Yelp at Kai Lin

I haven't reviewed a Yelp event in so long. I also haven't reviewed an event that was so much fun, almost two weeks later. What can I say, I've been having so much fun that I forgot to write!!

Culture week at Yelp featured various events: a play at the Alliance (which I missed), a comedy show (which I also missed), a Simon and Garfunkel cover band at Eddie's Attic (which I caught just barely on Easter Sunday) and an art viewing accompanied by some cocktails and light nibbles at Kai Lin Art Gallery in Midtown (which I am about to review).

What can I say, it was so much fun. I was happy that I could catch this one for several reasons. It's close to home, it occurred on a Thursday night (which was a memorable one of sorts as my ahem "friend" was off celebrating his birthday in New York, I needed some distraction), plus, it involved art. You know how much I love art. It was the perfect occasion that turned out to be a wonderful night.

As you know from reading this, sometimes the perfect recipe for a wonderful evening may or may not result in such, some things might end up missing from the cake leaving the taste a lot to be desired. But this one, I have to give it to the folks at Yelp, the fun friendly people I met and the organizers, the recipe resulted in a fine delicately balanced yummy cake.

The bartender was a fine personable lady provided by The Perfect Bartender. A bartending outfit that lets you book your own personal bartender for an event. You know how I am about Personable Bartenders, I had to take note of that service. We had cupcakes and meatballs, odd combination of sweets and protein that were just enough to keep the alcohol at bay so we don't land on any of the paintings. Then, the art, abstract and colorful, interesting mish-mash of modern pastels, certainly fun for viewing; nothing earth-shattering or memorable. The space, lovely and expansive, lots of room and light for mingling, viewing possibly "better" art, and partaking of the quite tasty hors d'oeuvres as you schmooze with fellow art enthusiasts.

We spent the better part of the evening posing for silly photographs at the Smilebooth, which I had never heard of until that night. I must have taken about 40 photos, some that didn't quite look so nice, some which I looked wasted out of my mind and some which I will look upon some day and smile proudly, reminiscing all the fun I had. My friend David K, local Atlanta celebrity, gave me some candid reviews of my blog as we exchanged notes on the blog hemisphere. It's always fun to catch up with a fellow blogger about the advantages (and uncertain disadvantages of blogging). At the end of the evening, we relocated to Cypress Pint and Plate (a rather noisy neighborhood bar) to continue the imbibe of all sorts. We talked, laughed, verbally reviewed restaurants and laughed some more. Recipe for a fun Thursday evening.

Thank You Yelp.

Manning the DJ Booth

My DJ friend, Greg (pictured below) visited Atlanta over the weekend and played a couple of DJ gigs. I was fortunate to go to one of them at The Real Chow Baby on Ponce. It was a very nice mellow set that he played, much to assist in enjoying the food and chatting between spoonfuls. I don't know if his set ever really gets intense, to the dance hall version of it, because I've only ever heard him play at restaurants. Restaurants are continually trying to introduce DJs into their program. At first it was some guy on an acoustic guitar, and that has slowly phased out to the aspiring DJ with the apple keyboard doing a mish-mash of mellow tunes. If you ask me, I much prefer the live music set to the DJ, regardless of how aspiring or dire the singer may turn out to be.

On Thursday night, I did a double whammy. Feeling a little down in the dumps as I explained below, I decided to treat myself to the Thursday night music set at Live at Loews followed by the open mic band at Kat's Cafe. Both very good, thorough enjoyment masterpieces. Unknown Lyric played at Loews - an acoustic guitar accompanied by a violin, weird but melodious combination. The talent that flows through Loews Hotel on their Thursday night sets is just phenomenal. Unfortunately, Thursday is such a busy night for events, apparently the W Atlanta Downtown also has a live music set on Thursday that I am yet to experience, that it gets hard to narrow down where to go and for the artists, once it's empty they feel disheartened.

But definitely, support the artists when you can. I love live music. Whatever mood I am in, it just has a way of getting there and making the hurt go away. It's so refreshing and uplifting and when it comes without a cover, it's so much better.

Why I've Been Away

I am back and hopefully for good.

