Move That Block

Mardi Gras!

2012-02-21T10:54:00.000-08:00

Although winter has seemed to skip us, with this gloomy cloudy weather how is one supposed to be celebrating Mardi Gras? Without spending thousands of dollars on a plan ticket to New Orleans to have beads thrown at you or being plowed over by a drunk partier in the streets, how can one celebrate this holiday in depressing, boring Albany? Why not mix things up again and bring a splash of summer into our lives with a nice refreshing summer time beverage.

I seem to have woken up on the wrong side of the bed this morning, with a sore throat and a bad attitude! I definitely need a pick me up after this 12hour work day! Looking for some motivation, a headline came up on my computer screen with the word 'mint' in it and it immediately reminded me of my favorite drink that my mom makes me while poolside in the middle of July spreading tanning oil all over myself! Mojito!!! This nice refreshing drink won't sit too heavy in your stomach and is sure to give you a summertime feeling. If you are unfamiliar with my very best friend the Mojito, here is my secret recipe that only my blog followers will now have.

Sable's Sunrise

1. Muddle fresh mint, a lime and a little sugar in the bottom of a tall glass.
2. Add a couple of squirts of lime juice to the mix and continue to muddle until you feel as though all of the flavors from the mint and lime have been exacerbated.
3. Add some ice to your glass, with 1 part light rum and 2 parts club soda.
4. Add a little bit more sugar and shake well.
5. Pour into the same glass as to make sure all of the flavors are in tact.
6. If you are feeling risky, after adding the club soda add a splash of real pomegranate juice or green tea if you are looking for a Mojitio with a little bit more flavor!

Now you have yourself a perfect Mojitio to celebrate Mardi Gras! You don't have to worry about drunken people knocking into you or beads being thrown at you. Instead you have yourself a tasty drink and you can enjoy it in your own home at your own leisure! Enjoy your Mardi Gras and remember to drink responsibly!

'Sorry officer...'

2012-02-20T11:31:00.000-08:00

Valentine's Day has never been an ideal holiday for me. After growing up working in a restaurant, I have always worked and waited on served lovely couples their romantic dinner together! This year was no different, although I now work in Albany, I was called to work at the restaurant in Syracuse because they just opened an addition and were short staffed. So I decided I could strap my cape on that day and play Superwoman. I woke up extra early to make my Valentine breakfast only to rush into work late and leave early. Speeding down the throughway I made it just in time for my shift at the restaurant. After a two hour drive, I decided to quickly gulp down some espresso shots before my station would fill up with happy couples. The busy night didn't end much before midnight, putting me in bed by 2am. With only 3hours of sleep under my belt, I was very angry when 5am came and I had to get back in my car and make the trip back to Albany just to make it to work on time. Exhausted from the very eventful evening, it took me a while to get out of bed. My mother was reminded at how hard it was to wake me up in high school!

After 3 large cups of coffee, I made the long haul back to the 518. Running late as usual, I was trying to make it in a record time! Flying with my Superwoman cape on, I almost hadn't noticed the police officer tailing behind me with his sirens blaring and his lights flashing. I was immediately mad at myself for not paying more attention to my speedometer, I didn't even realize how fast I was going. When he came and tapped on my window, I didn't even know what to say but to give him my sob story. I was hoping he would feel bad for a little Liverpool princess like myself having to work on such a romantic holiday! He must have a heart because he did not give me a speeding ticket (how fast I was going I will not say) however, when he ran my license and registration he realized my car was not inspected. With all of the hustle and bustle of my life, I had completely forgot to get my car inspected, which my father so politely reminded me of about a month ago! For some reason I was able to get away with speeding but an un-ispected car is not dismissible.

Upon returning to Albany, I had already started my day on the wrong foot and was only irritated the rest of the day. I ignored some fatigue signs and completely dismissed the headache and sore throat. After re-doing our Valentine's Day, soon enough it was almost 2am again and I felt that all I had done was run around the past 24hours. I should have picked up on some warning signs that I needed to slow down but it wasn't until 7am the following morning when my head was in a toilet bowl thanks to the flu, that I didn't realize how bad I needed to take a break! Now working three jobs, having an active social life, visiting friends and family on the weekend and trying to find time for myself in between gets exhausting! It's hard to take a step back and realize how much of life we miss! I came to this epifany that I need to start worrying about myself more. I need to take a step back and remind myself what it is I need instead of what my roommates want or that my boss needs help staffing for Valentine's day. I know too often that I have put others before myself and now I need to take care of myself. I think that too many of us do this as well. We get caught up in the day to day activities that we almost lose ourselves.

So this morning when I was abruptly woken up by my violent cough, I decided that the only way to kick this flu was to care for myself more. I promised myself that even with everything going on in the day that I am going to make more time for myself. I used to read almost every night before bed and I would like to get back to that because that was at least an hour to myself that I could escape from the world and just dive into a great read! The time we spend with ourselves and our own thoughts is one of the most important parts of the day and I think we all need to do more of that. I also notice that even when I get an hour to myself I am in a much better mood! So give it a try, spend at least an hour out of every day to yourself, rather it be running, working out, reading, painting, scrap booking, cooking or even just sitting quietly. Collecting your thoughts and compartmentalizing your day in your head will make the day a lot less stressful and you will feel a lot better! If your schedule is as busy as mine, wake up an hour earlier while the world is still asleep and take advantage of the quietness! These are the times we take for granted!

Cook for Love!

2012-02-13T10:45:00.000-08:00

Although I have been called the scrooge of Valentine's Day, with only one day left I sort of feel guilty for boycotting it this year! I will stand behind my beliefs that it is a stupid holiday but not everybody feels that way and I feel bad for pressing my opinions onto others! So with only 24 hours left until the day, I am going to change my attitude around. After work I am going to swing by Target and purchase some Valentine's day cards to send to my friends and give to my roommates tomorrow. Since I am trying to budget myself, I will still not be purchasing any gifts but might be thinking about cooking something cute for the roomies in the spirit of love! Since I love to cook, I thought this was a good compromise! So here are some last minute ideas for those of you who are in the same boat and are searching for a simple Valentine's day activity!

Homemade Marshmellow Hearts!

Who doesn't love those cute little heart shaped candies! Here is a recipe to make your own and that way you can write your own sayings on them!

Red Velvet Cupcakes

Yum!!!! Although these are tough to make, the pay off is well worth it! And red, how perfect for the Valentine's Day theme!

Heart Shaped Toast

This simple breakfast could start your Valentine's Day off right! All you need is a heart shaped cookie cutter and you can use what you have already in your fridge for breakfast ingredients!

Heart Shaped Hot Cocoa

Simply freeze some Cool Whip on a tray, let it set, then cut out your desired heart shaped toppings for either hot cocoa or coffee! This along with a heart shaped toast and eggs will be sure to make your Valentine fall in love with you again!

Heart Shaped Fruit

Cut out some homemade pancakes into hearts topped with heart shaped fruit makes for a nice romantic breakfast! Maybe even add some heart shaped strawberries to a mimosa to really start the morning off right!

Lunch Packed with Love

If your Valentine is not a breakfast person or if you just simply don't want to wake up before the sun rises to make breakfast, pack his lunch for him and cut his bread into heart shaped slices and he will be sure to think of you while he is taking his lunch break at work.

Simple Heart Cookies

Another perfect food to pack for your loved ones lunch! Although he might get made fun of in the office, all the other guys will be jealous they didn't receive delicious homemade cookies in their lunch! Simply make his favorite cookie recipe but cut them into hearts!

If you are like me and would rather work on Valentine's day and don't have enough time to make something extravagant or refuse to spend your week's budget on a dozen roses, these simple cooking ideas will be sure to keep you out of the dog's house for not celebrating Valentine's day and are also easy enough to not consume your whole day!

10 Valentine's Day Gifts!

2012-02-08T11:10:00.000-08:00

By now we all know I am anti-Valentines! But for those of you who absolutely MUST celebrate this pointless holiday, I have devised a list of some cheap and clever Valentine's day gifts for couples! With less than a week until the big day, these gifts are perfect and involve minimal preparation. But if you are like most couples and decided to celebrate it this weekend, you better hurry up and get shopping! But while all of you are out there running around spending money on candy grams and chocolates I will be enjoying the company of my best girlfriends enjoying my weekend :)

1. Romantic Movie Basket

Put together a little basket of his favorite movies, a bottle of wine, popcorn, maybe a snugly blanket, some sticks and marshmallows for the fire and a take-out menu of his favorite Chinese food place for later. This gift should not cost you more than $70 if you play it right and he will absolutely love it! This will also give you two a chance to spend some time together and bond rather than just going to see 'The Vow' in a packed movie theater when you two can't be close or talk!

2. Lotto Scratch Off

I saw this idea on Pinterest (of course!) which is where most of my great ideas come from but I thought this was such a cute homemade gift for both guys and girls! I could not find the exact example I had found before but the jist of the gift is to create your own scratch off where your loved one can scratch off one square a day until valentines day. It will take a little creativity and some time but it should not cost you more than $10. This is a great idea if you two are already planning on going out to dinner because it will be a good lead up to a nice romantic candle lit evening!

3. Dirty Darts

I found this unique idea on a website and I thought it was a great idea because it incorporates sports and romance. This game will be sure to spice up the night and it will also entice his sports side. He will be thrilled to see you got him something sporty yet adventurous. And it is fun for both parties!

4. Personalized Pub Glasses

On this same website where I found the dirty dart game, I also found these personalized beer glasses which most men would love! Beer and their name, of course they would love this! They also have beer mugs and personalized beer coasters. Another variation of this would be to add chalk paint to beer glasses which allows guests to write their own personalized messages to their glass.

5. Kick Boxing Class

Why not beat up on each other a little bit for a nice romantic Valentine's? Most classes will only cost $50 a class or sometimes LA boxing even offers free classes. Working out releases endorphins and will ultimately put you both in a better mood after. This is a perfect gift for the athletic boyfriend and the healthy girlfriend. Another alternative is dance lessons, especially if you guys are considering marriage or engagement. Perfect preparation for the big day!

6. Coupon Book

As I was searching for more Valentine's Day gifts, I noticed a lot of suggestions to purchase romantic coupon books. So why not make your own personalized coupon books. For example: This coupon is redeemable for one morning I will take the dogs out and serve you your OJ and ham egg and cheese in bed. By making the coupons more personable, this will make him more excited to use the coupons that he would actually do! This involves some time but very cheap! Guys, you could also do this for girls! We would love it :)

7. Cook Book

Nice way to hint that you would like him to cook more for you ;) Create a cook book of your favorite recipes, maybe throw some of his own in there and on Valentine's day give him a cooking class with one of the recipes in the book! Along with a bottle of wine, this would make for a nice romantic night where you guys are helping each other out and working along side with one another! This will also be a good useful gift for the future because next time he messes up he can refer to the book and be awaiting for you when you get home with your favorite meal already on the table! Hint hint, this will be sure to get you out of the dog house fast!

8. Royal Flush

Chances are he is probably better at Poker than you so let him give you a lesson. At the end of the lesson, play each other and be creative! Bet with something other than chips and be sure to wager something for the winner! This will be sure to boost his ego and also give you guys a common new hobby. So next time a bunch of your friends get together to play poker, your girlfriend could be the one taking home the winnings for you!

9. Gift Basket

Similar theme to the movie basket but this time create a basket with all of his favorite things! Be sure to limit yourself to a budget and stick to it. Include his favorite beer, food, snack, underwear, candy, game and hobby. This will be easy on your wallet and if you know him well enough he will be sure to use everything in your basket! You could even make it cute and more geared towards a Valentine's Day theme. Maybe some heart boxers or movie tickets to 'The Vow.' You can even label your own beer with Valentine's Day popular sayings! How cute :)

10. Volunteer Together

If you and your Valentine are looking to give back to the community, volunteering together is a great option! Find something local around Valentine's Day and volunteer together. Might not be the most romantic Valentine's Day gift ever but it will make you both feel good about giving back to a local cause. Afterwards, you can celebrate by going out to dinner and be proud that both of you are with someone so generous!

How to host the best Super Bowl Party!

2012-02-02T08:59:00.000-08:00

Super Bowl XLVI

Party Guide

Your Super Bowl party can be made as simple or as fancy as you would like it to be. Just a few dips and some beer would probably suffice most audiences, especially those just interested in watching the game. But if you really would like to blow your friends out of the water and host the Super Bowl party of the year, this guide will help you accomplish that goal!

1. Attire

You have to represent the team you are cheering for! Victoria Secret always has cute NFL wear for girls! Jersey's can be found at almost any sporting store as well!

2. Food

What would a Super Bowl party be like without some great dips! Here are some quick and easy recipes that I have gathered from my mom's recipe cabinet and other recipe sites.

Buffalo Chicken Wing Dip

(my own recipe) 1pkg (8.oz) Cream cheese, softened

1/2 cup crumble blue cheese

1/2 cup blue cheese dressing

1/2 cup Frank's redhot buffalo wing sauce- for hot lovers do half hot sauce and half wing sauce

2 cups cooked chicken, shredded (canned chicken works best)

Taco Dip

First layer: 1 can re-fried beans

Second: Sour cream

Third: Guacamole

Fourth: Shredded lettuce

Fifth: Salsa

Sixth: Shredded Cheese

(black olives and spring onions sprinkled on top are optional depending upon your guest preferences)

Putting individual cups out with the dip in them is such a cute idea but more time consuming!

