sleepwalks

An Un-Hamptons Weekend in the Hamptons

2007-02-19T15:50:00.000-05:00

The lighthouse at Montauk Point, and hundreds and hundreds of frozen starfish...

Andrew's Cub Scout Pals

2007-02-12T15:58:00.000-05:00

photos by Andrew!

Crazy for Loca!

2006-12-14T17:26:00.000-05:00

Meet Paul's new feline pal: Loca or "Little Crazy." She was hanging out in the downstairs car wash but we thought she'd be happier indoors.

Aterciopelados

2006-11-02T17:25:00.000-05:00

Apple season

2006-10-08T17:24:00.000-04:00

Mom & Apie come to town

2006-10-07T17:22:00.000-04:00

How the Mo grows

2006-09-30T17:19:00.000-04:00

Have I told you about khao soi?

2006-08-19T17:18:00.000-04:00

And how delicious it is, especially at Sripraphai in Queens?

terrible beauty

2006-08-16T09:30:00.000-04:00

upstate: so many pilgrims

2006-08-08T11:12:00.000-04:00

Paul and I pilgrimmaged to the Finger Lakes Garlic Festival Saturday — he shot all the photos, so stay tuned for those.

On our way to R-town where young O'Hanlon attended RIT, I couldn't resist a drive-by of the Mormon "mecca": The Hill Cummorrah, where JS found those darn golden plates just a stone's throw from home.

Paul introduced me to the wonder of Nick Tahou's "garbage plates" and then it was his turn for pilgrimmage: the legendary House of Guitars...

Garbage Plate: 2 pieces of your choice of meat (or 2 grilled cheese sandwiches) on top of home fries, macaroni salad and baked beans topped with onions, mustard and meat sauce. Shown: "hots" (as hot dogs are known up here) and taters garbage plate. Mmmmmm.

...Dorothy in Oz...

Paul says they've "really cleaned up" the music store section since he'd been there last!

What do you mean, you don't have the latest Atomic Bitchwax?!!!

Take Your Kitten To Work Day

2006-07-31T17:45:00.000-04:00

Yes, I have the coolest office in the world. We had a down week (no mag to put out) so I brought Mo in for show & tell! We were super-productive in the nap and play departments.

Of course Wolfie was glad to see him when we got home.

meet the weeklies

2006-07-19T14:26:00.000-04:00

A few of my esteemed colleagues.

113 degrees & kilts

2006-07-17T12:54:00.000-04:00

Tucson, AZ: Paul and Drew show off their Blackwatch tartan, Drew demonstrates toy dagger techniques. Yes, there were bagpipes!

2006-07-15T13:00:00.000-04:00

Peace Talks Show Progress

2006-07-10T09:46:00.000-04:00

Wolfie has ceased hissing at Mo, unless Mo is attacking his tail, and actually gives him a friendly lick or two when Mo gets in his face. All signs point toward increased domestic peace and cuteness.

I've got good news and bad news...

2006-07-09T10:38:00.000-04:00

Karen Freely, 24, Miss Norway of Greater New York 2005, Dyker Heights. Photo by Dan Sagarin.

Bad news: The Brooklynite is unlaunching. After a delicious last issue which I had the honor of photo-editing and writing for, Daniel Treiman's bold, intelligent magazine takes a final bow. Props to The Gothamist for noticing.

Good news: I'm a neighborhood foodie now for Planet PLG.

meet Mo!

2006-07-05T10:28:00.000-04:00

He'll be 12 weeks this Thursday. More pictures soon!

all american berries

2006-07-05T10:27:00.000-04:00

We set up our rain soaked tent in the car wash below Paul's apartment. I threw together a cobbler from the Catskill cherries and strawberries. All was well.

Woodstock and Woods

2006-07-05T10:23:00.000-04:00

Woodland Valley State Park - the rain held off until morning.

The now very bourgeois town of Woodstock clings to the dream...

Ox Road Rumble

2006-07-05T10:21:00.000-04:00

In Denver, NY this past weekend. Haiyen with goofy glasses, mosquitoes, Sparky and the Catskills. Thanks, Mary!

Oooh and my new fave painter: Zach Ippolito.

A Wolfie Grows in Brooklyn

2006-07-05T10:20:00.000-04:00

Paul loves him even though he pretends not to.

the second grader of steel!

