Close Encounters with Wild Animals (kind of)

Um, major OMG happening here right now.

Let me backtrack to a month ago. I planted some bulbs (some kind of flower - I forget) and herbs in pots on my fire escape.

A couple weeks later the bulbs and dill started to sprout, but the lavender and sweet basil and whatever else I forgot I planted wasn't making any sort of appearance. I also noticed that in one of my large pots the dirt was stirred up. I thought I might just be imagining things, but then I saw sprinkles of dirt all over the bottom of my fire escape. My next thought-because I am a paranoid person-was that a robber had come to my window and stepped in the pot while he was trying to peer in. Then I switched the robber out of that scenario and replaced it with a cat - which makes a lot more sense considering all the feral cats in our backyard. I told my friend about my findings and she suggested that maybe the old Polish lady next door had dug up my bulbs. I actually took this into consideration, which is ridiculous, but I honestly couldn't figure it out.

So tonight I'm rearranging some things on my fire escape and I see that one of the other pots is also stirred up! I lean out the window and this is what I saw:


How insane is that?! A robin's egg! The poor robin must have been plucking little sticks out of the pot for its nest and eating my seeds! I really can't think of anything cuter, but I feel sad for the baby robin that will never be. I wonder what I should do about the egg....

This is a view of my backyard. I'm pretty proud of it because before I cleaned it up it was just a junk pile. Right now it is "in progress" and waiting for me to lay down grass seed. In the summer it gets kind of wild with vines and these weed trees, but this year I planted tons of flower bulbs (Abe got them for me for free - like hundreds of them!). AND - I have about 6 gardenia shrubs that Abe got for me - for free! I don't know if they'll agree with our climate, but it's better then them getting tossed in the garbage, which was their destiny before Abe saved them. I also have a holly shrub that is growing pretty quickly. The shrubs are key because they will block the view of the Chinese restaurant's back door (it is located in the ground floor of our building, but luckily they are pretty clean).

Musicalness

Last night I went over Dave and Preeya's house to record bass clarinet and alto clarinet parts for one of Dave's new songs called "Molasses". It will be part of the HEXA album he is in the middle of mixing right now. The song is really awesome so I was really happy to be included - who am I kidding though, I love all their songs.

Tonight I am going to the first rehearsal for the Grand Street Community Band here in Williamsburg. I seriously feel so good to be playing music again - I didn't realize how much I missed it! If someone had told me that I would be recording music albums with my bass and alto clarinets back when I was in the SHS Marching Band I think I would have laughed in their face. I should get in touch with my old clarinet teacher, I think he would be so happy.

Mini-Break

This weekend I went on a much needed mini-vacation with 3 of my best friends. Piper has a condo in Cold Spring, NY, which is pretty much a picture book small town: situated on the Hudson River, Main Street is filled with antique stores and little restaurants, angry teens serve you coffee and bagels at the breakfast shop... you get the idea.

Our band photo
On Saturday we walked around town and had a great dinner at Le Bouchon. We rolled home and tried to watch the amazing Dolly Parton in the hit film "9 to 5", but all 4 of us passed out on the sleeper sofa by 10:30pm.

Creepy antique.

Sunday morning we went for a mini-hike and discussed urban myths/common themes in 80's shows. Afterwards we had a delicious breakfast at Cold Spring Cafe, went home and watch a couple episodes of Sex and the City (say what you will, but we all find that show very soothing) and then headed home.

Upcycled Junk Mail Notecards

I've been fighting the junk mail war at work and home for years now and I've tamed the beast, but I haven't eliminated it. I recently found a way to make me a little happier when I open my mail box to find unwanted paper waste.

Gift cards are constructed from junk mail security envelopes and scrap bristol board.

Each package contains:
- 5 gift cards
- 9 greeting labels
- stripe and star stickers

They will be available on my site soon, but for now you can get them from my ETSY site.

More Succulents!

So, my parents came for a visit this weekend and my mom brought me 6 little babies. And by "babies" I mean succulents! She said she read on my blog that I am really into them right now and she works at a flower shop so she was able to pick out a few really great ones. I am going to build a couple new shelves to display my growing collection a little bit better.

Parents Weekend

My parents came to visit me this weekend. They stayed at a new hotel in Williamsburg called Hotel Le Jolie (the only hotel in Williamsburg unless you count the Greenpoint YMCA - don't encourage your parents to stay there). Even though the hotel sits under the BQE it is pretty nice on the inside.

On Saturday we went to Coney Island (after an accidental ride over the Verrazano Bridge and quick tour of Staten Island). It was a beautiful day so it felt really nice to be outside at the beach - I was even wearing shorts for crying out loud. Abe and I rode the Cyclone for the first time ever. I was scared because the thing does not sound very safe, but it ended up being really fun albeit uncomfortable. I have a serious case of whiplash.

Later in the day we went out to for drinks at Iona and Nita Nita. It was a really nice day so the streets were packed with people enjoying the weather. It's always kind of fun when the weather turns nice and the city wakes up ready for BBQ's and outdoor bar gardens. We had dinner at Fiore later that night - always delicious. It was a very fun day.

NEW Dishtowels!

I am just finishing up the photos and then I'll post them and make them available for sale on my website and on Etsy. I love vintage dishtowels with diagrams of flowers, maps, and recipes. They do the job of a towel, but you can also learn a little something while mopping up spilled milk. Here is a sneak peek of the image I designed.