Pizza Dip

4 ounces cream cheese, room temperature
1/4 cup sour cream
1/4 cup mayonnaise
1/2 cup mozzarella, grated
1/4 cup parmigiano reggiano (parmesan), grated
1 cup pizza sauce
1/2 cup mozzarella, shredded/grated
1/4 cup parmigiano reggiano (parmesan), grated
2 ounces pepperoni, sliced
2 tablespoons green pepper, sliced
2 tablespoons black olives, sliced

Mix the cream cheese, sour cream mayonnaise, mozzarella and parmigiano reggiano and spread it across the bottom of a pie plate.
Spread the pizza sauce on top and sprinkle on the cheese, pepperoni, green pepper and olives.
Bake in a preheated 350F oven until the cheese has melted, bubbling and golden brown, about 20 minutes.

Recipe compliments of Closet Cooking

Classic Pizza is also a great idea and easy for people to grab instead of surrounding a dip! But this is something unique that most other parties won't have!

Here is a great pizza recipe from Taste of Home!

Artichoke Bread

1 (14 ounce) can artichoke hearts (drained and chopped)
2 green onions (sliced)
2 cloves garlic (chopped)
1 (4 ounce) package cream cheese (room temperature)
1/4 cup mayonnaise
1/2 cup sour cream
1/2 cup mozzarella (grated)
1/4 cup parmigiano reggiano (grated)
1 loaf Italian bread (sliced in half lengthwise)

Directions:
1. Mix the artichoke hearts, green onions, garlic, cream cheese, mayonnaise, sour cream, mozzarella and parmigiano reggiano reserving some of the cheese.
2. Hollow 1/2 an inch out of the center of both halves of the bread.
3. Spread the mixture into the hole in the bread slices and top with the reserved cheese.
4. Bake in a preheated 350F oven covered in foil for 20 minutes.
5. Remove the foil and continue to bake until the cheese is melted and golden brown.

Also, compliments from Closet Cooking.

Baked Chipotle Sweet Potato Fries

(Skinny Taste Recipe)

1 sweet potato, (about 5" long) peeled and cut into 1/4" fries
2 tsp olive oil
sea salt
ground chipotle chile
garlic powder

Preheat oven to 425°.

In a medium bowl, toss sweet potatoes with olive oil, salt, garlic powder and chipotle chile powder.

These delicious fries taste good with light ranch dip or Greek yogurt dip! Yum!

Baked Eggplant Sticks

(Also, compliments of Skinny Taste)

10 oz eggplant
1 tsp olive oil
1/2 tsp kosher salt and fresh cracked pepper
1/2 cup Italian Seasoned breadcrumbs
2 tbsp parmesan cheese
1 large egg white
oil spray
1 cup quick marinara sauce for dipping (extra points)

Directions:
Preheat the oven to 450°. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper and lightly spray with oil.
Cut ends off the eggplant. Slice eggplant in half, then into 1/4 inch thick slices. Lay each slice on the cutting board and cut into 1/4 inch strips. Be sure to cut all the strips the same size so they cook evenly.

Place eggplant strips in a bowl and season with olive oil, salt and pepper. Set aside.

Combine breadcrumbs and parmesan cheese in a bowl, and egg whites in another.
Dip a few strips of eggplant at a time into the egg whites, then into the breadcrumbs. Using a fork, remove eggplant from crumbs and place on the baking sheets. Spray with more oil and bake 10 minutes in the middle rack.
Turn over and bake an additional 5 minutes, or until golden. Serve hot.

3. Beverages

If you are hosting the Super Bowl party this year, it is crucial that you have enough beverages for everyone that is coming. Beer is a must! And be sure to have some mixers in case anyone brings their own bottle of liquor. Depending on how wild you would like your party to be, or if everyone can take a sick day on Monday, here is a great recipe for Margarita Jello Shots! They are fun and super cute, easy to distribute to everyone also!

4. Games

Half time = perfect time for games! As a party hostess, you will be complimented if you are equipped with unique and fun games that no one has played before. So instead of just whipping out a deck of cards, make a trip to Target and pick yourself up the new version of Loaded Questions. This game can be played with 4+ players and will be sure to add an interesting twist to the night! If you don't already know your friends, after this game you will be sure to know more than you want to!

5. Deserts

Drinking seems to be a popular theme for the evening so why not stick with that theme and indulge your guests with some Corona or Blue Moon cupcakes!

Blue Moon & Corona Cupcakes

(Compliments of Miss Make)

3/4 cups butter, at room temperature

1-3/4 cup sugar

2-1/2 cup flour

2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

3 eggs, at room temperature

1 tsp vanilla

1/2 tsp orange or lime zest

1 cup Blue Moon or Corona beer, plus more for brushing on tops

1/4 cup milk

Orange/lime wedges and sanding sugar for garnish

- Preheat oven to 375 degrees and line 24 muffin tins with cupcake liners.

- In a medium-sized bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt.

- In the bowl of an electric mixer, beat together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy, about 2-3 minutes.

- Add eggs, beating after each addition then add the vanilla and zest.

- Combine milk and beer and alternatively add this mixture and the flour mixture to the butter/sugar mixture with the mixer on low speed, starting and ending with the flour.

- Fill the cupcake liners 2/3 full and bake for 18 minutes, or until cake tester comes out clean.

- When cupcakes are done, poke holes in the tops of the cupcakes with toothpicks and brush some beer on each while still warm.

For the citrus cream cheese frosting:

12 oz cream cheese, cold

6 tbsp butter, at room temperature

1 tbsp freshly squeezed orange/lime juice

1 tsp orange/lime zest

4 cups powdered sugar

- Cream together the cream cheese and butter in an electric mixer until smooth and creamy, about 2-3 minutes.

- Add the citrus juice and zest and gradually add the powdered sugar until well-combined. Beat until smooth for about 2 minutes.

- Load frosting in a piping bag fit with a large star tip and pipe cupcake tops once cooled.

Recipe yields 24 cupcakes.

Some more great Super Bowl Desert Recipes:

Football Whoopie Pies

No Bake Oreo Truffles

No Bake Cake Batter Truffles

No Bake Nutella Cheesecakes

GO GIANTS!!! :)

Valentine's Day Contest!

2012-02-01T10:11:00.000-08:00

14 Days 'til V-Day Countdown Contest

Dear Valentine's Day Couples and Singles:

How would you like to win a $50 gift card to Exit 9 Wine and Liquor for whatever your Valentine's Day plans may be? It's as simple as tweeting to your Twitter account:

'I love you more than _____ loves ____'

Some examples include: 'I love you more than Lucy loves Ricky.' Be sure to include @MoveThatBlock and #loveyoumorethan so we can track who has entered to win!

Simple and fun way to earn a cool prize for Valentine's Day! Can't wait to see all the creative answers our fans come up with! Let the games begin!

Cheap Valentine's Date Ideas

2012-01-30T12:33:00.000-08:00

Instead of continuing to complain about the Valentine's Day experience and the billions of dollars that America spent on this holiday last year, I decided to channel my energy into finding a bunch of cute yet inexpensive date ideas. I gathered some from my own experiences, friends experiences and other blogs. If you feel the need to have to celebrate this holiday, here are some romantic ideas that are easy on your wallet!

1. 14 days of Valentines: Pick up a bag of those heart candies and each day hide one where your loved one will find it. It's a cute way to say 'I Love You' and he will look forward to your messages each day!

2. Build a Fort: Grab a bottle of wine, take the cushions off the couch, drape a blanket over two couches and string some white Christmas lights under the blanket. This will give the two of you a romantic star gazing experience and the close quarters will facilitate those loving feelings.

3. Camp fire: Build a fire outside, roast some marshmallows and try to find the big dipper. The feeling of being a kid again will remind the two of you of the excitement you once had in the beginning of the relationship.

4. Game Night: Operation, Trouble, Sorry and Twister sound familiar? Dust off these old childhood games and have a game olympics. This plain, simple fun will be more fun than you expect! End the night with Twister and by that time your inner kid will have come out. Seeing this side of one another will make Twister interesting!

5. Movie Marathon: Call in sick to work, put your pajamas back on and spend the entire day watching new movies with each other! Order some Chinese and just enjoy the warmth of the bed and each other's company. Just spending the day together will re kindle your love and remind each other how much fun you can have by just enjoying the simple things in life.

6. Scavenger Hunt: Turn off all the lights for when he comes home from work, create your own little scavenger hunt where he is lead by candle light. At each candle light, give him another clue that will lead him to the next candle. You could make this romantic or fun, whichever way you would like! It's a cute idea and allows him to use a little bit of his intellectual side! He will enjoy getting every clue right and be happy to find you at the end of the hunt.

7. Theme Night: Pick a theme for the evening, rather it's something new or his favorite topic! If you guys have been talking about going on a cruise together, create your own little cruise at home. Every room is a different island. The dining room could be in Mexico where he is served nachos, enchiladas and tequila! The living room could be transformed into a Bahama room with the heat turned to 90 degrees, you change into your bathing suites and watch Creatures of the Sea. End the night in the bedroom which is actually Puerto Rico where you are served rum and enjoy the sunset in a homemade hammock!

8. Learn something new: Dance class, cooking class, or boxing class, learn something together! You will feel vulnerable at times and maybe even a little stupid but putting yourself out there together will create a bond and trust for each other knowing that it's ok to be vulnerable sometimes! Then, you both can show off your new talent once the class is over.

9. Spa Day: Instead of spending money on going to the spa, create a menu of options for one another, you can pick three things off the menu. Then, one person gives the other a massage, maybe a facial and a manicure. Then you take a break, maybe eat some chocolate cover strawberries and champagne then the other person pampers the other! You both will feel so relaxed!

10. Breakfast in bed: Sweet surprise! Each of you make the other their favorite breakfast food and feed it to each other in bed blindfolded. Being fed without being able to see what it is you are eating really makes you trust the other person and exemplifies your other senses.

11. 20 Q's: Create a list of 20 questions, could be personal, silly or just some basic knowledge about each other. Write down the answers you think they might respond with and whoever has the most answers right wins. Take a sip of wine after every wrong answer! Getting to know more about each other will build your relationship.

12. Bucket List: Sit down with each other and make a list of 100 things you both want to do before you die together. Coming up with this list together will make you both look forward to the future and that you have something to look forward to. Cut up the pieces, put them on a cork board, and every time you accomplish one of them, put them in a little bucket hanging on the wall! Such a cute idea! (Thanks Pinterest)

13. Dine In: Everyone goes out to eat on Valentine's day, so why not make your home your own restaurant. Create a menu, serve three of his favorite courses and favorite bottle of wine. The best part of the night is that your already home when the meal is over! Pretending to be his waitress will also make it feel like something new!

14. T.V. Marathon: Chose your favorite T.V. show, record 10 episodes or find it on Netflix and spend the night watching the whole first season of Lost. Take a break to serve each other some t.v. dinners and another break to make your homemade popcorn!

15. Bar Hop: Create your own bar crawl! Make a map of all the bars that have good happy hour and make a plot of all the drinks you want to try at the different bars. Tell some of your friends to meet you at the last stop and have your own little party! Being around all your friends at the end of the night will make you both want to be alone together again! Building anticipation makes the time you finally get to be alone much more desirable.

16. Create: Build something together! Rather it be just a book shelf or a wine cork board, creating something together will show you both that you make a great team and accomplishing something together gives you both a great feeling that you can conquer the world and do anything together!

17. Truth or Dare: Create a list of truths and dares, pick up your favorite 6 pack and see where the night takes you. If anything, more memories will be made and the silliness of the game will bring out your inner kid, bonding the both of you on a different level.

18: Venus vs. Mars: A little one on one with each other. Place a bet on who can beat who in a race or maybe even a little one on one soccer match. Loser has to wait on the other hand and foot for the remainder of the night!

19. Reminisce: Create a scrap book of your memories or create a memory box and spend the evening going through your memories together, remembering vacations and concerts you went on together. Remembering good times brings back great memories and how much fun you have had together!

20. Be Spontaneous: Just get in the car and drive! Don't have any plans on where your going but be happy wherever the car takes you. The spontaneity of the act will excited the both of you and make for a great evening escaping just the two of you!

Be Mine!

2012-01-27T08:42:00.000-08:00

Yesterdays blog really intrigued me to do soem further research into the Valentine's day experience. What I found is appalling! According to the NY Times, in 2010 America spent over $15.7 not million but BILLION dollars on Valentine's Day! And as if that wasn't disgusting enough, the average American is projected to spend $112 dollars on their Valentine this year! Imagine all the things you could do with $112 dollars!

1. Put it towards that student load debt

2. Chip away at some of that credit card debt

3. Put it towards that extended warranty for your car

4. Open a savings account for a new kitchen!

5. Start a college fund for future children.

The possibilities are endless but there are many other money smart ways to spend $112 rather than on a bouquet of flowers that will die in 3 days and she will forget about in 4. Instead of just sitting here complaining about how Valentine's day is just a scam set up by Hallmark to boost sales (sorry St. Valentine) I figured I was going to think of a way for people to save money this year. MoveThatBlock is going to be promoting their dating site with a contest and prize but would like some insight as to what our fans/users would like to participate in! Would you be most likely to participate in a trivia game for the Valentines 10 Day Countdown? Or how about sharing your worst Valentine's Day experience, best story wins? Tag your worst Valentine's Day present to win a great prize this year? We would love to know so feel free to tell us what your more likely to take part of! But hurry, the big day is only 18 days away :)

Valentine's Day

2012-01-26T12:38:00.000-08:00

With Valentine's Day just around the corner, many girls are looking forward to a romantic evening with their significant others while their guys are dreading having to spend money on a fake holiday. Quite frankly, I would have to say that I am with the male population on this one! So many girls make such a big deal about what their boyfriend is expected to get or do for them on Valentine's day. But at the end of the day, a big percentage of these girls actually end up disappointed because they didn't receive that new Tiffany's key heart necklace they wanted or their boyfriends forgot to make reservations at the fancy Italian restaurant that is now booked for the evening. Where did all of these expectations come from? Before I make any conclusions about what I believe is a bogus holiday, I did some research and found out that there actually was a Saint Valentine which is the reason we celebrate Valentine's day.

