Ha

Yellow And Blue in BK

I hitched a ride with my brother down to the new Ikea on Sunday. Been to one Ikea, been to them all. I'm a decade or so past buying Ikea furniture but for things like mirrors and kitchen items I feel they have bargains. On the way out I stopped in the restroom and noticed that the urinals were all "waterfree." First time I've seen one. A couple of years ago I posted a story about organized labor's attempts to derail the usage of these - they require less plumbing which means fewer people on the gravy train. I hope more businesses resist the pressure. This is such a smart way to conserve water and reduce waste. For a place like Ikea with daily foot traffic in the thousands, the impact will be significant.

GEEEEEEEEEK, c'est moi

I recently set up a home network between my new laptop, my old laptop, and my XBOX 360. All Microsoft/Windows products, all functioning well. Go figure! My old laptop is called "Play" on my network and it's located out of sight in my bedroom. Play is the machine I use to, ahem, acquire and store movies and music. Play is also physically connected to all of my accessories; my laser printer, my scanner, and my photo printer. My new laptop, a spritely 14" model I scored for a reasonable $650 is called "Work." It's in the living room and connects to the internet wirelessly. I always new that with a network I'd be able for example, to send a document from Work to the printer attached to Play without having to physically connect Work to the printer. This is all basic networking but never having had more than one pc at a time, I hadn't actually ever done it. The XBOX is where things get interesting. The XBOX is essentially the third pc in my network. Since the XBOX is attached to my flat screen and my audio system, this makes the XBOX the perfect media pc; all of my media, video, music, and photos can now be streamed through the XBOX onto my flatscreen tv and home theater audio system without having to burn anything onto disk or plug in any cables. This synergy is why I love tech. It may betray my status as a techie to be so excited about such fairly old school networking fun but I can't help it. Besides, never has getting downloaded porn onto the tv been easier.

A Lot Of Scarves Were Sacrificed For This

Louis Benz, take this

Classics Photographs in Lego

Check out the rest here. Interesting that they all seem to revolve around war and violent moments. Still cool though.

God's Country?

A picture of the sun setting on Mars as photographed by Nasa's Phoenix lander.

If You Want Impressionism Go To The Louvre

Taking advantage of my time off I headed to the Brooklyn Museum for the Takashi Murakami exhibit. Murakami is a Japanese pop artist whose commercial success is in the vein of Keith Haring and Andy Warhol (in my untrained opinion).

Murakami's fame grew exponentially after his work with Louis Vuitton. I never could understand why all the fake Louis bags on Canal were so colorful. I used to think, wow, they're not even trying to make them look real anymore. Little did I know! (the connection between artist and brand is so pervasive that a mini Louis store is contained within the exhibit). More recently Murakami created the cover art for Kanye West's album, Graduation.

The exhibit at the Brooklyn Museum covers rooms on the 4th and 5th floors. I recommend starting on the 5th floor. The exhibit features paintings, sculptures, mass produced toys, and huge multi panel murals. The vibrancy and colors of his works, not to mention their abstract, even trippy, patterns, suited me well. Ending with his large murals on the fourth floor capped off a great experience. Less enjoyable were the steep prices for his merchandise in the Museum store including t-shirts selling for $42. Hmmm, I wonder if I can find those shirts on Canal ...

The exhibit costs $10 and runs through June 13th.

Japanese in Blackface Just Don't Cut It

This video of Japanese recreating We Are the World is funny (the Japanese Cyndi Lauper is quite good)... until you see the original. I was surprised at how moving it was after all these years.

The Japanese



The real deal

Ain't No Half Stepping

Sometimes a brother just has to bust a move. I applaud you Best Buy sales guy.


http://view.break.com/506192 - Watch more free videos

We Don't Know Jack (But Let's Keep Trying)

Carl Sagan explains the scientific method in The Demon-Haunted World: Science as a Candle in the Dark. What separates science from other systems of knowledge is that scientific theories are created, tested, and more often than not, proven wrong or incomplete; these failures a stepping stone to the next level of understanding. Nothing in science is sacred; the very process advances human knowledge.

The Naked Earth series on the National Geographic channel provides a great example of the scientific method at work. This documentary series focuses on the formation and evolution of our planet. While scientists have been able to piece together strong theories about how the planets formed, flaws in prevailing theories are common and time often finds new explanations replacing prior knowledge. What science teaches me is that there will always be unexplainable mysteries but the pursuit of answers - from primitive times to the slightly less primitive times of today - is a quintessentially human endeavor.

