The Old House Club

On safari at Bergdorf Goodman

2011-12-28T09:58:00.000-08:00

When it comes to Christmas windows, Bergdorf Goodman shines. I thought it couldn't get better than last year's display. But it did. Introducing Carnival of the Animals:

The pattern on this dress is made up of thousands of seed beads. Incredible:

According to the BG blog, this one's called the Brass Menagerie. It features a flock of metal birds and a shimmering border made out of fishing lures. Unfortunately, I couldn't get a good photograph that included the border, but you can see it here, along with many of this year's windows.

If you've ever wonder what a tea party in the North Pole might be like:

The aquarium window was mesmerizing. Look at it long enough and the crowds and traffic on 5th Avenue seem to disappear as you're transported to an underwater wonderland teeming with jewel-encrusted stingrays, lobsters and sharks:

The animals in the black-and-white window are made out of paper:

Bright lights in Dyker Heights

2011-12-22T19:09:00.000-08:00

Home sweet home

2011-12-22T18:55:00.000-08:00

There's quite a bit of space behind the couch.

A close-up of some of the beautiful carvings on the fireplace mantel in the living room.

The view from the living room looking into the kitchen. The door with the stained glass window leads to the bathroom. To the left of that is the bedroom.

The boudoir.

Yay! A clawfoot tub!

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas.

The Christmas tree in all its glory.

Street Art

2011-08-09T19:01:00.000-07:00

Finally spotted one of Roa's pieces on the way to Smorgasburg on Saturday:

These are pretty sweet, too:

Coney Island

2011-08-09T18:32:00.000-07:00

Just came across these neat old pix of Coney Island in the 1960s and 1970s. Glad to see that some things never change:

Fourth of July weekend on the boardwalk. The Coney Island Dancers(warning, this link has disco music) were just getting warmed up, so much so that the man in the sweaty business pants ripped off his shirt and poured bottled water over his head just like Flashdance, only sweatier.

He's a maniac on the boardwalk!
Stars and stripes forever:

Freaks and geeks:

A Coney Island classic:

Soaring high above the other rides is the Scream Zone Sling Shot ride. You couldn't pay me a million dollars to try it. Well, maybe you could...

What the?! Furries? In this heat!!!

King of the Coney Island Dancers. On Fourth of July...

...and a few weeks later:

Hot wheelz:

Old-school signage:

Taken from the pier. The beach crowds were off the hook. Nothing but sun worshippers and umbrellas for miles and miles:

What a catch!:

Lifeguards in action. Luckily this was a false alarm. Signs all over the pier say No Diving and No Swimming. The lifeguards (the guys to the right in orange) make anyone who ignores the signs (the guy on the left) swim back to shore and get out of the water.

The swim of shame.

She's Got the Power: A Girl Group Extravaganza

2011-08-03T14:48:00.000-07:00

Rock-n-roll's original bad girl Ronnie Specter rocked the house Saturday night with The Ronettes' classics "Walking in the Rain," "Be My Baby," and "The Best Part of Breaking Up"--and Amy Winehouse's "Back to Black."

That's Ronnie in red. Yep, that's Paul Shaffer on keyboards and Steven Van Sandt (wearing his trademark headscarf of course) far left on acoustic guitar.

She wasn’t the only girl-group diva bringing the crowd to their feet at Lincoln Center's She's Got the Power: A Girl Group Extravaganza. Lesley Gore, LaLa Brooks and their backup singers knocked it out of the ballpark with their performances of "Going to the Chapel," "And Then He Kissed Me," and many more chart-toppers from the 1960s.

 LaLa Brooks of The Crystals

Unfortunately, I didn't get a picture of Lesley Gore. Guess I was just too mesmerized by her performance of "You Don't Own Me" to get out my camera. Go here to see what I'm talking about!

Another High Line pretty

2011-07-28T14:55:00.000-07:00

I'm not sure what this lovely flower growing along the old train track is since it's not included in the High Line Plant Guide Spring/Summer 2010 pamphlet. Maybe some sort of black-eyed susan? If anyone out there knows, leave a comment and let me know!

The High Line on a summer afternoon

2011-07-27T16:45:00.000-07:00

It felt like the crowds at Grand Central Station and Penn Station had been beamed over to the High Line when Seth and I met good friends from Portland (Hi Lara and Scott!)there a few weeks ago on a Sunday afternoon. It was hot-as-you-know-what and hard to see anything except people, people and more people. So I didn't get any pictures that day. These photos were taken in early summer on a weekday afternoon when my good friend from Seattle (Hi Tina!) was in town.

In full bloom, these urban grasslands and woodlands put on quite a show, splashing the New York skyline with brilliant pops of color:

Here's a peek at the section that just opened in early June:

It's distinctly different from the rest of the High Line, and I love it. Some of the highlights include this old mural painted on the side of the building, People's Pops for coconut popsicles, the 23rd Street Lawn (an expansive stretch of grass for naps and picnics), and...

...an elevated section with gardens growing under the pathway. Here's a bird's eye view of a small section of garden on the lower tier:

The new section is pretty close to where I work, so it's been nice to be able to stroll the High Line on my lunch hour. (It seems to be much less crowded on weekdays and in the winter.)

The other day I mentioned to Seth that the ornamental grass and giant puffball-shaped flowers that make up the High Line landscape reminded me of a favorite gardening book by Piet Oudolf. Turns out, he's the High Line's planting designer. Guess I need to brush up on my High Line history. At any rate, check out his Web site to see before-and-after photos. Here's the 34th Avenue stretch. It hasn't been renovated yet and it's not open to the public:

And finally, a close-up of the showy foxtail lily. If I ever have my own home, it's going to be one of the first things I plant in the yard! (Wonder how much Oudolf charges to design a private garden. This would be nice.)

Chasing rainbows...

2011-05-21T07:44:00.000-07:00

...in southern Illinois...

Look closely. It's a double rainbow!

...and in St. Louis.

The arch. Spring trip to home sweet home, April, 2010.

Birdwatching

2011-05-07T11:06:00.000-07:00

Birdwatching at the Watershed Nature Center in Edwardsville, Illinois. I spy...

The shy Cardinal perched in the treetops. Why won't you look at me?:

The not-so-elusive Redwing Blackbird:

A ray of sunshine on a cloudy day, the Yellow Finch in its lemony glory:

The...wait a minute, that's fellow birdwatcher Grandma Aunt Adel!

And the Purple Finch enjoying a late afternoon snack.

Not pictured: more finches and some sort of gray woodpecker (they ate and flew before I could snap a pic), as well as swallows, a gray heron and other wading birds, hundreds of Canada geese, and my mom who likes getting her picture taken even less than I do.

Magnolias in Prospect Park

2011-05-07T10:47:00.000-07:00

Yay! Spring has finally sprung!

Back to the Navy Yards

2011-04-25T19:07:00.000-07:00

Meet Neil. He's the new Armstrong in my life--just kidding, "he" is just an empty life-sized replica of NASA's Apollo Era A7LB, created by mad scientist/artist/inventor/CEO of the Brower Propulsion Laboratory, Steven Brower. The A7LB is an upgrade of the A7L,  the suit Neil Armstrong wore when he became the first man to walk on  the moon.

We're over the moon!

Brower's copy of the A7LB looks incredibly lifelike, and cost a fraction of what NASA spent to manufacture the original. On his Web site Brower describes the suit as having "several  layers, and a mechanical and air conditioning  system that mimics the actual artifacts, although made in my  art-poverty-compromise vernacular.  I machined all the fittings and  fabricated all the plastic and rubber parts in my shop."

A life-sized replica of NASA's Apollo Era A7LB created by Brower Propulsion Laboratory.

Pictured below is the other Armstrong in my life, no relation to the astronaut. Here he's being forced to demonstrate how this sandblaster doubles as a drink cooler. 