My towel shows the breakdown of cups, pints, quarts, and gallons. It is based on a trick I used to show the kids back when I taught the 5th grade.

Interior: 1 Gallon = 16 cups = 8 pints = 4 quarts
Border: Conversions of cups/Tbsp/tsp/milliliters

Make a Difference in the Fight Against Cancer!

On Saturday, May 3rd, I will be participating in the 11th Annual EIF Revlon Run/Walk For Women. You can join me in the fight against women's cancers by making a pledge or donation on my behalf. Your pledge will help fund important research into the cause and cure of women's cancers, prevention, education and support service programs. Every pledge will help bring us one step closer to a cure.

The walk is 5K, but keep in mind that the next day I'm also in a 42 mile bike race! Think of my poor legs - they need to think about all the money you're sending so they can keep going for this great cause.

To pledge please go to my fund raising page right here: My Fundraising Site

Ready for the Nursing Home

I have become a weird, old woman. I'm sitting at home watching Fiddler on the Roof on PBS and making catnip toys for my cat. This isn't a good sign, but you know what.? I am perfectly happy with this arrangement. I guess that would be the scary part.

Brooklyn Botanical Gardens

Today I spent a few hours at the Brooklyn Botanical Gardens. It is near the end of cherry blossom season so only a 1/4 of the trees were in bloom, but there were lots and lots of magnolia trees in bloom as well. I love that place - it gets really crowded for a giant outdoor space, which is kind of annoying, but the plant selection is just amazing. The best part of the day was when I decided to lay down on a bench and just watch the clouds speed through the sky. I haven't done that in ages.

Roosevelt Island

Abe and I are trying to get our butts ready for Bike NY so yesterday we did a quick ride to Roosevelt Island and back home.

I've been to Roosevelt Island once and I really love it there. It's such a weird, tiny place and I love that if you live there you can take a tram across the river instead of the subway. There's only one bus route and it just goes in a big circle around the island. I would like to live there, but I think there are only massive apartment blocks and those kind of freak me out. I prefer living in a 3 story building with a back yard.

Paws' Paws

Never Sleep Again

My friend, Meredith Blake, just wrote an article about magic wake-up pills.
Magic Wake-up Pills

Desert Rat Race

I just got some new plants for my office. Now I have a little taste of the desert looking out at the Chrysler Building. I am really into succulents right now and the shop I went to in the Flower District had a crazy awesome assortment of them. I can't wait to propagate and make more...

Sunday Dinner : Pea and Prosciutto Risotto

I am reading the book Eat, Pray Love (I just finished two heavy books and this is the perfect "feel good" break book. I'm really loving it.) and in the first section the author is living in Italy and describing her experiences with the food and language. I've been laying around reading all weekend and by this afternoon I was dying for a big delicious meal so I decided to make risotto. I invited my friends, Dennis and Chelsea, over and we ate and played Scattergories.


This is the apron I got in the Sassy Apron Swap. I freaking love this apron. It has pockets AND it is reversible!

If you like peas, mushrooms and proscuitto I highly recommend this recipe. It was disgustingly delicious. The recipe doesn't call for mushrooms, but I love them so I added some baby bella mushrooms (or what I like to call "steak of the forest"). Also, I used vegetable broth instead of chicken broth and I used Asiago cheese instead of Parmigiano-Reggiano.

Note: I just realized that there are 3 Brooklyn themed items in this one photo. Dennis' shirt from Brooklyn Industries, a Brooklyn poster on the wall from Ork Posters and a Brooklyn tray on the table from Fishs Eddy. Gotta show the love - Brooklyn is a magical place.

First Bike Ride of 2008

Yay! Abe and I rode up to Astoria Park and back - about 9 miles. It was a good first ride - not too long and not too short. Astoria Park is funny - we knew we were in Queens because all the 21 year old boys were out showing off their fancy cars with their Brooklyn Tape Up haircuts. I say modified because these days the Tape Up seems to be flattened a little more against the head.

Astoria Park has one of the largest and most popular swimming facilities in the country, with a main pool and diving pool that meet Olympic standards, as well as a wading pool. The pool has a view of the Triborough Bridge and the LIRR bridge crosses right through the park.

NEW T-Shirt : Respect Knucks

Attention all men! Are you tired of greeting your fellow co-workers with a slap on the back or a formal handshake? Are you sick of handing out cheek kisses and partial hugs to perfect strangers?

Let the world know your preferred method of communicating a job well done, goodbye to a close friend, a nod that you are on the same page. Your Respect Knucks t-shirt will communicate your preference to people of all languages so you never again have to suffer through an unwanted chest bump.

T-shirts are made by American Apparel from 100% pre-shrunk cotton.

If any girls are interested in this let me know - I'll be happy to print some up!

Click here to view this t-shirt on my website.

Hot Plate

I took a little break from the land of hobbits and made a a functional piece in ceramics - a trivet. A trivet is used to guard the kitchen counters from a hot pot or pan.

I made this one rather large because we have this giant sauce pan (not pictured) that is so heavy it is difficult to transfer food from the pan to plate when it is being held in my hand.

I am already perfecting my technique and plan on making 2 different sizes and offering them for sale on Etsy.

The trivet is woven from individual pieces of clay and glazed in CV Green.