It’s been a rainy, muggy week here in Greenpoint. I’m going to be honest and say I’ve spent more time catching up on TV and frequenting the brand new Beloved than gardening. However, sometimes the plants take care of themselves (hey, they’ve been doing it since literally forever!).
This morning I awoke to a really special sight. Out of nowhere it seemed that my squash had blossomed! I have a whole mess of little yellow flowers. I was told I should try catching some of these before they bloom, stuff them with cheese and fry them, ….maybe I will give it a shot tonight.
This past weekend, before the rain, I transferred all of my cowpots into regular-sized pots. They seem to be doing well and growing ten times faster. It’s amazing what a little space can do (am I right, Brooklyn renters?)!
I go insane over broccoli. If I had to chose one only food to eat everyday, you guessed it: broccoli! Boil it, bake it, roast it, grill it, steam it, fry it, pie it – any which way, it is the best vegetable. And as a cruciferous vegetable, it’s also anti-carcinogenic. Not a bad thing considering I live directly over the plume!
While having a romantic dinner with my wife (wondering what that means? read here.) at No. 7, the restaurant in Fort Greene from the same owners as No. 7 Sub on Manhattan Ave, we ordered an exclusively vegetarian meal. This is very unlike us. When Julie returned from the dark side of being a vegetarian, we celebrated with a Sausage Party, and it’s been dirty jokes and meaty dinners ever since. But sometimes the vegetarian options will surprise you, and they are often overlooked because you think, I’m out, I might as well eat meat! If you want a lighter meal, go veggie; you will certainly leave feeling less stuffed.
Cheesy Bacon Gordita Crunch - Limited Time at Taco Bell
The Double Decker Broccoli Taco we ate was amazing, so I had to try it at home. It is basically the healthy vegetarian version of a Gordita Crunch from Taco Bell. (Don’t act like you don’t dream about it!) But with the braco, a hard taco is stuffed with feta cheese and broccoli, around which a black bean smeared soft taco is wrapped, then the whole thing is topped with pine nuts and hot sauce! Not only are the flavors happily married but the texture of the soft taco spooning the hard taco is quite a fiesta in your mouth.
Fall GWYSL youth soccer registration is now open with the Greenpoint Williamsburg Youth Soccer League, now through July 1st for reduced $80 rates. Please visit www.gwysl.com for more information. We are an AYSO region open to boys and girls ages 4 through 18. Season plays Saturday mornings at McCarren Park starting September 8th.
Summer Soccer Skills Camp is filling up fast. Join our amazing crew of foreign coaches from the United Soccer Academy for 1, 2, or 3 weeks of camp at McCarren Park from July 9th thru July 27th. Visit our website to find the link to register under announcements. Pricing only $179 per week for camp from 8am to 3pm. Strategically located next to the new McCarren Park Pool!
It’s sad to see such a great man go, but we wish him the best of luck! Thanks for everything Griffin! You rule.
Dear Friends,
On Monday evening at the Congregational Council meeting, I submitted my resignation as the pastor of the Lutheran Church of the Messiah. It has been my honor to serve you for the last seven and a half years. You have been my teachers and friends. For that, I am eternally grateful. Together, we have worked to reach out to the community in innovative ways — being a beacon of hope to our neighbors and beyond.
As I enter a new decade in my life, I am feeling called by God into new adventures in my personal and professional life. I will be moving to Boston. At this time, I do not have a pastoral call or a job secured, but I have several possibilities in the mix. I am looking forward to what God has in store for me!
I have spoken with Bishop Rimbo about my plans. He and his staff are committed to walking closely with the congregation through the upcoming transition. The work accomplished by the Messiah/St. John’s dialog committee has laid the groundwork for moving forward together. Messiah is a resilient congregation, and I know that the future is bright even though it is a bit unclear at this time.
I plan to serve through the end of June, and my last Sunday will be June 24. I look forward to making the most of these final days with you.
Again, I thank you from the bottom of my heart for your on-going prayers and support.
I completed a 3-day Juice Cleanse. My last meal before I started was a delicious grilled cheese from the Munchie Mobile and I woke up starving on the first day. Not a great sign.
As an alternative to making my own juice I went with Blue Print Cleanse, which is on the expensive side ($200 for 3 days), but their motto is, “We think, you drink.” First world problems: “I don’t know what juice to make for my cleanse!” Like going to gym, I am motivated by money. I better drink all this liquid gold and not screw it up! And it all came in a neat box, each bottle labeled 1-6. (A little bird told me you can dumpster dive for the juices in LIC.) Or you can try to make them yourself.
THURSDAY 5/17 • Greenpoint Neighbors for Lincoln Restler @ Red Star (37 Greenpoint Ave.) 6:30-8pm, RSVP • Lost Everything @ Word (126 Franklin St) 7pm, Brian Francis Slattery presents his new novel Lost Everything, in a launch party extravaganza accompanied by a performance by Dr. Caterwaul’s Cadre of Clairvoyant Claptraps.
