Best I Loved the 2000's

We used to complain that people wouldn't take the time to write a letter anymore since they could just write an email.
Now I miss people taking the time to email instead of texting.


(Some might say this would make a better tweet than blog post.  The circle of life continues.)

Best Saturday Afternoon Open Studios

Another sunny Saturday morning/afternoon in my neighborhood!

I walk all the way up Bleecker (and beyond) on my way to Elijah's house.

Puffy coats and cigarettes and wondering which way to Magnolia Bakery.

After breakfasting at Elijah's (which would have been a good time for a picture or two) went up to Hunter College's open studios for the fine arts students.

This spooky automaton rolled around the gallery on his own.

Found myself standing in front of a projection of a dancer dancing in front of a projection of a dancer.

Spent a bit of time trying to find Erik's studio space.

A candelabra candle.

Found him.  There's Erik.  Brothers of brothers-in-law sizing each other up.

Man with a sword gets a laugh.

And I did.  And this is why I have a clown nose in my bag now.

Time to go!

Best I Am At Peace With Breaking Dawn

The thing about Breaking Dawn pt.1 is that the last, what, ten or fifteen minutes? are so good that they erase all the nonsense from the hour and a half that preceded them.

Seriously.

In New Moon there was this short sequence, where a group of unsuspecting tourists are ushered into the Volturi chambers to be slaughtered and eaten, that was so incredibly sinister and dark in tone when compared to the rest of the fairy tale it took place in--I loved it.  Suddenly I was watching a real monster movie.  Similarly, the birth of Bella's vampire baby and Bella's transformation into a vampire (or Snow White?) are so grisly and bloody and intense, it's such a surprise and it's so good.  I'd have to say that the very last two seconds of the movie were so, uhh, perfect? that I actually can't wait for the next movie?  It was like a preview for a real horror movie and, well, I know the next movie isn't going to be a real horror movie, but it did leave me wanting to know what was going to happen right after [redacted for spoileriness even though its probably unnecessary].

Okay, but the rest of the movie?  Sheesh.

Having already been familiar with the key nonsensical plot-points of Breaking Dawn I was able to make it through this movie alive.  I don't know how someone who hadn't been prepped with the details of this story could live through the movie without their head exploding.

But to its credit, I liked that the movie was absolutely unapologetic about the stupider elements of Stephanie Meyer's tale.  For example, when Bella tells Jacob the names she's picked out for the vampire baby, Jacob reacts like he's just heard two stupid baby names and Edward is kind of like "well, can't do anything about these crazy names my 18 year old bride has picked out."  The movie doesn't try to act like these names are normal, or present them in such a way to suggest an audience member is dumb for not thinking they're beautiful.

Hold on.  You know that Bella names the baby "Renesmee", right?  It's a combination of her mom's name and Edward's mom's name.  After the movie I joked that if it were a boy she should have named it "Charlisle" or "Carly" after its grandparents.  I've since learned that "Carly" is Renesmee's middle name. It's like Twilight unabashedly beats you to every joke you wanted to make about it.

And now, bullet points:

• I thought Bella's nightmare wedding was kind of cool, better than her real wedding
• Is Bella's back really that long?
• I liked the toasts.  That was some genuine goodnatured fun right there.
• Isla Esme seemed like a cool place.  I spent a few days in a Brazilian tropical island paradise myself two years ago so I could relate a lot to their experience there.
• And when they were dancing in Rio?  That was totally supposed to be Lapa, and I've been there!  But from my experience there are more robberies.
• Whenever I see someone hire a private jet with a moment's notice I just think that's real cool.  Even if it's in a made up story.
• BEST PART: Do I even have to say it?  But the angry wolf standoff/psychic pow wow.  One of the funniest things I've seen in a theater in years.  Giant wolves speaking to each others' minds is something that just doesn't translate smoothly from book to film.
• When Bella drinks the blood?  And she looks awful?  And the blood is on her teeth? Pretty cool.  Like watching Fear Factor or Jackass.
• When Jacob was entering the Cullen house after the birth and I realized he was about to see Renesmee for the first time I got so excited I couldn't help but exclaiming, far too loudly, "He's going to fall in love with the baby now!  He's going to fall in love with the baby!"
• And the Imprinting montage was so good.  It was smart of them to show us Renesmee as a grown up.  Makes it less creepy.
• Baby Renesmee was made with a computer, right?  I mean, that wasn't a real baby, right?  She was a Toy Story baby, correct?

I think that's everything.  I just want to say that Breaking Dawn, pt.1 didn't kill me, it made me stronger.  I want to see Part 2 at midnight in Gilbert, Az.  I want to experience the full final-Twilight meltdown.

Best I Have Brought This Upon Myself

You may remember a few months ago when I excitedly posted the trailer to Breaking Dawn.