Apparently the story goes that St. Valentine was performing marriages during a time when Roman Emperor Claudius II was banning them. The Emperor believed that single males were more likely to enroll in the army at that time so he banned marriages. St. Valentine was the only one brave enough to go against his rule and performed marriages anyways. St. Valentine was sentence to death on February 4th 270 and it wasn't until 1537 that King Henry VII declared February 14th an official holiday to honor the brave St. Valentine. Who knew there was such history dedicated to this day! Now it sort of makes sense why we spend it with the ones we love but shouldn't it be more about the sacrament of marriage instead of going out to eat with our boyfriends/girlfriends? I believe if I would have known St. Valentine, he would have never imagined that what he was doing would turn into such a superficial holiday full of spending money on fancy dinners or pumping money back into the economy in forms of gold necklaces and diamond rings. He would probably actually be appalled knowing that we still honor his holiday in a society where the divorce rate is at 75% and climbing! So maybe instead of spending the time and effort in trying to find the perfect valentines day bouquet or fancy bottle of wine, we put our efforts into fixing our marriages and actually celebrate the meaning of what this holiday was intended for!

Superbowl XLVI!

2012-01-24T07:50:00.000-08:00

Who else is this excited for the Patriots to beat the Giants in the Superbowl XLVI?!?

Trust

2012-01-20T11:29:00.000-08:00

As I laid in my bed last night tossing and turning in a sweat, unable to fall asleep due to this new cold brewing inside me and attacking my white blood cells, I threw in an old Desperate Housewives DVD that I must have seen at least a dozen times in hopes that it would help my eyes find the back of my eye lids. Like many of my assumptions, this one also proved to be inaccurate. I found a way to find some sort of depth in this particular episode of Desperate Housewives. In this particular episode, the housewives's trust is tested in one way or another. Without going into too much detail, Gabriel is forced to trust Carlos as he was sent to jail for a crime he did not do, Lynette has to trust a new nannie with her children and Susan's daughter has to trust that her mom knows what's best for her.

In my drossy state of exhaustion, I started thinking about trust and how in real life it can be one of the hardest emotions to give someone else. But we are forced to make this difficult decision on a daily basis rather if it's trusting that you will get a pay check this Friday or trusting other drivers as you make a trip to the bank on slippery snowy roads. Obviously there are people who are more trusting than others and people who give out their trust more often than others. My brother is a great example of someone who trusts without reason. In some cases, this is called nieve and it often times gets him into trouble. Cole believes that everyone is made up of good instead of evil and will believe what you tell him is the truth. How him and I came from the same egg is beyond my understanding. I am on the complete opposite side of the spectrum. Maybe I have just lived more and seen more evil but I have been tricked too many times with my trust to the point that I am not even sure I could trust anyone. I don't want to live life this way and sometimes I wish I could be more like Cole. If only I could find the goodness in everyone and believe that no one could hurt you but that is not true at all. With trust comes pain and hurt that the person we once trusted did not live up to our expectations.

I find my brother living a very simple and happy life. He always has a smile on his face and rarely worries about his future, or anything for that matter. I almost think that this would be a better way to live. Not worry about anything and just let life happen. Give out our trust more freely but with some provisions and then learn from the outcomes. People do wrong, that's life, but forgiveness is a virtue!

At the end of the episode, all of the housewives learned to let go of their fears that held them back and were finally able to trust. Who would have thought something so profound could come out of such a superficial drama t.v. show? So maybe we all shouldn't have my mentality nor my brothers but somewhere in the middle lies a fearless and more optimistic outlook on life. That is where we should all be!

"Love all, trust few and do wrong to none," Shakespeare

PIPA, SOPA, What's next?!?

2012-01-19T08:28:00.000-08:00

Walking into work yesterday, I got settled and started my daily routine only to find that this was nearly impossible after I had gone to three different websites that were blocked. I immediately turned to Google to find some answers only to find that the Google logo was blocked out as well. I felt so out of the loop and I had no idea what was going on. I had completely ignored all the articles on this PIPA and SOPA that I had no idea what those acronyms even stood for. After doing some quick reading over some LinkedIn articles I soon became a little bit knowledgable as to what was going on. So to my basic understanding, if the government is able to pass these bills they will be able to basically censor any material that is posted on the Internet. Social media sites such as Pinterest, Tumblr and Reddit posted popups asking users to help prevent the passing of these bills. Tumblr even went as far as blocking out all user information on their site until users promised to call their representative and protest SOPA. Reddit, Mozilla, and Google protested by blocking out their logos. Various other sites such as Craigslist put up full screen block outs that asked users for their help in preventing the passing of these bills and ultimately the end of our freedom on the Internet.

Zuckerberg also posted a Facebook status about his opinions on the subject, within just 18 short minutes he already had 20,000 shares and 50,000 likes.

Imagine the influence he has over his followers? Crazy to think that just within seconds of him posting a status update that thousands of people have already seen it and responded. This might make me think twice about what I post on Facebook! But imagine if we were taken away that right? If we were blocked or banned from posting certain things on Facebook or if we were unable to write anything we feel like writing about in our blog postings? If you would like to be one of millions who are taking actions against these bills or help prevent them from being passed, click here!

New Year, New Beginnings

2012-01-17T13:47:00.000-08:00

Inspiration of the day:
You already know the story of two college roommates who left Corporate America to start their own company, well know a year later I am here to report their success story!

Just 17 days into the New Year, 2012 has already showed some promising opportunities! Today I would like to dedicate my blog to express my gratitude and a congratulations to the MoveThatBlock team! We have really started off 2012 right and hit our goals for the beginning of the year. With just a small team and a lot of hard work, they have been able to obtain their goals and given hope to other start-up companies in the Capital Region! Like my father has always said, nothing in life comes easy and MoveThatBlock is proof of this! Countless hours and sleepless nights put into working on the site, MoveThatBlock is really hitting it off this year! So Congratulations to my fellow colleagues! Keep up the good work for you guys are role models to many other entrepreneurs in the Capital District! :)

Love the Life you Live

2012-01-13T11:20:00.000-08:00

Only 192 days until my baby brother turns 21. I cannot believe how fast time flies. When I was younger, instead of playing with dolls or watching Rugrats, I would spend my time using my Easy Bake Oven and helping my mom mop the floors or beg my dad to let me iron his work shirts. Needless to say I was in a hurry to grow up. I was born a month early and my parents say that I have been on the fast track ever since. I remember having a conversation with my father, when I was about 12, telling him that I could not wait until I was 25, married with kids and had my own life. I thought that day would never come and at the young age of 12 it seemed so far away. So as I pouted to my father about wanting to grow up faster he assured me that day would come soon enough and then I would be pouting to him again that I wish I could go back in time and be young again! Since I am stubborn, hard headed and hardly ever wrong, I will not admit that my father's predictions are at all correct but I will say that it sure did go by fast! Now that my brother is going to be an 'adult,' it really makes me feel old! I still look at him as though he is my little baby brother in which I would dress up and style his hair in bow barrettes as he sat in his crib patiently waiting for the torture to be over. Now this little boy has all of a sudden grown out of his crib and up to the bar!!

Most 20 year olds look forward to their 21st birthday so that they can go out with all of their friends, get a giant Margherita, and end up with their head in a toilet bowl later. If only you knew my brother because this is the last thing on earth that he would want to be participating in on his 21st birthday. When I asked him what he wanted to do his reply was just simply to see his girlfriend. And honestly, he would be completely content with just spending the day doing just that. I am not sure I have ever run into anyone else that could say they just wanted to hang out with their girlfriend on their 21st birthday but that is why my brother is so great! I admire his ability to just enjoy the simple things in life! Cole doesn't need designer clothes, in fact he doesn't even care what he wears as long as the tag doesn't itch his skin. He doesn't care nor judge anyone based on their appearance, he still has a velcro wallet in which he doesn't care if it impresses his girlfriend or not. His ideal day would involve waking up to chocolate chip pancakes, having the basement big screen t.v. to himself all day long to watch Cartoon Network or beat another board on Call of Duty Black Ops and then have someone bring him pizza whenever his stomach feels the need to eat again. I wish that while my parents reproduced that they had given me this gene! I wonder if we were programmed with the ability or inability to enjoy simplicity or if it's our environment that makes us this way? Cole is in a position that he could certainly enjoy the finer things in life but that's not what would make him happy. Give him a kind, loving girlfriend, a roof over his head, a car that has four wheels and a t.v. big enough for him to play my dad in Gears of War and he would be completely content!

Imagine what life would be like if there were more people with my brothers mentality? If the only importance in life was the people in our life instead of the things in our life? If we could all find the goodness inside others instead of the beauty that they mask on the outside? Imagine a world where Kenneth Cole watches didn't hold any value and Christian Louboutin shoes were just as valuable as the toll booth change from Syracuse to Albany? I applaud my brother for he has given me hope that there has to be others out there like him and that one day they will make us all see how greedy we really are and prove to us how much the simple things in life can mean so much!!

The Grass is Always Greener...

2012-01-12T15:49:00.000-08:00

Is it true that we always want what we can't have? Is the grass truly greener on the other side? This must be a twisted game that nature has planted within us, insatiable, never satisfied with the hand we are dealt. Girls who have straight hair spend a good chunk of change on perms from month to month. On the other hand, the girls who have curly hair spend sufficient amounts of effort and time into straightening it each morning. This theory has proved true in many instances in life. There are guys who spend every waking hour dreaming up the girl of their dreams and would do anything to have that companion to share life with. Then, on the other hand, there are the guys who have a perfect girl waiting at home for them while they are out at the bar wishing they had their single life back to the point that they might even step out for the night just to remember what it felt like.

Doesn't it seem crazy as human beings that we are not ever satisfied with our lives no matter how satisfying they may be? We are all guilty of doing this, for every perfect relationship there exist a man finding something wrong with it and searching for a reason to put him out of his misery, I mean relationship. Don't get me wrong, girls are just as guilty of the same offense, even if we found the perfect man, we will complain and nag about every little thing until we eventually drive our loved one off a cliff! How unfair is this? To have what we have always desired just to learn that it is never enough? I would like to think that there has to be an end to all this madness. There must exist a point of satisfaction! At one point do we have to realize how good we have it and it's not until we have had bad experiences that make us really appreciate a good thing. Again, is that what these 'soul mate's' are called?!?

If you are one of those guys out there at the bar right now, even at 6pm on a Thursday, maybe it's time to think twice about what you are leaving at home. Even if she hasn't shaved her legs and spent all evening eating a gallon of ice cream while you were out flirting with some cute blonde, you may want to reevaluate what it is that you really want in life? At the end of the day, we all want the same thing. So finish your drink, go home to your lovely lady and feed her the attention that she needs because she will probably love you unconditionally and could give you more than any young buck at the bar could provide or any Jack and Coke could supply.

Now ladies, go shave your legs and quite complaining. Boys will be boys, they are always going to want to watch football and play Call of Duty before they want to tell you that you look "so cute" in your new Bebe sweater and Mac lip gloss. Be thankful that you have a man that is willing to put up with all of your yuppie princess like behavior and start acting more appreciative. Have dinner for him when he gets out of a long day of work and make yourself presentable so he has something to look forward to coming home to. Stop the nagging and stop acting like such royalty, maybe then he won't fantasize about wanting to be single again. It's time to out smart mother nature and actually try harder than ever to hold onto a good thing when you got it!

Dating Tips from the '30's!

2012-01-11T11:26:00.000-08:00

Dear: 'JustAGuy', whoever you may be, although I appreciate your opinion but you are right, you are no expert in this field. You bring about some good points and I suppose neither one of us could speak on behalf of the opposite sex. In any sense, thank you for shedding some light on my narrow minded opinions but I will say here are some facts to back up my views.

An insightful colleague of mine read my blog and thought this next topic would be more than appropriate to follow my last post. He stumbled upon an article that went over dating tips that were given to women in the 1930's. This article was published by Mail Online in attempts to share the differences between dating today and dating in the 30's. The results would astound you, especially if you were a feminist! Here are some of my favorites:

1. "Don't use the car mirror to fix your make-up. Man needs it in driving, and it annoys him very much to have to turn around to see what's behind him." God forbid us woman do anything that causes the guy any sort of hassle or extra work!

2. "If you need a brassiere, wear one. Don't tug at your girdle, and be careful your stockings are not wrinkled." So I guess this goes as back to the 30's that women have been trained to be prim and proper in front of guys. Don't give them the slightest insight that you can barely breath because your girdle is too tight in which you only wear for him so you won't show any imperfections!

3. "Dont' be familiar with your escort by caressing him in public. Any open show of affection is in bad taste, usually embarrasses or humiliates him." Another rule of thumb, don't show any affection because that is wrong and don't you dare think of doing anything to embarrass your male friend for that might turn him off completely! In that case, you might not get called back for a second date!

4. "Don't drink too much as a man expects you to keep your dignity all evening. Drinking may make some girls seem clever but most get silly." Yes, guys never say or do anything 'silly' when they drink either! Boy have the times changed, I think it would be safe to say that most men would now prefer their date to drink.

(Photos courtesy of Mail Online)

Find me a magazine article similar to this for guys? I can almost ensure that there is not one out there. So although guys may do most things in life in order to have a better sex appeal, women tend to alter their behavior and personality to better suite their male companion and to be a better mate, not just physically. These are now the facts, as far back as the '30's woman have been instilled in their minds to be more suitable for a man where as guys may feel that society has taught them that driving a Lamborghini may get them more play but has never taught them to change who they are just to impress a woman. So, for the guy out there driving an '88 Honda Civic coming off the red eye shift at McDonalds, you are going to find a great girl, someone who is more interested in the person you are rather than what brand name clothes your wearing. Hopefully this is the same girl who won't mind if her stockings are wrinkled and may have a few drinks over dinner! :)

A Girls Guide To...

