Putting It Into the Universe

Posted on August 15, 2018 by CarneyVorous

It’s looking like we’ll be able to move into a new place next year, so I’m working hard to manifest the perfect apartment.

Here’s what I want to make HAPPEN:

East Village – I really want to stay in my neighborhood.
Doorman – So my deliveries no longer go missing
Closer to trains – We’re equidistant from 5 lines as it stands, but I’d like to be closer to Astor.
Yes dogs – Because Muldoon goes where I go!
Dishwasher – please please please!
Outdoor space – Whether it’s a tiny balcony or a finished rooftop, I want to be able to get outside.
Decent view – This means being high enough in a building.

NYC Summer Goals!

Posted on July 6, 2018 by CarneyVorous

Summer in the city means sundresses, rooftops, sidewalk cafes, turning hydrants into sprinklers and, of course The Great Flip Flop Debate (as an island girl, I refuse to give up my flip flops). I’m not a huge fan of the heat, but I’m determined to put down the controller and brave the sun more. So I’ve put together a list of fun summer outings I want to accomplish before September.

Sister Tattoos – Scheduled!

Ride the Thunderbolt

Find the most wild ice cream concoction

~~Sip fancy cocktails on a rooftop~~

Kicking off the 4th with our own rooftop fireworks ⚡️⚡️⚡️ but the sun made an appearance for her daily grand finale show. #cocktails #rooftop #nyc #loopydoopy #sunset #cityviews #skyline #popsicle #conradhotel #conradnyc

A post shared by CarneyVorous (@carneyvorous) on Jul 3, 2018 at 2:43pm PDT

Pack a picnic and head to a park

Rent kayaks

Explore a new neighborhood on a Citi Bike

Go to an outdoor concert

What’s on your adventure list?

MoviePass is a Massive Scam

Posted on July 4, 2018 by CarneyVorous

I’m not a generally a complainer, but over the last couple of months I’ve had such a horrible experience with MoviePass I feel morally obligated to warn my fellow humans.

I signed up for the service in early February. And I honestly loved it. MoviePass gave me the freedom to see even the shitty movies guilt-free. Making fun of crappy movies at the theater with my friends was actually one of my favorite things to do for the first half of 2018. When I reserved a movie too early one day and had an issue getting my ticket at the theater, MoviePass customer service responded immediately through their in-app chat system and sorted out my problem in time for me to catch the film.

I enjoyed my experience so much that I gifted Ryan a MoviePass for Valentine’s Day so we could have an easy date night whenever. Unfortunately, at the time of writing this, MoviePass doesn’t have an easy way to gift a membership, so I just signed up for a second account with a different email address, my same payment method and surprised Ryan.

In April, I needed to cancel the account I made for him. He had never activated the card, downloaded the app or used the service. I thought this would be easy. I contacted customer service through my app, sure they would be as fast and helpful as they were when I had a ticket problem.

I was wrong.

My question went unanswered for DAYS. I checked in on my app every couple hours for two days and then had more important things to do. I had notifications turned on, so I just waited for the notification. Or an email. Or ANY form of communication. After 5 days, I checked on the app again. I never got a push notification alerting me to a response, but MoviePass had finally responded… and 5 hours later, closed my case because I hadn’t seen it and responded so they “assumed everything was good.”

I should note that their response before closing my case directed me to their website to cancel the account. There is nowhere on their website to access your account, so the website directs you back to the app where they don’t answer either.

After repeating this cycle – messaging them, opening a new case, getting the same response, no notification, case closed before I could provide more information – THREE TIMES, I finally got a new answer on the 4th attempt. They told me I needed the card in my possession and they needed the number to close the account. It took me 2 months and a lot of pain and suffering to finally get the unused card from him. At which point, I contacted customer support yet AGAIN with the card number. This time, they told me that it didn’t matter if I had the card. Because the account was under his name, HE would need to contact them to close the account.