Gouache paintings from the BPL-004 Experimental Outsourcing Mission To China, the LIMPER (Limited Intelligence Marginally Produced Exploration Rover), and other models and inventions, including a karate chopping mechanical arm were on display at the Brower Propulsion Lab open studio that took place on April 23, 2011. It was too crowded to take many pictures, but I did get a shot of BPL's "recycled mugs":

The last time I was in The Brooklyn Navy Yards I wanted to take a closer look at the building in the photo below: BLG 128163-A1. Well, wishes do come true since the Brower Propulsion Lab is also in the The Navy Yards right next door. In its heyday this building was at the center of "America's premier  shipbuilding facility," but it's seen better days. 

This building consists of many terminals and multiple floors, and spans at least a city block--it's so big my friend Bryan noted it has its own atmospheric haze. The terminals needed to be massive enough to accommodate the ships constructed inside them, for scale the most famous battleship built there, the U.S.S. Missouri, is longer than the Washington Monument.

It had rained earlier that day, and the puddles together with the late afternoon light gave the area a nice glow. BLG. 128163-A1 smelled very musty after the storm.

It's fun to imagine this factory up and running, especially during World War II, when female mechanics and technicians reported for duty for the first time ever. At one time thousands of people worked in this building, today broken glass and inoperable bits of machinery are all that remain.

"MAKE IT A SAFE PLACE TO WORK"

Here's a view of one of the dry docks with the East River and the Williamsburg Bridge in the distance.

Goodbye Navy Yards. I can't wait to visit again.

In the neighborhood...

2011-04-20T15:49:00.000-07:00

The guy on the right struck a pose for me when he spotted me taking his picture from the backseat of the Brooklyn Navy Yard bus.

Back to reality on the streets of Vinegar Hill after the Brooklyn Navy Yard tour. It was hard to acclimate to life in the city after roaming the eerie grounds of the campus hospital, where I kind of felt like I was in a gothic horror movie.

Off the beaten path in Brooklyn: The Navy Yards

2011-04-16T11:11:00.000-07:00

"When we got to the shop the men told us to go home where we belong in the kitchen and we told them to 'Shut up!'." That's what Carmela said happened on her first day on the job at the Brooklyn Navy Yard in 1941. She was one of the first women trained to weld the deck of the battleship Missouri. It was a man's world, but womanpower was in high demand since so many men were being drafted for World War II.

The Brooklyn Navy Yard spans several blocks and is about the size of a typical neighborhood.

Our tour guide Cindy had interviewed Carmela along with many of the men and women who worked in the Navy Yards back then and hers was just one of the many oral histories incorporated into the Navy Yards tour Seth and I took last week on April 9, 2011. Ida from the Bronx who was also part of the "female invasion" of this traditionally male workforce said, "Boy, did we learn how to curse...and we liked it." Another woman welder who helped to build the USS Missouri had this to say about being at its christening: "I felt so patriotic, fuhggedaboudit!"

A tug boat on the dry dock. Boats are pulled in onto a lift to hold them straight, then the water is drained so the mechanics can paint or repair the bottom of the boat.

Today unless you work on the dry dock or at the movie studios, rent an artist studio, or have had to rescue your car from the tow pound (like Seth and I did the first week we moved to Brooklyn back in 2001) there's a good chance that you can live in NYC your whole life without setting foot inside the Navy Yard.

View from artist Thomas Witte's studio. Stencils decorate the windows and mimic the cranes that dot the landscape.

That's about to change though. The Navy Yards will soon welcome more visitors when the Brooklyn Navy Yard Museum opens in November of this year. To celebrate Obscura Day, the Brooklyn Navy Yards opened its doors to a small group of Urban Oyster tourists, most of us from Brooklyn, a few from the other boroughs, and a handful of national and international tourists as well.

Machine Shop, BLG. 128163-A1 where women welders worked on World War II battleships. There are plans in the works to restore this factory to its former glory to use for green industry.

My favorite part of the tour was hearing the oral histories and getting a glimpse inside Machine Shop, BLG. 128163-A1, where the Missouri and more battleships were built, but other highlights included seeing the dry dock in action as a tug boat was being painted and repaired, exploring the grounds of the Navy Hospital Campus, which included the grand but crumbling head surgeon's house, the measles ward and the morgue, the nurse's quarters, a monument to the men lost in the Opium Wars, and another for the Merchant Mariners.

The courtyard next to the hospital and in front of the surgeon's home. In the distance is the Opium Wars monument which reads "To those who fell at the capture of the Barrier Forts in the Canton River, China: November 16th, 20th, 22st & 22nd 1856."

There's a lot of history here--way too much to cover in a three-hour tour, but our tour guide Cindy did it in such a way that the really made the time fly and made me wish the tour was longer. An interesting historical tidbit: about a third of the medical supplies used to treat Union soldiers during the Civil War came from the hospital campus. It's a beautiful and eerie place that would make the perfect setting for a gothic horror movie with its old trees, vines, and feral cats fed by the Navy Yard's own Cat Lady.

The chief surgeon's mansion.

I wouldn't be surprised if parts of the Navy Yard were haunted. The remains of runaway slaves and soldiers killed in various wars were disinterred from the Naval Cemetery back in the 1920s, but it was fairly recently discovered that some were left behind. The area where the cemetery used to be is now considered "hallowed grounds" and may eventually be turned into a memorial park.

Seth in front of the Navy Hospital.

During the American Revolution British prison ships filled with American prisoners were docked on the East River--initially on the Manhattan side, but they were moved to Brooklyn outside of the Navy Yards when Manhattanites started complaining about the stench. Cindy told us that the only time the prisoners were able to see sunlight and get a little fresh air was when they were allowed up on deck to throw the dead overboard.

I was totally into Greek mythology when I was a kid, so I loved spotting the beautiful hippocamps encircling the base of the monument to Merchant Mariners on the Hospital Campus.

If you're a history buff or love getting off the beaten path, definitely check out one of the Urban Oyster tours--or the Atlas Obscura Web site for that matter. The photo below is taken from the bus on a street that flanks the Navy Yards. This is part of Admiral's Row. There are plans to restore two of these buildings, but it won't be easy; they're in a major state of disrepair.

The once majestic buildings along Admiral's row, now crumbling and covered with ivy.

One of the other neat things about the tour is that Thomas Witte, an artist who stencils onto glass and other material salvaged from the Navy Yards to create almost photo realistic images, invited us inside his studio. Below is his painting of a scene from the U.S. Navy Hospital and if you click here you can see an image inspired by a photo of Brooklyn Navy Yard's own Rosie Riveters that includes at least one of the women interviewed for the oral histories.

Artwork by Thomas Witte.

A Collector's Paradise

2011-04-03T10:28:00.000-07:00

Lady Liberty in duplicate.

Many years ago there was a window at the corner at Havemeyer and Grand in Williamsburg that was always filled with the neatest collections. I didn't know much about it--and then it was gone. Well, a couple weeks ago Seth and I happened upon The City Reliquary on Metropolitan Avenue and found out that the person responsible for the window displays on Havemeyer and Grand opened this tiny museum about five years back.

Look closely on the right upper half of this picture and you can see handholds from the NYC subway cars of yesteryear.

The museum consists of a foyer and a small back room that you enter from the foyer through an old turnstile. It's such a cool place. Look to the left to see a cabinet filled with Statue of Liberty souvenirs, including a figurine of Lady Liberty as a hula dancer--to the right is a shrine to the Brooklyn Dodgers and the late great Jackie Robinson, a shelf lined with green glass seltzer bottles, and a tiny cone that you hold to your ear to hear a sample of Sonny Rollins playing sax. Turns out he would practice for hours at a time on the Williamsburg Bridge because as he said in an interview, "I'm a sensitive person and I know that people need quiet in their apartments." It was little bits of information like this that made The City Reliquary so fun. (Seth also wanted me to mention that Sonny Rollins plays the sax at the end of "Waiting on a Friend," one of Seth's favorite songs from the Rolling Stones album Tattoo You. They shot the music video at 96-98 St. Mark's Place in the East Village, which is also the backdrop of the album cover for Led Zeppelin's Physical Graffiti. Who knew? Not me! So, there's a little NYC music factoid for all you rock 'n' roll buffs.)