2012-01-10T10:42:00.000-08:00

After writing my blog yesterday I did some research and actually found another interesting blog that almost proved my point. The blog title was "A Girls Guide To Watching Football." I was almost hoping that this was a joke but in fact it was an article that gave girls types on how to basically 'fake' liking football in order to impress guys. I should have known that there would have been an article out there like this one but I was hoping that the female race would actually prove me wrong.

Maybe I was built differently and it is possible that being fake is just not in my nature but it absolutely boggles my mind that girls try so hard to impress guys. Why would we do that for them when they don't give us that luxury? Guys have no problem burping, farting, picking their nose, or discussing publicly the last time they embraced the porcelain thrown. Guys are hardly ever fake, what you see is what you get. But with girls, it gets a little more complicated. The coverup she lathers on in the morning could be hiding scars from her acne days, her Victoria Secret PINK hoodie could be covering some extra belly fat she is trying to get rid of and the wonders of the world that are hiding in her Michael Khors purse are never to be exposed to the male race. We hide almost everything! And for the things we don't hide, we make-up! Would we much rather be watching the newest episode of Teen Mom instead of pretending to cheer for some sweating guys wearing football gear in colors we don't like covered in bulky helmets so we can't even see how cute they are?!? For most girls the answer is no! But society has trained woman to adapt to the male culture and transform ourselves into something that is more desirable for them, someone who is more accommodating to their lifestyle. We need to be pretty but not wear too much make-up, we need to be smart but not smarter then our boyfriend, successful but not make more money than our significant other, we need to be independent but be there for them when they call, we have to work hard but also find time to cook dinner at the end of the day, we need to be athletic and work out and be somewhat knowledgable in whatever sport they like but don't talk too much when the game is on!

Fact: Being a female today is not as easy as it looks. Yeah sure we might catch some breaks here and there and hopefully our good looks DO give us an advantage! And if that is what we were blessed with in order to off set all of the other hurdles we have to overcome than so be it! We should not have to go out and buy cute football attire or spend the entire day making finger foods for our boyfriends friends so they are content when they are watching the football game, unless of course there is an exception for the very few of us out there that do enjoy watching football. Would you ever catch a guy cutting cheese for our crackers and wine while we gossip over Miranda's heart-aches during Sex and The City? Would he ever spend his limited spare time researching the relationship history of Carrie so that he could be updated and knowledgable for the next time the girls are watching the series together? Granted, us girls would probably never date a guy who did this but why are we being taught 'guides' on how to learn and be more interested in his interests?

Girls, we spend way too much time as it is trying to be the perfect woman that our guy desires. At the end of a long week or a long day if all you want to do is sit down, have a glass of wine, and read the escapades of Chelsea Handler in her new book "Lies Chelsea Handler Told Me" instead of watching the LSU Alabama championship game with a bunch of drunk guys then go right ahead! You have earned it! It takes way too much time to try and impress a guy when at the end of the day he is going to find out who you really are so pretending to be interested in football and know the offense from the defensive is just a waste of time. If you don't like football, give him his time with the guys and spend time doing whatever it is you really want to do! And for the girls out there who have grown up watching football with their dads since they were 4, continue to enjoy watching the games with your boyfriends but hopefully he likes the same team as your father or Sunday won't be such a fun day!

If my rants and raves have not changed your mind, here is the article on how to pretend to be a football fan for your man!

Phony, Fake, Bogus!

2012-01-09T08:27:00.000-08:00

Biggest Pet Peeve #2: Fake people!

I never understood why or how people could be so fake? I guess I just don't understand the purpose. I am not talking about bleach hair, acrylic nails, spray tan kind of fake but those girls who will be nice to your face and the minute you walk away talk about how much they really hate your outfit or think your skirt is out dated (infamous Mean Girls scene). I have always been one to say exactly how I feel and I have never put on a show just to impress anyone so maybe I just don't understand why people feel they have to 'fake' it. I have 2 great examples of this I experienced this weekend:

1. At the restaurant I fill in sometimes on the weekends I was catching up with an old friend and of course getting all the scoop that I had missed. She blatantly described her feelings towards another employee and why she felt the way she did. To me, she seemed unhappy with this other person but when she showed up to work they greeted one another with a fake smile and an even faker hello. They proceeded into conversation and throughout the night were very friendly towards one another. This is a normal occurrence in the restaurant business, especially when we have to slap on a phony grin to our customers who are really getting on our nerves. But it also happens amongst employees, as I am sure this goes for every job! But is it because we are afraid of confrontation at our place of employment or is it just our natural instinct to cover up how we really feel about someone? Next time someone is nice to your face, think twice about what they might be saying behind your back because chances are it's not the same thing they are saying straight to your face!

2. Another type of fake-ness that girls tend to exercise is their passion for sports!! You will rarely find a guy who admits that he was watching the season finale of Desperate Housewives last night but I guarantee that every girl is pretending they watching the Giants crush the Falcons in an attempt to impress the men around them. As I watch my girlfriends jump from boyfriend to boyfriend I notice how their hobbies and activities change according to who they date. I have observed as girls change from Buffalo Bills fans to Cowboy fans and switch from going to the salon to going to the gym according to what their new found love is more in to. I have also noticed lately that there seems to be more women now interested in watching football than ever before, are they (we, since I guess I have to include myself in this) doing it to please our men or have our personalities really evolved to be more athletically inclined? It is not my place to say which way is true or not because I do not know everyone's angle on the situation and I am not one to speak of something I am not sure about. But I can at least say for myself, 1 woman out of 157.2 million women living in the U.S. that I have and will always remain a Giants fan. I suppose it all began by pleasing a man, my father, and I had no other choice but to be a NY Giants fan. Regardless, the Giants will never lose my loyalty no matter what man I date . But for the rest of you out there, how many of you can honestly say you would enjoy watching football even if your boyfriend/husband was not around? How many of you can say that even if the new episode of the Jersey Shore was on at the same time as your football team you would only flip on commercials to see what drama the Situation has stirring up?

Perception

2012-01-04T12:27:00.000-08:00

Today as I walked into Dunkin Donuts to snag my usual ~~crack cocaine~~ Dunkachino to suffice my caffeine addiction, I was thinking to myself as I saw an older man starring at me what he thought about me? My new Pontiac G6 keys in hand, Michael Kors tote over my shoulder, new iPhone 4s in my back pocket and my Victoria Secret Pink hoodie over my head. I bet there are a few choice words that came to his mind. But bet he never thought that this yuppie princess purchased her own car by maintaining a job since she was 13 or received her new iPhone from her father as a gift to help her with her new career! If this 75 year old man would have taken a deeper look into my designer brand bag he would have seen "Likeable" the social media book I am reading or my 4gig thumb drive that has my 250 page senior paper on it or even some pictures of the surprise anniversary pictures that I had just thrown my parents!!!

I could be wrong, which does happen every blue moon, I mean who knows he could have been looking at the person standing in line behind me or he could have been contemplating getting in line to get another donut. But it got me thinking about some material for my blog. What do people really think about when they look at me? I do like to dress nice and have nice things which must give me some sort of reputation right off the bat for people who don't know me. I am very guilty of doing this myself as well! But I believe as a community we are all guilty of judging people according to their appearance. I mean, what would you think of me if you saw me walking down the street? Certainly not that this city girl spends most of her time reading and researching how to be better at her job! I know judging people is bad and I would like to say most of the time I try not to do it! But today I decided I am going to add this new dimension to my New Years resolution list as well! I know digging through my purse there is much more than meets the eye! So what's inside your purse!?! ;)

It's a New Year!! :)

2012-01-03T07:47:00.000-08:00

Finally a new year!! To me there is nothing more exciting than new beginnings!! 2011 was very good to me, I graduated college, I landed a great job, got rid of some things that were bringing me down and am finally feeling secure with my future! But now I am looking forward to starting a new year with a new outlook on life. It's always exciting to think about what each new year will bring, where will I go this year? What memories does this year bring?? How am I going to grow as a person? Will I learn any new hobbies?? Will I actually follow my New Years resolution this year?!? I think this year I am going to live a healthier lifestyle and try to learn to find some patience! I am probably the least patient person in the world and I feel like it limits me sometimes and is the root of most of my frustrations. I always want immediate results and most good things come with time!

Any other good New Years resolutions?!? Start the New Year off right by posting your resume on MoveThatBlock or search their thousands of jobs available! :)

It's almost a New Year...

2011-12-30T09:36:00.000-08:00

Is it true that in every relationship one person has to be "the catch?" Doesn't it seem that in almost every relationship there is someone who has to settle? Someone who has to lower their expectations and accept someone who is pretty close to what they are looking for? It's sort of a depressing thought and it really made me think, have I been the catch or the settlement? And is this really true in every relationship?
I am no myth buster but in researching my case studies this has always been the case. Let's reminisce on my dating experiences:

Loser #1: We dated for only 2months when I was just 14 years old but this was my first real boyfriend who took me to the movies and came to dinner at my house. He was a lot older than me but I have always liked to date older guys so he fit this requirement. I wouldn't quite call it settling but I definitely lowered my expectations, at the time he wasn't the nicest man on the planet and definitely not the most motivated. So we broke up and I continued my search for a kind ambitious man!!

High School Sweetheart is #2: I spent three and a half years with this one only to find out that the entire time he thought he was beyond too good for me! I believe he thought he was settling, I mean I know I have my flaws but he was so adamant on molding me into the perfect girlfriend. We inevitably broke up when he went to study abroad in Europe and when he came back I had FINALLY come to my senses and realized I was the one who could do better!

College Romance- #3: This is the most recent break up and since it is so new I am not going to mention who did the settling but there was definitely a whole lot of settling go on in this relationship! Isn't it weird how after a break up it seems like we think so much clearer and realize how things should be?!? That's a topic for another day!

So it seems as though, at least in my track record, someone is always settling. Sad thought but is it possible that there could be a case where two people don't have to settle? Is that what they call your soul mate? I'm no love expert and I certainly do not believe in soul mates but to find someone your compatible with and that you find yourself sincerely happy with, that would be good enough for me!

Anyways, make your new years resolution to not be the one to settle and find someone great on MoveThatBlock!!! ;) I hope everyone has a great New Year and finds someone to share the night with!!!

Help out the block!

2011-12-29T07:45:00.000-08:00

Hey all!! For today's post I would like to reach out for some help! MoveThatBlock.com is asking for some help to reach our New Years goal of visitors to the site. Yesterday we were so close, all we needed were five more clicks! So if you are reading this if you could just please take 1minute out of your already busy Thursday and just visit the site, we would greatly appreciate it!!! Any and all visits will help! Supporting a local business would help a great cause and also help us reach our New Year's goal! Also, let us know what you think of the site :) If there is any way the MoveThatBlock team could help you reach your goal be sure to comment and let us know :)

Thanks again sooooooooo much!!!!!!

From the MoveThatBlock Team

Bye Bye Christmas!

2011-12-28T08:35:00.000-08:00

'Twas the night before Christmas when all through the house, not a creature was stirring not even a mouse....nothing was open for my dads drunk hungry belly. Christmas eve EVE, I worked until midnight to make some extra cash for Christmas gifts. My brother drove me into work so I was without a car, I had to relive my teenage years when I had to call my parents and beg for a ride. Except this time was much different, roles had suddenly been reversed. My parents were more than willing to come pick me up but failed to mention some minor details. After I hopped into my dads Lexus, I noticed we were driving the opposite direction from where my house was. As we pulled up to the Limp Lizard, I realized what was going on...payback! This was for all the years I called my parents after having a couple too many drinks at 2am to come pick me up from Amanda's house, 20min away when they had to get up just 4 hours later to get ready for work! This explains why my father and I didn't get along throughout my high school years!!

All I wanted to do was go home to my nice warm shower, my queen size bed and my brand new 500count thread Vera Wang sheets that I would wrap myself up in a cocoon with. But I guess this was not written in the books for me on this particular night. My parents wanted to meet their friends out at a bar called the Limp Lizard. I didn't even have my id so it's not like I could have went to another bar to meet my friends while they hung out with theirs since I still get id'd everywhere I go! So I was stuck at the Limp Lizard with my already half in the bag father and my social butterfly mother. I was not at all resentful that I had to drive them home from the bar or even hang out with them at the bar, I was more upset at the fact that I would not be getting my beauty sleep for our eventful weekend.

Anyway, the night unraveled and I ended up having a blast (which is inevitable with my parents and their friends). The majority of the stories from this night are too obscene to share! Just when I thought the night was coming to an end, as we hopped in the car my father directed us to the nearest golden arches. After a night of drinking he needed some grease in his belly, of course this appalled my mother and I since we are really healthy eaters. We thought his efforts had failed when we stopped at the nearest drive-thru heart attack and it was closed. We were soon mistaken as my father persistently forced us to drive him to the next closest McDonalds which was 20min away. Now, keep in mind, it had just snowed in Syracuse and the roads were slick and officers were out parading the streets for drunk drivers yet my dad found none of this relevant in his quest to find Ronald. You know society has a problem when the drive-thru at Mickey D's was packed at 1am on the night before Christmas eve when everyone should be fasting and preparing for the Christmas feast! Granted, we were one of these cars waiting in line to suffice papa carl with an angus burger and a large milk shake. He failed at requesting for a happy meal with a race car toy and when he demanded to speak to Ronald we were lucky he even was able to order anything at all when the less than happy McDonalds employee slammed the drive-thru window in his face.