2006-07-05T10:18:00.000-04:00

Andrew tries out his new Superman Inflate-O-Suit

carlsbad to middle of nowhere, TX

2006-06-27T16:23:00.000-04:00

from the sonoran desert to white sands

2006-06-27T16:22:00.000-04:00

what gøes aroünd cømes aroünd

2006-06-21T15:17:00.000-04:00

In one day poking around Craigslist NYC I have furnished my apartment with all the big items I was planning on picking up at Ikea.
Craigslist total: $230 vs. Ikea retail: $476

I've resolved to use as much found or second-hand furniture as possible. The reasons are two-fold 1) It's the environmentally sensitive thing to do and 2) It's the cheap thing to do (I really want to buy that MacBook one day soon.)

Where the Wild Things Are

2006-06-06T10:47:00.000-04:00

For Memorial Day Weekend Paul, Drew and I went camping at Assateague State Park, Maryland. Wild ponies make themselves at home, wandering through the campsites.

Sikh deer too, actually a kind of elk we were told.

Tie dyeing workshop at the Nature Center!

Best Friends Forev-ah! Andrew with his gal pals from the camp next door.

The gChurch of gSaint Google

2006-05-17T10:42:00.000-04:00

I officially declare Google a RELIGION (n.) A cause, principle, or activity pursued with zeal or conscientious devotion.

Anything you can do, Google can do better.

Yes, yes, we've all hailed the wonders of Gmail and it's wondrous searchable conversation threads. Then came the saving graces of Google Talk, which allows thousands of disgruntled desk jockeys to get around the corporate firewalls that stymie iChat.

Today, I invite you to behold the wonder that is Google Calendar (it syncs with iCal!) and you can add public calendars so you know when, say, Britney Spears' birthday is. And just out today you can scrapbook the web with Google Notebook.

If you just can't get enough (like me) of seamless, fluid efficient content management you can always subscribe to The Google Blog or the Google News Feed on Lifehacker.com

Did you know: You can type a FedEx or UPS tracking number into the Google search box and it will jump you to the tracking info on the appropriate site?

Sigh. I HEART Google.

glimpses

2006-05-03T15:17:00.000-04:00

Ah, Sunday in the Park (aka my new front yard).

Wolfman chillaxin' on his phat Ikea cushion.

big fluffy bunnies!

2006-05-01T09:33:00.000-04:00

Oh yeah, they're real.

brooklyn: foodie's paradise

2006-04-25T14:09:00.000-04:00

The new quarterly, Edible Brooklyn.

15 restaurants that exemplify Brooklyn's new breed of "small, seasonal and understatedly stylish" cuisine according to New York Magazine.

Fairway in Red Hook any day now!!!

Welcome to Brooklyn, put ya lighters up.

find it, bring it

2006-04-25T13:43:00.000-04:00

Locate your nearest bubble tea vendor (or make your own) and which NYC restaurants are BYOB.

go now...

2006-04-25T10:18:00.000-04:00

...or forever hold your peace.

"Gongtan Township of Youyang County, Chongqing Municipality, China. Gongtan Township is an ancient town with a history of over 1,700 years and abundant in cultural heritages. It has the most well preserved ancient residences architecture in the Yangtze River drainage area. The town will be submerged by Wujiang River, the tributary of Yangtze, as the Pengshui Hydropower Station is completed in 2007."
(Photo by China Photos/Getty Images)

Minangasli

2006-04-11T11:17:00.000-04:00

Black Rice in Coconut Milk, at Minangasli

HK Flea Market Part II

2006-04-09T11:14:00.000-04:00

DC in Bloom

2006-04-09T11:12:00.000-04:00

2006-04-07T14:24:00.000-04:00

Digs of the Future

2006-04-06T12:57:00.000-04:00

1. Prospect Park
2. 75 Ocean Ave. (Home of yours truly as of 6/1 of this year.)
3. B/Q/S trains - Prospect Park Stop
4. K-Dog & Dunebuggy's - the local coffee shop.
5. Flatbush Ave.

All hail Brooklyn!

bib bim bab and this and that

2006-03-30T10:59:00.000-05:00

Paul and I tucked into the lunch special at Kum Gung San on 32nd Street.

I can't tell you what this tastes like, but I found the macro setting on my camera!

Next time you're in Little Korea try bib bim bab! (I used to think it was bib 'n' bob.)

Woof All About It!

2006-03-28T09:19:00.000-05:00

Get your Tuesday 3/28 New York Sun... or just click here.

Time Off for Good Behavior

2006-03-20T16:41:00.000-05:00

Just in case all 3 of my subscribers (that I know of) are wondering, it's time for a blog hiatus. I am searching for an apartment, finishing up photo editing the final (*sniff*) issue of The Brooklynite (for which I'm also writing a story), writing another piece for the Sun (pick it up next Tues 3/28: Style for Canines) on top of life as usual.

In the meantime, I add daily to the Fun stuff I've clipped from other blogs at right during downtime at The Week, so please peruse since there's a lot of interesting stuff out there in the blogosphere.

