First Summer Friday!

My first summer Friday this year

was so much fun.

I just wish I'd worn a jacket.

It was basically freezing if you wander out without one,

and it rained a ton.

The best part of the day was when we holed up

in the back of a cafe in LIC

that played some great music.

For lunch Pam, Kat, and I went to M.Wells at P.S. 1 MoMA,

and it was quite delicious.

Bryan met up with us shortly after,

and we explored the museum.

One of the rooms was a room of ice.

I believe they were glacier specimens from an old glacier,

but it was too cold to really figure it all out.

Another room had global trashcans.

Some had actual trash (from snarky visitors I suppose.)

The building is much like the grammar school I went to,

though there are two sets of stairs,

and two stairwells in each corner.

It seemed a bit excessive.

The art in the halls was much more enlivening

than my grammar school's halls though.

As part of the rain exihibit at the MoMA in Manhattan,

there's this other exhibit at P.S. 1.

Basically in the atrium part,

they built an indoor pond with koi fish (see above).

And a waterfall.

I am not so much into standing around and reading about the art

as much as I am about seeing and taking in the art.

I've not had a chance to read about it,

but experiencing it was pretty cool.

The cold weather and the rain and the constant waterfall sounds though,

well, good thing there were some bathrooms around.

One other cool thing was the boiler room.

One of the pieces had saliva in it.

You just have to wonder why and where and why.

After lunch, museum viewing, and cafe catching up,

we headed into the city and join Nat and Dani

(Kat went home)

for dinner at Empellon

to celebrate an intimate birthday dinner with Pam.

The food was good, but it was all a bit expensive and loud,

and I wished it were just as cozy and low key as the cafe.

Katherine's Hepburn's Pants at the NYPL

I love, love, love living in Manhattan.

It's disgustingly expensive to live here

(did you see the article about the middle class in the NYTimes?)

but there is so much free stuff!

Unfortunately, the headache of getting into or out of the city

from anywhere else in the world 

to take advantage of this stuff 

is usually not worth it.

I'm saying that if you're in town,

it's awesome, but asking someone to trek in

is kind of asking a lot.

Take this Katherine Hepburn exhibit

 at the NYPL in Lincoln Center

for example.

It was free, and it was wonderful because it was free.

Definitely a must-see if you were around and had a half hour to stop in.

Though, most people would probably prefer making an effort to see 

an Audrey Hepburn costume exhibit, I'm sure.

Still, Katherine was adorable 

in her crazy accent/pants-wearing ways.

Her costumes in her plays and movies weren't as beautiful,

but they helped create her memorable characters.

Other stuff, like sketches of herself, and a Dorothy Parker review

of her play (Dottie hated it) were nice touches.

It's hard to tell if I'd be able to fit into her clothing.

Some seemed too long for my stature,

some seemed too small for my waist.

Others seemed huge.

I feel like the pants display would be a good campaign for Gap 

or maybe an older women's clothing store.

They should make replica pants.

These are cute, especially since pleated pants,

aren't the worst things in the world any longer.

By the way how cute is that hat?

Pinterest wish list that baby.

Jeff Koon's Tulips in Bilbao and New York City

Jeff Koons is a kind of strange-but-interesting man.

Did you see him on Colbert?

We saw one of his Tulips pieces in Bilbao

when were were at the Guggenheim in 2010.

Created in an edition of five versions, 

his later work Tulips (1995–2004) 

consists of a bouquet of multicolor balloon flowers 

blown up to gargantuan proportions 

(more than 2 m (6.6 ft) tall and 5 m (16 ft) across).*

That's us there

in the tulip balloons.

It was a really cool museum.

In November, I passed by this weird thing in front of Christie's

on my way to lunch.

I thought that was the piece--

wrapped up balls--

which was a bit avant garde for Christie's.

But then I passed by it on my way

to something in Rock Center later that evening,

and I came across this instead.

And it was pretty cool

on water

since the reflections were not only on the balloons,

but also in the water.

The windows across the street were especially making this piece all shiny. 

Jon's former coworker's girlfriend

works at Christie's.

Her job is arranging this stuff,

and this piece in particular was challenging according to her,

since Koons wanted it on ice.

We had a really nice and warm November,

so ice would've been dumb.

The little puddle was just perfect for it.