When my bed, myself and Vera Wang sheets were finally reunited, the sound of my father echoing throughout the house as he slurped down what remained of his McDonalds milkshake will remain in my memory as I lay my head to rest. Thank you dad for my Christmas time memory this year. I would love to hear anyone who had a similar experience...

White Christmas?!?

2011-12-22T11:25:00.000-08:00

<-- Cole after a long day snowmobiling

My brother just posted his status on Facebook as "al the snow is gone I am sad" and this made me sad. It really doesn't feel like the Christmas season without some fresh snow on the ground. There are three reasons I am already disappointed with this particular Christmas.

1. No snow
2. No more snowmobiles
3. No time off.

These are three main reasons why I don't feel like it is even Christmas in 3 days! I am used to having at least a month off for Christmas and this year I am only getting Christmas day and the following day off! Yes, I am playing my little violin although I know there are many other things people have to complain about. But that is the only thing that I look forward to Christmas for is getting some time off to rest and spend time with family. The icing on the cake is the fact that as a family we are not even going on a cruise this year and as I am typing this I realize how much of an ungrateful brat I sound like. In my defense, every year the family takes the time off for Christmas to go on a cruise.

No time off=no cruise!

Now to add to my scrooge like behavior, my father called me the other day to inform me that he sold my snowmobile! I loved to snowmobile and I was at least looking forward to going home for a couple of days and taking the sleds out for a spin. Nothing like getting out deep into the woods, snow falling off the branches above you, pushing your thumb on the throttle and feeling the warmth of the sled. I need my ME time and escaping out in the wildness, going fast, collecting your thoughts, enjoying the serenity and peace! Believe it or not, I am a thinker! I am a very people oriented person and love being around people but there is a time of the day when I have to be alone and spend some time just thinking. Being a social butterfly, it is not easy to find time in the day for yourself! But being on the sled, gave me a lot of time to think and there is something about being in the presence of mother nature that really puts things into perspective and helps clear my head. This is all a tease because I will no longer have this time anytime. Weird how as we get older all we want is time. All I want for Christmas is time with good company and great family! No iPhone or Michael Khors purse could make me laugh as hard as my father does when he makes fun of my aunt or bring me so much joy as my mother does with her love and affection.

I am sure I will have many stories to share after my Christmas experience this year with my family. Our Christmas dinner will be very similar to the Klumps dinner scene.

Panic Attack!

2011-12-21T10:12:00.000-08:00

Oh the joys of being a perfectionist! My mother dearest has blessed me with the curse of being a perfectionist and therefore resulting in multiple panic attacks at the most outrageous times. Now, I'm not saying I blame this trait all on my mother, but when I do find a flaw about myself (which is rare) I like to blame it on my parents and they like to blame their grey hairs on me! So we are even, well I think they probably have some payback coming my way for my childhood behavior. I hope my parents never leak to my kids the walkie talkie story!

Anyways, anxiety runs in my family, along with high cholesterol, vertically challenged, heart decease and learning disabilities. My offspring are really going to get off on the right foot! Got to love those genetics! My X chromosome brought me the ability to have anxiety and my Y chromosome brought me high cholesterol. At least having high cholesterol is something you can hide but it's pretty hard to hide a freak out attack.

I remember distinctly the first time I had a full blown anxiety attack. I was in 7th grade and had been entered into solo fest playing my clarinet. Clearly I had practiced day and night and practically memorized my sheet music because I practiced so much. I was over prepared and ready to blow the judges away. But you can imagine what happened when I showed up to perform. I practically forgot how to play and the judges were less than disappointed.... This was only the beginning!

It is weird to think how we all handle stress differently. My father handles it with anger, my mother with tears, my brother with quietness and I'm the crazed anxiety ridden daughter. These panic attacks followed me throughout much of my life. They traveled with me on long road trips where I had no where to go and others in the car had to witness my erratic behavior, they kept me company on long airplane flights when flight attendants had to rearrange seats so I could be next to my mother, they even tagged along at college parties where I had to lock myself in a room for an hour until it passed. The only solution seemed to be medication which made me feel like mush. I have learned how to handle them better now and haven't had one in a while, well except a year ago around this time when I was traveling home in the snow I had one that caused me to black out and I had to pull over until it passed. The gallon of coffee I drank before I left surely didn't help and it would have been helpful if there had been a bathroom where I pulled over.

Note to self: Probably not a good idea having a history of anxiety attacks to inject my body with Dunkin Donuts crack before headed on a long road trip by myself at night in the snow!

BFFE

2011-12-20T10:30:00.000-08:00

For the most part, my blogs have been reserved and PG rated. My ideas mostly come from news, current events and from my colleagues at work. But this morning I took a phone call that will transform this blog: Introducing the stories of my crazed friend Amanda!

There is only one person on this planet who will never take offensive to anything I put on the Internet, and that is my loyal best friend A Man Duh! I met this girl when I was only just 4 years old and we were kicking around the soccer ball, mostly because our parents wanted to get rid of us an hour of the day so sent us to join a soccer team. Now, to paint you a picture of my dear friend Amanda, she speaks her mind in any situation, doesn't ever hold anything back and could care less what others think of her, which is the main reason why we have continued to be best friends. At her mothers 40th birthday party this year Amanda stole the microphone from the band and gracefully slurred out the words of gratitude towards her mother for having her when she was only 16 years old so that she could be drunk at her 40th birthday party. Needless to say, Grandma left shortly after this and Amanda woke up the next morning to a stolen Willie Nelson album playing in the background.

Now that you know a little bit about Amanda, you can only imagine what sort of trouble we got ourselves into when we were growing up, this is the main reason why I am dreading having children of my own in fear that I would not be able to handle a mini-me especially if she found an Amanda in this world! Anyways, our families quickly became friends and soon we were going on vacations together. We would rent a cabin in the Adirondacks for a week in the winter to snowmobile and a week in the summer to jet ski. This was the first year we starting going together and I was so looking forward to spending a week with my best friend, because before she came I was really bored without any T.V. or cell phone! The minute we got there we already had managed to get into an argument with the 'rents about where we were going to sleep. You have to remember, we were 13 year old princesses, dah! We had to have the best room! For some reason, we managed to get away with this! I think after 13 years of arguing, our parents chose to pick their battles and let us have the master bedroom. Now I know why my father had to drink so much; father, I am to blame for your drinking habits, this I now know!

Amanda and I spent every chance we could getting away from our parents, just like any typical 13 year old girls would. After the first day of locking ourselves in the master suite, we needed to find something else to do. Twix bars and girl talk wasn't going to cut it for the week. Boredom is to blame for our mischievous behavior, and partly because we were boy crazy. But we came up with this genius plan! Our brothers had been playing with these walkie talkies the day before and we knew that we could pick up other stations on them. So we quickly stole the walkie talkies and went back to our master suite. We spent a good hour of the day trying to figure out how to use them when finally we picked up another station. To our luck it was a couple of boys looking for a couple of girls! Now, another dynamic you have to know about mine and Amanda's relationship is that she usually comes up with a dumb idea and I am gullible enough to believe it. She told these boys where our cabin was, since they told us they were hours away. This completly went against what our fathers told us to do but being stubborn princesses, no one told us what to do! Can you imagine this outcome??

Shortly after, we were forced to leave the walkie talkie adventure for some less exciting activity, dinner with the fam! Our attitude must have been apparent and it didn't take the dads long enough to figure out what we had been doing couped up in the bedroom all day long. Dad, must give credit when credit is due and you were always successful in figuring out my schemes. Another thing you need to know about this story is that my brother was having some digestive problems on this particular day. My father had to find a plunger at a near by drug store and just so happened to still have it in his hand (ew gross) but I believe this strategic move was only to gross us out! Now, just as we were about to get the lecture, we heard some young boys voices. We so hoped that our prince charmings were coming to sweep us away to our castle awaiting.....

With one blink of the eye, both of our fathers had already managed to sprint down the stairs and began to run after these boys, whom happened to be on bikes at the time. Now, this was not an easy task for my father partly because of his Heineken belly and his short stubby legs, but kudos to the old man for I have never seen him run so fast! Imagine this site: two grown men chasing three young teenage boys through a campsite with a plunger. Well, needless to say the plunger man won this battle because in the next moment one of the boys looked behind him to observe our crazed dads and was unable to notice the stationed grill that awaited his bicycle. He soon lay on the grass in front of the grill with his bike on top of him, handle bars bent, and two angry dads over his head...

Dear Annonymus Teenage Boy:
I am sorry you were dumb enough to mess with two daddy's little princesses. Next time bring your horse and carriage.
Sincerly,
This is only the beginning...

To be young again!

2011-12-19T13:03:00.000-08:00

(Courtesy of Pottery Barn Kids)

I read a blog on the Times Union page this morning (very interesting) about a woman who was walking through Target and noticed a kids toy that she really liked. This reminded my of a similar experience I had this weekend. I just started doing my Christmas shopping (as most of you know from my last blog) and as I was in Pottery Barn trying to find something that my mom already doesn't have and I was intrigued with the toys in the window so I took a look inside. The toys that I found in this store were ridiculous! They had Dyson vacuum cleaners, stainless steal sinks and $50 fake baking sets for ages 3+! Now, I would be lying if I said I didn't get everything I wanted when I was little, being daddy's little princess, but my toys were much less extravagant. But now looking back my favorite memories are not tied to toys but more about the activities my brother and I would create to keep us occupied. I remember pulling apart the cushions of the couch and riding them down our stair case onto the landing where we piled up all of our pillows off our bed.
Oh how I would go back to this time in my life when from the moment I woke up to the time when I lay my head down to rest the only thing I had to worry about was when Rugrats was on T.V. or if my neighbor could come play hop scotch with me. What I wouldn't do to go back to such a simple life! Grow up slow!

Happy Friday!

2011-12-16T09:52:00.000-08:00

(I really wish I was here right now!!!!)

Today is the day! I have finally decided to do some Holiday shopping! I have already finished half of my done online, had to pay ridiculous prices in shipping but it beats fighting the crowds at the mall! As I was sitting here thinking of who I had to purchase gifts for, I was thinking how hard it must be to be married with a family, then the gift giving must get insane! I really only have to worry about my mom, dad and brother, which is just about enough for me to handle. I commend those people who think of gifts for everyone! I certainly don't have enough patience or creativity to think of gifts for everyone. I can barely think of something to get my brother! That kid has everything from iPads to beats audio head phones. So what I have been preaching about I am actually going to practice. I am thinking about getting something we could do as a family and donate to a charity in our name. We are fortunate enough to have each other and we don't need anything else! We usually take a family cruise together every Christmas, but this year we didn't know what every ones schedule would be like so we couldn't book a trip. I sure could use a vacation right about now. But even just getting some time off to spend with my crazy family will have to do this year, and I am completely satisfied with that :)

Ho Ho Ho!!!

2011-12-15T08:18:00.000-08:00

I still can't get over how fast Christmas has crept up on us! And yes I still have yet to do my Christmas shopping! I was thinking as I was driving into work today that I was boycotting Christmas until it snows! This rainy weather is just not cutting it for December 15th! Also, not going home for winter break has tainted my Christmas spirit. Just last year I got one whole month off for Christmas break and now all I have is four days! So now I feel like I barely have any time off and no time to shop!

Now that my Grinch speech is over with, check out these really cute Christmas cookies I am going to try and make this year :)

Bucket List

2011-12-14T10:19:00.000-08:00

Life's too short! I know I talk about making a difference a lot but I can't help sometimes feel like I am not doing enough or I am not significant enough in this world. There are a lot of things I would like to do for myself but then there are also a lot of other things I would like to do for others. Most people give back to charities and donate for tax purposes and write offs or companies even do it just to get recognized in the community. Is this what giving back has really come to? What happened to the goodness of our hearts and being fulfilled just by simply giving back to those who are less fortunate than we are?!? Whats on your bucket list and are you going to make a difference?

My Bucket List (very shortened):
1. Stay in a bungalow in Bora Bora
2. Start an organization for children with disabilities
3. Open my own restaurant
4. Start a successful blog.
5. Saint Patricks day in Dublin.
6. Climb a mountain.
7. Become known!

Getting Old!

2011-12-13T08:10:00.000-08:00

As I have reached the prime age of 22, I can't help but feel very old! I am now the same age as the cartoon characters I used to love so much! Although I know this is not the case at all and I have my whole life ahead of me, I still think to myself that now after having graduated college and entering the real world that I am getting old! I remember when I was younger, swinging on the monkey bars on the playground in elementary school thinking to myself that I couldn't wait until I was all grown up! I was in such a hurry to grow up that it all happened so fast! I have always been on the fast track, I became a papergirl for my neighborhood at the young age of 12, had my first boyfriend at 14, started college when I was 17 and then got my first real job at 21. If I could do it all over again, I would have stopped to enjoy the simple life. I would go back to being 4 again when there was no bills to pay, no job to rush into and no responsibilities to worry about. I would love to go back to when the only thing on my schedule was when the Rugrats were on T.V.

If you want to feel real old check this out!

The Giving Tree

2011-12-12T08:08:00.000-08:00

Let the countdown begin! Only 13 more days until Christmas! I still have yet to get any Christmas shopping done! I did however purchase some polly pocket toys for a little girl in need. Every year my family adopts a family and purchases things for them that they are in need of. My family decided that we don't need anything this year and we should give back. So as I was strolling through the kids section at Target I noticed a bunch of children begging their parents to get them the nurf gun or barbie doll that they wanted. This reminded me of a childhood story that my mother used to read to me when I was little called "The Giving Tree." This is a story in which I will never forget. The little boy in the story asks the tree for everything, shade to sit in, apples to eat and eventually he cuts down the tree to make a boat. He leaves the tree with nothing but a stump left and when he returns as an older man the tree says he has nothing left to give. The boy, now an old man, says that all he wants is a quiet place to sit and think, in which the tree replies that a stump is a good place for doing just that.

