Brooklyn: Glasgow with better coffee and better pizza.
Lexa, Robin and I met on 79th and Broadway to begin out trek to Brooklyn. The plan was to get to the Village, dine and then take the subway to Park Slope for the day. And the plan worked. We had brunch at Les Deux Gamins on the corner of 4th and 10th then it was off to Brooklyn. If everything is relative, Brooklyn is the Home of trees and open sky. We landed in the Park Slope area and did the walk on 7th Avenue- the High Street of that area.
Robin and Lexa with the Good coffee.
Brooklyn has such a different vibe to Manhattan. It felt to me like I could have been a lot of different places and I was not necessarily in a New York City borough. This is not a negative comment; I loved the buildings and the commercial streets were really pleasant to walk on and window shop. It seems very livable. There is parking and nice restaurants and parks. I thought that if I lived somewhere that was not New York City, I wouldn't mind it looking like this. But I guess right now I want to live in New York City. Even though Brooklyn cares not a fig, I am keeping it in my back pocket. I was only a little disturbed when I heard a mother crossing the street with her kids shout "India, don't cross until I tell you. 'Punzle! 'Punzle!!, you get over here now."
How I long to see Jane run.
Every quaint main drag has to have a Starbucks and Barnes & Noble to take the place of the local bookshop and cafe it choked out of business. The good thing is about this Barnes & Noble is it happens to be where Robin is signing her book. We went there and I bought a copy of Cindy Ella. Robin did a personal book signing for me right in the store. All very, very fun.
The author signs my copy.
But to see the author happen upon a sign in the window with her picture on it announcing her signing, that was priceless. I can only hope one day to know that thrill. How proud I am of Robin!
How GREAT is this moment!
Back to town on the Q Train across the Manhattan Bridge which affords a spectacular, if filthy, subway window view of the Brooklyn Bridge, Lower Manhattan and the Statue of Liberty. All without even trying. I love spectacularness that just happens while you are out buying oven cleaner.
It was sad to wish Lexa farewell back to LA at 59th Street. I will really miss her. As I left my travel companions I headed back to play my pipes in the park. The place where I play was covered in snow and looked like Robert Frost's "Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening." I had a quick blow and met a Breton guy and his Chinese girlfriend. They invited me to a Fez Nos they are having in April. Always happens. Yawn.
So happy she won Best Actress. Amazing performance.
Then it was back home and down to the Village to watch the Oscars with Sean, John, Pat, and Frank. Excellent Chinese and a Frank-from scratch cake that was so good. Sean did an excellent job with the TIVO controls. and I was pleased with most of the winners. I was thinking this was my first Oscars out of LA, but usually I have been in San Francisco at Oscars time. I would love to say I always leave LA at Oscar time because it is just too crazy, but that is just plain not true.
1 comment:
As a former Brooklyn-ite I can say Brooklyn rocks. That's why it's as expensive as Manhattan. Hee.
I love that area!
Post a Comment