The Skint: Free, Cheap, and Cool Daily Listings
Here at NFT we're always surfing the web keeping an eye on what's new in New York. We have our favorite sites for checking out restaurants, theater, sports...you get the idea. But we've never really found the perfect site for finding the best (and affordable) events around town--until now. Enter The Skint. It was started by two underemployed friends who used to tip each other off to cool bargains and free goodies they'd hear about. The Skint proves you don't need to be rich to enjoy the best of the city. They choose 10 to 15 great events everyday around town for you to check out. Recent picks include The Secret Science Club's 4th annual Carnivorous Nights Taxidermy contest at The Bell House and Wes Anderson, Meryl Streep, and Jason Schwartzman discussing their new animated film, 'Fantastic Mr. Fox' at Apple SOHO. All you have to do is sign up for their daily email, and they'll do the rest. Just click on the logo below to check out what they have on offer for today.

DC iPhone App Released
Next time you need to jump on Amtrak and head down to The Beltway and you have a fancy little iPhone, grab the new NFT DC App on iTunes. It's only $4.99 and it covers over 40 neighborhoods and 3,600 listings. It's the ultimate guide that fits right in your back pocket.

On Our Radar This Week in New York

Telling Tales Posted by:  Sarah Enelow Photo:  Sarah Enelow    StoryCorps One of America's national treasures resides right here in NYC and you have every reason to take advantage of it, if you can get an appointment: StoryCorps. This nationwide oral history project allows you to converse one-on-one with someone who plays a unique role in your life, record it, and save it for posterity in your home and in the Library of Congress, all for free (donations are suggested and well deserved). After securing an appointment, head down to the StoryCorps recording booth with your interviewer (or interviewee), get settled with a sound technician in the comfy and intimate surroundings, and start talking about life and the meaningful experiences that characterize your relationship. Appointments last one hour, which will either fly by or painfully crawl along, so decide who will interview whom and prepare questions ahead of time. It could be an emotional evening, one of comic reminiscence, or a bit of both, and you may be surprised at the courage and inspiration you'll find in the process. At the end you'll have a priceless time capsule on CD, or at least an hour of free therapy, or the knowledge that you DO love the sound of your own voice, especially when filtered through those fancy microphones.

2010 Launch Party Posted by:  Craig Nelson Photo:  Aaron Schielke    Fontana's Attention NFT lovers: it's time for some major fun in NYC. Yep, you guessed right. It's time for the annual NYC guidebook party! We recently released our NYC 2010 guidebooks in stores and worldwide, and we want to celebrate its release with you, our fans. Come join us at Fontana's to get your own free copy of the NYC 2010 guidebook (while supplies last) featuring new, fantastic places to shop, dine, and explore. We'll also be giving everyone a free beer thanks to Shmaltz (while supplies last, of course), and we'll have some cool prizes from local businesses to raffle off like Cafe Grumpy, Economy Candy, Exit 9, DUO, Paris Apartment, L'asso, and Idlewild Books. So on November 17th come on down to Fontana's at 6 pm. We promise more fun than your average Tuesday night. Sign up on Facebook or download the PDF invite.

Jewel of Red Hook Posted by:  Rob Tallia Photo:  Rob Tallia    Metal and Thread Of the thousands of jewelry stores in NYC, there are a handful that I've walked into and been equally blown away by the vibe as well as the wares displayed. It doesn't happen very often, since I could really give a damn about jewelry (now, personal electronics...that's another matter). But Metal and Thread, in Red Hook, managed to fully pierce my crusty, myopic exterior. The shop is exquisitely designed, the proprietors are the cutest couple (at least, they SEEM like a couple) I've seen since Quebec in July, and the combination of jewelry and antique tools for sale has obviously been curated with a lot of care. Simply, a special, special place to buy something for your loved one. Or something for the person you're hot for. Or both.

Passes the Test Posted by:  Rob Tallia Photo:  Rob Tallia    Paragon Sporting Goods Everyone who's really into one sport isn't particularly impressed with Paragon Sporting Goods on Broadway. I've heard complaints from runners, hikers, tennis players, golfers, etc. But it's the standard by which ALL OTHER places are compared; so when someone tells you, "oh, this tennis store is better than Paragon," what they're really saying is: "Paragon is by far the best general sporting goods store in NYC." If you're an absolute tennis nut, you'll like this other place better, but if not, then Paragon is where you should go." And, as it's one of the few places that sells the hard-to-obtain NYC tennis pass, it gets even more of my dollars each year. Paragon: the gold standard in sporting goods.