Fun fact:

The largest sum known to be paid for a work by Koons 

is Tulips, 

which was sold for US $33,682,500 (£21,219,975) 

at Christie's New York 

on November 14, 2012 

(Lot 35) in the Post-War & Contemporary Art Evening Sale.*

It's pretty cool that I saw it

just hanging outside of my office

on the sidewalk

like a bum.

All $33,682,500 of it.

*wikipedia!

Hollywood!

In late September/early October,

I went to LA for my third cousin's wedding.

I couldn't believe that LA was as bad

as a lot of people said it was,

but it was--even with Jon.

Other than layovers, the last time I was there I was a junior in high school.

The band performed at Disneyland,

and we went to the San Diego Zoo.

We had the worst turbulence coming back home,

and I felt so sleep-deprived from that trip

that I was pretty suicidal when I got home.

It was a weird time.

The time before that

I was about twelve or thirteen, 

and I went with my brother and dad.

(My mom and sister went to China on a gymnastics trip.)

We flew in to LA and drove up to SF,

then flew to Oahu and Maui.

It was a really awesome trip,

yet odd because I was at that age where

I hated my body,

and I was really introverted and thought I was being very philosophical.

I had a uniform of

traditional low-top black/white Converses,

indigo jeans, men's tank undershirt (or the light blue girl's one),

and a blue and navy cardigan from Esprit,

and the alternative was jean shorts and polo shirts.

When I wanted to feel girly,

I had a striped polo dress.

I wore everything with my Cons.

 I had to tell myself to stop living in my head

and start experiencing life.

I wrote a lot of terrible poetry then,

if only to get my thoughts out of my head.

When I first landed in LA,

I was in awe of the palm trees.

Actual, real-life palm trees, like on TV and the movies,

existed in LA.

My dad rented a car, 

and we drove north on the PCH highway 

until he got too sleepy to drive further.

I remember eating a lot of salami and pizza (AWESOME!)

and getting car sick from the twists and turns (not awesome at all) on that trip.

When we drove through Malibu, I thought that it was

the scariest place on earth.

There were so many HUGE houses--like mini castles--on top of sprawling hills.

The people crossing to the beaches were so tan and built and blond.

It looked like Baywatch.

Totally unreal.

The first night we stayed at a hotel that was so booked up that

we had to sleep in one of the really fancy suites.

It was so fancy that you had to use your elevator key to get to that floor

AND it had a free buffet breakfast in the special suites' floor lobby area.

I hated eating in public and didn't want to be judged by all those snooty families

that had planned to stay in those suites (not landed there because there were

no vacancies otherwise), so I didn't really take advantage of it like I should have.

The bed was so big that it fit me, my brother, and dad with

no overlapping issues.

We went to Monterrey Bay and SF.

It was awesome fun.

And Hawaii was even better.

I remember being so enthralled with the rolling hills and valleys and mountains of CA,

thinking about how when I'm old enough,

I was going to live in each state for at least two years of my life

to really see the USA. And then I thought some states suck,

so I didn't have to live in all of them--just the cool ones.

Now that I'm old enough to know better,

the only states worth living in are NJ or NY,

and I can spend weeks at a time in any other city in the world.

Oh, young Christina.

In any case, here's the Hollywood sign as taken from the top floor 

of one of the buildings at the LACMA.

I think it connotes a lot of different things for everyone.

TE Burgers at the Plaza

After an awesome night at the Frick,

which included free talks, light snacks, and live music,

Jon and I went to the Todd English food hall at the Plaza.

I got the sliders, 

which were a bit overcooked.

We were sitting near the pasta bar,

and were kind of sad that we just didn't get the pasta--

me especially, since my sliders were so dry.

Jon was pretty happy with his burger though.

Yeah. He loves it.

Parmesan fries.

Water for Elephants

Elephant and baboon statue
outside of Musée d'Orsay in Paris

Movie time!

:) -- Ooh! -- I wouldn't be too embarrassed about recommending this.

:/ -- Err. -- Maybe if you've got nothing else to watch at all.

:( -- What?! -- As in What is this garbage?!

Water for Elephants

:(

It was visually appealing--how could it not be? It's the circus after all. With an ELEPHANT. I didn't read the book, nor do I want to after seeing this movie.