Are we all guilty of this as a whole? Do we take and take until there is nothing left to get? And then only when there is nothing left do we realize how little we actually need? I think about this story especially around Christmas time. We all ask for gifts and send out our Christmas lists to our families in hopes to receive everything we wanted. But when all is said and done, the gifts are all unwrapped from under the tree, what are we left with? Just our families company, after we have sucked all of the giving out of them that is all they have left to give is themselves.

Point of the story: How are you going to give back this Christmas season?

Guilty Pleasure

2011-12-09T08:29:00.000-08:00

TGIF! What an appropriate topic for a Friday! I was thinking to myself today that I should treat myself this weekend. Most of my life I have been pretty responsible and disciplined. My father has engraved discipline into my brain ever since I was a little child! But every once in a while you have to treat yourself, what it is that you do to treat yourself? I would love to hear about them and here are a couple of mine!

1. Watermelon sour patch kids- I eat healthy all the time but when I treat myself this is what I crave!

2. Dirty Martini- Grey goose on the rocks, extra dirty please! Yum!

3. Speed- No, not the drug; anything from running around the block to racing my snowmobile across the lake to going 87mph down the thruway, this guilty pleasure is one that often gets me into trouble.
4. Reality T.V.- I love to watch T.V. that I can learn from but every once in a while you will catch me indulged in a mindless episode of Kim and Khloe take Miami!
5. Dunkachino- One of the reasons why Christmas Time is my favorite and makes waking up easier!

Creativity

2011-12-08T11:02:00.000-08:00

I needed to figure out if this 2010 Ford Escape was four-wheel drive or not this morning and without even hesitation I turned to good 'ole Google. I received the answer in less than five seconds but this would not have been the case even ten years ago. I probably would have called my dad who is a car dealer and he would have probably looked it up in a book that he had or known it off the top of his head. The Internet is great for so many things but has it made us lazy and less creative? Every time I need an answer like if Syracuse has only won one NCAA Championship or who Donald Sutherland is all I have to do is slide my finger across my iPhone and the answers are literally at my fingertips. It is hard for me to imagine life without the Internet because it has been such an integrated part of my life but even when I was just in elementary school I vaguely remember having to look things up in books and do some serious research. So has the Internet really helped us or has it caused us to expect everything to come easily? Even this picture I have on my blog I found on the Internet. If I sat for a while and thought of something I am sure I could have created something on my own but why would I do that when there is so much information out there to be had? I would do anything to go back to being five again when everything was so simple....

Are you ready?!?

2011-12-07T09:02:00.000-08:00

I couldn't believe that just three days ago I was wearing short sleeves outside and it's December! How crazy is that and how is it even possible?? Being from Syracuse, we would have already had to break out the shovels by now but even in Syracuse we have yet to see a snowflake. I try not to think about this too much because it honestly scares me! Is this global warming at it's finest or is this just the calm before the storm?!? Now, most people are probably happy they don't have to wake up early to brush off their cars and shovel them out of the snow bank but I am not one of these people! It just doesn't seem right without snow this time of the year. How am I supposed to go see the big tree in the city with no snow on the ground? Or how am I supposed to gather up my snowmobile gear without any place to go to? This honestly saddens me. To me, it doesn't even feel like Christmas! My tree isn't hung and my shopping hasn't even begun! The changing of the seasons is important and I believe that we need change! Change is good, it makes us appreciate what we had and also allows us to experience new things! So who is ready for a big storm??

Online Dating?!?

2011-12-06T08:00:00.000-08:00

I have not been single for a while now but just recently the guy that I had been seeing and myself decided to split. Breaking up is by far one of the hardest things I have ever had to do in my life. I would rather endure a thousand broken bones before breaking the heart of someone you care about. For me, the hardest part is not only hurting the person you were with but also their family! If you could't already tell, I am very family oriented so it is important for me to get to know the guy's family, whom I am dating. But this makes things much more complicated and takes breaking up to a whole new level. Not only do you have to say goodbye to your boyfriend, but his mother, father and brother as well. Now to make things even more complicated, bring a dog into the mix! I cannot even imagine what divorce would be like especially if children were involved! That is certainly something I never want to do in my lifetime!

But on a much brighter note, dating!!! This is something that I have not done in a long time! Truth being that I miss the excitement! Getting to know someone, figuring out who they are, what they like and the rush you get from something new and exciting! Now, since it has been a while from my dating days, the dating game has completely changed. What's the deal with this online dating business?? Do people really find dates online?? I am definitely a skeptic of online dating and I don't really know if I have formed an opinion about it yet but I am pretty open minded so I thought I would give it a try! I would love any advice or comments anybody has to offer :) Here's my profile!

Syracuse!!

2011-12-02T11:00:00.000-08:00

As the week comes to an end, I wonder what this weekend will bring? I am traveling home for the weekend to Syracuse and I will see my high school friends! Although with all of the drama going on in Syracuse right now it's still home and the place I will always look forward to going to. Apparently scorpios are very loyal humans so I guess it is in my nature. No matter where I end up building my life, I will travel any distance to go home. Loyalty is key, I hope everyone has a great weekend as well :)

The New E-Bay!

2011-12-01T11:42:00.000-08:00

The MoveThatBlock team is at it again! They have added another feature to their site similar to a garage sale called Block Sale. The online classifieds site now has entire segments for life's biggest decisions! Like most other sites, MoveThatBlock allows users to purchase items from other users. The Block Sale now concludes the additions to MoveThatBlock.com for a while. In a couple of months they will implement a redesign for the site, what would you like MoveThatBlock.com to look like? And how do you like the Block Sale. Your opinion matters to us, so any feedback would help! :)

Poor U.S. Economy?

2011-11-30T08:01:00.000-08:00

Heres a thought from one of my colleagues- "I read that black Friday sales were into the multiple billions. Is the economy really that bad when people are still spending frivolously on Christmas/Holiday gifts? Also by querying MoveThatBlock, you see there are at least 1.3M vacant jobs in this country. Are we being fooled by the media or political engines or is the US economy really in shambles?"

I think this is an interesting point! Whose to say what the employment rate really is? Are we as a whole gullible to believe what the media is telling us is always true? Just a thought :) Happy Wednesday!

Surprise!

2011-11-29T07:51:00.000-08:00

So I have been carrying around this huge secret since July and it feels so good to finally get it off my chest because I am the worst liar ever! I have been planning my parents surprise anniversary party that took place last weekend. My brother and I, with the help of some family members, rented out a room at a restaurant and successfully pulled off the biggest surprise of the century! If you knew my parents you would know how hard this is because they are so noisy! My brother is not a very good liar either so this was extremely hard for both of us but we did it and it was definitely worth it! My family really came together and everyone was so helpful, I could not be more grateful to be surrounded by so many great people!

Mom and dad, we finally got ya :) They have been married for twenty five years!! I cannot even fathom being together with anyone for that long! It amazes me that my parents have been together since high school! I can't imagine being married to my high school boyfriend, I am sure it would have been short lived. But what is the matter with society that being together forever is so unheard of these days? What happened to 'til death do us part'? Divorce is such a common occurrence these days that it makes you really appreciate marriage when you come across couples that have stuck it out!

What's next...Christmas?!?

2011-11-28T09:44:00.000-08:00

With Thanksgiving over, Christmas is right around the corner! My neighbors have already hung their Christmas lights, radio stations are already playing Christmas music and retail stores have already stocked all of their shelves with Christmas decorations. This got me thinking about what the Christmas season has really turned into? It seems as though the retail industry has turned Christmas into purchasing the best gifts and the newest products. I am almost disgusted when I see people standing outside department stores on Black Friday waiting to plow each other over when the doors open, meanwhile they could be spending their time at home with their families whom they probably only get to see on the holidays.

My Facebook updates are full of what everyone got on Cyber Monday! As per my previous post, to me the holidays are not about receiving, I look forward more to spending time with my family! For the past couple of years instead of giving gifts we have gone on a cruise together. I think that is what everyone should do! Because at the end of the day, the Coach purse or Marc Jacobs sunglasses will go out of style but your family will not!

Thanksgiving Eve!

2011-11-23T11:00:00.000-08:00

Thanksgiving is right around the corner and I could not be happier to go home to great food and awesome family! As I get older, I look forward to spending time with my family so much more than I did when I was younger. Now I understand why my parents like it so much! I truly enjoy reminiscing about childhood memories and learning new things about my family. I should also learn how to cook more things so I am looking forward to actually partaking in the cooking this year! It's so weird though how our values change as we grow older. I thought my parents were so corny when they would say things like that but I now realize how true it is. I used to look forward to Christmas time as a kid to get so many presents, but what kid doesn't? And now, I look forward to Christmas more just to see my family that comes in from out of town and to spend time with my parents whom I don't get to see that often anymore.

Whatever your plans may be for Thanksgiving, it's spending time with family or just taking some time off to relax, I hope everyone has a very safe and happy holiday! :)

You can't make an omelet...

2011-11-21T07:54:00.000-08:00

My dad has been my motivation for many things in life. Like most fathers, he is a very wise man and has taught me many life lessons throughout my years. Most people that know my father would also concur. He is actually known for spitting off many fortune cookie like sayings. Some of his famous ones include "you lay with dogs, you get flees," "birds of a feather, flock together," and my personal favorite "leopards don't change their spots." But this weekend he rattled off one that I had never heard him say before, "you can't make an omelet without cracking a few eggs."This got me to thinking what he really meant by this. Now, my dad is a man of few words and he is a firm believe of letting my brother and I learn for ourselves. So I was wondering what he meant by this? Since my father has about twenty five more years of life experience on me, I put some serious thought into his words of wisdom. I had to sleep on this before I really realized what he was trying to say to me. Life is about risks, we all know that, but I believe what my father was trying to say is much deeper than that. To make an omelet, one of the first steps is to crack an egg. You have to break something before you can create something great. Is this true in life too? Think of every great man in history, they didn't get where they were without stepping on some people's toes and taking huge risks! In order to be able to make something so savory and delicious, you must first trust that destroying an egg is going to make that possible. This is much easier to do with an egg than with life, but the same rules apply. In life, you will get no where without taking some big risks and trusting that the end result will be worth it! So, are you going to make an omelet today???

Facebook Tracking Cookies

2011-11-18T08:23:00.000-08:00

Happy Friday!!

As I was catching up on my usual news readings and updates this morning, I came across an interesting article about Facebook tracking what sites people visit on the web without them being logged into their Facebook? Basically Facebook was saying that they use this information to track what people like and help decipher what ads will appear on that persons page. But to me there is something so creepy about this! How have we come so far along in technology where a website can track what other websites we visit when we are not even logged onto their website? What else is the Internet tracking that we don't know about? And who is to say that Facebook isn't tracking other things? And is it possible that they are using this information for other purposes?? I can only imagine that other people find this just as weird because it seems to be a hot topic in the news today. I just find it very interesting because technology has come so far!

One Week 'Til Thanksgiving!

2011-11-17T11:08:00.000-08:00

Christmas music already plays through our radios, department stores are already stocked with Christmas decorations and the lights are already strung across people's landscaping, yet we have not even had our Thanksgiving! Is it just me or does this holiday season seem to be rushed? I, of course was late getting my Halloween candy, and ran to Target to get some for our little trick-or-treaters. I was so shocked to see all of the Christmas decorations that were on sale already! Maybe I have been oblivious in previous years but this year it seems to me that everyone was all of a sudden in a rush for Christmas to come, yet Thanksgiving is still a week away! I am interested in the general consensus, does everyone else feel this way also? Don't feel guilty because I can't say though that I have been completely innocent in this process, we already have our tree decorated at the MoveThatBlock office!

Help Support MoveThatBlock.com

2011-11-16T10:42:00.000-08:00

For all of you followers out there, MoveThatBlock is going to be implementing a newsletter a week! Please sign up and stay connected with the MoveThatBlock Team :) Click on the link below and fill out the small form to be entered into our subscribers list! Thank you so much!! Happy Wednesday :)

Subscribers list- http://eepurl.com/gQfvr

Women in Business

2011-11-15T08:48:00.000-08:00

What is it like to be a woman in business these days? In my recent studies I have found that statistically women are almost taking over men in the workforce. Why is this? I also read this morning in an article that more women are graduating college in comparison to men. This got me thinking, why is this occurring? Men have almost always had the upper hand in the business world and I wonder what has caused this to change? Is it due to the fact that women are more appreciative than men because they have had to work harder for their careers? That is not a can of worms I am willing to open right now but in any sense I would like some women's feedback about what it is like being a women in the business world?

Social Medias

2011-11-14T11:17:00.000-08:00

Happy Monday!

As I was sitting in the office today, scrolling through our company's Facebook page, twitter account and LinkedIn profile, I was wondering how much social medias has change our lives? I have been very successful in contacting reporters through social media outlets. Using social medias to get in contact with reporters has definitely made my job much easier. Viewing their profiles and keeping updated on their lives has made connecting with them much easier. How has social medias affected other peoples professional lives as well?!? I know it has probably caused some problems for relationships. Now, since the creation of social medias such as MySpace or Facebook, couples can check up on each other. Certain wall posts, tagged pictures or statuses could cause some disruption in certain relationships. This just adds another dynamic to the already stressful circumstances couples must face.

How has social media affected your life?!?

Networking!!

