YPIC Energy Event-June 22, 2006

The European Affairs Committee hosted a YPIC event this week. The topic addressed the energy policy and economic development through European and US Perspectives. The EU and the US share a common interest in diversifying their energy resources in order to meet their energy needs as global energy demand is rapidly increasing. This realization of increasing competition to energy resources, dependence on unstable geopolitical regions, strengthening energy security as well as increasing costs to their economies and the environment has launched energy policy into the forefront of debate. In addition, climate change and environmental impact has also spurred renewed interest in nuclear power and renewable energy resources on both sides of the Atlantic. While the EU and the US have similar objectives, they often differ on their approaches to achieving energy efficiency and promoting the use of alternative energy resources. Here we attempted to examine the differences and commonalities within their respective energy policies as they relate to economic development.

Our guest lectures were two notables in the energy field: Mr. Lars-Olof Hollner Head of Transport, Energy, and Environment, EU Delegation (Right) and Mr. Robert A. Archer Deputy Chief, Energy & Infrastructure, Bureau for Europe and Eurasia, USAID (Left). Both provided insightful perspectives.

Overall, the event was a big success. We had an excellent turnout, plus enough food and beverages for eveyone. I say the only concern, which was out of our hands, was the temperature. The air in the building had been turned off at 6pm. We were stuck in the room for 2 hours with no air on a hot, humid day. But besides the air, everything went accordingly.

JOB WELL DONE TO DINA FOR COORDINATING THE DETAILS OF THE EVENT!

Brunch with Ma Petite Marie-June 17, 2006

Saturday morning, Steve and I had brunch with Marie. She was in town (up from D.C.) to visit her Aunt and we had the privilege to see her. We were able to fit in brunch into her busy schedule. We took her to a new (and notable) French Bistro on the UES called, Cafe d'Alsace. It was delicious and I highly recommend going, but the company was better! Between the 3 of us, we had: quiche, belgian waffle, and smoked trout and eggs. Yum, yum!

We chatted for quite some time before saying our goodbyes.

Until next time, ma petite Marie!

To see more pictures from brunch click HERE

"This is crap" Chris Price is leaving party-June 15, 2006

Chris Price bid farewell to Universal McCann and the Bacardi team after 4 years of loyalty and in his honor--une grande fete!

Anyone and Everyone who interacted with Chris Price attended. Peter Dillions, a midtown pub, was the setting for the night. And to his surprise, a karaoke machine appeared before his eyes, thanks to Claudia!


As the karaoke man set up, Chris in his destructive state, felt the need to turn off all music in the bar...I caught him in the act










Fortunately, Claudia went through the appropriate channels to get the music to stop.

The TVs and mics were all set up and it was time to start singing...




LEFT: testing, testing 1, 2, 3. Is this thing on? CENTER: "I can't live if livin' is without you" RIGHT: "I can't LIVE ANYMORE..."

Actually, I don't remember what song he passionately sang.

Over the course of the evening all walks of life sang including some random middle-aged woman who was not with the group.

The highlight song of the night: A little ditty, I like to call "Afternoon Delight" song in perfect harmony by the boys of 306--Drew, Chris, and Steve.

Claudia went all out for Chris Price. Not only did she bring in a karaoke machine, but also had "sliders" delivered from P.J. Clarks. Mini-burgers and karaoke, who could ask for more??

What's next for Chris Price? Lots and lots of traveling. He also mentioned something about working on a farm in Greece ?!?!

YPIC Social-June 14, 2026

I recently became a member of the European Affairs Committee of the Young Professionals for International Cooperation, YPIC, which is a program of the United Nations Association of the United States of America (UNA-USA) that seeks to engage young professionals in discussions of international affairs, emphasizing the importance of multilateral cooperation and the United Nations. YPIC provides an exciting opportunity to interact with like-minded individuals and gives young professionals from all walks of life a unique forum in which to learn more about current international issues, the United Nations, and the work of UNA-USA.

Over the past few months, our committee met to organize lectures and create ways to fundraise for future events. Last night was the first ever social gathering for YPIC and it was a big sucess. The David Krut Gallery in Chelsea generously let YPIC use their space for our event, linking the arts of South Africa and international politics. Hosting an event at the art gallery provided YPIC with the opportunity to discuss international politics through a different medium, art. The Kurt Gallery displays art from artists around the world that would not otherwise be seen, whose inspiration comes from their environment (including the political, economic setting). For more on the David Krut Gallery, click HERE.