Overall: The elephant was the star, and if it were two hours of that elephant playing in a puddle, I'd have watched it. I don't know though. I hate Reese Witherspoon for some inexplicable reason, so her being miserable was okay with me for awhile, but then she gets her happy ending. Pssht. Oh, and the Twilight guy/dead guy from Harry Potter is in it. I thought he'd be really terrible as a lead character, but he was watchable. You almost forget that he's Twilight guy/dead guy from Harry Potter. Almost. The main bad guy (who in the movie is a combination of the two bad guys) is really obnoxious and crazy. He treats animals and people equally cruelly. I don't like seeing that kind of stuff.

Surprise: I can't think of anyone or anything about this movie that really surprised me. The elephant was excellent though.

The Day the Enterprise Landed on the Intrepid (or When I Escaped the Sun-Shower)

The Enterprise is now on the Intrepid!

Posing as a West Side Highway jogger,

I set off to see one of my favorite aircrafts ever:

the Enterprise,

on one my favorite aircraft carriers ever:

the Intrepid.

Full-disclosure:

I didn't jog.

Ha-ha-ha!

Me? Jogging.

I walked at a pace that felt fast to me,

while listening to some awesome tunes

on my Michael Jackson station

on Pandora.

I LOVE the Intrepid.

There she is!

The Enterprise!

Quite a beauty.

Jon and I saw her upclose and personal

at the Udvar-Hazy Center in 2009.

It was two weekends before we moved from Virginia

back to New Jersey.

I remember that we went to the the UHC,

and the only thing we did to contribute to our move that Saturday

was buy packing tape from Home Depot.

It was the best way to procrastinate

because moving is a terrible chore.

Anyway, today

there were some guys beneath her,

welding her to the ship or something.

This looks like a space capsule thing,

wearing an inner tube.

Is it a space capsule thing,

wearing an inner tube?

(At this time, I can't really confirm.)

 

There are so many tires on this barge!

I think they're used tires from giant vehicles,

so it's nice that it was recycled 

as bumpers for the barge.

I believe this is how the Enterprise was hoisted onto the boat.

Fatty space ship.

My mom got some good pics of it

when it was brought in to the Intrepid

earlier this afternoon.

That's a pretty tall crane.

Kathleen the tugboat helped out.

I like her BBQ.

There was a tugboat named Shelby nearby.

She just, like, stood there.

Shelby. . . .

 

A helicopter kept circling around.

Maybe for the news?

The clouds started to roll in,

so I moseyed on home.

Good-bye, Enterprise!

Good-bye, Intrepid!

On Eleventh Avenue by The Daily Show,

there's a building called St. Mary's.

I wonder what that's about.

(Again, another fruitless Google search;

though it's in a slide show for potential

historic sites.)

In the Clinton DeWitt Park

across the street,

lilies grow.

Once I sat down to start writing up this blog,

it started to rain.

Giant clouds and pockets of sun.

I was lucky to have escaped being soaked.

It was a really nice way 

to spend a gorgeous June afternoon.

"Untitled" (Placebo) by Felix Gonzalez-Torres (or Free Pineapple Candy) at the MoMA

I went to the MoMA

last Friday to see what's new.

One thing that I came across in this visit

has become one of my favorite pieces of art.

It's by Felix Gonzalez-Torres.

And it's 1000 to 1200 pounds of silver-cellophane wrapped

pineapple candies.

That you are supposed to pick up and eat!

Mmm . . . art!

Friday Late-Afternoon Stroll Through Central Park to the Frick Museum

A few Fridays ago I walked to the Frick Museum for Renoir Night.

I saw the head of a sea lion poking up from beneath the pool . . .

at the zoo.

This underpass smelled a lot like piss.

This is the petting zoo part.

It was closed, but I recalled one of Dani's stories

when one of the animals threw up on her

during her nanny days.

Poor Dani.

It's a WWI monument.

The green background is just too pretty.

At the Frick Museum entrance.

The Renoir exhibit was marvelous,

and the whole night was a lot of fun.

Scarlet Ibis, Renoir, Family Love, TGIF!

Bronx Zoo Scarlet Ibis
Hammy Couple
(I told them not to pose, but they did.)

I'm thinking about heading to the Frick for Renoir Night. Don't you love when museums are free?!

This weekend we're headed to NJ for the Mitsuwa Premium Sweets from Different Prefectures of Japan Fair.

I'm also getting a facial.

And we're going to celebrate Jon's brother's birthday.

Speaking of brothers, my brother got the notice that he's been accepted to run in this year's NYC Marathon! Yay, Dom! (Though that there's a whole application process for this is beyond me.)

"I can't smile without you. . . ." My mom and dad are taking me to see Barry Manilow on Wednesday!

Fun fact: Barry and I share a birthday and my mom, who loves both of us.

Since I mentioned everyone but my sister, I think I should. The wonderful book that she's in is being published in a couple of weeks: My First Gymnastics Class! Go buy a copy now!

TGIF!

TGIF!

Searching for the MoMA app on my phone, I found Yo Moma jokes instead. (I thought they'd be like: Your MoMA's so dumb, she thought a Warhol was a Duchamp! Your MoMA's such a slut, she's doesn't charge on Friday nights. Your MoMA's so fat she has a, like, three restaurants in her. But they weren't. They're just so dumb they don't know how to spell "momma.")

40 ways to tie a scarf! Considering fashion that kills, it might be a good idea to learn some of these.

Some new words to use in everyday rotation: Glitterbanged. Stickyfingers. Masticate.

Speaking of food, Monday we're planning to eat fried chicken and waffles; Tuesday, it's Taka Taka; and Thursday is Jewel Bako with a sushi concierge. 

Ooh! Maybe we'll try these for our next soiree.

I really like thinking about this story.

This makes me want to learn the woman's steps to the tango--'cause I only kinda know the man's:

Happy Easter and Passover and weekend!

TGIF!

Stealth Mountain
Just look at those peaks!

Despite the freezing temperatures and the chance of snow, it's Friday, and I know this weekend will be awesome:

Jon's back from nearly being ambushed by deer at this scary hotel.

Speaking of scary, this homemade video has been my life for the past week or so.

Check out Stealth Mountain (@StealthMountain). Now to start a twitter bot that scolds people for using "alot" instead of "a lot."

Some DIY/craft blogs with such cute stuff: Thanks, I Made It, with an i.e., Dismount Creative, Wit & Whistle. I'm looking at you Morse code necklace.

It's the last weekend to slide at the New Museum, so it's now or never. 

Monday is Chinese New Year's day! Wear some red for luck.

What I want to do for my twenty-ninth birthday.

TGIF!

Day at the American Natural History Museum

The Google Offer for the American Natural History Museum was pretty awesome: $5 for a $25 value, which included admission to the museum plus one special exhibit/IMAX film/Space Show. The only bad part about it was that it was going to expire on Halloween, so Jon and I went on Sunday.

To gear up, we went to Landmarc for an onion soup lunch and had roasted potatoes, a bloody Mary, and a ginger ale. Their onion soup hit the spot--I don't think I ever really need to make my own, though it would certainly be cheaper to do so.

Hmm . . . anyway, stuffed, we walked up Broadway and Columbus to the museum and entered at the planetarium side. (It was around 3:30 p.m., and there was barely a line.) This was the first time either Jon or I had been to the museum since grammar school, so it was exciting for us to be going together.

We saw the Hayden Planetarium Space Show, which was awesome, though Whoopi Goldberg's voice kind of ruined it. Also the seats needed to recline more. I think it reclines as much as an economy airplane seat. The top portion of the globe structure is where you view the Space Show; below the equator of the globe, there's a room with a free show about the CMB/formation of our universe and you stand around looking down into the center of the room to view it.

Unfortunately, the whole museum was a bit run-down looking. There was Earth dust on the three meter meteorite--someone should really clean these things.

I saw a kid doing this in the oyster's shell, and it looked cool. The museum is superdark, so it's hard taking a decent pic with a camera phone or anything without a flash. Still this is one way to keep things from gathering dust: allow us to touch it!

The elephants in the halls of Asian mammals and African mammals were too dark to take a picture of, and forget about trying to take a photo of the whale. The whale was big, but I feel like a lot of the animals they have are smaller in scale to real ones. Like instead of average-size animals, they choose to represent the below average-size animals.

This guy though, he was pretty big. Like SmartCar big.

Dinosaur face.

Dinosaur face. Or rather the face you get when you're told you can't make the same face as a T-Rex.

Rarrrrrrrr! Dinosaurs!!!!!