Diner en Blanc NYC 2022

Last night I attended Diner en Blanc NYC right on the Hudson River outside of Brookfield Place. This year marked the 10th anniversary of Diner en Blanc in NYC!

Diner en Blanc NYC

At Diner en Blanc, thousands of attendees dress up in white, head to toe, and gather together for a large dinner celebration. What is unique and fun about this event, aside from everything being in all white, is:

  • you need to bring your own table, seats and picnic for dinner, however you can order a gourmet picnic basket

  • the location is a secret until just a few hours before the event

  • at the start of the event everyone waives their white napkins

Chef Todd English Elizabeth Tam Diner en Blanc NYC

Chef Todd English & I

The highlights of the night included delicious bites made by none other than Chef Todd English and featured champagne from Baron de Rothschild Champagne. I was lucky enough to had the opportunity to meet and chat with Todd in the media lounge, he was so down to earth and friendly!

Fun facts I learned about Todd English, despite using caviar for his high end clientele he is NOT a fan of caviar, but IS a fan of anchovies, in fact he likes to eat them straight!

Can’t wait to see where the Diner en Blanc will be held next year!

 
Diner en Blanc NYC Media Lounge

Cheers

Champagne Baron de Rothschild Diner en Blanc NYC

Baron de Rothschild Champagne

Cousins Girl Day!

Today I took my younger cousin Jenna out for a girl day! Jenna just finished her freshman year of college and this was our first time to hang out in the city without her parents! (I guess they trust me!)

Here’s the perfect girls day guide, especially if you are under 21:

Brunch at Maman
Maman is a cute restaurant/bakery/cafe for brunch and pastries, I love the ambiance at the restaurant - it is cute, yet classy, but still casual at the same time. We shared a ratatouille hash, some pastries and both got iced elderberry matcha lattes!

Kayaking on the Hudson at Pier 96
The Manhattan Community Boathouse at Pier 96, located at 55th Street & West Side Highway offers free kayaking throughout the summer. You can book a timeslot in advanced or just walk up, which is what we did. When you get there, you sign a waiver, get a life vest, paddle, wait until it is your turn and you are good to go for 30 minutes. This was a lot of fun and I would highly recommend!

Intrepid Museum
Next we decided to visit the Intrepid Museum as it was just down the block from kayaking. The Intrepid is a Sea, Air, & Space Museum on an actual aircraft carrier, featuring a lot of historical war and space exhibits. It is a bit pricy to visit, but definitely worth checking if you are into war history and want to be aboard a battle ship!

$1 Pizza
Jenna had never had $1 pizza, so we had to stop for some authentic pizza at 2 Bros before she headed home!

I love spending time with my family, can’t wait for the next cousins girls day!





Grab and Run Assault

Today, I am sad to say I was harassed in broad daylight. Don’t worry, I am fine!

Earlier this afternoon around 1:15 PM, I went to the local park in my neighborhood to get some fresh air. During my stroll, I stopped on the side of the main pathway to check my phone. As I was on my phone, a random rude man came up from behind (out of nowhere) and grabbed my butt! 😡

I called the guy out and he responding blaming me, as I was “in his way” as he was casually walking away as if nothing happened. I quickly screamed back, “YOU GRABBED MY BUTT, THAT’S NOT OK!” I know at least 1 guy heard me, hope more did as well.

This is how empty the park was. This mirrors side of the park I was on, I left shortly after the incident.

The pathway was very wide and EMPTY, there was no reason or way I was in his way.

After everything that happened yesterday with the overruling of the Rowe v Wade decision, I was more inclined to say something when this happened. I hope that people do not feel entitled to infringe on more women’s rights and think this is ok.

THIS IS NOT OK!

Don’t be afraid to speak up! Be alert & safe everyone!

Corporate Challenge 2022

Tonight night was the JP Morgan Corporate Challenge! This is the first big company wide event since COVID. The Corporate Challenge is an annual 5K that I have participated in every year since I joined American Express, and am happy they brought back this tradition!

On the way there, I met up with my former Finance teammate Jonathan and a group of other finance friends I have not seen in a while. Sadly, due to my sprained foot, my foot hurt after starting to run for a few minutes and ended up walking most of the race, with a few spurs of run and jogging here and there.

When we got back to the AMEX tent for food and drinks after the race, I bumped into my old TLS teammates and caught up with them as well as our Risk partner from Kabbage.

I love all of my colleagues and am so happy to have been able to catch up with all my old & new AMEX colleagues!

Career Day at UAGateway

Career Day at United Assembly Gateway

Career Day at UAGateway

Today was career day at United Assembly Gateway School of Technology (UAG). I was invited to speak on a panel to a class of 9th graders. As a native New Yorker, I especially love speaking to students from NYC. I am a product NYC public schools and want the students know all of the opportunities that are available to them right at their fingertips! Coming from NYC, I think sometimes we take it for granted, but there truly is no place like NYC and encouraged them to take advantage of everything NY has to offer! Hopefully I was able to provide them with some guidance and helpful information as they start to think about colleges and potential careers.

