I kicked off the month at MisShapes. I got there late and found Ben Cho, Quinn and Gurj hiding out in the back booths. ˆ ben cho ˆ jeet ˆ quinn ˆ misshapes ˆ

John and Limesmile were both there. ˆ ellen ˆ john f ˆ misshapes ˆ

Sean loves to say "ooooh" photos. It's the new hotness. ˆ me ˆ sean dack ˆ misshapes ˆ

I tried sneaking up behind Leigh so I could take a candid photo of her DJing, but at the last second she threw up a record cover and blocked the shot! I guess I'm not as sneaky as I thought I was. ˆ record ˆ

Vampire! Hiss! ˆ leigh ˆ misshapes ˆ vampire ˆ

On Thursday I saw this awesome license plate. Keep it in mind; it'll play a big part in helping to name our new pet in a few weeks. ˆ ratso ˆ jeep ˆ license ˆ

On Saturday afternoon, Meredith and I met up with Vinay (seen here holding a disposable camera that I found that was from back when he and I were in college!)... ˆ meredith ˆ vin ˆ taxi ˆ

...and the Fatty. We took a cab crosstown to the Port Authority so that we could... ˆ fatty ˆ taxi ˆ

...catch the bus to... ˆ fatty ˆ meredith ˆ vin ˆ bus ˆ

...IKEA! Meredith loves herself some Poang, that's for sure. ˆ meredith ˆ ikea ˆ

Fatty. Relaxing. You know, doing his thing. ˆ fatty ˆ ikea ˆ

Vin pretty much had this expression on his face the entire time we were in the store. Who doesn't love Ikea? ˆ vin ˆ smile ˆ

All the shopping wore poor Fatty out and he needed to take a lil' nap on the bus ride home. ˆ fatty ˆ asleep ˆ

I spent the next couple of hours in furniture-assemblage hell, finding it hard to believe that just a few hours ago I had been in love with Ikea. ˆ chair ˆ ikea ˆ

Super late that night I went out and had drinks with Amy K (who's pretty much the only person in the world who's worse than me at updating her website). Jeesh! ˆ amy k ˆ me ˆ

The next morning I installed the light fixture I'd bought in the living room! Betcha didn't know I was so handy, eh? ˆ 239 e 7th ˆ ikea ˆ lamp ˆ

New kitchen table and chairs. ˆ 239 e 7th ˆ ikea ˆ table ˆ

Later that night we stuffed Cranium into a backpack... ˆ meredith ˆ cranium ˆ

...and headed over to Apt 3a to play with Sarah and Brandon in a boys vs. girls battle of the sexes! ˆ meredith ˆ sarah ˆ apt 3a ˆ cranium ˆ

Here's me using Brandon as a puppet. ˆ brandon ˆ me ˆ apt 3a ˆ cranium ˆ puppet ˆ

Sarah using Meredith as a puppet! (PS - Check out Meredith's sweet-ass souvenir shirt from Stingray City! This was her favorite shirt, but then two days later, Steve Irwin was killed by a stingray and she was like "Fuck, now I can't wear it because people are going to think I'm being smarmily-ironic about his death!" Hahaha). ˆ meredith ˆ sarah ˆ apt 3a ˆ cranium ˆ puppet ˆ

Me showing off my mad-crazy Cranium sculpting skillz! The clue was "afro" so I made a little dude with an afro and put a lil' pic in his hair and Brandon totally guessed correctly! ˆ me ˆ afro ˆ apt 3a ˆ clay ˆ cranium ˆ

Yep, it probably will. ˆ brandon ˆ sarah ˆ apt 3a ˆ

Sleeping Monkey. ˆ apt 3a ˆ asleep ˆ dogs ˆ monkey ˆ

I want to smash her furry little face! ˆ apt 3a ˆ asleep ˆ dogs ˆ monkey ˆ

Dance for me! Dance I say! ˆ me ˆ apt 3a ˆ asleep ˆ dogs ˆ monkey ˆ

On Wednesday night Ellen and I went out to dinner with a band manager we both like and afterwards he took us all to Flash Dance (awww, yeah expense account!). Here's Ellen nervously laughing about getting ready to walk into a strip club for the first time! ˆ ellen ˆ

