Smoke & Mirrors

Are you single, in your early twenties and a smoker? Then
head on over to iLounge's parties! I stopped by Thursday, December
21st, at the Limelight for their bash, and was greeted by clouds of
cigarette smoke. Heavy oak doors revealed hundreds of youngsters
smoking and sipping drinks from plastic cups in the glow of
flashing lights. Even if I wanted to enter into conversation
with anyone, my efforts would've been hindered by the booming
music and furtive glances of those hoping to meet dates. I
approached two older gentlemen, hoping to find out
why they chose this wild party. Discovering that I was talking to
"Biff" and "Chuck" who "deal E," I realized these losers
were souring an already bad experience. Turning on my heels,
I made an effort to march out, but ran into the very sweet
Bob Separ from NYNMA and his friend, PRcompanion.com's CEO
Paul Timpa. I also met iLounge's co-founders Claudia Chan
and Dylan DeSantis, and chatted for a bit with Economist.com
Marketing Manager Marc Seago and Alexandra MacWade. Despite the
craziness, I met the recipients of the evening's charitable efforts
-Interfaith Neighbors, which has after-school programs for children
in East Harlem. I chatted with Robert Osborne and Sudhey Tavares.
Look for more information on this worthy cause at the Cocktails
with Courtney Black Tie Benefit on January 25th.