Big Brothers Big Sisters Match - Big and Little

Me & my Little Eleena!

While I loved speaking to the 9th grade students, the most exciting part of the day was I finally meeting my Big Brothers Big Sisters little Eleena!!!

I have been volunteering with BBBS for 3.5 years, it will be 4 years at the end of this school year. My little Eleena and I were matched last year, but we were never able to meet due to the pandemic. However, when we were invited to speak at career day at UAG, I knew I had to go! It was so great to finally meet her after 1.5 years of virtual meetings! I know I get excited pretty easily, but we were both equally super excited to finally meet each other!

When I finally made my way there, Eleena came to meet me at the elevator and took me around the floor - she even took me to the Principal’s office… eek! 😲 As the COVID-19 restrictions begin to lighten up, I hope we get to see each other in person more and that the other matches who haven’t met yet get to do so!

Thank you UAG and BBBS for a wonderful day!

Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas!!! 🎄

I hope everyone has a wonderful holiday! I know many of you were unable to go home and see your families and loved ones due to Omicron and hope you were able to spend some virtual time with friends and family.

This year I was fortunate enough to see some of my relatives on my dad’s side who I had not seen since Christmas of 2019 (after taking 4 tests, 2 rapid tests & 2 PCR tests). It was really nice to catch up with with my cousins and great Aunt & Uncle after so long!

My great aunt pulled out all the stops and made an authentic Chinese style lunch & a delicious dinner!

My Christmas wish and is hope for everyone to be able to be with their loved ones in 2022!

Broadway is Back

Freestyle Love Supreme Playbill

Freestyle Love Supreme

Tonight I went to see Freestyle Love Supreme, my first Broadway show since Broadway went dark because of COVID. Thank you American Express for the tickets!

Freestyle Love Supreme is one of Lin Manuel Miranda’s original Broadway plays, written before “In the Heights” and “Hamilton.” I had heard about this play, but honestly did not know what to expect from the show. However, by the end of the show, I absolutely LOVED it!

Freestyle Love Supreme Final Bow

Freestyle Love Supreme Final Bow

The concept of the show is very interactive, the performers rapped & beatboxed freestyle verses based on words and stories from the audience. (After the show I definitely wanted to give beatboxing another shot, if anyone wants to teach me, please let me know!)

The most interesting freestyle was based on a women in the audience’s childhood. The woman’s brother had put their pet hamster named “Chicken Nugget” in the freezer, and their grandmother unfortunately found the hamster hours later when she was making dinner… and you can imagine what condition the hamster was in… it was not pretty.

Freestyle Love Supreme Playbill at the Booth Theater

Freestyle Love Supreme Playbill at the Booth Theater

All of the freestyle performed were so original and fun, I can see why they won a Tony award!

I am so excited Broadway has returned! What play should I see next?

What a Night!

Today was an interesting night… but an adventure to say the least.

Last night I saw my now ex-boyfriend (long sad story and not used to using this term “ex”) for the first time in person after we ended things. It has been really sad, but I will get through it. As a result, I was anticipating tonight to be a quiet night to reflect on yesterday’s events, however this was not the case.

My producer / videographer from Style Music TV reached out to me with a fashion & beauty press event at the Crosby Street Hotel in Soho. I figured why not get dressed up and go out, it beats staying at home and being sad!

I went to the event, and it was definitely not what I had anticipated, it was a soiree of very cliquey unwelcoming fashion types. I was ready to turn around as soon as I saw the event, but figured why not - I was already there and was at a cute hotel with free drinks! I got some champagne and walked around. I ended up meeting this awesome gay couple - one of which works for Interview, which was founded by Andy Warhol and a modeling agent. We chatted a bit and I shared the news of my break up. Mitchell was very interested to learn more about the dating apps and how my ex and I had met. Its interesting how the dating game has changed so much in such a short time frame. We chatted for a bit and actually exchanged #’s - why not make new friends?!

On my way to the subway I passed the set of the new Sex & the City reboot, where I also made some new friends AND even caught a glimpse of none other than SJP, Sarah Jessica Parker! I made friends with a fellow fan and one of the lighting guys. I ended up switching #’s with both of them, however I was actually asked to get drinks by the fellow SJP fan who had shared her video of SJP with me! What a funny turn of events!

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Ending the night on a high note, made my way home - the train was quick, not too packed and I felt very safe, the city is back! But that was not quite the end of my night… On the way home - I passed Krispy Kreme and got a delicious doughnut! I felt like I deserved it after the day I had yesterday! If you have not had a Krispy Kreme doughnut, you definitely need to try one. They are like clouds that melt in your mouth!