A shrine to the Brooklyn Dodgers and late great Jackie Robinson.

Some of the other highlights include anything and everything having to do with the subway (from tokens to NY Subway Rail Dust), a carnival attraction revealing the history of burlesque, even a tribute to the 1939 World's Fair. If you love collecting, discovering the unexpected and the odd, if you want a unique perspective of New York's history, here's more info on visiting The City Reliquary.

Behind Every Curtain

2011-03-27T14:30:00.000-07:00

I've never seen Marcel Dzama's artwork in person so I was super-excited to check out his exhibit at the David Zwirner gallery.

In addition to his watercolor and root beer characters painted on old piano-player scrolls, there were dioramas, spinning sculptures, and a merry-go-round with chess-piece creatures made out of old tin cans.

The icing on the cake, though: the premier screening of his film A Game of Chess, an epic battle based on, well, a game of chess and starring a new cast of scary ballerina soldiers.

Super Moon

2011-03-20T10:08:00.000-07:00

Howled at the super moon last night, but couldn't get a very good picture of it. Go here to see some great ones.

Just because...

2011-03-10T18:42:00.000-08:00

A long-tailed Macaque spotted in Langkawi in the mangroves. I took this photo about two years ago when Seth and I vacationed in Malaysia.

Big Foot?

2011-03-08T19:31:00.001-08:00

Spotted in Gowanus a week or so ago.

Birdwatching in Tompkins Square Park

2011-02-27T08:22:00.001-08:00

One of the homeless people in Tompkins Square Park called this hawk the "King of the Park." He did look rather regal until he got tangled in a discarded shopping bag......after swooping down from the branch and coming thisclose to catching a squirrel. Luckily he was able to free himself.

City Safari

2011-02-21T08:39:00.000-08:00

A friend of mine asked me if I'd been on any new urban adventures lately, like treasure hunting at Dead Horse Bay or urban spelunking. Sadly, no. Just read this article, though, at Coilhouse about a street artist named Roa who makes large-scale paintings of animals. Turns out, Roa's painted a few larger than life creatures in NYC. Guess it's time to plan a city safari to find them.

Seth and I have walked by this stencil art by Dolk a million times (well, almost a million) on our way to Red Hook. Last time we saw it, it was covered over in red paint:

Here's another Dolk, long gone by now:

It's nice to see something unexpected on the side of a building--or completely covering a building. This has probably peeled away or been painted over years ago, but it's my favorite piece of graffiti covering 5Pointz:

Sometimes, you'll spot the same thing hanging on the walls of a gallery as you do on the side of a building on a street near where you live--such as these from Swoon's exhibit at the now closed Deitch Gallery in Long Island City...

...and this, in the neighborhood:

If you want more info, the folks at Brooklyn Street Art could give you more about these than I ever could.

Feeding Frenzy

2011-02-15T17:37:00.001-08:00

Sunday afternoon at Prospect Park. The ponds are mostly covered in ice so it seems that all the birds in the park--at least the waterfowl and the seagulls--gathered in the one spot that was partially thawed. It's a good idea to stay out of the swans' way, otherwise something like this might happen. Some of the swans looked like they were in a barnyard brawl. Talk about grimy. I wonder what happened to them.

I never noticed this before, but mallard ducks have really cute curly feathers on their undersides, noticeable when they dive underwater for a bite to eat. I'm no bird expert, so I'm still trying to figure out the names of all my new feathered friends--especially the small black ducks with white beaks and the pale reddish and creamy white ducks that are slightly larger than a mallard.

UPDATE: When it comes to birds, I'm a bit of a bird brain. Thanks Matthew aka Brooklyn Bachelor for answering my bird-related questions. Turns out the "barnyard brawl" swans are still in their awkward ugly duckling phase. And the black "ducks" are actually American coots. If you want to explore wildlife in the city Matthew's Backyard and Beyond is a fantastic place to visit.

Happy New Year!

2011-02-06T20:32:00.000-08:00

Celebrating the Year of the Rabbit in NYC's Chinatown. See many more pictures here.

Narnia? No, just Prospect Park.

2011-01-30T07:08:00.000-08:00

"As he stood wondering why there was a lamp-post in the middle of a wood and wondering what to do next, he heard a pitter patter of feet coming toward him." --paraphrased from The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe

Let it snow! Let it snow! Let it snow!

2011-01-27T11:57:00.000-08:00

Stopping by the woods (well, kind of) on a snowy morning on my way to work

I just noticed I wore mismatched boots to work. I guess in the wardrobe malfunction scheme of things it's better than wearing, say, an inside-out shirt, but it's still embarrassing. I need a snow day. And a big ol' square of lasagna. What's your favorite recipe to enjoy on chilly winter's day? I'll post mine tonight if I can connect to the Internet. (Fingers crossed.)

POST UPDATE:

Yay! I've got Internet.

It's been snowing like you wouldn't believe around here. Seth and I were so excited about it last night that we took a nice long walk in the middle of the storm and looked like a couple of abominable snowmen by the time we got back to the 'bush. (That's Seth in the top picture and me in the bottom one.) Then, after we went to bed I woke up every hour on the hour to check how deep the snow was. Cars and trucks and buses were slipping and sliding all over Flatbush Avenue like mad all. night long.

Anyway, this is my favorite lasagna recipe. It's my mom's recipe, more or less (she uses cottage cheese, I sometimes use ricotta). It's the one I've been making ever since I learned to cook and it's perfect for a day like today.

Mom's Lasagna

Prepare lasagna noodles and preheat oven as indicated on the package.

Meanwhile, in one bowl mix equal parts tomato sauce with tomato paste (I like Hunts), chopped marinated artichoke hearts, chopped Spanish olives, dried basil, and Parmesan. In another bowl mix ricotta or cottage cheese, shredded cheddar, shredded mozzarella, and more Parmesan.

Alternately layer noodles and tomato and cheese mixtures, sprinkle basil and Parmesan on top, then bake according to directions on lasagna package.

Serve with Pasta House Salad minus the onions (if you're me!).

Experiencing technical difficulties...

2011-01-24T07:18:00.000-08:00

Will be back as soon as my home computer is up and running again.

The Grand Reopening of the Museum of the Moving Image

2011-01-17T14:19:00.000-08:00

Checked out the new Martha Colburn stop-motion animation Dolls vs Dictators at Saturday night's grand reopening of the Museum of the Moving Image.

Other highlights included Real Virtuality, which consists of Marco Brambilla's Cathedral (pictured above), a video artwork with moving images that resembled a giant kaleidoscope, as well as a circular 3-D movie called Into the Forest. The neat thing about Into the Forest is that viewers step into a spotlight projected onto the floor in front of the screen and their images are incorporated into the video.

Green-Wood Cemetery after the snowstorm

2011-01-17T08:06:00.001-08:00

Seth and I finally spotted the elusive (well, elusive to us) monk parrots which nest in the Gothic gate at the 5th Avenue entrance to Green-Wood Cemetery. Unfortunately, I couldn't get a good shot of them with my camera. Legend has it, these pretty tropical birds escaped after being shipped to JFK airport from South America back in the 1960s. Now they can be spotted at various locations in the city. Read more, much more, about it at BrooklynParrots.com.