Sign up for the email list if you'd like to know when my meandering thoughts reach cyberspace once again.

Peace out.

yikes!

2006-03-14T14:06:00.000-05:00

View from the Air Train after landing at JFK on Monday morning!

Family Album

2006-03-14T14:04:00.000-05:00

The O'Hanlons: Paul, John, Jean and Mandy

Paul's Uncle Jimmy and Aunt Janet

My cousin Matt and girlfriend Katie

My Uncle Brian and Aunt Diane, at home in Phoenix

Tucson vocab lesson

2006-03-14T14:00:00.000-05:00

Sonoran Desert

Barrell cactus

teddy bear choya

Saguaro cactus (pronounced sah-WAR-oh)

Warm house, warm heart

2006-03-09T13:58:00.000-05:00

Leigh's super-cute desk find on Craigslist even came with an antique stapler wedged behind the drawer.

And Snack, for Snack's sake!

name dropping of the humbling kind

2006-03-09T11:42:00.000-05:00

I sit to theleft of Eric Effron, former editor of the now defunct but once brilliant Brill's Content and the son of the man for whom Effron the Sorcerer is based on.

I sit across the room from Bruno Maddox, son of a knight and author of My Little Blue Dress. I sit facing Thomas Vinciguerra, the current avatar of the Philalexian Society at Columbia University where there is an award established in his name. I sit caddy corner from both Brett Topel and John (Jack) Heidenry. Together they've written The Boys Who Were Left Behind. Heidenry is a former editor at Penthouse and the author of the book What Wild Ecstasy.

Another co-worker co-wrote The Cell. And let's not forget Pulitzer-winner boss man Bill Falk.

Let me know if anyone wants signed copies. I'd better get started on a book!

Armchair Economics

2006-03-08T12:18:00.000-05:00

"Positive Cash Flow = Happiness." This was Dad’s prescription for life and I used to argue passionately that he was wrong. Money can’t buy you Love, I’d say, and therefore cannot buy you Happiness! At 17, I believed the world could run on Love. I’ve now, at 27, reconsidered my opposition. I propose a revised formula: Positive Cash Flow = Success.

Strictly speaking, positive cash flow (PCF) is simply more money coming in than you have going out. If this is true for you, congratulations, you’ve Made It! According to an article entitled "'Generation Debt' is going deep into the red" at MSNBC.com, “the median home price rising by 26 percent in the past five years — while young adults' income has gone up less than 10 percent — people in their twenties are playing an endless game of catch-up.”

This could be, on one hand, quite depressing. I’ve had a job since I was 14, I’ve always worked at least part-time while going to school and, with Dad "Cash Flow" Kingman's help, escaped student loan debt. Pardon me for thinking that by now, at 27, I’d be well on my way to buying a home — or at least an occasional night on the town. Instead I’m at Barnes & Noble, guiltily picking up Suze Orman’s latest book Young, Fabulous and Broke. One might lose sleep wondering if they had just given up a latte here and there, skipped the iPod for a generic MP3 player or passed on that Old Navy sale would they be able to afford a bit more Fabulous for the rest of the Young part? (Maybe if one hadn’t moved to New York City, but how unfabulous that would be?)

In 2001 I was employed* by Town & Country magazine which is aimed at the incredibly affluent. Their entire ad sales strategy was based on the fact that, oh happy day, the top 1% of the population controlled 95% of the wealth and yes, the rich keep getting richer**. They sold ads based on testimonials that a reader, after seeing an article on a certain resort spa, called up and booked the entire place for a weekend for her and her friends. Most Americans aspire to this kind of wealth. The sad truth is that most of us are fighting over one very small slice of the pie.

Through some accidental reconnaissance, I came across a delightful book entitled How Not to Get Rich: Or Why Being Bad Off Isn't So Bad by Robert Sullivan. Sullivan argues, tongue firmly in cheek, that every day a large number of Americans will join the likes of Mark Twain and Thomas Jefferson in the “increasingly crowded halls of the non-elite." by becoming unrich. Many echo our Calvinist forefathers' view that failure to accummulate obscene amounts of wealth is a personal fault of character. Sullivan points out that not only is that not the case, the unrich are a by product of our economy, but that it wasn't until the Great Depression that we saw fit as a society to put in some safety nets like worker's comp and unemployment.

Sullivan wryly admonishes us to cultivate our skills at becoming a nonmillionaire by majoring in medieval literature; marrying for love and reading, a lot. While I wholeheartedly agree I'm hoping to cultivate some positive cash flow while enjoying my rich, yet unrich, life.