*** ALL WEEKEND *** ♫ GYPSY TABOR 2012 Festival & Camp (5/18-20) @ Onderdonk House (1820 Flushing Ave, Ridgewood) $20/day, $35 – all weekend, Live music, DJs, yoga workshops, food, drink, informational lectures, dancing, camping, and celebrating world-roots and NYC’s immigrant culture are all on the menu, RSVP, More info • Great Googa Mooga Festival @ Prospect Park (5/19-20) The Great GoogaMooga: n. an amusement park of food & drink; adj. something wonderfully great; excl. “oh my goodness!” or “how bout that! More info
FRIDAY 5/18 ♫ Free Kids Concert @ McGolrick Park (Monitor St & Driggs Ave.) Rain Location: Messiah Church (129 Russell St) 11am, Mrs. Crabapple puppet show, performance by Mike Messer, lead singer of The Dirty Sock Funtime Band, a collective chalk flower drawing • Williamsburg Walks Volunteer Meeting @ Nag Office (Kent Ave @ N8th, 2nd Fl) or picnic table in East River State Park, 6pm, Williamsburg Walks is a series of car-free Saturday afternoons on Bedford Avenue. The idea is for people to use the closure to cars to rethink their public space & celebrate the neighborhood, on 3 Saturdays -rain or shine- June 9th, 16th, & 23rd, RSVP ♦ Hut # 7 @ Arts @ Renaissance (2 Kingsland Ave) 6:30pm, Hut #7 is a hut built of trash found on and around the site of St. Nicks Alliance by choreographer and multi-media artist Jill Sigman, RSVP, More info ♫ Flash @ Loreley BK (64 Frost St) 10pm, Live – Jorge Velez, DJs: Marcos Cabral, Ron Morelli, Love On The Run (Secret Rendevous), RSVP ♫ Perfect Stranger @ Europa (98 Meserole Ave) 10pm, $15, psytrance RSVP
SATURDAY 5/19 * North Brooklyn Volunteer Fair @ McCarren Park Greenmarket (Driggs & Union) 10am-2pm, From soup kitchens to parks groups, we have brought together 20 organizations that utilize volunteers in North Brooklyn. This is a great opportunity to learn how you can connect to volunteer opportunities in Williamsburg and Greenpoint. RSVP • Build It Green Grow NYC Block Party & Stop ‘N’ Swap @ Build It Green! NYC (3-17 26th Ave, Astoria) 12-3pm, More info • Genie In a Bottle @ Kill Devil Hill (170 Franklin St) 1-5pm, Tell the genie your three wishes and she will make you a custom perfume of power. ♦ Pastoral Day Dreams @ The Home of Andrew Freedman (1125 Grand Concourse, Bronx) 1-5pm, Join Caroline Burghardt at the “Beach” in the Bronx. Enjoy her newest backdrop and take your own pictures or pose for one of mine, RSVP
SUNDAY 5/20 * Genie In a Bottle @ Kill Devil Hill (170 Franklin St) 1-5pm, Tell the genie your three wishes and she will make you a custom perfume of power ♦ Arts In Bushwick Benefit @ Grace Exhibition Space (840 Broadway, 2nd Fl.) 6-9pm, Meet the artists and have a preview of some of the works that will be shown during Bushwick Open Studios June 1-3.All artwork will be sold in a $50 raffle with the first ticket drawn having first pick, and so on, until all the pieces are gone, RSVP
MONDAY 5/21 * OCD Lecture: The Biggest Apple @ Pete’s Candy Store (709 Lorimer St) 7:30pm, Free, journalist Amy O’Leary for a panel discussion on population trends, urban planning, and the conceptual limits of density here in the Big Apple. ♫ Country Night @ Union Pool (484 Union Ave) 9pm, Free, Cowboy Mark & DJ Tony, a full night of vintage country music. Vinyl only always.
We all wanted Piecorps to have a retail location, and great news: we can look forward to amazing pies come this June in Greenpoint! Piecorps needed to raise funds to buy a new oven and because of community donations they raised via Lucky Ant, they got it. Social media isn’t always evil.
I follow Piecorps on Facebook just to drool at all the amazing pies they come up with. Like Chili Pie with Cornbread Crust or Rhubarb Custard Pie. Good news is you don’t have to wait until the summer to enjoy their delicious pies. You can shop for pies online to be delivered to your front door or visit them on Saturdays at Hester Street Fair (LES) & Stone Barns Center (upstate) or on Sundays at New Amsterdam Market (South Street Seaport). All three Union Markets as well as Gourmet Guild carry their pies.
We live in Brooklyn, the land of small railroad apartments. Most of us are constantly searching for more ways to store things while ideally not filling up the place with ugly plastic containers. Even if you are one of the lucky few to live in a beautifully sized apartment, the bathroom can always be a small, awkward or tricky spot to have the storage we need while keeping the tiny room looking good.
A while back someone gave me this vintage store display rack and it has become the perfect storage addition to the bathroom, although it could really work in any room. It is simple, hangs on the wall, and has the capability of holding a lot of stuff or looking great empty. They are somewhat easy to find on ebay and not too pricy.
The world is random; so is Greenpointers. The obsessive collector in me cannot keep my hands off any and all cool looking business cards that I find in coffee shops, art galleries, bars and those handed to meet when I meet new folks. I have a nerdy binder with laminated slots where I keep them, but since that has filled up I stuff everything into this pickle jar. Like a lot of organizational disasters in my life, it is one of the many elephants in the room of things I need to go through. I earnestly pocket these cards because they are attractive to me and I want to check them out.
Enter the new weekly post: “Pick a Card” in which I randomly pick a business card, show it to you, and tell you all about it.
This may sound boring, but this isn’t the “Leave a Business Card for Free Lunch” raffle jar you find in an overpriced deli in Midtown. This jar is filled with some of the most innovative and creative new companies, organizations, artists and musicians, all people who live in our neighborhood. Another column I want to do regularly is a weekly featured Greenpoint artist, so I am killing two birds with one stone here. I am psyched that the first card I pulled is artist/photographer Caroline Burghardt. Aside from personally loving her work, the timing is great because on Saturday she is working on her Pastoral Dreams photo project up in the Bronx at the Andrew Freeman Home, and it looks like it’s going to be a lot of fun! Check out the facebook invitation for more info.