Winter Wonderland

2011-01-10T18:20:00.000-08:00

Home for the holidays, Christmas 2010. Mom and Dad's backyard after the snow in the early morning light. No trick photography here. Everything really was this beautiful shade of blue. See more photos here.

It's Christmastime in the City

2010-12-21T20:16:00.000-08:00

Happy, Happy! Merry, Merry!

If you're in NYC this Christmas, check out the tree at Rockefeller Center. Then head to Bergdorf Goodman to peek inside the holiday windows.

It's well worth braving the cold!

Then cozy up inside The Oak Room for Christmas cocktails. But if that's too crowded, grab a burger or grilled cheese at the secret Burger Joint at Le Parker Meridien. And have a very Merry Christmas!

Bright lights, big city

2010-12-19T17:10:00.001-08:00

Anselm Kiefer

2010-12-12T14:06:00.000-08:00

In NYC

November roundup: an anniversary, a holiday, a birthday

2010-12-12T13:21:00.000-08:00

Time flies! Seth and I've been married for only a year, but it feels like a decade. We celebrated our first wedding anniversary (November 16) at Bemelmans Bar at the Carlyle, which is famous for its murals by the artist for which the bar was named.

The celebration continues with Thanksgiving on the 'bush. I was nervous about making the Turkey this year, but, luckily, it turned out crispy and brown on the outside, juicy on the inside.

The usual crowd--more or less--with Bryan behind the camera.

On the menu: honey brined turkey, green bean casserole, oyster dressing, cranberry dressing, sweet potatoes, mashed potatoes, fruit salad, and Parker house rolls, with Kaori's enari sushi for appetizers and a spicy chocolate cake, Charlie's heavenly flan (Charlie, if you're reading this, I really, really want the recipe!!), and Bryan's pear pancake surprise.

Can you spot the surprise? Oops!

And good things come in threes--Happy Birthday Seth!

The White House in miniature

2010-11-09T15:11:00.000-08:00

Talk about a doll house lover's dream come true! "Inside the White House: A Special Exhibit" was on display at the Ronald W. Reagan Presidential Foundation & Library when we visited in October. It's almost impossible to see in this photo, but the presidential garbage cans are there, too!

I could have spent hours peeking inside the tiny windows and behind the scenes, marveling at the glorious chandeliers (with electricity!), historical artwork, and exquisitely carved and upholstered furniture--all painstakingly reproduced down to the last detail at a scale of one inch to one foot.

These floors probably weren't so shiny during the Carter administration, since young Amy Carter used this room as her personal roller rink.

This miniaturized replica of the White House was created and updated by John and Jan Zweifel over the course of about 40 years--and it's still a work in progress.

See the rooms at the very top of the White House behind the balcony railing? That's where the Bush twins lived when W. was in office.

When any of the rooms are redecorated in the White House, the Zweifels make the same changes in their version of the White House. So, for example, you can get a glimpse into the Obama's chic yet cozy living quarters exactly as they are today, complete with stylish wallpaper, family photos, and the ultimate accessory, B o, the Portuguese Water Dog. You won't see this lovely room on tour at the White House!

Unfortunately, the miniature version of the Oval Office rug that made headlines wasn't ready when I visited the exhibit, but it might be ready by now.

If you're in the area I wholeheartedly recommend seeing it, especially since this exhibit is eventually moving to the Smithsonian in Washington, D.C. I also read that it has been (or will be???) on display in every state so that everyone gets the chance to peek inside the White House, even if they can't make it to our country's capital. See more pics here.

Spotted in Red Hook...

2010-11-08T17:57:00.000-08:00

Spotted at the 2010 NYC Marathon

2010-11-07T13:36:00.000-08:00

Seth and I usually wake up early enough to see the elites, but this year despite daylight savings, we overslept and missed them. It was fun to see the Marathon from a new vantage point, though--the corner of Flatbush Avenue and Fourth Avenue:And strolling through Fort Greene:

Furries(?)...and more furries!

Feet...er, hands don't fail me now! See more photos here.

Exploring tide pools at Leo Carrillo State Park

2010-11-07T12:11:00.000-08:00

This is the first time I've ever seen a tide pool and I'm hooked! This is a sea anemone. When you poke it it bunches up into a little ball and looks like a pile of rocks and sand. It squirts water and its tentacles are sticky like a leech. Later, I learned that you really shouldn't touch them since they've got a nasty sting.

Orange starfish like these and the purple ones like the one pictured in the "California in Mosaics and Photos" post--along with too many hermit crabs to count--abound in these tide pools. If anyone knows what they're called leave a comment and let me know!

Leo Carrillo State Park is popular destination for camping, swimming and beach combing, but when we visited it seemed like we were the only people on the coast for miles. See more of Seth and my California vacation at my Flickr account.

The Virgin Knitters

2010-11-06T12:43:00.000-07:00

Back in 2008, my friend Kim taught me to knit in exchange for my first scarf as part of her Virgin Knitter project:

Kim and Justin.

She started this project because (as she says on her Web site): "I believe that the first scarf a person makes is especially unique—even lucky—because you can only make something for the first time once."

Well, lucky me-- last night my scarf was part of the collection of first scarves on display at the Textile Arts Center in Brooklyn.

There was music and dancing by Radio Jarocho.

It was okay to take the artwork off the wall to try it on. I met a lot of people who said they wanted to learn to knit because of Kim's exhibit. It really is inspiring. Makes me want to (finally!) finish my second scarf.

Laurie modeling Tina's scarf. (Tina, if you're reading this, wish you could have been here!)

Everyone got to bid on their favorite scarf/scarves. But not for money. To win one of these scarves you have to explain why you like it or what it means to you. Bids ran the gamut from serious, to heartfelt, to funny. And in some cases, a little bit crazy:

Here's the scarf that started it all:

There's still time to check out the show. Read more about it in BUST (the red scarf in the bottom picture is mine!) and see more pics at my flickr account. Thanks, Kim, for teaching me how to knit and congrats on your exhibit!

California in mosaics and photos

2010-10-30T14:46:00.000-07:00

Carrillo's Tortilleria in Canoga Park. It's in the same strip mall as a pupusaria. Too bad we were way too full to try west coast pupusas!

San Buenaventura Mission in downtown Ventura.

Starfish and tide pools.

Air Force One beautifully displayed at the Ronald W. Reagan Presidential Foundation & Library.

A stormy late afternoon in the normally sunny Ojai Valley.

Lovely mosaics depicting the history of Ventura, CA, by artist Larissa Strauss, can be seen at the Museum of Ventura County. See more of Seth and my vacation at my Flickr account.

Somewhere over the rainbow...

2010-10-28T15:57:00.000-07:00

Spotted 27 October 2010 on Bergen Street...and in Dumbo and over the Brooklyn Bridge and here and here.

California dreamin'

2010-10-15T17:45:00.001-07:00

Wonder if I'll see my long lost twin again!

Saturday, What a day!

2010-10-15T17:18:00.001-07:00

Video shoot on the 'bush.

Scenes from Open House New York:
The General Society of Mechanics & Tradesmen

The most beautiful Art Deco murals on the ceiling of the Chrysler Building Lobby.

The 69th Regiment Armory.

Grand Lodge of the Masons.

Oh, and Washington Square Park is undergoing a major renovation (and it looks terrific), but, thankfully, some things never change:

M-O-T-H-E-R mother, a word that means the world to me!

2010-10-11T18:40:00.000-07:00

Happy Birthday, Mom!

Wish I could be there to celebrate with you.

Love, Rachel

Trees, trees and more trees

2010-09-17T17:04:00.001-07:00

Hi Mom, here's a little inspiration for your mosaic art pops! Just one of the many tree photos taken yesterday all over NYC.

Just found out that Sarah was in Prospect Park when the storm blew in and was really worried about being hit by a tree branch at the time. Luckily she outran the tornado. Talk about scary!