OH! And they also made sure to respond after midnight and close the case before 7am for non-response. It’s not like I need to sleep.

It’s the end of June at this point so let’s recap: I have been paying for this subscription for three months while getting the run around about canceling the account. The account is linked to MY email address, MY bank account and I have the card IN MY POSSESSION. But now they need HIM to contact them to cancel? Bullshit. I am the owner of his account and my account. It’s clear at this point that MoviePass is going to do everything in their power to prevent me from closing the account.

So fuck them. Now I want MY account canceled.

They never responded to this request. They also stopped responding to my Twitter DMs for help. Thankfully, I was able to cancel my account and delete the app. THEN re-download the app, log into the gift account with my OTHER email and finally cancel that one too. I filed a complaint with the BBB (where their reviews are shockingly negative) and wanted to tell my story here as well so no one else gets dragged and charged for months.

I understand that MoviePass is struggling – especially with the recent launch of AMC’s A-list service – but is milking me for $10 a month so worth it to them that they’re willing to damage their reputation and customer perception? Clearly, MoviePass is just another greedy company willing to dick over the users they depend on just to make a buck.

Honestly, AMC’s program sounds MUCH better. And I’m sure Regal will introduce their own suite of options as well.

Have you ever used MoviePass?

Lessons New York Will Teach You

Posted on June 27, 2018 by CarneyVorous

An ongoing list of lessons this great city will eventually teach you…

If you wear a dress, expect your ass to go on display at least 3 times a day. Plan underthings accordingly.

If you accidentally sext your Super, your apartment problems will be solved much faster.

You cannot walk your dog after 10pm in the East Village. Drunk girls WILL mob your dog for pets and gush over how adorable he is. You can’t have a puppy in NYC at all. Same reasons.

Cohabitation seems like a good idea to save on rent and bills. It is not a good idea.

Electric blankets for winter. Ice packs in your pillow case for summer.

It’s expensive to live here, but not to live it up here. Rent includes your membership to the greatest city in the world and endless free/cheap food and entertainment.

Visiting Alternate Dimensions

Posted on May 23, 2018 by CarneyVorous

Yesterday after work, my friend Maria and I were in need of an escape. From ourselves. From this planet. So we checked out VR World in midtown- a virtual reality arcade. It’s the largest on the planet, in their words.

Checking into a Pixar-like animation about an old man who fixes broken dreams.

I’ve only slipped into VR a handful of times because I find it dangerously addictive and a little nauseating if I stay too long. This is definitely the future of gaming, entertainment and probably human living.

We walked in and were presented with three options, a 2 hour, all day and moveo access. A 2 hour pass was $40 so we went with that. Our wristbands allowed us to scan into the queue for games with our gamer tags. But we could only be in one queue at a time so if we scanned into one game and then went to another while we were waiting, it canceled out the first game. So it took some strategic planning on our part. Luckily, none of the lines were very long. Mostly we were able to scan right in and play.

VR World hosts over 50 experiences ranging from games to 360 movies and music videos. The “museum” on the mezzanine had several different experiences that allowed us to explore the planet or disappear into different stories from the comfort of swivel chairs so we didn’t risk wandering off down a flight a stairs.

We warmed up with a plank walking experience. It was freaky. We walked out onto a beam high above the city and then stepped off and fell to the sidewalk. My heart rate shot up to 84bpm from 60. Maria was also not a fan.

From there, we teamed up to take on some robots in a shooting game. It felt crazy. I screamed out loud when a robot snuck up behind me and I could SWEAR I felt one crawl over and grab my leg. I’m terrified of robots so that didn’t help, but I was astonishingly good at the game.

They also had Job Simulator, Rick and Morty Virtual Rickality, Zombie games, an archery game and so much more to explore. I’ll definitely go back next week to try out more experiences. It’s a great little escape in the middle of the realest city in the world.

