Pearl River Mart in Chinatown-one stop shop for stuff

While I usually avoid Chinatown because it makes me crazy, Pearl River Mart is a great one-stop-shop for...stuff. Chinese stuff. It's hard to explain its appeal since it generally has a lot of stuff you never needed. But they have a lot of pretty boxes, purses, sandals and ...stuff.
Also there are a lot of stops along the way with cheap tshirts and watches...more...stuff.
Hours and Location
Pearl River Mart is located at 477 Broadway, SOHO area between Grand St. and Broom St. Store Hours: 10 AM to 7:20 PM, including weekends and Holidays.
By Subway: #1 to Canal. Walk east along Canal past West Broadway, Wooster, Greene, Mercer...Broadway is the next street. Take a left and walk up past Howard and Grand...it is on the west side of Broadway.
R or W train downtown, get off at Prince St., walk south on Broadway, 2.5 blocks. #6 train, downtown, get off at Spring St., walk west along Spring, make a left on Broadway, walk 1.5 blocks.

Comedy Central Live at Gotham Comedy Club

The last time I went to a comedy club in NYC I had to prepare my escape route ahead of time...I get a little freaked out...okay a lot freaked out...by raunchy comedy so NYC comedy clubs are really not my thing. I think Ray Romano is about as raunchy as I can take-- so you get my sensibility here. Anyway if you can stand the raunch-factor (not all of them but...many...are) some of the comics at various clubs throughout the city are really, really funny. The better ones are Caroline's (Broadway and 50th-take #1 to 54th St.) and Gotham Comedy Club (23rd between 7-8th-take the #1 directly there). Season 4 of Comedy Central is being filmed at Gotham Aug 6-9th. Six comedians., 2 shows, 6:15 and 9:45.
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Kayaking on the Hudson

At 72nd on the Hudson, of Riverside Park, the Downtown Boathouse offers FREE kayaking on Saturdays and Sundays, May 6- Oct 11, 10-5PM. They provide the kayak, paddle, life jackets (thank god) and brief instruction. My boyfriend and I did this once and it was a blast; lots of laughs and just nerve-wracking enough to provide a frisson of excitement. It's not as easy as it looks. Which makes it a bit more fun. There can be a wait but it is worth it to say you kayaked on the Hudson...and in the 400th anniversary year of Henry Hudson's voyage up the Hudson!

Columbia University Bars

Sorry for the heavy CU focus for anyone following this blog--but my nieces are in town and staying near here! My dive-bar and cozy-pub days are now 20 -plus years behind me, so I was a bit lost when they asked me about decent bars in the area--turns out the few I mentioned, when I looked them up, had closed or been transformed into more expensive and trendy venues (eg West End which is now Havana-something and not the hangout for students it used to be..). ..or I forgot the addresses.
However a little quick internet sleuthing turned up some local bars that are not expensive and seem to have a good vibe (according to the reviews on yelp.com ). A short list:
1: Toast: Broadway between Lasalle and Tieman Place (Lasalle is the street about 123rd). Reviews here. Sounds fun and cheap with decent fun food.
2: Abbey Pub-105 between Broadway and Amsterdam (right off Broadway). I've actually been here and they have decent food. Nice atmosphere.
3: Hakkon's Hall -116 and Amsterdam. This was new to me and new to the neighborhood as well. The reviews seem decent. They seem to focus on food, eclectic food....waffles, P&J, etc. Not "just" a bar so not sure about the drink prices.
4: Village Pourhouse- Amsterdam and 109th. Reviews here. "The staff is very friendly and the beer is cold and cheap." Sports bar-ish atmosphere.
5: Mona Lounge- Amsterdam and 109th. Reviews here. "Mona is the classier choice on Amsterdam on this stretch, and the bonus is that it also has a pool table. ...a place where a girl can go to get a drink in the neighborhood and be treated properly by the staff. It's pretty nondescript, but I suppose that's why it's a lounge -- so you can kick back and relax. "