In an interesting turn of events, what I thought was going to be a terrible week and bust of a night ended up being full of fun surprises!

Don’t life get you down, always try to find your silver lining!

Support for COVID-19 Frontline Responders

 
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Hi Everyone!

As many of you know, COVID-19 has become a global pandemic, NY has been hit the hardest and is currently the epicenter for the US with over 120,000 cases.   

Unfortunately, many of our frontline responders (medical professionals, NYPD, FDNY, etc) do not have the protective personal equipment necessary to support the growing pandemic.

I hope you will join me in raising funds to purchase masks, hand sanitizer. gowns and food for our frontline responders throughout NYC who are need of support. 

Donations can be made here: https://www.gofundme.com/f/support-for-covid19-frontline-responders

100% of donations (less donation fees) will go directly to support our frontline!

Thank you!

Up Close & Personal with the Times Square NYE Ball!

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As 2018 comes to an end, one of my favorite ways to ring in the new year is to watch the NYE ball drop in Times Square.

This year, I had the pleasure of getting up close and personal with the Waterford Crystal ball that drops every year on NYE at One Times Square!

Check out my interview with Waterford Crystal’s Tom Brennan, who was the lead in designing the amazing ball that is seen across the world on New Year’s Eve!

Fun Facts:

The Waterford Ball is:

  • Illuminated by 32,256 LED lights

  • 12 feet in diameter and weighs 11,875 pounds

  • 2,688 Waterford Crystal triangles are bolted to 672 LED modules, attached to the frame of the ball

Surprisingly the ball was only located a few flights up from the 21st floor. However, this did not take away any of the allure or grandeur of the Waterford Ball. It is just phenomenal up close!

One of the Waterford Crystal Triangles

One of the Waterford Crystal Triangles

 
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Happy National Dessert Day

  

 

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Hope everyone has a sweet day!!!​

​I just tasted these delicious cupcakes from Huascar & Co Bake Shop.  The flavors going clockwise were Nutty Fella (chocolate fudge cupcake with Nutella filling, Glanduja buttercream frosting with chocolate pearls toasted hazelnuts), Pink Lemonade (lemon sour cream and raspberry cupcake with raspberry buttercream frosting and raspberry chocolate curls) and Berry Champgne (pink champagne cupcake with strawberries baked in iced with vanilla-pink champagne frosting)! 

​Huascar & Co had a bunch of fun flavors and other items in the store, such as spiked tres leches cake which is one of my favorite kind of cakes!  The cupcakes were pretty tasty, more dense than fluffy, the Nutty Fella even had a filling, which was delicious. As for the frosting, I thought it was a bit hard and too bitter tasting, however they did have interesting frosting flavors to go with the different cupcakes. 

Happy National Ice Cream Day!

Rainbow Cookie Ice Cream topped with Homemade Lemon Meringue from Bona Bona Ice Cream

Rainbow Cookie Ice Cream topped with Homemade Lemon Meringue from Bona Bona Ice Cream

Celebrating National Ice Cream Day at the 3rd Annual NYC Summer Ice Cream Blizzard - with a variety of NYC's most unique artisan ice cream makers and flavors.

Celebrating National Ice Cream Day at the 3rd Annual NYC Summer Ice Cream Blizzard - with a variety of NYC's most unique artisan ice cream makers and flavors.

For those of you who know me well, you know I have a big sweet tooth and LOVE ice cream!  

Today I attended the 3rd Annual NYC Summer Ice Cream Blizzard at the Grand Baazar NYC on the Upper West Side. There were so many varieties of ice cream it was hard to choose where to go! There was everything from ice cream mochi from My/Mo Mochi Ice Cream, ice cream sandwiches from Melt Bakery and Thai ice cream rolls from Minus Celsius Ice Cream to ice cream stuffed donuts from Stax Ice Cream, ice cream like cookie dough from 2 Dough Boyz and deep fried ice cream from Sam's Fried Ice Cream to name a few.   

I decided to get something new that I had not seen before (which is rare when it comes to ice cream) - rainbow cookie ice cream topped with toasted lemon meringue from Bona Bona Ice Cream! If you’re wondering, yes it tastes as good as it looks!  The rainbow cookie ice cream had bits of rainbow cookie in it (one of my favorite cookies), and the toasted lemon meringue added a nice touch, definitely a good decision made today! 

Thank you to my friend Della for indulging in my love of ice cream and attending this, despite the intense heat today!  

Until next time, stayed tuned for more ice cream and foodie adventures!  

What Goes Into A Photo Shoot?

I had the pleasure of shooting with photographer Nephi Lim, hair stylist Jon Chao & makeup artist Alani Rasheed in Bushwick (Brooklyn, NYC).  Nephi had the brilliant idea of creating dual persona for me, starting with an innocent, sweet girl persona turning into a dark, goth persona.  The team did a fantastic job making this happen!  

