Day 314 loves a good outing

One of the OTHER things I miss most about living in Astoria is the street fairs. These take over the avenues somewhat regularly in the Summer and I can't get enough. Yesterday we had brunch on 30th Ave and enjoyed some spectacular people-watching. This was followed by some great deals on cool crap I don't need and free samples of a new contraceptive (we don't get it either). Ah, Summer in the City.

Day 313 sees the glass as half full

One of the things I miss most about my old apartment in Astoria is the lanai. It's actually the very old, very rusty fire escape but we lovingly refer to is as our own personal balcony. This afternoon turned into an unexpected few hours of wine and laughs literally ON one of my old stomping grounds.

Day 312 lights the way for liberty

Macy's Herald Square cracks me up. Every time I stop in there's something even more ridiculous than the last time. This model of Lady Liberty is holding a torch that actually has a bulb in the flame. It's strategically positioned so the flame sits in this recessed light fixture which also has a bulb inside. This makes for a very bright display, indeed!

Day 311 keeps Kosher. Sometimes.

Six Flags has a food stand that is entirely Kosher and serves meat. This is beyond exciting. They also have this hot dog cart which, it seems, used to serve Kosher hot dogs but no longer does? Baffling. And hilarious.

Day 310 sleeps peacefully

First night back on the East Coast! I was so excited to be here and see the crew that I barely slept the night before. We spent that night at BC's parents' house in Jersey to celebrate his birthday and to prepare for 11 hours at Six Flags the following day. Realizing I'd been to caught up in flying and excitement to take a picture all day, I snapped BM getting ready for our sleepover. I've never loved New Jersey so much!

Day 309 is under construction

First off, I'm sorry for the long absence. I've been in and out of internet access and in and out of the state. I'm writing from New York at the moment (!!!) but this picture is still from home. My dad's organization bought this building out at the Baylands and they're restoring it for their future offices. The building sits right on the water (which you can't see in this shot) and when it's all put together it looks like a boat floating in the bay. It's been a very long and messy process to get to this point and they're far from being even close to finished but it's a pretty neat process. Here you can see my dad (in the blue blazer) getting an update from one of the construction guys. I'm pretty psyched to see the new building when it's all done.

day 314: apolgies....

saw this underground waiting for the train. signage and the MTA are apparently not a match made in heaven.

day 313: stop and smell

sometimes union square really surprises me. besides the insane amount of young people, free spirits giving free hugs and people selling pipes along 14th, there's also that little park. With flowers! Actually, are these weeds? Flowers like this are so foreign to me cause we didn't have this stuff in Hawaii.... to me, they're flowers.

day 312: where the clothes at??!

i've always said it.... you can find the weirdest shit in department stores. truly odd stuff. Here in the Macy's luggage department, apparently the thought was that dressing the mannequins might take the focus away from the $500 samsonite luggage set. Also, the naked mannequins are red. SO WEIRD!

day 311: scribbles

There used to be a giant rat on this wall. Then someone made it go away and painted it all white. THEN this happened.... sorry the sun is casting a very odd shadow on the wall, but you get the idea. black wall, white scribbles. Is this part of a marketing thing? is this a random piece or soho scribble artwork? I really have no idea.... I don't think I like it though. I'd like someone to please bring back the rat.

day 310: i don't get it....

heads up: midtown is a weird f*ckin place. like... WEIRD. stuff like this can be on the street for example. Not that this isn't weird enough, the strange thing is that people just walk by as if this is a common thing to have on the streets. I'm sure I was the only one who was confusedly looking around for someone else to share my "wtf?" moment with. no takers....

(ps. 55 more days of the pho??!)

day 309: a tribute

new revelation. this store is awesome (and rockin). Their newest masterpiece is this. It's simultaneously sad and beautiful. I really like it and I especially like how relevant this store keeps itself. done and done.

Day 308 gets all the best perks

On the way to the beach today we stopped at the grocery store and happened upon this... this... well, what do you call this exactly? I'd call it hilarious!

Day 307 is eating Gilbert Grape

I haven't been to DYC's house in many years and certainly not since they've renovated and landscaped. The backyard is really amazing and my favorite part is the grape vines hanging near the roof. They wrap around much of the back of the house and I think they're awesome. They're not, however, tasty. By far the most sour grapes I've ever eaten. And that's not a metaphor. Plus they make a neat photo op.