* I graduated from college into an economic downturn. I was technically freelancing (40+ hours per week) at T&C while there was a “hiring freeze.” The "hiring freeze" lasted until 2003.

** 2002 proved T&C’s highest ad revenue in it's 150 year history in spite of a post-9/11 industry-wide slump, owing largely to the fact that if uber-rich don’t buy Prada bags, then the terrorists have truly won.

think desktops can't be sexy?

2006-03-07T17:08:00.000-05:00

think again. Veer offers free luscious wallpapers for every mood. Click the image above.

Plenty

2006-03-07T13:20:00.000-05:00

Plenty of fiber, protein, energy and don't forget flavor. Meet the newest member of my power breakfast line up: Bob's Red Mill 7 Grain Cereal.

I'm always in search of the perfect one-stop breakfast, yummy, satisfying, healthy and quick. Oatmeal wasn't cutting it for me, bran-muffins from the deli are light-weights. I was starving by 11:30 AM! So I ventured into the realm of hard red wheat, rye, triticale, barley and flaxseed. I thought I would feel like I was munching animal feed, but it was not the case! I was out of milk this morning so I just added a dash of maple syrup and enjoyed the nutty, wheaty porridge. It could use some fruit, and you might find yourself in want of a toothpick after, but it's 1:30 and I'm just now thinking lunch might be in order. I'm also going to give my cereal double-duty soon with Bob's Peanut Butter Oat Grain Cookies.

Endless, unwarranted cute

2006-03-06T15:30:00.000-05:00

Six degrees of Reality...

2006-03-03T14:36:00.000-05:00

...TV.

Leigh's friend whom I've met a handful of times is rocking the WE channel. With a name like Buick, how can you not stand out? She is sooo much nicer than this photo would lead you to think!

It is incredibly surreal to read fan posts about someone who is a Real Person. M from miami says: "BUICK ROCKS! Shes' so innovative & the tattoos really do it for me. That girl is one hot fashionista. That girl can "style" me any day. I wonder how I can get in contact with her , I'd use her in my clothing company any day. Keep up your outstanding work Buick. Oh? & whats up with the overly effeminate "carrot top"? Kick him off!"

And so, the battle to style Rachel Hunter wages on, Mondays 10 pm ET.

"The Week makes my day"

2006-03-02T16:03:00.000-05:00

said Kenneth Cole. His and other quotes from notable readers are featured on the cover of most issues set off in a yellow circle. One faithful reader from the Macomb County prison thoughtfully sent in his endorsement quote:

Really, need we say more? If you're on 23 hour/day lockdown and want to subscribe, by all means, click here. (note: I am the Photo Editor for the print version only.)

Where the money is

2006-03-02T14:16:00.001-05:00

5 Blogs for Musical Archaeologists

2006-03-02T12:29:00.000-05:00

Link to the LA Weekly article on the guys who live High Fidelity.

The future (hopefully) of the Employee Cafeteria

2006-03-01T12:28:00.000-05:00

Google employees can enjoy, among many other things, kombucha, a tea-based, cultured beverage made according to an ancient method still practiced in Asia, Central Asia and Eastern Europe. The drink reputedly boosts vitality, longevity, energy and immunity.

Read the full story of Google's brave new cafeteria here.

Tragedy can be so beautiful

2006-02-28T13:09:00.000-05:00

Click on My Photo Cutting Room Floor here (or at right) for more of these New Orleans churches and other images I couldn't get into print but should be seen!

Lunchables - old school

2006-02-27T21:38:00.000-05:00

Brooklyn Children's Museum

It's ok, Leigh!

2006-02-27T17:53:00.000-05:00

When you get a pet, you should let the blogging about it happen. It's natural. It's love, in pixels. And look, here's what life would be like if you got your self a hedgehog named Numo.

Anniversaire Les Halles

2006-02-24T21:46:00.000-05:00

Paul and I commemorated 6 months from our first date with a trip to Les Halles. Some weeks after our romance began I lent him a book I have lent everyone I've ever met, the notorious Kitchen Confidential, which he of course loved (our second literary synergy, after Douglas Adams). So it was a cold February evening and what else to do than tuck in to some hearty bsitro fare?

I ordered the Choucroute Royale (February is Choucroute Month at Les Halles!) and Dr. Atkins would have been proud. But for 2 potates fumée (boiled potatoes), I found before me a heap of pork on a bed of champagne-braised sauerkraut.