NYC Tornado, Sept. 16, 2010

2010-09-16T18:22:00.001-07:00

Flatbush Avenue: This tree was in front of Haifa Bodega blocking three lanes of traffic. I was on the subway during the tornado so I didn't even know that a storm hit. A guy who had been in Haifa during the worst of it came out and told me that the sky turned black, there was lightning and strong gusts of wind and that it was one of the scariest situations he'd been in. (A week or so ago a branch of this tree broke off and was hanging by a thread from the trunk. For some reason the city never cleaned it up. So when I saw that the whole tree was destroyed and blocking three lanes of traffic on Flatbush, my initial thought was that the broken branch somehow dragged the rest of the tree down. Now the city's really got a mess on its hands!)

Prospect Heights, Vanderbilt Avenue:

This was a typical scene. People everywhere talking about what happened or cleaning up what they could in the aftermath. Other people taking pictures of people taking pictures of people taking pictures of fallen branches.This is weird. Park Slope, 5th Avenue:

The beautiful tree near the Stone House was another casualty. This tree was so old that I imagine it could have been around during the Revolution. You can't tell from the picture, but it was massive.

Seth was so disturbed by the whole situation he grew a Michael Douglas hairdo. What the...?

I can't remember what street this was on. I think 4th. I read that many of the trees uprooted like this because their roots were trimmed so they wouldn't crack the sidewalk.

Here's another view of the same tree. Those are firetruck lights in the background. Soon after I took this, the firefighters drove the truck right up to this tree to survey the damage. One firefighter seemed like he really, really wanted to rev up the chainsaw, but I think they decided that this was too big of a job to tackle with just one saw so late in the evening.

5th street between 5th and 6th Avenues was hit hard. The 5th Avenue side of the block was blocked by a huge old shade tree that all the neighbors loved......the 6th Avenue side was blocked by this. Most cars that I saw while we walked around seemed intact. For example, a branch fell on top of someone's car in front of our apartment building and the car owner just got in and drove away. It didn't even look like it was scratched. But then there was this:

While I was taking pictures of this car I talked to a woman who said that water and dust flooded into her apartment when the storm hit, her kids were screaming and scared, the sky was green. I overheard another woman on this block tell a police officer that a tree busted out all the windows in her apartment. What a mess. Read more here and see a video here shot by a person who was pretty...gutsy(?) to stand in front of all those windows filming during a storm like this.

"Platform Diving" at the Houston Street subway station

2010-09-14T21:40:00.000-07:00

What did you see in the subway today? I spotted an octopus!

Scenes from Fashion's Night Out at the Limelight Marketplace

2010-09-13T19:02:00.000-07:00

Angels wearing teeny tiny tighty whities? So that's what all the fashions-night-out hype's about! A pair of these guys were standing guard at the entrance to the Limelight Marketplace.

Channeling Marilyn Monroe:

Mimi Imfurst (of The Queens of Drag: NYC fame) looking fabulous in a fifties inspired frock. Look closely and you'll notice Seth in the background posing for photographers in his own stylish-yet-understated day-to-evening ensemble:

She must be thinking about the Limelight's wilder days...

That's what all those shiny kitchen gadgets are for!

Labor Day Weekend 2010

2010-09-09T17:08:00.000-07:00

One of the many, many plumed beauties spotted that day.

We caught the tail-end of Brooklyn's West Indian Day Parade on Monday. Wish we would have got there sooner, though, it was so much fun with everyone dancing in the street to music so loud you can feel it pounding in your chest. And the costumes were off the hook!

There's a neat article about the carnival's origins in NYC at Uncommon Caribbean. The author says that back in the 1920s it was "celebrated in February, the appropriate pre-Lenten time for jumpin’ up in Trinidad and countries around the world. Unfortunately, New York’s February climate wasn’t terribly hospitable to their skimpy costumes" so the celebration was moved to Labor Day. You can read the article in its entirety and see many more pics by clicking on the link above. I also found a slideshow on flickr that nicely captures the feel of the festivities.

Out for a very, very, very long stroll with Laurie and Bryan. Here they are posing with an unidentified man in Chinatown.

Also, did you know that it takes about 3 hours to walk from Prospect Heights to Central Park if you stop for snapshots and juice along the way? All in all, a great weekend, but by Monday night my dogs were killing me!

La la la la!

2010-08-30T17:19:00.000-07:00

Best news ever! I headed to Times Square after work today and discovered that Pee-Wee's coming to Broadway!

Who wants to go wacky at Pee-Wee's Playhouse? I do! I do!

Back to Dead Horse Bay

2010-08-22T10:42:00.000-07:00

I never noticed how the broken glass sounded like wind chimes when the waves rolled in until Seth pointed it out.Guess I was too focused on finding treasures in the trash...

...or spotting little birds with orange beaks...

...and other creatures like "Happy the Humbug."

Usually, there are a few scary doll heads/parts littering the beach. Maybe someone collected them earlier that day.
Luckily, there were plenty of other neat things to watch out for.

"People" watching on the rooftops surrounding Madison Square Park

2010-08-22T10:28:00.000-07:00

I spy...

Antony Gormley's Event Horizon
Saturday, August 14, 2010.

Spotted in Gowanus...

2010-08-22T10:24:00.001-07:00

Sunday, August 15, 2010.

Heading to the Bysterious Beyond!

2010-08-14T15:57:00.000-07:00

My sister, Hillary, and I started a new family tradition last year: Camping at Clearwater State Park in western Pennsylvania.

Last year it was just Hillary, Spencer, Wyatt, Seth and me. This year TWO new additions joined in on the family fun--my brother-in-law, Dan, and brand new nephew, Jesse.

The whole trip was great fun, but my favorite part was heading back into the "Bysterious Beyond."

Finding more cool rocks to climb on...

...and more mushrooms to photograph for Spencer's collection. That's Spencer's finger, for scale.

OTHER HIGHLIGHTS:

1) Tubing. My camera battery died, so I didn't get any pictures--in the water, that is. (Hill, if you're reading this, you'll have to e-mail me a few photos to post here! Oh, and thanks so much for the awesome wedding gift. Seth and I love our new big blue inflatable "wedding rings.")

2) Friday night dinner featuring Hillary and Dan's chicken and veggie kebabs with tzatziki sauce. Delicious, colorful, and artfully arranged on the grill!

3) The Corbett Road sign Dan found while running errands. (Dan actually took photos of the Corbett sisters--aka Hill and me--standing in front of the sign but I was having a really bad hair day/bad T-shirt day and am too embarrassed to post the pics here. Note to self: face cleanser is NOT a good substitute for shampoo and the Cats T-shirt was cool in high school, but it's not so hot now.):

4) Discovering that Jesse can sleep anywhere, in any position. Too funny!

5) Chilly evenings at our cozy campsite. Check out more photos here at flickr!

Another peephole...

2010-07-21T19:53:00.001-07:00

...this one at Observatory:

June/early-July Redux - PART 3

2010-07-19T17:18:00.000-07:00

Here's an email from my dad a couple weeks ago. He wrote, "Most scholars use a system that has BCE and AD, with BCE meaning before common era and AD meaning anno domini. For most people we are in the year 2010 AD, but for your mom and I we are in week three aTp. In our life we have before THE party and after THE party as our current time landmarks. I pretty sure this way of counting time will recede into the background sometime during 2011 AD." By THE party he means Seth and my wedding reception. I guess that's life when planning an important event. Ever since around Christmas, when we decided to throw a shindig to celebrate us getting eloped, I've been marking time this way as well, but I didn't have a handy name for it. Here's life bTp and aTp:

bTp

Exploring Green-wood Cemetery, one tiny peephole at a time:

Checking out the brand spanking new Luna Park...