I still don't know if I posted it out of genuine enthusiasm or a condescending sense of humor.

And I don't know if my joy was genuine or ironic (sheesh) when this billboard appeared on my corner last month.

And did I actually make sure to pass this display of costumes and props from the movie at the Lincoln Square Loews or just happen to happen to pass by it last Friday?

And now I've got my opening night ticket to Breaking Dawn pt. 1.  I think I'm going because I want to take in firsthand the full force of Twilight fandom.

But what if I actually want to see the movie?

I can only promise you a report by Monday.  Who knows what it will contain.  An answer to these questions?  Or just more questions?

Best Narrative of a Life

Maybe you remember that I visited Frederick Douglass's home when I was in DC for Memorial Day weekend?  It made quite the impression on me and I was left thinking I'd like to know more about Mr. Douglass.  Fast forward (and rewind) to last week when I find myself looking the Narrative of His Life (by him) square in the eye at the bookstore.  That's all it took.

Here are my chief impressions, having just finished the book tonight:

• The book began with ample Forward and Preface materials, all of which I dutifully read.  One of those two, the Forward or the Preface, basically summed up all the interesting stories from the slavery portion of the book (meaning 90% of the book).  If I could do it all over, I wouldn't have read the Preface.  Or Forward.  I'd have had Frederick tell me the stories for the first time.
• Listen, how do I say this . . . I'll say it like this: I thought I knew everything about slavery, which is a ridiculous thing to think you know, but I at least thought I wouldn't learn anything new about slavery from the book.  Wrong.  I was constantly surprised by the things slaves were allowed to do (such as learn a trade and earn a wage, or travel to visit friends and family) that I didn't think they could do as well as the things slaves weren't allowed to do that I thought they could do (that list is long).
• I didn't realize Douglass wrote the narrative when he was so young and just getting started on his career as an abolitionist.  As far as he's concerned, and the book is concerned, slavery is still happening.  Douglass's voice is strong, it is quite something to hear him reaching out across time to you, speaking from not-terribly old first-hand experience.
• The book ends with a fellow by the last name of Coffin encouraging him to speak at a meeting of Abolitionists.  If I can lay claim to being related to the semi-fictional Coffins of Moby Dick, then I shall also lay claim to relation to the very non-fictional Coffin of this history.
• Douglass follows the Narrative with an Appendix dedicated to distinguishing between Christianity and the professed Christianity of slave owners.  It's a good and insightful additional read and several of his statements/examples had me recalling Kierkegaard's Training in Christianity, which Kierkegaard wrote approximately three years after Douglass's Appendix.   

In sum, a good little book and it leaves you wanting to know more.  Because there's a lot more to the story of Frederick Douglass.  That's what I learned at his house.

Best Brooklyn Saturday

Saturday I found myself walking through Boerum Hill.  Why?  Because the F wasn't running and I had to get to Carroll Gardens.  And because I got distracted along the way.

Pumpkins with faces like Collin made them.



I just wanted feel the scrunch-scrunch of some of these under my feet.







All?







Here's a confession.  Almost all these pictures were taken on Wyckoff Ave.

Lens Cap: Lost, steps retraced, found.

Best New Salad

In Lucky Peach #2 (available everywhere [more or less?] tomorrow!) there's this article where one Kevin Pang rates certain foods after sitting in the fridge for a while.  It's funny.  There's mashed potatoes, deli roast beef, guacamole, Brita filtered water, etc.  Regarding Kentucky Fried Chicken Pang says "My favorite application of cold KFC? Chopping it up into chicken salad, with scallions, green apples, sriracha, Kewpie mayo, and lime juice."

That sounded delicious to me.  So I assembled bought some KFC, ate a drumstick (I couldn't resist!) and stuck the rest in the fridge for a couple days.

And then it was chicken salad making time!

Tore my chicken apart, kept all the skin, and tossed in three or four chopped scallions.

Cut about a third of a green apple like this

Discovered my bowl was too small for all the ingredients, couldn't find my larger mixing bowl, put all the ingredients in a sauce pan, added an appropriate-looking amount of Kewpie mayo followed by an appropriate-looking amount of sriracha.  Took pride in my ingenuity, felt shame over my paucity.

Mixed it all up, transferred it to my bowl.

The Verdict: Oh geeze.  Wow.  I mean, was there ever any doubt about the deliciousness of cold fried chicken with lots of Kewpie mayo and sriracha?  Apple, lime, scallion, they just make it even better.  I might be keeping fried chicken on hand from now on for whipping this one up when the mood strikes.

And for the record: Not all the recipes in the magazine call for cookies as bread or fast food fried chicken  as main ingredients.  Just the first two recipes I tried.