Vegetarians, do not read on. Choucroute is actually French for sauerkraut, choucroute garnie (literally dressed sauerkraut), an Alsatian recipe for preparing sauerkraut with sausage and other salted meats. The Les Halles special I ordered included, if memory serves, a smoked pork loin, boudin noir, smoked bacon, frankfurter, salami and salted pork belly. Not a trace of green or any other vegetation, this was rustic, working class fare (for a not-so-working-class price). I only managed one tiny taste of pork belly, with the affirmation "Tony (Bourdain) would want me to." (In the book, Bourdain is vocal in his disdain for the squeamish.) My experiment yielded an unexpected appreciation for sauerkraut and an not so surprising distaste for organ meats. Hey, don't knock it till you try it.

the view from the basement

2006-02-22T13:33:00.000-05:00

Filene's Basement Union Square.

Trans-fat on Canal Street

Where cool angels fear to tread:

2006-02-21T16:54:00.000-05:00

The Precious Moments Chapel in Carthage, Missouri. Because life is full of saccharine moments.

Just a little tidbit for your brain:

2006-02-21T16:52:00.000-05:00

Countries drawn according to population.

mercury (retrograde) and B'GAWKing through the week...

2006-02-21T15:12:00.000-05:00

Three times a year, for about three weeks, Mercury goes "retrograde", meaning that from the viewpoint of Earth, the planet appears to be moving backward. Many astrologers believe this is a common time for electrical and mechanical problems. I don't know if it's actually happening this week but I use the phrase "mercury's in retrograde" to refer to any old week that is fraught with issues such as the ones I'm having today:
• home computer no worky
• ipod no worky
• can't upload pix to the blog for some reason
• gmail.com won't load
• my cell phone gives an error message to some incoming callers

Sure, it's mostly hooey, but it's fun! For the most trippy, spacey astrology since Rob Brezny, click here.

So while Mercury is pissing me off, you dear friends have 4 opportunities for amazing comedic genius this week in the form of:
Wed 2/22: Sarah Nowak at Ash Wednesday
Fri 2/24: Chicken Ranch
Sat 2/25: Chicken Ranch
Sun 2/26: El Mo at Ampersand

Visit the Chicken Ranch Blog for all show deets!

Guest & Gervais: My Personal Movie Dream Come True

2006-02-20T15:20:00.000-05:00

From Variety (click photo above for full article): "Christopher Guest has decided to make a movie about the shooting of a bad movie. In the process, the man who gave us "Best In Show" intends to do a sendup of awards season.

Warner Independent Pictures is targeting "For Your Consideration," which Castle Rock Entertainment will produce, for a fall 2006 release.

Ricky Gervais will join a roster of thesps who've appeared in Guest's previous pics, including Catherine O'Hara, Parker Posey, Harry Shearer, Eugene Levy, Bob Balaban, Jennifer Coolidge, Michael McKean and Fred Willard."

go kinky, go kinky, go kinky, go!

2006-02-20T14:14:00.000-05:00

Two brands of strange whimsy

2006-02-19T12:38:00.000-05:00

Marvi's glimpse into the ultimate in dog worship: the Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show

Cactus Friends by Tokidoki

kimchi fights bird flu?!

2006-02-16T17:25:00.000-05:00

Thanks to Culiblog, I found out that not only does it kill the virus, it's being used to make air conditioners. Click here for the full Reuters article.

On some cartoons that ran in a Danish newspaper...

2006-02-15T16:27:00.000-05:00

In case you haven't noticed, here's the photo recap. There are plenty of voices weighing in on the cartoon chaos, but I found this particular tidbit from New YorkMagazine's Kurt Andersen interesting indeed:

"Consider three U.S. news stories that broke coincidentally with the cartoon madness. A Bush-appointed PR handler at NASA had insisted that government scientists refer to the Big Bang as a theory. In an exurb of Denver, a public-school music teacher was forced to write a letter of apology for showing a video about opera, because it featured Joan Sutherland talking to puppets about Faust and Mephistopheles—i.e., it was pro-Satan. And after it was discovered that the producers of an evangelical movie had cast a gay actor, the president of a Baptist seminary said, 'It would probably be an overreaction to firebomb these men’s houses.' Perhaps she said 'probably' ironically, like the Iranians are smirking about their Holocaust-cartoon contest."

highlights: my bloglines

2006-02-14T21:29:00.000-05:00

I am sucking down between about 55 to 70 blog feeds everyday to bring you the very best in blog potpurri. Check out the link at right "Fun stuff I've clipped from other blogs." Here are some recent highlights:

Mangled English Indonesian Valentines
Recipe: Pistachio and Almond Tart with Orange and Cardamom
Where to find a $1,000 ice cream sundae in New York
Order your own custom tartan to your specifications
A visual history of hard drives

Bon appetit!

vive sans les temps mort!