The mysteries of our existence, the planet, the sun, space itself, and our inability to know exactly how it all happened lead some to silence inquiry in favor of faith. Thankfully faith hasn't been enough for everybody.

This Henry David Thoreau poem featured in the MTA's Poetry in Motion series may have been intended as a rebuke of science (perhaps someone familiar with his work can inform us), but to me its no rebuke, just an affirmation of the mysteries of life. We'll never know the answers to everything but as long as we remember that, let's keep trying:

Men say they know many things;
But lo! They have taken wings,--
The arts and the sciences,
And a thousand appliances;
The wind that blows
Is all that anybody knows.

96

• Degrees in Ft. Lauderdale today. Sitting in the pool helps.
• Introduced the family to the world of torrentz. Only because we're in a recession.
• It's great being around my niece and nephew. They're probably the only people who can get me to do the vocal parts on Rock Band.
• Happy Mother's Day all. If the scene plays out for you like it does in my family, they spend the day in the kitchen. Maybe it would be better if we showed appreciation on a daily basis than focusing on the day the marketers tell us to.
• Go to sleep people, you've got work tomorrow.

And The Beat Goes On

Tomorrow marks the end of my run at Foot Locker. I started six months ago filling in for an attorney on sick leave. Sadly she never returned, passing away from lymphoma at the age of 42. Her desk was across from mine and watching her colleagues pack her possessions the day she passed, including pictures of her two preschool children, was gut wrenching. After a lengthy grieving period, they began interviewing for the position. I lost out out to a very experienced lawyer, downsized from the now bankrupt Linens N Things, and who happened to have worked with the department boss decades earlier at a different company. Retail is a very small community I've learned. I enjoyed working in house (for the first time) and with really decent people who seem honestly sad to see me leave - my six month tenure having merited a farewell luncheon this afternoon - and I'll miss it. It's tough leaving a job you like because the next one might suck. Onward I go but I have a feeling my next gig won't include any discounted kicks. Damn.

Holy Frijole

Standing outside Grimaldi's Pizza Friday night I heard the following conversation:

20 something guy: So Monday is Cinco De Mayo
20 something girl: Yeah, what is that about anyway?
20 something guy: I think there was a battle and the Mexicans all got massacred, except five of them.
20 something girl: Oh
20 something guy: And then I think the final five Mexicans got massacred too.

Marketing apparently has it's limits. Next year we'll discuss the origins of St. Patrick's Day: the day Leprechauns ate all the potatoes in Ireland.

In other news, this penthouse in the Clocktower building in Dumbo recently sold for over $7,000,000.00. I partied there (like a freakin' rock star!) twice. A friend was the personal assistant to the owner and would house sit periodically. We would visit on those occasions. Probably the first and only time Philly blunts were cracked in that place. We were not worthy.

In music news, saw the Verve last Monday in the Garden. Wasn't familiar with their music but couldn't turn down a free ticket (think music to listen to while shrooming - so I've been told). Also been enjoying Cut Copy (think '80s new wave) and Estelle (think Lauryn Hill).

Screw The Economy, Save Yourself!

It was through the wisdom of Fillmore Slim and the other pimps featured in the seminal (pun!) documentary, Pimps Up, Hoes Down, where I learned the art of stacking paper (get other people to give you money, repeat. See Enron for the corporate version). Unfortunately since I don't have a stable of hoes on the stroll, the knowledge is somewhat wasted on me. I have, however, adopted Filmore's mantra, never give a hoe shit! Om.

Sure I play Mega Millions every week, yet despite the words of encouragement I get from my landlady - you know David, I have a good feeling your numbers are going to hit - I'm still broke. Without pimpin' and lotto, what's a temp lawyer with zero inheritance potential to do to get ahead? It's probably dumb to admit this ... but, oh well, I bought a scale and some ziplock bags.** Yep, I'm slinging rocks bringing lunch to work and measuring all my ingredients carefully; can't be doubling up on that Manchego cheese yo, stuff is mad expensive! I'm saving roughly $50 a week/$2500 a year. I've cut corners on a few other expenses and feel pretty good not because it's going to drastically change my economic outlook, but because being smart with my money ... makes me feel good.

Anybody else cutting back these days? How?


**My faux drug dealing reference reminds me of the following true story. The fall semester of my senior year in college (1992) I worked in Manhattan through an internship program. My classmates and I stayed at the Cornell Medical School dorm on 69th and York. I was too broke to get a telephone in my room (sigh, some things never change) so instead for $10 a month I used an old pager given to me by a friend. One of my classmates, a sheltered and naive blond from the midwest Long Island saw the pager and asked if I was a drug dealer. Now granted, I am Puerto Rican, kept a Rottweiler in my room, and installed 12 dead bolts on my dorm door, but still, a drug dealer? If you're going to insult me, at least assume I would have been good enough in my craft to afford a cell phone!