2011-11-11T08:17:00.000-08:00

Happy Friday Everyone :) Just wanted to share my thoughts about networking professionally! My company and I always attend CAYP (Capital Alliance of Young Professionals) in Albany every month. CAYP hosts a networking event the first Wednesday of every month. This Wednesday me and my colleagues went and had a blast! We talked with some great business professionals while at the same time having fun and having a couple of drinks. I am a firm believer that networking is essential in doing business. Especially in todays day and age, it's not what you know but who you know! :)

Press Release- MoveThatBlock.com on Yahoo! News

2011-11-09T08:39:00.000-08:00

Business Review and Rating Site on MoveThatBlock.com Allows Companies to Create Their Own Business Page Allowing for Better Exposure

Albany, NY (PRWEB) November 09, 2011

MoveThatBlock.com, The Free Social Marketplace, launches a new division of their site called Business Directory. This adds another dimension to the sites already diversified classifieds sections. Other sections available on the site to search for free include residential real estate, commercial real estate, apartments and rentals, vacation rentals, cars and vehicles, dating and jobs. The business directory allows both small and large companies to make a presence on the Internet.

The recession has certainly had it's toll on most of America and American business owners. Companies have been forced to make difficult decisions based on cutting back on budgets, employees are forced to work under massive amounts of stress and managers are expected to come up with new and inventive ways to expand their business. This does not seem like an easy task by any means but many businesses have been able to overcome and thrive under these circumstances. Frank Gazella Jr. shares his story about creating his pierogies business in Kansas City and how he was able to tap into various markets at such a fast rate. "We have used both traditional and innovative ways of marketing our product. The old fashioned yet reliable word-of-mouth has launched us into the next phase yet the Internet has also played a big role. We have been able to tap into different industries without even leaving our hometown. My best advice is to utilize social medias along with getting on as many webpages as you can, this helps to facilitate cross traffic and really helps in better exposure" Frank Gazella Jr.

Frank Gazella Jr., president and owner of Pieroguys, found a natural need for such a delicious entree in his hometown of Kansas City and has been successful in using the Internet to expand his company. His mission, like many business owners, is to feed the world with his passion. Pieroguys creates and distributes homemade organic pierogies across the country and has the best shipping rate in comparison to their competitors. So how does a local entrepreneur spread the word of his company so fast? "The Internet has allowed my company to grow rapidly. I have been able to fill orders across the country and use the Internet to facilitate more exposure for Pieroguys. With a small staff, it isn't easy to get the word out there but by the use of the Internet we have been able to make connections on a much broader spectrum," Frank Gazella Jr, owner and president of Pieroguys. Frank recently made a decision to put his business page up on MoveThatBlock.com, a local Albany based classifieds site which just released their business review and rating site. This smart and easy decision is one that many business owners are also starting to utilize due to the fact that it is entirely free and allows business owners to put their information out on the Internet for consumers to view.

Something can be learned by Frank's innovativeness and ability to see in the future of where the Internet is moving towards. After recently putting up a business page on a local site called MoveThatBlock.com, Frank has been able to utilize this site to create a stronger online presence as well as for customer service. How did a two man powered company find out about a business look-up ratings and review site all the way in Albany? "I am always looking for business reviews and ratings to put my site up on because they help me with customer feedback. I found MoveThatBlock.com in a simple Google search that came up when I was looking for business reviews. Albany has been known as an incubator for niche markets, so I thought it would be the perfect market to target. Being a business owner, time management is the most important tool for me and putting my business page up on MoveThatBlock.com was the best five minutes I have ever spent," Gazella.

MoveThatBlock.com started only a year ago and already has 1.2million registered users on their site. What originally started as a commercial real estate free listings site turned into something much more! MoveThatBlock.com has now added cars, dating, jobs and a business review/rating feature to their site. With the addition of their business review and rating system, MoveThatBlock adds another dimension to the sites already diversified classifieds sections. This new dimension of their site allows business owners like Frank Gazella and his partner Andrew to conduct business in other states as well as receiving customer feedback without have to pay any sort of cost. "We ship orders all over the country now so it is nearly impossible to keep up with all of the customer service. MoveThatBlock.com allows customers to rate and review our business so even if I was on vacation, which I tend to travel a lot, I am notified of any orders that went out successful or not successful just by a simple comment on their site. Instead of having to pay for a focus group, for free I put up my business page on MoveThatBlock.com and received instant feedback," Gazella. This new feature also allows other businesses to look up neighboring businesses in the area. Anyone can create their business profile and it is easy to maintain, allowing even mom and pop shops to create a presence on the Internet.

MoveThatBlock.com also allows anything from mom and pop shops to multinational companies to create a distinction of their businesses online. "Most business pages such as the ones on Facebook only allow a company to create one page but for most businesses this is not the case. Best Buy has stores all over the country but only one Facebook page. MoveThatBlock.com allows consumers to create more than one page based on location. This helps streamline the customer service process and also attracted me more to the site in case I ever do decide to expand regions," Gazella. MoveThatBlock.com is a local start-up company and therefore understand the needs of other small company business owners while at the same time understand the objectives of national companies looking to create a strong online presence. MoveThatBlock.com is beneficial for both parties and is able to work them in whatever they need, including even creating their business site for them!

It is a tough economy out there, business owners are constantly learning more innovative and cutting-edge ways to increase their sales, traffic and customer satisfaction without breaking their budget. The presence of the Internet has transformed the way people do business and has allowed many business owners to stay connected to their customers all the way across the country. Maintaining social medias can be a grueling task for many business owners who barely have time in their busy schedules. Sites such as MoveThatBlock.com allow these busy business owners to create a page easy and simple without taking a lot of time out of their day. "Time management is by far the most important thing to me as a business owner, so I have to choose wisely about what I invest my time in based on the return I’ll get from it. Setting my business page up on MoveThatBlock took a negligible amount of time, maybe five minutes, but has generated results and continues to do so. I also use MoveThatBlock.com to look up other businesses in the area, anything from lawyers and doctors to pizza shops and bars, they’ve got it all covered. It is a great resource and I really think that the Capital Region has been waiting for one-stop site like this," Chris Wessell, owner at Pinnacle Recruiting & HR Solutions, Albany NY.

###

Patrick Gray
Move That Block LLC
(917) 250-2403
Email Information

http://news.yahoo.com/free-business-directory-movethatblock-com-allows-business-owners-151026038.html

Car Crash

2011-11-08T07:22:00.000-08:00

Again sticking with yesterdays theme, I was just recently in a car crash where both my roommate and I are lucky to be alive! A drunk driver crossed the double yellow lines, swerved and hit my roommates car. He hit the car so hard that we ended up horizontal in the middle of the road. Since the airbags imploded, we had some difficulty getting out of the car and by the time we did the other car had already taken off! My roommate and I were fine, luckily, but if he had hit us straight on we probably would have more serious injuries. I am so thankful that although the car was totaled, the accident wasn't as bad as it could have been! Near death experiences really make you look at life differently!

The Month of Thanks!

2011-11-07T08:32:00.000-08:00

As I was scrolling through my newsfeed this morning while I was still trying to shake off my sleepiness, I noticed a bunch of my friends status updates that were saying things they were thankful for. I soon realized we are already a week into November, which is supposed to be the month of giving thanks. I was trying to rack my brain about what I was thankful for over the last seven days. There were very few things that came to mind at 7am this morning as my alarm was going off after only getting four hours of sleep. Getting into an ice cold shower wasn't much help either. But as I was sitting in my office this morning reading some news articles in a newspaper from my hometown, it hit me how thankful I should be! There was an article about a young boy who had dove into a lake and had hit his neck making him paralyzed from the neck down! He would never be able to use his legs again. Here I am complaining about a cold shower! I wonder how many activities on a daily basis that we all take for granted until one day we are not able to do them anymore? I can't imagine how different my daily routine would be without the use of my legs! So today I am thankful for having the ability to run! What is it that you are thankful for today?!?

Balancing Work and Home Life

2011-11-05T06:42:00.000-07:00

So as I sit here on a Saturday morning having my coffee I open my laptop and find some work e-mails and things I have to get done before the day begins. This is what I woke up thinking about and was actually my reasoning for getting out of bed! To some, this might seem like a hassle or annoyance on their weekend but I throughly enjoy getting up and having something to do! For me, I feel like there is no time or day when I am done working. There is always something I could be doing or researching or reading up on. There is nothing like the sense of accomplishment you feel after getting something done before you even need a refill on your coffee!

I began my career at the age of fourteen as a paper girl. I delivered the daily and Sunday paper to my entire block for a whole year before I found a job at a local restaurant. Working over breaks and on weekends put me through college and then two days after graduation I began my career. I have always been work driven and I honestly enjoy working before anything else in life! Working motivates me and it always drives me to do better. But now looking back, I missed out on a lot of things. As a paper girl I missed many slumber parties with friends, working weekends made me miss out on the college parties and landing a job right out of college didn't allow me much time to rest up after my grueling finals! How are other people able to maintain the balance in life with such a busy schedule? I can't imagine how my parents did it! If I were to bring children into this world how I would be able to find time for my morning coffee and work routine!

To me, this lifestyle is what I have worked so hard for! I have the job of my dreams that I would do anything for! So to me, I just don't understand how are people able to step away for the weekend and take work off the brain? I guess this ambition to always work comes with passion and drive for a job but is it always healthy to work all the time? In my opinion, work is number one priority but to many this is not the case. Is there a right or wrong way? I know that there needs to be a balance but I am young and lucky to have such a wonderful job when so many people are not even employed. We all have different opinions in life and mine is if more people worked harder and spent less time complaining about it, than this whole climbing out of a recession might not take as long! So for now I will continue to have my coffee on Saturday mornings while getting some work done and enjoying sharing my opinions on my blog because that is what I love to do :)

Life Changes

2011-11-04T08:13:00.000-07:00

I am going to stick with the theme about how life has changed over the years, although this may sound cheesy to some but it boggles my mind about how different life is today than even when my parents were growing up! My parents aren't even that old, my dad will be celebrating his 50th birthday next year but when he talks about his college years and life experience it seems like so long ago!
My parents were high school sweet hearts, this alone does not even happen at all anymore, and they just celebrated their 25th anniversary. When they graduated high school they moved out and never looked back. My mom was only 18 years old when she left her home to start her own life and she was only 22 when she married my dad. Does anyone even move out when they are 18 anymore? With the boomerang generation, most kids are now going back home even after college to live with their parents. This was almost unheard of twenty years ago! What has the world come to? Kids are now more dependent on their parents longer, getting married later in life and having children almost in their middle ages! What does this mean for us in the future?
The recession has really done more harm than people realize and has created a vicious cycle spiraling out of control. College graduates are forced to move back home because of the overwhelming debt coming out of college, which is devaluating real estate because they are purchasing homes later in life, mainly due to financial reasons. Maybe I am biased in the fact that I am a college graduate and the stress of debt is almost overwhelming. It puts pressure on everything we do in life, whether it be getting a job, finding a home and even finding a life partner! Isn't is sad that now before thinking about being with someone we now have to think about the debt they bring to the table??
When I heard that Obama was talking about erasing all college debt this got me to thinking, imagine how much different life would be?? College students wouldn't be moving back home because they would have the finances to purchase a home, therefore facilitating marriage and creating families. This, in turn, would put more money back into the economy and possibly climbing out of this funk of a recession that we are in! One can only dream! Happy Friday!!

How has the Internet changed our lives??

2011-11-03T13:56:00.000-07:00

This seems to be a hot topic today in my conversations! I was without internet connection today for almost an hour and I couldn't even think what else my laptop had a purpose for if I couldn't use it for the Internet? Isn't it weird to think just a few years back there was no such thing as the Internet and computers were sparse in households? Now, if you are without a computer, laptop or smart phone you are living in the dark ages!

So this got me thinking how much this has changed our daily routines over the years. For my job, I am the director of public relations and I don't know how people did my job before the Internet was invented. Almost my entire job is based upon the use of the Internet. I use social medias almost every hour throughout the day, I am constantly e-mailing reporters and colleagues information, I use online articles to find information and I even update my blog on a daily basis!

This is no news flash to anyone that the Internet has truly changed lives over the course of it's existence but I don't believe people know to what extent! I wonder what other jobs would be greatly affected by the use of the Internet? Whose job would suffer by the extinction of the Internet and whose job would flourish? Interesting thought!

Advice for a Startup

2011-11-02T08:19:00.000-07:00

As we are sitting at work today, the MoveThatBlock team is wondering how we could improve our traffic? I know these things take time but Facebook blew up really quick so how did they do it? Was it word of mouth? Or was it simply that they had something unique and the community had a need for it? But in any case, how do you get people to talk about your company so fast? I know I may just be impatient and a little biased because I love our site and I want it to grow so quickly! In just one year we already have 1.2million registered users which is great! But I would love it if we could take over the market share from Craigslist. I believe the only reason people even use that site is because it's the only site out there of it's kind. But now that we have came around, our site is much more professional and more appealing aesthetically so why wouldn't we be the more popular site? Is it because people are loyal Craigslist users? It is hard for me to believe that because for me their site is so hard to use and it has a lot of spam! Any thoughts? Or suggestions?

It's November already?!? When did that happen?!?