Favorite Places – 📖 The Strand Book Store 📚

Posted on April 25, 2018 by CarneyVorous

Even before I lived in NYC, The Strand was a mandatory stop on every trip. Now I’m lucky enough to live and work close enough to make this place and its 18 miles of books a regular hangout. When work is slow, I like to walk the single avenue that separates us and spend an hour surrounded by the smell of books, flipping through poems and letting the winding aisles draw me further into the paperback fantasyland.

Aside from any book you can imagine, The Strand carries tons of badass little tchotchkes. I love perusing the wall of pins, stickers and socks (I got my famous velociraptor socks there!). When I need a birthday card or thank you note, I’ve stopped going the generic Hallmark route because the selection of adorable indie-made greeting cards makes for a much more unique and thoughtful sentiment. My bullet journal is full of funky stickers. And you’re not a New Yorker unless you have at least one of their iconic tote bags.

Unfortunately, I can’t go in without spending at least $50. There are Moleskines as far as the eye can see! New poetry! I almost always end up picking up a staff recommendation. There’s a center cube of shelves full of staff picks, each with a photo of the employee and a handwritten reason why they love the book. They’re always an irresistible sell.

It’s a great spot for celebrity sightings. They almost always have brilliant speakers, signings and events. Since April is National Poetry Month, they created the Poet-a-day Project. They build a little booth and have a new poet, every day of April in a “micro-residency” to get inspiration from the stacks and maybe write poems for passersby. This is one of my life goals!

Fortunately, you can also sell your books back for some lunch money. Since my love of books is huge and my physical space is limited, I have a rule that for every book I buy, I have to sell or give one away. AND since I live and work so close, this cycle is endless.

If you want a random book from my collection sent to you, leave a comment or shoot me a DM.

Dessert Goals

Posted on March 21, 2018 by CarneyVorous

My first grade teacher taught me the difference between desert and dessert with this helpful line about the S’s: If you’re lost in the desert, you’ll be glad there’s only one. If dessert is on the table, you’ll want more.

The 20+ tables at Dessert Goals created an oasis of saccharine salvation in a pastel paradise. Aside from a candy bar and salt bar, we all received much needed boxed water and toothpaste at the event. Each vendor had various treats. The variety among them was impressive – who knew there were so many portable desserts? It was a bit overwhelming, but I’ve pulled together some highlights!

Craziest confection: Cheetos Macaron from Macaron Parlour. This was actually really delicious. The cookie bit was dusted with real cheese powder and the frosting tasted a bit lemony? I couldn’t quite place the taste. It was like nothing I’ve tried before, but I was delightfully surprised. All the traditional macarons were to die for.

Take-home Treat: Artisan tarts by Megpies. I bought a 4-pack of these at the event and it wasn’t nearly enough. These are a MUST HAVE in my bag at all times now. Forget everything you thought you remembered about Pop-tarts because these are so much better, thicker, chewier and tastier. Ugh. I am so sad I ate them all and have to wait for my order to be delivered.

Sweets to Skip: The cake pop vendor. They were adorable and incredibly well crafted, but not very tasty. I love me some cake, and I actually spit out my bite of pancake cake pop and tossed the rest. Still, I wasn’t disappointed with this buy. Ryan loved the pizza one so maybe my cake buds were off?

Nostalgic Nibbles: Push-up cakepops from POP Cakeshop. These were really fun and messy. Each pop was customizable with choices for cake flavor, frosting, and toppings. I picked chocolate cake, cream cheese frosting, sprinkles and cinnamon toast crunch because I was feeling a breakfast vibe all day. Probably how I ended up with pancake cake pops and artisan pop-tarts!

Regrets: I did NOT pick up one of these disco dreamsicle artisan twinkies from Sugar Monster. What is wrong with me? They were the most beautiful things there! I think I was overwhelmed by the colors and craftsmanship of the confections on their table. If I ever get married, I’m commissioning a kick ass cake from them.

CarneyVorous

gamer/poet/carney | nyc

Category Archives: NYC