¡Coño Goya, You're Looking Good Baby!

These Goya organic label Garbanzo beans caught my eye (saw them in a Duane Reade). Goya is a beloved company in many Latino communities; before the "international" aisle in the supermarket existed, Goya provided great quality, authenticity, and variety for not much money in, ahem, urban communities. This foray into organic products, however, seems aimed squarely at non-hispanic markets (even I rarely buy organic). Latching on to a rising food trend and expanding market share seems awfully smart. To my non-beaner bean eating friends out there, are you down with Goya?

Tanks Are Much More Kick Ass Than RVs

It's that time of year; If you look remotely Jewish you might find yourself accosted on the streets by Orthodox Jews doing outreach work in the lead up to Passover. As we've discussed previously, it's hazardous work. Perhaps this explains the alarming militarization in their transportation? Do not confuse Dov for Dove, homey. Beware the Mitzvah Tank. Happy Passover my Jewish Peeps!

Good To Know?

Starbucks is now displaying the calorie information of all of their food products. Don't know if this is in response to city legislation or voluntary. Faced with this information will people still consume at the same rates? A latte and one of these would amount to about 2/3 of an average sized woman's daily caloric intake. Yikes!
Sent via BlackBerry

Ever Been Hit In The Head By An Airplane?

I haven't, but the guy in this clip has.

Ever Been Hit In the Neck by A Paint Ball?

UPDATE: Junot Diaz (see last bullet) wins Pulitzer Prize for The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao. I met Junot at Cornell and while we're no more than distant acquaintances, I'm feeling awfully proud of him right now.

Diaz's reaction as reported in the Miami Herald:

''I'm completely astonished,'' says Díaz, 39, who heard the news at his mom's house in New Jersey while holding his ''good luck charm'' -- his 2-year-old nephew. ``For a Dominican kid with illegal parents to win a Pulitzer, a kid who grew up in New Jersey in a neighborhood where nobody gave a sh-- about us, a kid who delivered pool tables throughout college . . . wow, man.''

Original Post: I have. It's not lethal but it stings!

Sup y'all. We're deep in the '08 campaign and I haven't said shit about shit. Too busy getting drunk. No lie. I don't know what's going on but I've been going through even the dusty bottles in liquor cabinet (liquor cabinet being the retarded cabinets above the fridge that are a pain in the ass to reach). Apple Bacardi (a freebie bottle from a distributor friend - I swear), Sambuca - (with three coffee beans per glass for good luck - as if I believe in luck), a bottle of Cabinet's Choice single malt scotch (which prominently features a portrait of Winston Churchill - a peaty reminder of the shortfalls of our current leadership), Grey Goose (a recent gift and one night project), a killer bourbon (Bulleit for those in the market), several bottles of wine including a 2002 Spanish Merlot that rocked despite its Merlotness, and which I have no recollection of buying, and some less than full bottles of Stoli and Jack. After all this boozing, things are getting pretty bleak. I'm down to some Martini and Rossi, Jose Cuervo, and a nice Tequila I purchased in Mexico but which I am finding hard to tackle (Aha Toro). Might be time for an intervention ...

Enough of that pity party, I promised paint ball splatters:

• I caught the Amp Fiddler show at the Highline Ballroom Friday night and wouldn't ya know, Tortured Soul also performed. Both acts rocked and there was much boozing.
• Speaking of music, I was browsing through some of the 50 gigs of music my brother Dennis put on my hard drive when I came across It's Never Been Like That, the 2006 release by Phoenix. I likey. The haters would argue I like them because they're French ...
  
• Check out a new blog friend - the Supercynic - a voice of reason from below the Mason Dixon.
• Hey you poor people out there, will you be spending your stimulus checks, or paying bills/saving? Big D says that Louie bag you're eying was probably made in China so get it from Canal St. and save your money! The Iraq War and the expansion of the surveillance state are often cited as the signature policies of the Bush presidency but wouldn't you agree that this pandering third grade level stimulus package encompasses everything you need to know about our boy George? Depressing, I think I need to pour myself a Cabinet's Choice.
  
• I'm hoping to have enough Thank You points from Citibank to take a free trip to Buenos Aires this fall. Who's down? Argentina is one country that's still pretty cheap for us with Dollars.
• Speaking of Dollars, I was in Macy's today when a tourist from Australia stepped up to the cash register. The sales clerk informed him that as a visitor, he could save an additional 15% by getting a visitor's pass from the office one floor below. He considered for a split second and then responded he was saving plenty as it was. Oh mighty Dollar, how far you have fallen.
  