You can see our cheese/grape spread set up by Kevin (white jacket) with Monica ready to serve the wine and Robert standing by to take the money. Unfortunately this is picture turned out a bit blurry.

Here is the setting to give you an idea....

Dina and I served wine for the second part of the night. Having a cluts like me pour the wine was not the best idea....In my greed to devour some food between pours, I knocked over a 1/2 bottle of wine. Oops.

All in all the event went smoothly.

Job well done to all EAC members!

Left to right: Dina, Jaren, Monica, Akasemi, Kevin, Kinear

Ortiz is Shrek

See, I told you Big Papi was Shrek!

Salt Lick BBQ-June 10, 2006

John Sutton hosted an imported from Texas Salt Lick BBQ dinner on Saturday night. It was the BEST IDEA EVER. Instead of going to the Big Apple BBQ in Madison Square Park, like every other New Yorker, he brought the BBQ to his back yard.

There was brisket, pork ribs in a mustardy sauce, and sausage. Plus there was homemade cornbread, both original and jalapeño. Potato salad (with egg) and beans were the side dishes. You could say everyone came with a big appetite. Steve confessed he drank lots of liquids all day to stretch out his stomach. I napped for 2 1/2 hours before dreaming of tasty BBQ. As you can see, the food went quickly.

John knew that the 2 rack of ribs flown in from Texas were not going to satisfy eveyone's meat cravings, so he bought extra racks of ribs locally and cooked them up on the good ol' barbie.

Look at those delicious ribs over-flowing on the grill....

Oh wait, that's not a true grill, it's only a hibachi! Ha! Only in New York, right?

Isn't that hilarious? I had to take a picture of 2 racks of ribs being cooked on a tiny, tiny hibachi!

After expanding our stomachs, we needed to sit back, relax and enjoy good company. See, Drew's got the idea. (His future is so bright, he's got to wear shades...)


Steve came with a bottle of Cazedores and Margarita mix. Let's just say he was the only one drinking Margaritas all night....Here's the evidence:

Steve in all his glory. The evidence...

After our bellies had a rest, someone came up with the brilliant idea to make s'mores. A quick run to the store and voila, all the fixin's for s'mores. RIGHT: cooking up s'more. CENTER: Meghan, or the Bear. LEFT: Mikey feeling the need to burn all paper products...sounds like someone else I know, Olivier!

One noise complaint later, it was time for us to continue our evening at the local watering hole. Steve friend, Zev and his girlfriend Sarah were in town at a bar down 11th Street so we made a quick visit. Then, we met up with the rest of the crew: Jordan, Mikey, John, Drew, and Maria at a bar on E 11th and A (?).

By 3:30am, it was time to head back to the casa. Full bellies and a late night are always the sign of good time.

Thank you John for hosting a BBQ-filled night!

Jazel-June 10, 2006

The Belmont Stakes race was on Saturday around 6pm, just in time for Steve and I to watch the mile-and-a-half race before going to the Salt Lick BBQ at John's place. We were watching the horses, their stats and the odds. Not being big horse-racing buffs, we thought we'd pick our favorites based on the name. Steve picked Jazel because of the crazy J name that seemed to be a Tichy-type name. Then he said, he wanted to bet $4 on the horse, because of the 4 crazy J name kids in the Tichy family. It just so happened that our friends, Chris and Claudia, were at the track. We texted Chris asking if he would put $4 down on Jazel to win. No response from Chris with seconds to the start.

...and they're off....

...and look at Jazel work his way through the pack...

...it's the last stretch and Jazel is passing Oh So Awesome....

...and the winner is Jazel!

Steve and I couldn't believe it! We were hoping that Chris got our text to place the bet.

Jump forward 2 hours and we're at the BBQ. I recieve a text. Chris was NOT at the race.

GRRRR. We couldn't believe it. If only we were there to place the bet, we could have won a lot on money.

I guess, we'll just have to be sure to place our bet ourselves next year.

Congrats to Jazel.

Circle of Friends 10km-June 10, 2006

I got into the NYC ING Marathon and now I need to start training.

I realized I had no idea about my pace. Thanks to Erin, I found out about a 10km race, which is about the same distance as my usual run around Central Park. I decided to enter "The Circle of Friends" Mini 10km race to get an idea of how fast/slow I run.

Here's a great picture of me crossing the finish line! (I'm the one in the green shirt and blue shorts--Go Jaren go!)