2006-02-14T21:11:00.000-05:00

Speaking of art school: Art Forum on my art school hero and leader of the Situationist movement, Guy Debord. Best known for authoring the manifesto The Society of the Spectacle (1977), his films have recently regained the spotlight. I know more about the movement than the man, and the SI still stirs my imagination, as they stirred 1960s Paris. Liberating everyday life, living life as art, is still subversive.

"The spectacle is not a collection of images; it is a social relation between people that is mediated by images." - Guy Debord

quite gorgeous

2006-02-14T21:03:00.000-05:00

This artist, Angelo Filomeno, uses embroidery on silk as paint on canvas. My first thoughts on seeing his work were 1) how haunting and beautiful and 2) who has that kind of time?! It made me pine for my UT art school days and unstructured hours that I then had no idea how to spend. I don't know how 18 year olds can be expected to make anything interesting when we have barely begun to know how to think, taste, feel much less express. (Did someone just whisper youth is wasted on the young in my ear?)

collect them all...

2006-02-13T20:56:00.000-05:00

Picture book animal stamps from the US Postal Service. Yipee! If only I still used the mail.

and, the snow.

2006-02-12T21:25:00.000-05:00

AP Photo

hello!

2006-02-09T18:09:00.000-05:00

My productivity has flagged, dear readers, for a couple reasons propelling me back to the dark ages a) a faulty home router for the DSL and b) OS9, yes that's right, OS9! at work - a situation that will be remedied in the next several days.

I've been compelled out of radio silence (buying time on a TMobile hot spot at Starbucks) for a couple reasons. First among them, I found out that Debra, a kickass Brooklynite friend (and friend of The Brooklynite) has faithfully read my erratic musings for the last 6 months. Word!

The other reasons are there's so much going on in the world! Among other newsworthy items, I have a new job at The Week magazine, a veritable Zagat guide to the past week on Planet Earth. It's the end of my fourth day as photo editor and it seems, refreshingly at this point, like working in a library. There are dozens of periodicals strewn around a big central table and we all sit in one large room, the sound of typing only occasionally interrupted by banter. My brain feels a bit like it's been doing yoga - and no more pain in my neck from grasping the phone between ear and shoulder.

The other fantastic newsy bits are that we've been liberated, officially, from both the myth that more money makes you happier and that low-fat diets reduce the risk of certain diseases. Pass the butter, please.

those who don't Super Bowl...

2006-02-05T22:08:00.000-05:00

... PUPPY BOWL! Thank you, Animal Planet.

oh sweet temptaion! the Annex Flea Market

2006-02-05T18:06:00.000-05:00

the ENTIRE block of 39th between 9th &10th Aves. My undoing, old wood letterpress type. SIGH.

farewell, wine and cigars...

2006-02-03T22:04:00.000-05:00

my gals, Mary and Haiyen

midnight meatpacking walks

2006-02-02T23:59:00.000-05:00

through the Maritime Hotel...

... and finally to a 1AM BLT and coffee at Florent, 20 years strong and still trendalicious.

a little blog frivolity...

2006-02-01T15:26:00.000-05:00

The Meme of Four

Four jobs you’ve had in your life:
- Part-time "front desk" person at a hostel in San Miguel de Allende, Mexico for a month when I was 19, in exchange for free lodging.
- Merch girl for a small folk-punk band touring from Austin to NYC
- 3 months as a receptionist/dispatcher at Kendrick McMahan (pronounced "mack maHAN") Cattle & Trucking
- Receptionist for a golf turfgrass company (first job ever)

Four movies you could watch over and over:
- Amadeus
- Out of Africa
- American Beauty
- Real Genius

Four places you’ve lived:
- Colorado (birth thru 8 months)
- Connecticut (9 months thru 4 years)
- Austin (4 years thru 21 years)
- New York City (21 years to present)

Four TV shows you love to watch:
- Lost
- West Wing
- Project Runway
- Scrubs

Four places you’ve been on vacation:
- Thailand, all over
- Mexico, all over on many occasions
- Pawleys Island, South Carolina
- Cornwall, England

Four websites you visit daily:
- Bloglines.com (currently 59 feeds)
- Gmail
- Blogger.com
- NY Times

Four of your favorite foods:
- Dark chocolate + orange in any way
- Chubby Hubby Ice Cream
- Chicken Tikka Masala
- Apple Pie

What photo shoots are made of:

2006-01-30T22:56:00.000-05:00

Props. For rent at Prop Haus

random sweets

2006-01-30T21:55:00.000-05:00

Atlantic Ave. Treasures

2006-01-30T09:57:00.000-05:00

City Foundry is a wonderland of forgotten industrial whatnots.

Paul and I pose for Andrew in the unsusually mild January night.