• On the cooking front I've been working on my braising technique - to great success I may add - the past few months. The latest, chicken with Rosemary and olives slow cooked in the oven with white wine and chicken stock until falling off the bone (a variation of this Rabbit recipe). Wow. I just realized that I may be the world's worst person; I regularly talk about my cooking but rarely share it. Take my word for it, if I ever invited you over for dinner, it would be pretty good.
• As this is a book review site (lol!), I may as well give a couple of recommendations since there is little chance of a review these days. First, The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao, the critically acclaimed novel by Junot Diaz that lived up to the hype. Some cute feminists I know recommended Nervous Conditions by Tsitsi Dangarembga and I am happy to spread the word. Great reads each of them.
  

Until the booze runs out ...

Right On Cue ...

The Onion reports on the grave threat facing Fort Greene.

Weekend That Was

Friday

Domino's pizza (bacon AND ham - so wrong but so right) and the Dog Whisperer. It was a long week and I was tired. Ok?

Saturday

As I mentioned a couple of posts ago, I've been going through the 50 gigs of music my brother Dennis recently "loaned" me. The band of the week this past week was Los Amigos Invisible and their 1998 release The New Sound of the Venezuelan Gozadera. Numerous friends over the years have raved about them but I hadn't given them much of a chance until now. It didn't take many listens for me to get hooked and I thought, I need to see these guys next time they're playing in the city (this thought occurred Thursday). Friday night I mentioned the band to a friend who though unfamiliar with their music, said "they're playing this weekend, this Venezuelan guy I work with is going to see them." No lie, this really happened. So Saturday night yours truly joined the amped crowd at the Bowery Ballroom and had a hell of a time (and one or two drinks ...) enjoying one of my new favorite bands. Visit their website for a nice selection of tracks. Requisite camera phone photo below:


Sunday

I decided the best way to deal with my hangover (might of had more than one or two at the show), was to get out of the house and check out the Brooklyn Flea. The Flea is the creation of the people behind Brownstoner. Dumb move on several levels. First, as we all know, only more alcohol cures a hangover. Second, and more important, browsing overpriced and overly precious second hand goods with hipsters has never helped anyone. I don't want to be that cynical guy who shits on a good idea just because it isn't my bag, but wow, it sucked. I zipped through the entire site in 10 minutes and left. I originally planned on hitting the gym after the Flea but truthfully, my headache and the sight of so many hipsters was too much to overcome. I ended up walking home - a hair under 4 miles according to map my run - passing a packed Olea on the way. Super hungry when I arrived home, I popped some popcorn on the stove while the rib eye I seasoned before leaving the house warmed up to room temperature. A simple side of sauteed onions, garlic, mushrooms and green beans, and a romaine lettuce and tomato salad rounded out the meal.

Planet B Boy - More Than Meets The Cardboard

Whenever I visited NYC as a kid in the late 70's and early 80's, I relished each subway ride for the opportunity to gawk at the wonderful graffiti artwork that covered trains in that era. It was so New York, so cool - I never doubted its artistic merit. Breaking was another NYC product that captivated my imagination - I could barely do the dolphin, but I could dream (add MCing and DJing and you have Hip Hop). Last weekend I caught an early screening of Planet B Boy at the Landmark Sunshine Theater. Planet B Boy is a documentary about B Boys, aka break dancers - from their South Bronx roots to an annual international competition in Germany where a kaleidoscope of humanity is brought together through a love of Hip Hop. The film is wonderfully shot and edited and is a showcase for much more than moves that will make your jaw drop. The director, Branson Lee, a Korean American former B-Boy himself, has true passion and respect for the subject matter and the film delves more deeply into its character's lives than you have any right to expect. Not unlike other urban art forms that preceded it, it's through the work of someone from outside the original community that the depth of Hip Hop is revealed. First below is the official trailer, the second clip is not related to the film but contains some dope footage so enjoy!

A Clinton Hill Resident Eats

Olea - By Tra B:

When I first moved to Clinton Hill about eight years ago, there was a nice little restaurant named “A Table” – the phrase French mothers use to call their families to the dinner table – about three blocks from my apartment. We went there a few times and thought the food decent enough to explain its being full most of the time. When it suddenly closed about three years later, we were more than a little surprised and felt like we’d lost an acquaintance; there was brief period of reflection followed not long after by acceptance. I’d always hoped that a quality produce shop would open up in its place but when I learned that it would be another restaurant, I quickly lost all interest. Even though I’ve passed it at least three times a week since it opened a few years ago, I never checked the menu or gave it much thought.