Once in awhile as a single person, you meet the occasional person that you enjoy spending time with and it becomes a "we" event. Inasmuch as I love coupling up, (believe me I do) nothing feels quite as good as waking up to a man right beside you. I absolutely LOVE coupling up, but it causes you to loose track of who you are: the single person. Your wants and needs get lost, your smile gets immersed with someone else's. You also dare not get used to becoming that "we" for oftentimes, it's temporary, and distracts you from "you," causing you to lose sight and focus from the you that you set out to be: the ever charming, quite wonderful, independent you that you've worked so hard to build.

So that's why I've been away. But I don't want to loose sight of who I am. I have these past few weeks and it troubled me greatly. I am supposed to be this pillar of strength for all the singles out there and I was crumbling into shreds. Forgive me for not being that sisterhood of strength and inspiration for all singles. As you can see we are all very vulnerable and fragile and susceptible to heartache, even me with all my "You Can Go It Alone" talk. I was still a victim.

Now, that we've gotten that out of the way, let us slowly try to make our way back. Maybe you guys can help me this time.

emotional roller coaster... part deux

So, as the emotional roller coaster continues, I've come to an uncertain conclusion.

1. Not to give a shit. To get back to being me, the me that does fun things and doesn't sit around all day thinking, worrying, compartmentalizing. I don't know when this other me showed up but I don't like her.
I will try to slowly get back to the old me but for now, I know it would take a lot of work. However, I am up to the task.

2. That the old me, the busy all about me...starts concentrating on her not on anyone else. Starts becoming the selfish person that I know I love.

3. To avoid speaking to people that don't leave me with a smile on my face. To occasionally turn off my phone. Just because.

Here's to restoring Anita from backup.

emotional roller coaster

I've just been on an emotional roller coaster lately.

So far, Trouble and I have decided to keep it "light." Whatever that means. I told him yesterday that I've never in all my dating years discussed the status of a relationship or the direction of a relationship with anyone. We've just gone with the flow. Maybe that's why I have more affairs than relationships, even though, I've had a lot of passionate affairs. I think the status discussion just sort of halts the passion and makes everybody stand straight, think straight, act straight...takes the fizzle out of it. It certainly took the fizzle out of ours. We promised never to discuss it again, just to try to keep the fizzle in it. Even though I didn't tell him about it ruining the fizzle. I probably should do. The talk helped me. At some point I felt like I was having an affair with a married man, you don't know where his head is at, you don't know if he likes you, if he at least wants to have this hot affair with you. It's like this crazy puzzle I cannot unravel. And it keeps me thinking. Constantly. He has this code for when he goes to visit other women, he says, "I'm at my friend's place." When the friend doesn't have a name, you know it's a woman. If this was a married man, he would tell you straight up, I am going to see my wife, and you know it and you accept it and don't try to feel jealous about it. With him, it's the not knowing, the demands to keep it light meanwhile he has so many of us spread across town, it's his insistence on calling the shots on his emotions, it's that and more... it just keeps me on an emotional roller coaster. 

I don't fucking know what to do about it. 

I keep thinking, end it now. But then he calls and I forget about all my anger and insistence to end it. If I end it, what's my reason...because he insisted on keeping it light, because I maybe falling hard, because he made these rules that seemed to suck out the fizzle. Because my head is spinning and it's never a good thing when my head spins. Maybe I should just gently ease out of it. I say that and the next day he calls me all day. Or he doesn't call at all and I am left feigning for him. Emotional. Fucking. Roller. Coaster.

One part of me likes him. He is so similar to my brother in some ways. I think "Is this a sign?" One part knows this cannot be who I end up with, why do I know this...because he is so fucking complicated that I can't take it. He doesn't like poetry or words or arts. He is not an artist at all except for the photography. I read him some poetry and he freaked out, seriously freaked, his face turned all red. He constantly alludes to the fact that he would rather be with some hot woman. And I think fuck it, go on then, I don't need you being with me and wishing you were with someone else. 

But then I think, why not have a bit of fun with it? What's bad about an affair in April? That's what I told him yesterday. Yes. It is fun. Except someone decided to take out all the fizzle and write the rules and have code for other women. 

I don't know why we as women need men. Why do we? Why is it the one we want never wants us at the exact same time just so we can have fun for however long it lasts, one month, two weeks, intense two week affair, why couldn't I at least have that?