.

An Eventful Week

When it comes to the perfect mix of female bonding, nights out on the town and budding romance, this week had it all.

Girls Night Out: Heidi and me at The Lost Girls happy hour

From a happy hour celebrating The Lost Girls and their upcoming memoir and a schmoozefest at one of NYC's hottest event spaces to an exhilarating second date with adorable HurryDater E, I’ve been on the go non-stop and enjoying every minute of it.

Coming up…details of all the action and the debut of a new SGITC feature.

A Double Dose Of Female Bonding

Saturday, I enjoyed a double dose of female bonding that began with galpal Amanda.

Pershing Square: This cozy bistro is conveniently located right across from Grand Central Terminal

Over brunch at cozy bistro Pershing Square in Grand Central, we caught up on work, life and dating. Amanda filled me in on PR plans for her upcoming travel memoir The Lost Girls, including a book club tour across the U.S. I told her about an industry award that could lead to winning Best of Show with my colleagues for the second time in my PR career.

We also talked about one of our biggest pet peeves in the dating world – text messaging. Phone-o-phobia, as Midtown Girl calls it, has reached epidemic proportions among single men. Both Amanda and I have recently gone out with great guys who choose texting as a means for making plans. Sorry, but romance simply doesn’t go hand in hand with messages of 160 characters or less.

Later, I headed to lively bar Joshua Tree in Midtown for my good friend and former colleague Cristina’s bachelorette party.

All Smiles: Bride-to-be Cristina and me

Over multiple rounds of cocktails and shots, we toasted the bride-to-be on her pending nuptials in Boston next month to longtime love Chris. Thanks to an endless loop of 80’s videos, I got my groove on on top of a chair – until a grumpy bouncer instructed me to sit down. I should’ve told him to relax, because I’ve done this particular maneuver several times over the years without incident.

Shaking My Booty: The music at Joshua Tree made this inevitable

After bidding the bride-to-be goodnight, I was feeling wistful so I decided to walk up Third Avenue for awhile. I remembered when Cristina got engaged two years ago and felt unnerved all over again about still being single.

But then I reminded myself of the upside about being unattached, namely the adventure of what’s right around the corner. HurryDater E is taking me out for date #2 on Friday.

Girls Night Out: Connolly's Klub

Last weekend, I headed down to Connolly’s Klub in Times Square to catch up with my good friend Amanda and see cover band M-Theory.

Amanda and me

Fronted by Amanda’s galpal Courtney, M-Theory performed an energetic mix of Top 40/pop rock tunes. During a rousing rendition of “Pour Some Sugar On Me,” Courtney came into the audience and gave me the chance to sing a few notes – when it comes to indulging your inner karaoke diva, nothing’s better than 80’s music.

Rocking It Out: Amanda and M-Theory revved up the crowd at Connolly’s Klub 45

Amanda briefly took to the stage to lead the band on Katy Perry’s “Hot N Cold,” dedicating the song to all the ladies who’ve dated men that fit this description.

Over a few cocktails, we talked about our own hot and cold exes, and about her upcoming trip to Panama with fellow Lost Girls authors Holly and Jen to pen the epilogue for their eagerly-anticipated memoir (due out in spring 2010 from HarperCollins). I’ve had the privilege of getting a sneak peak at the book and it’s fabulous. You’ll fall in love with The Lost Girls and find yourself itching to follow in their footsteps and embark on your own year-long journey around the globe.

A mutual love of travel is what first brought Amanda and I together back in ’05, a tale that she chronicles with her inimitable flair here. She’s one of my heroes – as a writer, intrepid globetrotter and all around fabulous woman. I can’t wait to be first in line at The Lost Girls book signing.

Coming up…a farewell to online dating and a review of a departing Broadway hit.

Catching Up With The Lost Girls

Tuesday night, I had the pleasure of catching up with friends (and writers extraordinaire) Amanda, Holly and Jen, a.k.a The Lost Girls.

I joined the ladies for a happy hour at The Australian, an Oz-themed bar in Midtown West. With a perfect glass of rose in hand, I filled Amanda in about my recent dating adventures and making the Top 50 for Murphy-Goode Winery’s A Really Goode Job. She and her sweet boyfriend Jeff were gearing up for three-week vacation to one of my favorite countries, Costa Rica.

Speaking of significant others, Jen was all aglow about her new beau whom she met unexpectedly a month ago at a party.

“We started talking and haven’t stopped,” she said with a smile.

In reflecting on the early days of getting to know someone new, Jen and I talked about how men in New York differ from, say, their counterparts in the South. Southern males, Jen observed, assume women will be a little coy and play hard to get while Gotham guys expect more assertiveness. As a modern woman who’s still a traditional girl at heart, I have to say Jen gave me food for thought.

We also found ourselves talking about something that seems to be coming up a lot lately for me -- the challenges of making time for romance when you’re juggling a career, friends and the generally frenetic pace of life in NYC.

Just back from China and a stint in upstate New York, Holly shared the welcome news that she’s moved to the Upper East Side, just a few blocks away from me. We shared a cab uptown, parting with promises to take in some of my favorite neighborhood haunts together. Busy or not, there’s always time for a girls night out.

A Very Happy Hour

Friday night, I headed over to Faces And Names Lounge & Bar in Midtown for a very happy hour. The occasion – my friend Amanda completing the first draft of her upcoming book The Lost Girls.

Faces And Names Lounge & Bar: A fun and festive watering hole in Midtown

Amanda and her lovely BFF co-authors Jen and Holly have been hard at work – and in virtual hibernation – for several months on the upcoming memoir, which chronicles their year-long journey around the world.

In addition to catching up with Amanda (and talking about our shared passion for writing), I had the pleasure of getting to know her friend and fellow blogger Dean and his lovely, British-born fiancée Holly. Upon learning she does facials at Great Jones Spa, I raved about the one I enjoyed there last fall. I also mentioned my affinity for British men and she promised to keep me in mind for any eligible bachelors from her side of the pond.

While Dean and Holly filled me in about their August nuptials, happily married Sarah mused about domestic bliss.

Sarah joked that the biggest recent excitement was staying up til 1am with her hubby, talking, having green tea ice cream – and wondering if they would turn into boring people in their old age. If they’re still talking until all hours of the night in twenty years’ time, I said, that sounds anything but boring to me.

Up next...celebrating Earth Day at a swanky downtown soiree and the scoop on my new writing gig.

Saturday Afternoon At Dashing Diva

Yesterday, my friend Amanda and I treated ourselves to manicures at Dashing Diva.

A first-class nail spa with five locations in NYC (and a total of 28 stores on 3 continents), Dashing Diva delivers stylish pampering in a pink-tinged setting. Signature amenities include free cosmopolitans on Thursday and Friday nights, and flat screen TV’s playing an endless loop of concert videos from Beyoncé to Barbra Streisand.

Dashing Diva: First-class pampering with a stylish twist

My favorite indulgence here is the Spoiled Diva Pedicure. It’s worth the price ($45) for the additional 10 minute foot and leg massage, and the aromatherapy foot bath is heavenly.

As Amanda and I had our nails primped and polished, we talked about Madonna’s knack for reinvention, how the recession is affecting the travel industry and the benefits of taking off when you’re in the throes of writing.

Amanda will soon be retreating to North Carolina for a few weeks, where she’ll continue penning
The Lost Girls, a joint effort between her and her two best buds chronicling their year-long journey around the world. A prolific magazine writer, Amanda is a talented wordsmith of great wit and style. The Lost Girls is due out in spring of ‘09. I can’t wait to read it.

Coming up…crossing the finish line for the American Cancer Society with a little help from my friends.