$5 Fun: Culture Wars Trivia Night at 92nd Y Tribeca

Test your pop culture knowledge today at the 92nd Y Tribeca with Culture Wars: A Night of Trivia With Art21. Grab your friends and create a team to compete in a trivia night of current art, film, music, and online culture. Read more

Monthly Mashup: Budget Blogger Edition

We haven’t busted out a Monthly Mashup in a hot minute, and since we also haven’t been providing much new content on the site as of late (and we sincerely apologize for our slackerness), we’re going to throw up some of our favorite linkage from our favorite budget NYC bloggers.  Be on the lookout in the upcoming weeks for more heapings of original content — we promise.  And maybe a Tweetup too.

16 Strategies for Saving Money When Eating Out - The guys over at Coupon Sherpa have some pretty solid tips on how to save money when you’re eating out.  Most of us have tried these all out at some point, but you may have never done the “secret shopping” bit. I did once, and it was like being a CIA operative — only you don’t get a tranq gun and it’s not as cool.

Brooklyn Massages for Less Than $50 - Our friends over at Brokelyn have dug deep to find the cheapest massages in the BK.  Not surprisingly, they’re mostly those small Asian joints with the awesome signage that offer back and foot rubs, along with some reflexology.  But for some treatments as low as $25 for an hour — who cares?

Buy a Drink, Get a Pizza - The beer/pizza phenomon has been covered quite a few times in NYC, but if you’re a newbie here and you’re not aware of the calorie-inducing sobriety awesomeness that is free pizza with the purchase of a beer, you can read about 89th and Broke’s review of Manhattan’s seemingly favorite:  Crocodile Lounge.

Why You Can’t Stick With a Budget - WiseBread writer, Stacy Johnson, explains why you still suck at creating and sticking with a budget.  And she’s dead on.  She covers some smart ideas about being financially flexible, not depriving yourself, and why goals play an important role in the whole process.

Why You Should Sell Yourself Short - The ladies over at RecessionWire give us the lowdown on how to go about pitching yourself in today’s social media crazed climate.  They tell you how to perfect the 30-second elevator pitch for the Twittersphere — the aptly named Twesume.  (And yes, it makes me wince a little when I say that)

Photo credit: canna_w via stock.xchng

Free Wifi in Times Square? This Should be Interesting.

Times Square has more than confused tourists, overpriced t-shirts, and flashing lights. The now-pedestrian-friendly neighborhood is kicking off this morning with a celebration of free wi-fi access thanks to a partnership with Yahoo!. Read more

How Twitter Can Save You Money!

Twitter is more than a way to tell your friends about that laughing baby video on YouTube, or that you were pissed at the Starbucks barista for making your latte wrong. Twitter is a powerful social networking tool that businesses are using to promote their products and, in turn, give out some great deals. Read more

Touristy Attractions With a Twist!

If you’re an transplant New Yorker, chances are you’ll probably have house guests sometime this summer.  And if you do, you’ll most likely be playing host(ess) and grappling about the city — desperately searching for something that doesn’t involve a four hour wait at the Empire State Building or a yellow speed boat to Ellis Island.

So how do you get out of doing the total touristy thing when your guests’ idea of a good time is having dinner in Times Square?  You bring out the big guns, of course, and promise to give them the “real New York experience”.  After all, what warm blooded tourist could turn that down?

We got the team together to hash out our best suggestions for out-of-towners and took suggestions on our Facebook page and Twitter account, and this is what we came up with.

• South Street Seaport — The South Street Seaport offers a great environment to enjoy the beautiful weather as well as a great view of the city; also includes food, shopping and free entertainment. It’s highly recommended for tourists and NY’ers alike.  – Miss Journey (http://www.herjourneymag.com)

• Atlantic Avenue Tunnel Tour – Nothing says “badass” like trucking out to Brooklyn and climbing down a manhole to tour an old, forgotten train tunnel.  The world’s oldest subway tunnel (no, seriously), the Atlantic Avenue tunnel is now open for tours which happen on a bi-weekly basis on Sundays.

• UWS Delights! – Grants Tomb, (who’s buried in…) RDS and 125th(ish) is perfect for a picnic on the mosaic seating made by children.  Also, St. John the Divine is beautiful and perfect for meditating, plus, you never know who you may see practicing for concerts.  I once saw a Yale Men’s A capella Group, and another time 76 Trombones — no kidding.  If you stroll around outside, you’ll see the Biblical garden and the peacocks. Beautiful. — Judith Steinhart (www.juidthsteinhart.com)  (www.heyjud.com)

• Chelsea Market – My go-to guest spot (if it’s raining) is Chelsea Market for cupcakes, food ogling and sometimes an art exhibit (typically free!) or sample sale. – Jessica M. (www.twitter.com/NYCslice) (http://fruglebuglenyc.blogspot.com)

• Water Taxi – The water taxi to Riis beach is one of my favorite cheap things to do. Grab a sweet spot on the top deck and enjoy gorgeous views of some of our fine boroughs while you take in the breeze and sun during the hour long ride to a beautiful NY beach – all for $6.  -  Heather Dunsmoor

• Row Boats and Chocolate – My sister loves John’s (Pizzeriz) and Max Brenner’s, plus I think rowboats in Central Park is fun. – Christine Rochelle (www.livingwithmyparents.com) (www.christinecackles.blogspot.com)

• Staten Island Ferry – Staten Island Ferry at sundown. Great way to see the city and it’s free. Plus they sell $3 beer. Better yet: brown bag it.  -  Emily Farris  (www.fiftybucksaweek.com)

Got any more suggestions?  Add ‘em to the comments section!

Photo credit:  imjstudios