2011-11-01T10:32:00.000-07:00

Where have the months gone?!? Halloween came and went without any sign of fall, it just went straight from spring to winer! I ran to Target yesterday at the last minute to pick up candy for our little trick or treaters and there was already Christmas decorations out on the shelves. Where did this year go? It seems like just yesterday I was walking the stage with thoughts of fear and doubt that I would never find a job, but now here I am, already quit one terrible job to move on to a much better place and most definitely my dream job!
Right out of college I was offered a job, I was so thrilled because most of my classmates were moving back home to find work which was not an easy task and no one seemed to have any success. I immediately took the offer which I would soon realize was a terrible mistake. I soon dreaded going into the office and counted the minutes until I could leave work! Now, most people would say "Lucky you, you got a job in a recession" or "Beggars can't be choosers" but they were wrong as well. I took a job because I thought I was lucky, but it wasn't the job I wanted. What I did get out of it was good experience but having to quit was not an easy task and especially at such a young age! What I did learn is that you should not take the first opportunity that falls into your lap and you should be skeptical of an offer that may seem too good to be true because most likely it is!
What I can tell my classmates and colleagues is that the business world is much different than college life. No one has your back and you have to fend for yourself. When you are on an interview process, you are not only being interviewed for the job, you are interviewing them to figure out if that is the type of place you want to work for. Beware of warning signs and unreachable expectations.
There is a silver lining to my story! I thought I was going to be stuck in that position but since I did a lot of networking and got my name out there I was lucky enough to be contacted by another employer who had seen my hard work and offered me a much better position with a much better company! I am now working for a company that is also helping others find their dream job which is really rewarding.
At the end of the day, my advice is to never stop looking, you never know when a job might fall into your lap. Also, post your resume up on as many sites and network as much as you can. If you do this, one day you could be as lucky as me :)

Happy Halloween!!

2011-10-31T18:52:00.000-07:00

How many of you were Blocky for Halloween?!? :) Hope everyone had a safe and Happy Halloween!!!

Apartments and Rentals

2011-10-26T11:12:00.000-07:00

Along with other various features on MoveThatBlock.com, they also provide consumers with apartments and rentals. That apartment and rentals feature is much like the residential and commercial properties feature, the only exception being that this site is geared towards people who are only looking to rent properties. MoveThatBlock.com has maintained a sense of familiarity throughout their entire site which is why the searching options and bars have basically stayed the same. This allows consumers to get familiar with the site and then be able to search easier on the site.

Just like the residential and commercial sites, the rentals site has the capability to search rentals and apartment listings. The search option can be as advanced or simplified as the customer wants it to be. Consumers can search apartments for rent broadly through the 3,211 apartments listed or they can refine the search by including their desired location, cost, rooms, residence type and square footage. Once the consumer has found the rental they are interested in they can contact the seller directly from MoveThatBlock.com. This facilitates communication between buyer and seller. Buyers can also watch listings to see if maybe the renter decreases his price. If there is any change in the listing, the watchers are notified. This allows consumers who are interested in the property to remain updated if anything changes and keeps them posted so that they do not miss out on an opportunity to rent a property.

Sellers are able to post apartment rentals on MoveThatBlock.com for free. By putting a listing up on MoveThatBlock.com, renters are able to gain more exposure of their properties. This, in turn, allows for cross traffic which equates to more sales. The more sites their property is listed under, the better the chances are that they will sell it. Better yet, it's free and easy!

Putting a listing up on MoveThatBlock.com is simple, beneficial, innovative and even free! Sellers get great exposure and buyers get to choose from great listings. Renters can contact the sellers so they can set up a time where they can see the properties. MoveThatBlock.com is proud to facilitate communication and relationships between buyers and sellers.

Business Directory Site

2011-10-25T11:26:00.000-07:00

MoveThatBlock.com, The Free Social Marketplace, launches a new division of their site labeled Business Directory. This adds another dimension to the sites already diversified classifieds sections. Other sections available on the site to search for free include residential real estate, commercial real estate, apartments and rentals, vacation rentals, cars and vehicles, dating and jobs.

The business directory allows both small and large companies to make a presence on the Internet. Small companies can put up their profiles by themselves and have the ability to control what is said about their company online. This gets more exposure and publicity for their small business all for free. Larger companies are able to increase their presence on the Internet and boost their SEO. By simply creating a business page on MoveThatBlock.com, other businesses have access to that information and businesses get free publicity in return.

MoveThatBlock is making it easier for consumers to search on their site and find what they are interested in. The new business directory feature on the site allows businesses to put up their page and other consumers to find their business easier. The business directory is also a place for small business who don't have a website to create a free online profile that allows them to create a presence on the Internet entirely free.

The business directory was created with both small and large businesses in mind. The objective of the business site was to allow business owners to freely create their pages as they wish. They can put up very detailed information about their business or very little, but the point being that they have control over their page and a presence on the Internet. Once a business page has been created, consumers are then able to find the business easier and they can also review the business. Some more features the business site includes a description of the business, hours of operation a star rating system, goggle map and google street view. This allows consumers to be able to locate the business.

Car and Vehicle Listings

2011-10-24T12:35:00.000-07:00

MoveThatBlock.com also has available a car site where consumers are able to search for their desired vehicles all entirely for free! Buyers are able to search MoveThatBlock's 6,134 listings for the car of their dreams. MoveThatBlock.com makes buying a car an easy process and entirely free! You could buy a car without even leaving your house.

There are many features to the car site on MoveThatBlock.com. For sellers, some features include post car listings, put up pictures of the car, list basic information about the car and get in contact with consumers who are interested in the vehicle. Sellers who put their listings up on MoveThatBlock.com are gaining more exposure and therefore increasing their chances of selling a car.

For buyers, the features are almost endless. Consumers who are interested in a listing can contact the seller immediately and schedule a time to check out the car in person. The buyers can refer a car to a friend if they see something that their friend might be interested. They are able to view pictures and videos of the listings if buyers have posted them on the site.

By posting cars on MoveThatBlock.com, both buyers and sellers receive many benefits. The site is 100% free to post and search in all aspects of their site. MoveThatBlock.com is the only Free Social Marketplace and is there for all of life's biggest decisions!

Residential Real Estate

2011-10-21T10:22:00.000-07:00

The residential feature is much like the feature for commercial real estate. Buyers and sellers have the same options and capabilities that they have on the commercial site. The site contains many free real estate listings and the capability to search residential real estate. Buyers can search homes for sale and possibly buy a home. Sellers also have the capability to sell their home and list it on MoveThatBlock.com for free.

MoveThatBlock.com was started in 2009 by two Siena graduates who had a dream to provide free internet to consumers in the form of a commercial real estate site. Todd Drowlette, one of the founders, works for a commercial real estate company and found a need in the community for a free site. Patrick Gray, the other founder, quit his current job to build their dream. The site was launched in 2009 with the help of private funding from Gary and Bob Bahre who are the previous owners of the New Hampshire International Speedway.

Both Todd and Pat started the site with a vision in mind of providing commercial real estate and properties to the community in the form of a free classifieds site. The commercial site expanded in just a short period of time and took to the community very well. To date, there are 16,854 properties from all over the country listed on the site.

There are many different functionalities of the commercial site. Buyers can contact the realtor of a certain property and sellers can post their properties for free. MoveThatBlock.com facilitates communication between buyers and sellers, in turn promoting more exposure which equals more sales. Sellers also have the capability of posting pictures and videos of their properties in order to make their listing more appealing to consumers. Buyers than have the capability of contacting the realtor right from the site, if they are interested.

The commercial site has grown at such a rapid pace which Todd and Pat realized they had a successful idea. They then began adding other features to the site such as residential real estate, apartments and even vacation rentals. The site quickly transformed into something much more than any classifieds site out there. After adding jobs and dating to the site,MoveThatBlock.com became a site to go to for all of life's biggest decisions!

Free Online Job Site

2011-10-20T14:27:00.000-07:00

With the unemployment rate not getting any better, employees must make more of an effort to try and find a job in such a harsh market. Now that college students are coming out with so much debt they are forced to find a job that allows them to pay off that debt in a reasonable amount of time but the job market is making it hard for graduates to find any type of job at all.

Here is a solution to your problem, MoveThatBlock.com! MoveThatBlock.com was started from two college graduates who had a dream of providing free internet to users in the form of a free online classifieds site. What first started as a commercial real estate site quickly turned into much more. Jobs were added to the site in which employees are able to post their resume where recruiters are able to see it.

The job feature is also entirely free to post and search. Employees are able to create a profile on the site in which they can post their resume for recruiters to look at. Employers have the capability to search resumes the site for potential employees. They also have the potential to post jobs free on the site in which they need an employer to fill this position. Recruiters are on the site looking for prospects to hire. As a result, posting your resume on MoveThatBlock.com gains exposure and increases the chances of getting a career in your field.

All it takes is a few clicks of the mouse and let the job searching begin. You do not even have to leave your couch and you could be on your way to your dream career! For employers, be sure to check out MoveThatBlock.com for free job listings, possibilities to post jobs and internships, and a chance to find great employees!

New York Based Startup MoveThatBlock.com at a valuation of $10 Million!

2011-10-20T06:37:00.000-07:00

Loudonville, NY – October 3, 2011 – MoveThatBlock.com (Private), an Internet start-up company just celebrated its one year anniversary last week after becoming the entitlement sponsor of the MoveThatBlock.com Indy 225 which aired on ABC national television on August 14, 2011 to an estimated 1.5 million U.S. Households. After racking up an impressive 1.2 million registered users in its first year, today announced that it has sold a minority stake in its company to former owners of the New Hampshire International Speedway. The track is home to NASCAR’s Lenox 301 and Sylvania 300 races and is New England’s largest sports venue. According to Wikipedia, Bob and Gary Bahre, who also owned the Oxford Plains Speedway in Maine, sold the track and other racing related assets to Speedway Motorsports for $340 Million in 2008. Bob and Gary Bahre have become investment partners in MoveThatBlock.com, a new premier online classifieds site. CEO Patrick Gray has stated, “We are very excited to partner with guys like Bob and Gary who have years of experience running multi-million dollar companies. They bring so much to the table and we believe this is a tremendous relationship for all parties involved.”

About MoveThatBlock.com

MoveThatBlock.com is the Free Social Marketplace™, an innovative, cutting-edge website that offers professional quality, one-stop shopping for all of life’s biggest decisions. They offer more features, better functionality, and dynamic cross traffic that no single, pay for-use competitor offers. Their custom features are easy to use and allow simple searching and posting in an uncluttered environment. MoveThatBlock.com is the world’s first premium quality site to offer full access free of charge across multiple categories in the Essential Life segment of the Internet. Their current categories include commercial real estate, residential real estate, home and vacation rentals, cars, jobs and relationships. They also offer personal, step by step guidance through life’s most difficult decisions, providing local experts in each step of the process. From buying a home to landing that dream job or date, they’ve got you covered. MoveThatBlock.com will be there for you every step of the way!

MoveThatBlock.com is 100% free to post and search with no restricted areas or premium memberships. They generate their revenue through featured, targeted advertising based on category, geographic, or other determining factors. Their goal is to simplify personal and professional lives, because they realize they are interconnected and often pull people in every direction at once. They also believe in only delivering fresh, accurate, and relevant content. From jobs and internships to relationships to homes or commercial office space, they strive to do a little more so that their users can do a little less. MoveThatBlock.com aspires to be the world’s most advanced social marketplace on the Internet. They provide users with professionals to help them with life's biggest decisions, while at the same time providing professionals a cost-effective approach for targeted lead generation. MoveThatBlock.com is there for life’s biggest decisions. Welcome to the Block!

Contact:
Patrick Gray, Co-Founder & CEO; pgray@movethatblock.com

Sable Eldridge, Director of Public Relations, seldridge@movethatblockcom

Commercial Real Estate

2011-10-19T12:03:00.000-07:00

MoveThatBlock.com was started in 2009 by two Siena graduates who had a dream to provide free internet to consumers in the form of a commercial real estate site. Todd Drowlette, one of the founders, works for a commercial real estate company and found a need in the community for a free site. Patrick Gray, the other founder, quit his current job to build their dream. The site was launched in 2009 with the help of private funding from Gary and Bob Bahre who are the previous owners of the New Hampshire International Speedway.

Both Todd and Pat started the site with a vision in mind of providing commercial real estate and properties to the community in the form of a free classifieds site. The commercial site expanded in just a short period of time and took to the community very well. To date, there are 16,854 properties from all over the country listed on the site.

There are many different functionalities of the commercial site. Buyers can contact the realtor of a certain property and sellers can post their properties for free. MoveThatBlock.com facilitates communication between buyers and sellers, in turn promoting more exposure which equals more sales. Sellers also have the capability of posting pictures and videos of their properties in order to make their listing more appealing to consumers. Buyers than have the capability of contacting the realtor right from the site, if they are interested.

The commercial site has grown at such a rapid pace which Todd and Pat realized they had a successful idea. They then began adding other features to the site such as residential real estate, apartments and even vacation rentals. The site quickly transformed into something much more than any classifieds site out there. After adding jobs and dating to the site, MoveThatBlock.com became a site to go to for all of life's biggest decisions!

Free Online Dating Site

2011-10-18T10:32:00.000-07:00

The Free Social Marketplace introduces dating and relations on their site. The 100% free to post and search website was launched in 2010 and primarily focused on commercial real estate. The website quickly transformed into much more and the founders quickly noticed the need for a free legitimate dating site.

MoveThatBlock.com is based out of Albany, NY but also has free online dating and profiles from all over the country. The goal of the dating site is to build interactions and facilitate real connections. The dating site has features such as chat which allows people to talk to each other while they are online. Each dating profile has the capability of uploading pictures and videos. When someone goes to view anthers profile, the pictures are displayed as a slideshow. In your profile, you can write a little bit about yourself and give others some basic information about yourself.

The newest feature on our dating site is the ability to rate other profiles. The rating scale is recorded by a measure of stars and once someone is rated you can't tell who rated you. This allows others to give someone a great rating without them knowing. This gives people a chance to know what others think about them without causing confrontation.

Other dating sites are swamped with spam but MoveThatBlock.com is dedicated to monitoring their site and getting rid of spammers. Their new campaign is going to heighten security and prevent any spam from being on the site.

The dating site on MoveThatBlock.com is 100% free to post and search. The free social marketplace is there for all of life's biggest decisions!