Handmade tooth-fairy pillows at Acorn.

The Year o' the Dog starts with a bang... MANY bangs...

2006-01-29T21:52:00.000-05:00

...thanks to super firecracker confetti blaster things that were on sale in abundance.

and then, the Toys 'R' Us zone - dee doo dee doo dee doo dee doo

Go get your F*&!in' shinebox.

2006-01-26T12:07:00.000-05:00

Me & Sopranos/Goodfellas/Raging Bull's Frank Vincent.

Pimp My Ride, but for hicks

2006-01-25T14:55:00.000-05:00

...and I use the term hick affectionately.

Could CMT's big rig mechanics, the "Chrome Shop Mafia," be the new Fab 5? I'll be tuned in to find out.

Maybe I've just o.d.'d on cool and need a fix of airbrush sunsets and "semper fi" bumper stickers. Maybe it's just nostalgia for long cross country drives and truck stops. I remember seeing the truckers camped out in their cabs as my family's station wagon pulled back onto the highway, our bellies full of biscuits and whatever fried green thing that passed as a vegetable. I always wanted a see inside these miniature mobile homes that people rolled down highways - criss crossing our country with food and cars and everything under the sun. Now's my chance.

Meet Snack

2006-01-24T12:06:00.000-05:00

We adore him.

year o' the dog: first 2 weeks recap

2006-01-14T19:18:00.000-05:00

Flo & Robert (age 16, above) shacked up in Kensington, Brooklyn. Scenes from the warming soireé:

I finally got Paul down to my favorite Curry Row restaurant, Milon, where we dined till stuffed for about $20.

Gigi on the scene! Jessica's new baby girl, Georgette came to visit us at the office. Little does G know I've been sitting next to her for the last 7 months, albeit she was en belly:

Then last night, the Korean BBQ extravaganza that was Marvi's 30th birthday, starring James the freak.

Sadly for the hotel guests, there was no security checkpoint.

flickr food

2006-01-13T10:59:00.000-05:00

I want to see a squirt gun duel!

2006-01-12T11:37:00.000-05:00

A recent mention in A Brooklyn Life boosted my ego (I'm published in the same mag as a Pulitzer Prize winner!) but also served to remind me what a treasure the Brooklynite is and what a glorious future it has ahead. I am hoping to contribute as a photo editor for the next issue. A subscription is only $10! As you'll read, Top 10 Reasons to Subscribe include: #7 Brooklynite editor Daniel Treiman will challenge New Yorker editor David Remnick to a squirt-gun duel on the Brooklyn Bridge as soon as we get 2,000 paid subscribers. Do it!

whaddup? DAWG!

2006-01-12T11:29:00.000-05:00

A big shout out for Leigh, who is adopting this adorable sugar-bean of a pup currently known as Simba*. Year of the Dog for REALS. Welcome, Doggie Doe!

*new name pending....stay tuned.

Photo Exhibits I'm Hankering to Go See

2006-01-11T13:59:00.000-05:00

Click on the images for more info.

Ice Capades: Chinese Stylee

2006-01-11T13:57:00.000-05:00

Every year, the Grand World of Ice and Snow draws thousands of tourists. It's a good thing, too, since the good citizens of Harbin, China haven't had much to offer since the trans-siberian railway pulled out of town for the last time. Instead of despairing, for the last 20 odd years they take an abundant resource, ice and snow, add art and throw a party. Old Stalin park becomes a sledding extravaganza filled with replicas of famous buildings. A turn-of-the-20th-century architectural relic itself, Zhong Yang Street (Central Street), boasts an amalgam of influences: Russian, French, Japanese and even American. According to one online city guide, the Christian church was believed by locals to damage the local feng shui, so they donated money to build a Chinese monastery.

what price light?

2006-01-10T15:27:00.000-05:00

This image struck me as poignant because, as the tragedy of the Sago Miners so tragically brought to the nation's attention, coal is "the workhorse of the nation’s electric power industry, supplying more than half the electricity consumed by Americans" (US DOE website: energy.gov). What kind of first-world country still sends people into mines? Isn't that why we invent robots? I'm guessing its an involved and tricky process that would confuse our current level of AI. I'm also guessing, going out on a limb here, that alternative energy sources aren't high on our government's priority list. Arctic National Wildlife Refuge anyone?

photo by Eddie Adams, coal miner ca. 1969. A miner then earned an average of $14.80/day.