On Saturday night I went to MisShapes and hid down in the basement with Leigh and Thomas. ˆ leigh ˆ thomas o ˆ misshapes ˆ

On Sunday Meredith and I went out to Far Rockaway to say goodbye to summer! The beach was practically deserted! ˆ beach ˆ far rockaway ˆ

We ate fruit. ˆ meredith ˆ beach ˆ far rockaway ˆ

I entertained myself by throwing carrots and watching the seagulls viciously fight over them, only for the winning bird to pick it up every time and realize that it wasn't even something good to eat. ˆ beach ˆ bird ˆ far rockaway ˆ

Birds + Carrots = Comedy Gold! (Yes, I know that I'm retarded). ˆ beach ˆ bird ˆ far rockaway ˆ

These huge military-transport helicopters kept flying back and forth in front of the beach. ˆ beach ˆ far rockaway ˆ helicopter ˆ

Around 4:30 it started to get chilly and we decided to head home. Meredith wore her sunglasses all day and when she took them off she realized she'd gotten a tan-line on the bridge of her nose! Haha. ˆ meredith ˆ subway ˆ sunburn ˆ

Later that night we walked over to Apt 3a (and saw this kitty on the way)... ˆ cat ˆ

...for a party! ˆ ellen ˆ jenny penny ˆ karen ˆ matt ˆ apt 3a ˆ

Wooo! Party! (Looking at the cupcakes, I'm guessing this was somebody's birthday party? Sorry I forget who!) ˆ meredith ˆ apt 3a ˆ

There were lots o' dogs. ˆ edie ˆ piper ˆ dogs ˆ monkey ˆ

After a couple hours of "regular party," the party turned into a CRANIUM party! ˆ ellen ˆ karen ˆ leigh ˆ matt ˆ apt 3a ˆ cranium ˆ

Lawrence and Katie. ˆ brother lawrence ˆ katie ˆ apt 3a ˆ

Leigh, super-wasted Jenny and Brandon. It was after this night that a new Cranium-rule was instituted: "If you're too drunk to speak without slurring, you're too drunk to play Cranium." (AKA: The Jenny Penny Rule). ˆ brandon ˆ jenny penny ˆ leigh ˆ apt 3a ˆ get a load of this guy ˆ

Tins and Sarah. ˆ leigh ˆ sarah ˆ apt 3a ˆ

Karen, Sarah, and Jenny started out as a team, but about 15 minutes in the game, Jenny got a red-card for being too drunk to understand how the game was played. This was also the night that Jenny coined a phrase that I still happily use on a weekly basis. During one of the challenges where Sarah was required to draw a picture and get her teammates to guess a clue, Jenny watched her draw and started yelling out guesses. "Uh....it's FEET! Uhhhhh. Uhhhhh. Hmmmm. Oh! Feet! No, VAGINA! OH, FEET!" ˆ jenny penny ˆ karen ˆ sarah ˆ apt 3a ˆ cranium ˆ

And the legend of "FEET! FEET! VAGINA-FEET!" was born. ˆ ellen ˆ matt ˆ quinn ˆ apt 3a ˆ cranium ˆ

Now, for an overview of the competitors! Karen and Sarah were as the newly-named "Team NoJenny." ˆ karen ˆ sarah ˆ apt 3a ˆ cranium ˆ laugh ˆ

Team 2 was Gurj, Siege, Katie and Meredith. ˆ jeet ˆ katie ˆ meredith ˆ siege ˆ apt 3a ˆ cranium ˆ the bird ˆ

Team 3 was Quinn, Ellen and The Joobs. ˆ ellen ˆ matt ˆ quinn ˆ apt 3a ˆ cranium ˆ

Team 4 was Brandon, Tinny and me! (We may have lost the game but we definitely won the award for "best team photo!") ˆ brandon ˆ leigh ˆ me ˆ apt 3a ˆ cranium ˆ

Katie, Siege, and Gurj trying to figure out Meredith's pantomime. In the middle of our heated game, a timeout was called when it was discovered... ˆ jeet ˆ katie ˆ meredith ˆ siege ˆ apt 3a ˆ