So on roughly my two-hundredth pass-by last week, I was desperately in the mood for some soup and very short on time. I actually walked past before deciding that it was really my only option. One cup of butternut squash soup later and I was suggesting to my wife that we make a point of grabbing a meal there.

Enter Brooklyn Restaurant Week. Three courses for $23 per person ($38 with wine service). The pre fixe menu:

Appetizer - Serrano ham with frisee and bleu cheese or crab meat with? (forget the details b/c crab meat generally turns my stomach)

Main Course – Lamb Shank with mashed turnip and wilted escarole or Rock Shrimp Risotto

Dessert – Blueberry Lemon Tart with Raspberry Sorbet or Assorted Cheese plate

I not so much asked my wife if she’d like to go as told her she’d need to make reservations. When she hesitated – would’ve done it myself but I was cooking at the time – I reminded her again. She was on the phone a little later and we were all set. Fast forward to the other night.

Surprisingly for Restaurant Week, the whole menu was on offer in addition to the pre fixe choices – not always the case - so we added a myrtleberry margarita and some herbed goat cheese croquettes to our tab. Both were fine choices, especially the croquettes. As for the rest of the meal, I opted for the ham, lamb, and tart; my wife the ham, shrimp, and cheese plate. The Serrano ham was, well, Serrano ham - salty, pungent, and um, good. Frisee is nasty any which way you cut it and should remain rooted firmly in the ground for animals to graze on. The tender, buttery lamb shank in either a wine or balsamic glaze was delectable; perhaps they’d tapped Big D for his newly perfected braising technique. Both the escarole and turnip were just a little too salty and sweet, respectively, for my taste buds but not enough by any stretch to ruin the meal. As excellent as the tart was, the raspberry sorbet was better and the perfect end to an extremely satisfying meal.

I tasted a bit of my wife’s risotto, which was pretty good as well, but by the time she offered up some cheese from her dessert plate, I’d just appreciated the last spoonful of my raspberry sorbet and there was absolutely no way I was ending the culinary portion of my evening any other way.

Olea - www.oleabrooklyn.com - is located on the corner or Lafayette and Adelphi Avenues (171 Lafayette Avenue) in the Clinton Hill/Fort Greene section of Brooklyn.

When A Six Figure Salary Isn't Enough ...

Fresh out of law school in 1998 I naively thought my $110,000 annual salary would make renting an apartment a breeze. I targeted a newly constructed building on the lower East Side that did not require a broker's fee. The $1,600 monthly rent kept me well below the 40 X salary formula the building used to qualify prospective tenants. But as anyone who has ever rented in New York knows, it's never that simple. Despite my salary and credit history, the building required a guarantor. Considering that my salary made me the highest paid person in my entire extended family, there was no one I could turn to. I fumed as I watched recent college grads earning a fraction of my salary breeze through the application process and get apartments on the strength of their parent's finances while my protestations fell on deaf ears. Thankfully, it worked out fine in the end, I moved to and fell in love with Brooklyn and saved a lot of money, but I wouldn't have minded the option of using a service like Insurent. Insurent is an institutional guarantor that for a fee between 4.5% and 11% of your annual rent, will guaranty your lease. It's not clear how many buildings participate in this program, but it seems like an idea that could take off in New York. When even lawyers at fucking White Shoe law firms can't rent a fucking apartment in this town without a fucking guarantor (about how I felt back then), I'd say the need is clear. And from a landlord's perspective, an institutional guarantor seems no more risky than an individual guarantor. For those willing to pay the premium, Insurent might be the ticket to scoring that killer $2500 studio.

Play That Funky Music

I first heard Tortured Soul on a DJ Spinna mix tape several years ago that I found on Milk Audio. Not long thereafter I serendipitously discovered they'd be playing at Southpaw, a Park Slope music venue. Their energy, throwback style, and overall vibe were a big hit with me. This past Wednesday it all came full circle as they once again performed at Southpaw. Let's see, great local band. Check. Amped up crowd. Check. Free Admission. Awesome. Whiffs of ganj in the air (sadly as close as I come to the stuff these days). Hearing new jams along with the ones you know well. Super Duper. These skinny tie wearing white boys jam some seriously good house/soul/funk. If you weren't watching them play live you'd think they were a synthed up studio band - the amount of sound these guys generate is pretty wild. Their music is fun, danceable, and even better live where the guys get to show their chops as musicians.

[not a bad shot for a camera phone in a dark room huh?]