Birdwatching in Tompkins Square Park

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

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

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!

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

Narnia? No, just Prospect Park.

"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!

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...

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