...with everyone (and I mean EVERYONE) and their mothers. There was such a mob scene at the Stillwell Ave. subway stop when we decided to head home that I'm surprised no one got trampled. Other than that, though, it was--as always--a fun day at Coney Island.
Arranging hundreds of tea roses into lovely centerpieces for THE party:

aTp

Chillaxin' with friends at Bridget and Kyle's beautiful home in St. Louis (and celebrating Bryan's b-day):

Gravity chairs! So much more comfortable than your ordinary lawn chairs. Seth and I are in the market for a new couch, but we might fill our living room with these babies instead.
What a ham!

Enjoying the sights and sounds (especially of the frogs--croaking to each other) at the Watershed Nature Center in Edwardsville, IL:

Back in NYC--window shopping at Bergdorf Goodman--and trying to re-acclimate to life after THE party.

Spotted in Red Hook...

2010-07-18T11:38:00.000-07:00

Street art:

More street art. (The one on the right is made out of tiny, intricate paper cuts. It's pretty neat):Bob Diamond's trolly cars:

A distant view of Lady Liberty:

Bright lights in the big city:

June/early-July Redux - PART 2

2010-07-17T10:07:00.000-07:00

One of the great things about traveling with my mother-in-law, Shirley, is that she loves taking in the sights by car, whether we're in L.A., Portland, OR, or NYC. Here are some of the highlights from our driving tour of St. Louis. First stop, the Jewel Box, an Art Deco-style structure built in 1936 in Forest Park:

This is a snapshot of the Carl Milles' Fountain and Union Station:

Just north of Union Station is White Knight Diner, the sandwich shop Susan Sarandon made famous in White Palace. I ate there way too much when I worked downtown. They serve a mean grilled cheese on rye...

...but we opted for lunch at Schlafly's instead. According to their Web site, it's Missouri's first brewpub.

The chauffer, aka Seth, aka Mr. Rachel Corbett

Back in the car...this is the old Kiel Opera House, which barely escaped the wrecking ball when the Scotttrade Center arena was built. Glad it did. I saw the Pixies here when they opened for Love and Rockets way back when. It was a great show!

No trip to St. Louis is complete without seeing the arch. For your viewing pleasure, the Gateway to the West as seen looking east:

June/early-July Redux - PART 1

2010-07-16T11:26:00.000-07:00

It seems a little rain would cool things down a bit. Not so. This must be what hanging out inside a mouth feels like. Baby, it's hot outside and I don't want to do nuthin', except maybe go to the movies (Toy Story 3 really is as good as the critics say it is!), lounge in front of the a.c. with a good book and watch a stupid amount of Bones episodes on Netflix. So what's new? A wedding reception in the midwest. After Seth and I eloped in November my folks asked if they could throw us a party. YES, PLEASE!!!! So, we headed to Illinois to celebrate with my hometown friends and family on June 10.

It really couldn't have been more fun. Seth and I got to hang out with family and friends, meet my brand-new nephew for the first time (and he's so cute), get a special marriage blessing from my dad (aka Deacon Dan), listen to a jazz band that was so good they just knocked my socks off, and eat yummy, yummy cake...German chocolate, carrot, pina colada, Italian cream, chocolate raspberry, each flavor better than the last:

Thanks for the party, Mom and Dad--and thanks for the memories. It was so good to see everyone. (If you're reading this and you were at the party--I miss you and wish I could see you more often!) Check out the slideshow on my flickr account for more (many, many more) snapshots. Also my cousin Emily wrote a fun post about the party on her blog, too. Thanks, Em! It was great to see you.

Cool cars...

2010-06-24T18:24:00.001-07:00

at the Route 66 Festival in Edwardsville, IL

Friday Night on the Boardwalk

2010-05-09T10:31:00.000-07:00

Coney Island sunset.

Martha Colburn

2010-05-01T09:40:00.000-07:00

If you took The Secret Adventures of Tom Thumb threw in a bit of Basquiat and Ellis Ruley (see image below from Discovering Ellis Ruley) you might get something like Martha Colburn's stop-motion films.

She takes her own artwork that she paints on glass, plus puzzle pieces, footage of scary puppet shows and old Westerns and puts them together in such a way that they're like collages come to life. This is a postcard from her Thursday night show at New Museum:

She showed her films while bands and musicians like Lumberob performed. Lumberob was especially fun and weird with herky-jerky dance moves that matched the stop-motion motion of the films. If you ever get a chance to see her films in person, highly recommended--plenty to explore online, too. Like this.

Tulips, tulips and more tulips!

2010-04-26T17:51:00.000-07:00

More eye candy from the Brooklyn Botanic Garden:

April Round-up

2010-04-25T17:26:00.001-07:00

Taking in the sights and smells at Brooklyn Botanic Garden:Exploring Chinatown:

Appreciating great works of art in Union Square:

Find out more about sand artist Joe Mangrum here and check here to see where you can see him work his magic!

Hanging out with friends at the local watering hole (thanks for the photo, Laurie!):

Brooklyn Botanic Garden

2010-04-25T13:09:00.000-07:00

If you love all things lavender, if you love the scent of lilacs, visit now--it's heavenly!

Where does the time go?

2010-04-20T18:46:00.001-07:00

Trained pigeons...spotted on a walk from Prospect Heights to Williamsburg. They're great fun to watch!

Entomologia

2010-03-02T16:26:00.001-08:00

Back in June Jennifer Angus wallpapered Newark Museum's Ballantine House in her beautiful Insecta Fantasia pattern. It was nice to see one of her pieces closer to home at the Observatory. It's called "Victoria Fancy":
Other pieces in the Entomologia exhibit, include Lisa Wood's dioramas. "Grasshopper Reading Book" looks like something Alice might have encountered in Wonderland:
This one made me do a double take. It's Judith Klausner's "Mantis Religiosa."
It's a fun exhibit to check out on a chilly afternoon!

Snow daze

2010-03-02T16:18:00.000-08:00

Thinking about warmer times...

2010-02-26T16:51:00.000-08:00

Will it ever stop snowing??!!

The High Line

2010-02-20T10:54:00.000-08:00

Didn't make it out of town last week, but did make it back to the High Line.
It's just as nice during the day as it is at night!

Snow Night

2010-02-10T18:00:00.000-08:00

Snow Daze

2010-02-10T17:36:00.001-08:00

Catskills?

2010-02-08T18:26:00.000-08:00

If Winter Storm 2010 doesn't hit, Seth and I are off to the Catskills this weekend.
Back in 2008 we packed up our leftover turkey, green bean casserole and German chocolate cake (it was the day after Thanksgiving and the day of Seth's birthday) and headed to Phoenicia. We've camped in this area many times since moving to NY, but this was the first time we stayed indoors:
And I must admit, I'm hooked. Nothing like cozying up in front of a roaring fireplace and sleeping in a nice, warm bed (especially when you're the type of camper who never seems to dress warm enough or bring enough blankets and padding). The stained glass windows, log cabin walls and big stone fireplace with candles on the mantel was just right:
This was a regular home, in a regular neighborhood, so we were ideally situated to explore a winter wonderland...
...and to window shop at the local hardware store:
This time we'd like to get a bit more off the beaten path. I searched the Web last night the entire time Seth was watching the Superbowl*, but still didn't find lodging with that perfect mix of rustic charm and indoor plumbing. Well, Brigham Place looks right up my alley, but it's already booked. And Fourpeaks seems great, but not until the Spring since I don't want to freeze my @$$ off in the "privy." Plus, it's in the Adirondacks which is too long of a trek for a 3-day weekend. (In my opinion, at least!) If only the Wawbeek was still open to the public and somehow magically transported to the Catskills. Cue the Dirty Dancing soundtrack:
Why are we grinning like that?