Photo Shoot Team (L-R): Elizabeth Tam, Alani Rasheed, Nephi Lim, Jon Chao

Photo shoots serve many purposes, one of which is a way to be creative and express yourself.  Photo shoots may seem glamorous, with the wind blowing in the model's hair and the flashes shooting; however there is a lot of work that goes into getting the perfect shot.  From the preparation (styling your hair, getting your makeup done and finding the right outfit) to the actual shoot (working on those poses/expressions and snapping the right angles) you are looking at a few hours of work, not to mention the photo editing afterwards.

This shoot was by no means a quick shoot, we had started around 7 PM and shot until 1 AM, but definitely worth it - check out the final product below.

For the first look we went with a sweet, innocent look.  We kept the makeup and hair minimal, not to seem too glamorous.

For the second look we went with a dark, goth look.  We used dark, heavy makeup and gave the hair more volume and scruff. 

Nephi & Lani used their creativity to take this look to the next level - check it out!

Let me know your thoughts on the photos, concept or photo shoots and modelling in the comments section!

 

Photo Credits:
Photographer: Nephi Lim
Makeup: Alani Rasheed
Hair: Jon Chao

Accidental Blind Date

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Never thought the words "accidental blind date" would come across my mouth, but at the same time, this would only happen to me... thank you online dating.  

Here's the rather amusing story:

I was meeting with my friend for dinner to catch up at Bea in Hell's Kitchen.  My friend had already arrived by the time I got there, so I told the hostess that I was meeting my friend Jayme, who had made a reservation.  She seems confused, but then points me in the direction of a random man, clearly not my female friend...

The man walks over and says "Patricia?"   I tell him, I am not her.  He continues, "You do not look like the woman in the pictures..."  Despite this, it definitely crossed his mind that I could have been his date for the night - LOL!

We turn to the hostess, clearly not who we both had intended to meet with, and let her know.  After a few more minutes of awkwardly waiting, the hostess finally brought me to meet my friend.

As my friend and I are exiting the restaurant, I see the man with his date, who happens to be Asian, like myself :P  I will say it looked like they had hit it off, despite the mix up.  Congrats to him - lets hope he can spot her out in a crowd for their next date!

Thank you to the hostess for trying to to set me up on an accidental blind date!  

Fashion Illustration with Holly Nichols

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As part of NYFW, Apple hosted "Live Art: Runway-Inspired Portraits with Holly Nichols" as part of their "Today with Apple" series at Apple Soho.

One of my favorite fashion illustration Artists Holly Nichols spoke to the audience on a range of topics from how to launch your business, social media and her favorite designers to draw.  After the Q&A, Holly walked us through a hands on step-by-step lesson on how she makes her gorgeous sketches using Apple's iPad Pro, Apple Pencil and the Procreate app.

Holly's workshop was very informative, I learned a lot about her techniques, how to effectively use the Procreate App - from the brushes, to layering and how to draw hair!  This was my first time trying out the new Apple Pencil, it was a pretty handy tool and great for drawing, painting & sketching my masterpiece with.

On a personal note, Holly is one of my favorite Fashion Illustrators. Her sketches are fashionable and stylish meets confident and bold. 

I am not the best artist, but I really enjoyed the workshop and would definitely recommend taking advantage of the workshops Apple offers if you have time.

Check out Holly's fantastic sketch below on the left and my attempt at a sketch on the right.

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Not the best, but not bad for my first attempt at a fashion sketch and on digital media, nonetheless! Now if only I could sketch as well as Holly does!

How I spent my weekend...

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This weekend I spent my weekend painting my NEW APARTMENT!!!!

First off, I want to say thank you to my parents and my friends (Torres & Brohan), who came out to paint with me this weekend!

Who knew painting would be so much work?   We spent the entire 3 day weekend (we had MLK day off) painting and still have to do a second coat on the walls, trim and doors. 

I think it will hopefully be done soon enough, but if anyone wants to come and help, I would greatly appreciate it!  

For those of you who are looking to paint your house or apartment, here are a few tips/things I have learned:

  1. Painting order: Ceiling, Walls, Doors, Trim
  2. Spackle, sand & wipe down the walls (in that order) before you begin painting
  3. 3M Blue Tape & Frog Tape (Green Tape) are your friends - these are used to make sure you paint straight lines or do not paint over unwanted areas
    • Blue Tape - is a bit stretchier and less sticky, this is good for ceilings and is a bit cheaper than green tape
    • Green Tape - is stickier than blue tape, thus it is good for places where the lines are very important, such as trimmings

Stay tuned for more tips, as I am sure I will learn a lot more as I begin my journey as a homeowner! 

Torres & I - he's hard core!

Torres & I - he's hard core!

Brohan and I

Brohan and I