Why Read Blogs

2006-01-08T12:01:00.000-05:00

I am a late comer to the so-called blogosphere. I can't believe I just said that word. *sigh* But here I am, since July 2005, blogging away about my favorite yogurt and my poor suicidal cat. But in the last couple months, I've really started exploring what else is out there, and its much less scary than one would imagine. Oh sure, ther's Mullet Hunters and CatNews, but you'll also find such tasty delights at Better Living Through Design, Gizmodo, DesignSponge, 101 Cookbooks and BlogHungry to name a very, very few (visit Weblogs.com to see just how many). None of these look like anything I've ever seen while hitting the "next blog" button at the top of this page. I even nominated 3 Quarks Daily for a Bloggie Award (to be held at SXSW in my own hometown of Austin.) Post a comment here about your faves.

In an attempt to entertain family and friends yet satisfy my own long repressed journalistic urges, I am trying to dial down the vanity photo diary and increase the original and/or whimsically useful content. I promise essays, recipes, tirades, funny anecdotes and, of course, pet photos. And, like every blog worth its pixels, a 2006 Gift Guide come holiday time. Those of you who are regularly interested in my meanderings may now subscribe via email (see right). Or you can catch my RSS feed, and others, via aggregators like Bloglines and NewsGator to manage all of your feeds. Check them out and start learning why USA Today technology columnist Kevin Maney says 2006 will be "The Year of RSS."

Zuzu belle

2006-01-07T12:38:00.000-05:00

Why are textbooks so boring?

2006-01-05T23:36:00.000-05:00

There is an enormous disservice being done to Our Children: boring textbooks. They drone on with their "this happened, then this happened, then this was discovered" that no adult, much less an ADD, hormone-adled teenager, would find interesting.

Bill Bryson put this bug in my brain. I wish that I could send a copy of his book, A Short History of Nearly Everything, to every kid in every high school science class in the English speaking world. He retells the history of the universe with the Brit-wit for which he is famous and beloved. And he's making me like astronomy. He also paints such compelling, bumbling portraits of the scientists for whom all of our nebulas, phenomenons and theories are named. We forget that science, at the end of the day, is simply a way of being systematically curious and that many funny mistakes are made along the way. For instance, Percival Lowell, an astronomer who began the search for Pluto, also believed that Mars was covered with canals built by "industrious Martians" for irrigating the arid areas nearer its equator.

I wish I could write text books that find the humor, wit and wisdom in the story of the American Revolution, presidents, calculus and organic chemistry. I was an A student and that stuff still left me cold. But I memorized the information, like eating my veggies.

If educational texts could make kids laugh or tempt them with tales of scandal, controversy, failure and triumph, maybe they'd relate. They'd fear trying and failing less because they'd realize all the Greats fumble at some point. Maybe history would stop repeating itself so much. Or maybe they'd just remember to search the night sky for supernovae once in awhile and recycle more.

catching up

2006-01-05T21:37:00.000-05:00

...with gal pals Flo and Lauren at the RVR

...with the trim district. Pictured: M&J and some place on 37th St.

...with a cab home early!

How To: Make Tortilla Chips

2006-01-05T13:06:00.000-05:00

1. Cut corn tortillas into quarters.
2. Heat a deep skillet (about 2 or 3 inches) filled with vegetable oil. Get it really hot.
3. Fry tortilla pieces until crispy.
4. Cool on paper towels to absorb excess oil, salt lightly.

#1 After 35 years

2006-01-04T20:29:00.000-05:00

...not that I watch football...

arrrggg!!!

2006-01-04T09:43:00.000-05:00

This article in today's New York Times should have been written by me:
Essence of Sweet Potato, Sip by Sip

Tuesday Morning, filled with rage

2006-01-03T11:39:00.000-05:00

"Dood" Ron Regé, jr, Print # 35 of 50, 6" x 4.2". From Tiny Showcase.

5 AM - Paul wakes late for his flight to Vegas. I know if I fall asleep again I'll end up twice as groggy so I make my way into consciousness.

6:30 AM - Leaving Paul's much too early for my taste, the black, rain-slick streets, freezing rain and umbrella-eating wind. I finally give up on using an umbrella and hunker down into my coat. I pass other black bundles on the sidewalks, we remind me of huge urban penguins. I am very deeply annoyed at having to deal with anything but warmth and comfort at this time of the morning, or at all. I calculate my train route to maximize time under ground versus time above and slip into the belly of the subway.

8:20 AM - Too early for work, I nurse a latte at Starbucks and derive evil enjoyment from the fact that I am now watching the Umbrella Wars instead of battling them. I hate wind. I hate flimsy umbrellas. I hate people who don't notice they just put your eye out with their ginormous pointy large-enough-for-3-people umbrella.

9:15 AM - At last, my desk, warm, safe, benign. I vow not to leave until I absolutely must. To soothe the frustration, I become an art collector.