Taste of Summer-June 7, 2006

Claudia invited Steve, Drew, Maria, Chris, Ewan, Jon and myself to the Taste of Summer, an evening of epicurean delights, a silent auction and DJ spins under a magnificent circus-like tent in Central Park. It is a benefit for the Central Park Conservancy that brings together more than 35 premiere chefs from New York's top restaurants in the ultimate alfresco setting. At $400 a head, you know it was going to be a treat. I was in awe with, not only the site of the tent, but of all the people I recognized off of Gawker.





We checked our umbrellas (it was pouring outside) and coats before proceeding to the food tables. We all came prepared--non-restrictive clothing and an appetite...

Chris was already on the 3rd sample before we event got started; you could say he was in heaven. Oh wait, so was I!

Here is the list of restaurateurs:

57
Asia de Cuba
Barbounia
Bice Ristorante
Blue Water Grill
Brasserie
Butter
Central Park Boathouse
COLORS
Fred's at Barneys New York
Geisha
Jovia
Junior's Cheesecake
Lever House
Mainland

Mandarin Oriental, New York
Orsay
Osteria del Circo
Pampano Restaurant
Park Avenue Cafe
Quality Meats
San Domenico
NYSerafina Restaurant
Serendipity 3
SQC Restaurant & Bar
SUSHISAMBA
Tavern on the Green
Thalassa Restaurant
The Capital Grille
Tocqueville
Vento Trattoria
Zócalo Restaurant
Zoë Restaurant


And, I’m not going to lie, we hit every single one!

Some highlights:
Quality Meats—the sirloin steak melted in your mouth (Dad, next time you’re in town, we’re eating there)
Serendipity 3—samples of their famous frozen hot chocolate (jealous, Jadyn?)
The Capital Grill—butter and steak is the best combo
Maya—octopus salsa
Geisha—coconut and tapioca ball ice cream

There was quite a few selections of: ravioli (there was one with a truffle sauce that was to die for); raw tuna served in some Japanese fashion; crab cakes; soups (both hot and cold); and shrimp shooters.

My favorite was the shrimp served in a lemongrass shooter, DELICIOUS! But, I forgot what restaurant served it.

The silent auction, let's just say the food was not the only thing that was out of control. We went around to see what was being auctioned and how much people would bid for such items. Someone bid $9,000 for a dinner at Per Se--$9,000! Wow! We were definitely in the presence of “society”.

After stuffing ourselves with all the tasty food, we left and headed to Dive 75 for an after-dinner drink. We chatted and played some checkers before heading home.

This was definitely a once-in-a-lifetime experience!

THANK YOU CLAUDIA!

I'm in, I'm in--June 7, 2006

Good news to all, I made it into the NYC Marathon. Out of 90,000 applicants I was one of the 35,000 selected in the lottery.

The next 5 months are going to be spent training. Thank goodness Erin is running this thing too to keep me accountable.

For more infomation about the race, click HERE

Bocce Ball--June 3, 2006

It was a rainy weekend with most of our time spent inside on the couch watching movies.

But, Claudia came up with the idea to go ball Bocce Ball at an Italian Restaurant around the corner from her apartment. Those playing: Chris, Claudia, Ewan, Steve, and Jaren were ready for fun.




LEFT: The Bocce Ball Court. As you can see the restaurant seating area is next to the court so those dining can watch people play. CENTER: Claudia (protecting herself from thong exposure). RIGHT: Chris.






LEFT: Chris explaining the rules. CENTER: Steve upset with his turn...he used a little too much power. RIGHT: Claudia trying to tell the ball to roll more to the left






LEFT: Ewan and Chris giving themselves props for winning. CENTER: The scoreboard. RIGHT: Drink up Ewan. He's trying Chris' "red and white" drink. The other drank Peroni, Italian beers.





LEFT: C&C Music Factory a.k.a. Chrilaudias a.k.a. Chris & Claudia. CENTER: Ewan. RIGHT: Steve.






Steve entertained us all by playing with his (bocce) balls.

They're a little saggy, Steve.




After playing a few games of Bocce Ball, we all worked up quite the appetite. So, we decided to dine at the restaurant. It was delicious food with fabulous service. Some of the entrees included: chicken parm, vodka penne pasta, manicotti. Plus we had the anti-pasta first, seen below.




LEFT: The anti-pasta. CENTER: Ewan and Steve enjoying the bread. RIGHT: Ewan, Steve and Jaren eating the minestrone soup.





It was the perfect way to spend the day!