...that one of the many dogs in the apartment (or maybe Jenny!) had decided to make their displeasure known. ˆ bed ˆ turd ˆ

Brandon lost the poop-patrol coin toss. ˆ brandon ˆ bed ˆ best ˆ turd ˆ

Back to the game! ˆ jeet ˆ katie ˆ meredith ˆ siege ˆ apt 3a ˆ cranium ˆ

Karen and Sarah tried to work on a trivia question... ˆ karen ˆ sarah ˆ apt 3a ˆ cranium ˆ

...but were constantly derailed by fits of laughter because... ˆ karen ˆ sarah ˆ apt 3a ˆ cranium ˆ laugh ˆ

...everyone just kept yelling out "FEET FEET VAGINA-FEET!" ˆ jeet ˆ katie ˆ matt ˆ meredith ˆ siege ˆ apt 3a ˆ cranium ˆ

Leigh showing off her Cranium-Clay sculpture of Edie. ˆ leigh ˆ clay ˆ cranium ˆ kiss ˆ

Hahaha. ˆ leigh ˆ me ˆ apt 3a ˆ clay ˆ cranium ˆ ugly face ˆ

In the end, Team NoJenny won! (Meredith decided to represent for Jenny by popping out her knockers!). After Cranium, we all hung out for a while and then someone noticed that Meredith had disappeared. When Meredith disappears from a party, it's usually because... ˆ karen ˆ meredith ˆ sarah ˆ apt 3a ˆ boobs ˆ cranium ˆ

...she's snuck away for a nap! Once the rest of the party got wise to Mer's disappearing act... ˆ meredith ˆ apt 3a ˆ asleep ˆ bed ˆ

...it was photo time! Brandon crept in for a cuddlin... ˆ brandon ˆ meredith ˆ apt 3a ˆ asleep ˆ bed ˆ spoon ˆ

...and then Siege stopped by for a quick rimmin'! ˆ meredith ˆ siege ˆ apt 3a ˆ asleep ˆ bed ˆ best ˆ rim ˆ

Stay classy, everyone! ˆ ellen ˆ leigh ˆ matt ˆ meredith ˆ quinn ˆ sarah ˆ apt 3a ˆ monkey ˆ

On Wednesday, Meredith and I got ourselves a lil' visitor! Edie! Leigh was going out of town on and off for a few weeks and we happily agreed to look after her pooch. Here she is making herself right at home. ˆ edie ˆ dogs ˆ

Fwiends! ˆ edie ˆ meredith ˆ dogs ˆ

Meredith and I went out for the night and when we came back, Meredith's flip flops were in Edie's kennel! (Not one of them...BOTH of them!) ˆ cage ˆ flip flops ˆ

She missed Meredith (Awwwww!) so she dragged them in there because they must've smelled like Meredith (Yep, Meredith smells like feet!)! ˆ edie ˆ cage ˆ dogs ˆ flip flops ˆ

Leigh lets Edie sleep in the bed and Edie made it pretty clear that she expected as much from us. Daschunds were bred so that they'd be able to chase animals into holes and they apparently still love to burrow. As soon as Edie saw that I was coming to bed... ˆ edie ˆ meredith ˆ bed ˆ dogs ˆ

...she got out of the way... ˆ edie ˆ meredith ˆ bed ˆ dogs ˆ

...and wriggled under the covers and slid down to the foot of the bed! Hahahaha. ˆ edie ˆ meredith ˆ bed ˆ dogs ˆ

On Saturday Meredith and I went out to a restaurant in NJ to celebrate my grandparent's 60th Wedding Anniversary! Here they are renewing their vows! ˆ grandma ˆ grandpa ˆ wedding ˆ

Cutting the wedding cake (again!). ˆ grandma ˆ grandpa ˆ cake ˆ wedding ˆ

Cake feeding! ˆ grandma ˆ grandpa ˆ cake ˆ wedding ˆ

I was hoping one of them would do the cake-smash, but no such luck! ˆ grandma ˆ grandpa ˆ cake ˆ

My dad gave a speech and made a bunch of jokes about how tough they were on him when he first started dating their daughter. They were nicknamed Queen Ann & Cowboy Bill, so my dad busted out a little tiara for gram... ˆ dad ˆ grandma ˆ crown ˆ tiara ˆ

...and a cowboy hat for grandpa. Happy 60th, Queen Ann & Cowboy Bill! ˆ grandma ˆ grandpa ˆ cowboy ˆ surprise ˆ tiara ˆ

My mom with her three sisters! Sue, Elaine, Steph (my mom) and Barb! ˆ aunt barb ˆ aunt elaine ˆ aunt sue ˆ mom ˆ

Family shot! Clockwise from top left: Uncle Nahlin, Katie, Chad, Drew, Kristie, Brett, Lindsay, Barb, Grandpa, Grandma, Mom, and Sue! ˆ aunt barb ˆ aunt sue ˆ brett ˆ chad ˆ grandma ˆ grandpa ˆ jay ˆ kristi ˆ lindsey ˆ uncle nalin ˆ

Later that night, Ellen and Murdo came over to hang out. Here's Ellen showing off her creepy, high-waisted jeans. Boooo! ˆ ellen ˆ jeans ˆ

And here's Murdo showing off his claystache! ˆ murdo ˆ clay ˆ moustache ˆ

I was puttering around the apartment on Sunday and Meredith texted me to announce that she was coming home with "a surprise!" She walked in with a huge smile and a tiny box! ˆ meredith ˆ rats ˆ

She'd gotten a baby rat! We took her tiny self out of the box and put her into one of them "walking-around" balls so she could explore while... ˆ ratso ˆ

...Meredith assembled her new home. ˆ meredith ˆ cage ˆ

Critter treats.

Oh, hello there new friend. You will be called "Ratso." ˆ ratso ˆ

After work on Monday, Meredith and I spent a whole bunch of time getting to know our tiny new friend! ˆ ratso ˆ

We marveled at her tiny pink paws (cute!) and her equally pink eyes (not so cute!). ˆ ratso ˆ

She was really interested in us and didn't mind being handled at all! ˆ ratso ˆ

Explorin' Meredith's shoulder. ˆ meredith ˆ ratso ˆ

Yay, new pet! ˆ ratso ˆ

On Thursday night I went to go see my friend Candy's new band that included Fatty on the bass! ˆ candy ˆ fatty ˆ band ˆ

Candy's shows are always awesome because she always wears teeny tiny booty shorts and you can always see her "ass from the front." Awwww, yeah. ˆ candy ˆ fatty ˆ band ˆ

On Saturday, Meredith and I went down to Chinatown to the aNYthing store to visit Amy K. Meredith brought her a CD-holder that was shaped like a giant cheeseburger. Amy was so excited because it matched her cheeseburger bicycle bell! ˆ amy k ˆ bike ˆ burger ˆ smile ˆ

No joke! ˆ burger ˆ

Then we went inside the store and I tried on this one of a kind "awesome" hoodie by graffiti-artist turned fashion-designer CLAW. ˆ me ˆ CLAW ˆ hoodie ˆ

Slamming! How much would it cost if you wanted to look this "awesome," you ask? ˆ me ˆ CLAW ˆ hoodie ˆ

Why, the bargain price of $999! ˆ CLAW ˆ price tag ˆ

After visiting Amy, Meredith and I went back to Petco and picked out a second rat! We been reading a whole lot about rats and learned that rats are highly social and that they get depressed without other rats around! We also read that you have to introduce them in a neutral environment - so we set up a little play area on the floor so that Ratso could meet her new roommate, Roxy! ˆ rats ˆ

They sniffed each others' asses and have been friends ever since! ˆ rats ˆ

Worn out from a long day of rat-shopping, Meredith retired to her "nap closet" (aka - the rat hole) for a little nap! ˆ meredith ˆ asleep ˆ rat hole ˆ

I went to a party at Geordon's house and only took pictures of the totally INSANE hand-painted mural one of Geordon's friends was painting in his room. ˆ drawing ˆ

Whoa. ˆ drawing ˆ