Ethan and Hsingyi on Ampersand Mountain. The wind was so strong, I was truly worried about being blown off the side. This was a grueling hike, but the views at the top were worth the pain and suffering.
If you ever see this stand on the side of the road, stop. Make a U-turn and double back, if you must. This kettle corn is the perfect blend of salty sweet goodness!

We had the time of our lives! What are your favorite vacation spots in the Catskills and Adirondacks? And anywhere else, for that matter. If you don't mind sharing, I'd love to hear about them!

*Did you see Lance Moore's awesome tumble through the air during the two-point conversion? And how he held onto the ball even when pivoting on his head? It's even more fun in slo-mo!

Window shopping in NYC

2010-01-18T07:16:00.000-08:00

New Orleans Souvenirs: Day 5

2010-01-16T16:00:00.000-08:00

Today was all about alligators (well, mostly): we saw them, held them, and ate them. I got reprimanded for squeezing this little guy's neck even though the tour guide (behind me) said to hold on tight:
This is a nutria. They have beady yellow eyes and a tail like a rat and, according to our tour guide, taste great when served with the holy trinity (onions, celery, bell peppers) and a bottle of fine wine:
It lives in the bayou:
Another alligator, this time with chili garlic aioli at Cochon. It does taste like chicken--really, really rubbery chicken:This is Lafayette Cemetery No. 1. According to the guide book scenes from Interview with the Vampire and Easy Rider were shot here:This is Frenchmen Street:If you love listening to music, drinking, and dancing in the street, don't miss it!Especially The Spotted Cat:
Thanks for the memories, New Orleans! We'll be back soon!

New Orleans Souvenirs: Day 4

2010-01-11T20:26:00.000-08:00

There are about a million things I'd rather have for breakfast than oysters on the half shell, but bellying up at the bar at ACME Oyster House was great fun.
Seth ordered a half dozen and I tried one, then quickly washed it down with a big ol' swig of spicy bloody Mary with a tasty pickled okra garnish. This oyster shucker wasn't going to let me get away that, though. He plopped the biggest, nastiest, grittiest oyster ever down in front of me and waited until I choked it down. Literally. Then, he laughed and said, "You a bad woman." Here he his demonstrating how big the oyster was. That seems about right. How many oysters does he shuck in a day? "Between a bunch and a shitload." Judging from the pile of empty shells behind the bar, that seems about right, too.The oyster was actually nice and mineral-y and not fishy at all. But still, it made me queasy enough to want to try one of the old-fashioned remedies at the New Orleans Pharmacy Museum.Mexican "Bowel" Pills, perhaps? Or maybe a voodoo spell? Back in the good old days you could get it all at your corner pharmacy, even a cocaine Coca-Cola at the soda fountain and a box of glass eyes:
And they kept track of prescriptions in beautiful linen books with tiny pockets on each page.From there we headed to Willie Mae's Scotch House for a taste of their legendary fried chicken.It had such a warm, welcoming atmosphere. If Seth and I ever get a house of our own, I hope the kitchen looks just like this, with high ceilings, wood floors and beadboard lining the walls.The perfect kind of place to enjoy the ultimate comfort food, and the perfect food to cure whatever ails you. I could eat this every day!
***
Here's Seth at City Park:Have you ever seen a swan like this? The little stripe on its beak looks like it was painted on.Here's Seth again posing with what could be the biggest tree in City Park:It's hard to believe, but we went out to eat again after this. My one regret? Not having the energy to check out Kermit Ruffins Night at Vaughn’s Lounge in Bywater that night. (Guess, that's what I get for being a homebody the rest of the year.) Legendary jazz musician Kermit Ruffins cooks up barbecue for the audience before the show then jams the rest of the night. Yet another reason to go back!

They don't make 'em like they used to--UPDATE

2010-01-09T15:10:00.000-08:00

Scenes from the Williamsburgh Savings Bank on the ground floor of The Clocktower. Mosaics, mosaics and more mosaics, everywhere you look, each more beautiful than the next:
According to An Architectural Guidebook to Brooklyn, by Francis Morrone, the mosaics on the ceiling in the photos above and below were designed by artist Angelo Magnanti. The mosaic above is hand painted. The one below is a grand depiction of the zodiac in gold and pale blue. This photo doesn't do it justice:

These remind me of the ornate designs on the front of the Brooklyn Public Library. Does anyone know more about them? Are they by the same artist? Update: I think they're by Rene Chambellan. The iron figures in the first photo definitely are.

Squirrels on either side stand guard as this girl holds on tight to a beehive:

Mosaics

2010-01-09T14:26:00.000-08:00

The great outdoors--spotted at the Delancy subway station.

New Orleans Souvenirs: Day 3

2009-12-21T18:54:00.000-08:00

After such an action packed day, Seth and I decided to take it easy. Our hotel is very close to Magazine Street, so we headed that way in search of the Magazine Po-Boy and Sandwich Shop. I must say, I'm not a big fan of po-boys like Seth is, but when it came to deep fried pickle slices, it was love at first bite!

Mardi Gras beads decorate many of the homes and trees along Magazine Street:
Magazine Street is popular for its cute boutiques and resale shops, but I liked it for things like this. I really love this car, especially parked in front of the Pawn Shop like that:
It took us an hour or so to walk to Audubon Park, but with all the great food we'd been sampling it was nice to get at least a little bit of exercise. There's a big ol' Whole Foods on Magazine Street so we loaded up on vegetables and salad and had a picnic in the park. It was great fun to bird watch, especially with odd critters like this cross between a turkey and a duck running around. Talk about a bird of a different feather! What the @#$% is it???
It seems we couldn't let a day of our vacation pass without hanging out in the French Quarter, so, after ogling the grand mansions on St. Charles Street, we hopped the trolley and headed downtown.
This is the famous Cornstalk Hotel, so named because of its lovely cast iron fence:
Seth's one regret is that we didn't eat at an iconic New Orleans restaurant like Brennan's. There's always next time!
Instead, we had dinner at Molly's. Someone told us to eat here if we wanted a fantastic bowl of gumbo. It's not on the menu; the chef makes it when the mood strikes her. Luckily, she had a big batch ready when we got there.
We stopped at Napoleon House for a nightcap. I loved the ambiance but the Pimm's Cup left a lot to be desired, especially since it's the house drink. Way too sweet for me. I've had this drink many times before, but it's never tasted like cough syrup.
We didn't eat or drink here, but passed it while strolling along Urine Alley (my nickname for this stretch of sidewalk--Pee-YOU!) on our way to catch the trolley back to our hotel. Those little spots on the sidewalk are mosaics of oysters on the half shell.

Winter Wonderland

2009-12-20T18:23:00.000-08:00

Prospect Park, November 20, 2009

Little Prairie in the City

2009-12-20T16:55:00.000-08:00

A fun after-work activity--especially with out-of-town guests. Meet at the Chelsea Market, head up to the High Line, then foot it over to Company for some of the best salads ever (in my opinion, at least) and pizza.
I still haven't been there during the day, but it sure is pretty at night:
Hi, Tina! I miss you:As far as I can tell, this section was just opened in the last couple/few weeks. When you walk under this building look to your right and you'll spot the perfect place to meet for cocktails. Not sure if it's open to the public, though:Whiskey sour, anyone?:

NYC Blizzard, December 19, 2009

2009-12-19T20:39:00.000-08:00

New Orleans Souvenirs: Day 2

2009-12-02T20:19:00.000-08:00

We joined Darin and Kaori, a couple friends from NYC, who happened to be vacationing in the Big Easy the same week we were and it turned out to be a great day--we met in the morning, hopped in their rental car and started off on the right foot with all things deep fried, fatty and delicious at Elizabeth's Restaurant in Bywater.
On the menu: cornbread waffles with sweet potato salmon topping, breakfast po boy, grits, salmon balls in seafood sauce, and the piece de resistance--praline bacon in all its salty sweet goodness. I rarely eat red meat, just a tiny bite of something super-special every other year or so, but one bite of this and I was ready to go whole hog:

Then we checked out the Backstreet Cultural Museum. It's located in what used to be a funeral home in Treme, which is the oldest neighborhood of "Free People of Color" in the U.S. One room is filled with beautiful feathered and beaded Mardi Gras Indians costumes, many of which, including the black and white one pictured below and most likely the other one, were worn by the Fi Yi Yi tribe (one of many that represents the different cultures that make up the Mardi Gras Indians). The other room is filled with memorabilia from Skeletons, Baby Dolls, Social Aid and Pleasure clubs and funeral parades. Robert, our tour guide, makes many of these costumes himself and it was great listening to him talk about how they're made and what they represent, the Second Line and Funeral parades, the neighborhood, New Orleans in general, his favorite music...this was hands down my favorite part of the trip. If you want to see something truly beautiful and unique while you're in New Orleans, if you love music and need some great recommendations, VISIT THIS MUSEUM!!!!
One of Robert's favorite places to see music was the Ernie K-Doe Mother-in-Law Lounge, named for Ernie K-Doe's R&B hit. It was closed when we stopped by that afternoon and we didn't get another chance to go back, but it's well worth checking out just to see the murals of K-Doe and his beloved wife and the courtyard around back. There's always next time.I was a bit torn about visiting the Lower Ninth Ward, but after talking to some of the locals felt better about it. Our waitress at Elizabeth's encouraged us to see it and to tell our friends what we saw--she also recommended reading 1 Dead in the Attic. Another person told us: "Everybody blaming it on Katrina, but that neighborhood looked that way before the storm." On the other hand, Seth had read in Douglas Brinkley's The Great Deluge that before the hurricane, the Ninth Ward had more African-American property owners than any other place in Louisiana, rivaling the ownership rates any African-American neighborhood in the country. Beyond the levee in the photograph below is the Mississippi River--it was strange to look up and see a ship floating so far above our heads and homes in the Lower Ninth Ward. From the top of the levee looking down into the neighborhood you see the two Doullut Steamboat Houses that seem like they're in perfect condition despite the flood, a few of the new construction "Brad Pitt" homes (still for sale), and original homes--some inhabited; most in various stages of repair or deterioration. This levee stayed intact after the hurricane doing as good a job keeping the water from Lake Pontchartrain in the city as it did keeping the Mississippi out.
From there, we headed out of the city to check out Louisiana's wetlands making a pit stop along the way at one of the many drive-through daiquiri stands so Seth could get his drink on. (Seth wants me to mention that Darin insisted we stop.) We timed it perfectly, arriving at the Jean Lafitte National Historical Park and Preserve just in time to watch the sunset through the cypress trees and listen to the owls hooting at each other.
But the day wasn't over yet. Seeing Rebirth Brass Band at the Maple Leaf Bar was one of the highlights of the trip. Recommended by Robert, this is the best band ever. We had had a really full day that day and I felt like a zombie by the time the band started, but one they started they were so good! Talk about the perfect pick-me-up. They played to a packed house--with everyone dancing. At one point a 90-something-year-old man got up on stage and danced until he fell off. (Luckily, he was okay.) The perfect end to a perfect day.These are just the highlights. See more pix on flickr.

Talkin' turkey

2009-12-02T19:27:00.000-08:00

Only a week has passed since Seth and I hosted a Thanksgiving dinner with Laurie and Bryan here on the 'bush, and I still can't stop thinking about the meal...:

(Yep, that's me caught in the act of gazing lovingly at my dinner plate. Embarrassing.)

...and the friends who braved our grimier than grimy kitchen to create it...:
...and the ones who waited (and waited!) for it to be ready. (Thanks again for making it such a great day):
Some of the highlights include:
enari sushi:

a beautifully carved, perfectly crisp and juicy turkey:...chestnut stuffing, two kinds of sweet potatoes both sweet and savory, fruit salad, cranberry sauce, parker house rolls, then there were the desserts. (Okay. Everything was delicious!) Unfortunately, I forgot to take a picture of the dessert table laden with apple pie, chocolate burbon pecan pie, and irresistible pastries including baklava.And if you're a longtime reader/fan of The Old House Club (Hi, Mom!) you know that my Thanksgiving table isn't complete without green bean casserole. Here's the recipe in case you're interested.
Unfortunately, the leftovers are gone--at least the memories remain!

New Orleans Souvenirs: Day 1

2009-12-01T19:09:00.001-08:00

It stormed the first night we were there, casting a pretty pink glow over everything, including St. Louis Cathedral and Jackson Square:
Other highlights on day one of our vacation/honeymoon in the Big Easy:
- Seth's first taste of beignet ever at Cafe Du Monde--one bite and Seth was hooked. This was our first of three visits.- World's best hamburgers with a Neptune's Monsoon to wash it down at Port of Call. Unfortunately, I was too full (if your idea of the perfect baked potato is equal parts potato and sour cream, don't miss theirs!) to get a picture, so here's the next best thing. This isn't Port of Call, though. I liked how the window framed the customers and this was my attempt at capturing an Edward Hopper / Nighthawks kind of feel. Apparently there's more than one world's best burger in Nawlins:- A nightcap at Lafitte's Blacksmith Shop. It looks like it wouldn't take much more than a gust of wind to blow this candle-lit building down, but it's been around since the late 1700s, surviving two fires that destroyed practically all the buildings in the French Quarter. We heard that there's a 100-year-old white pianist here who sings like Louis Armstrong. Sadly, he must have had the night off.If you want to see more--A LOT more--check out my New Orleans set on flickr.

Just Married!

2009-12-01T18:15:00.000-08:00

So much to write about, I don't know where to start! It's been ten years in the making, but Seth and I tied the knot on a sunny Monday morning at City Hall before heading to JFK to catch our flight to New Orleans.

Second thoughts?
Nope!
Meet Mrs. & Mr. Rachel Corbett!These are just a few of the highlights--if you want to see more check out my flickr account.

Just another day at the park

2009-11-23T19:57:00.000-08:00

I could watch this guy all day--so much fun! Why don't we all have hula hoops?
Central Park, November 2009

NYC Marathon 2009

2009-11-01T09:18:00.001-08:00

And the winner is...

Leader of the pack and gold medalist Meb Keflezighi. First American male winner since 1982. Nice work! Other elites pictured here are Robert Cheruiyot (in the black ball cap), who placed second and third place winner, Jaouad Gharib. (He's the man in yellow not wearing a hat.)

Last year's winner Paula Radcliffe in the lead (when I took this picture, at least)...and this year's gold medal winner, Derartu Tulu (wearing a navy blue uniform). She's the first Ethiopian ever to win this race. Congratulations! Also among the elites: Ludmila Petrova (the woman in the yellow shoes placed 2nd) and Christelle Daunay (lady in red, placed 3rd)

Mayor Bloomberg in one of the prettiest cars I've ever seen. It's good to be king.

Just one of the many, many characters that make this race so much fun. Captain America made an appearance, Elvis was here, too. Luckily, Borat didn't show up this year. (He still gives me nightmares.)

Eat their dust!

Halloween spooktakular

2009-11-01T09:00:00.000-08:00

Lovely peacock costume spotted at the NYC Marathon. This woman made her headdress out of balloons and marbles.Brooklyn Halloween Parade 2009
Wild Things at the doggy costume contest in Fort Greene.

Window shopping in Brooklyn

2009-10-31T07:02:00.000-07:00

Spotted on Atlantic Avenue.

Mwha-ha-ha!

2009-10-28T19:11:00.000-07:00

Mosaics

2009-10-27T18:08:00.001-07:00

Work in progress...

2009-10-27T17:29:00.000-07:00

...practicing lace, giving short-row shaping a try, looking for inspiration, and finding it here: