Monday, August 30, 2010
Tuesday, August 24, 2010
Tuesday, August 17, 2010
Monday, August 16, 2010
asphalt lot watermelon
So, a couple days ago we went to the neighborhood Farmers Market, which is also an actual farm, and they sell stuff they grew on site plus stuff from other local farms (Hudson Valley and/or Jersey I believe.)
They piled up their soil right on top of an asphalt lot to avoid contact with any potential existing contamination in the dirt below.
It's a freekin' farm. Right across the street from Ikea.
- andfriend
They piled up their soil right on top of an asphalt lot to avoid contact with any potential existing contamination in the dirt below.
It's a freekin' farm. Right across the street from Ikea.
- andfriend
Friday, August 13, 2010
generations
posted by andfriend, aka "B"
It's been a whirlwind month. After a seemingly endless stretch of time looking for a proper retail space, things began to jell recently. On the same day that we finally decided on a space, my father passed away which initiated a flurry of activity that required immediate attention in three separate time zones from Brooklyn to Hawaii.
Our search for a space had led us briefly to Philadelphia. Philly is the city where Mollie's father, Marvin Dash, ran Everbrite Printing Company for many years. He grew up there. One of my grandfathers also spent his childhood in Philly - coincidentally only a few miles from where Marvin lived as a child. There are so many things I like about that city, a few things that I don't like. There's always something damned interesting to discover every time we go there. But for a store and possible relocation, it wasn't in the cards right now.
Ultimately it was a matter of taste - Mollie felt that Brooklyn was/is/continues to be the optimum place to be. After burning through the ideas of Philly, Williamsburg, Carroll Gardens, Gowanus and other places we finally came back to home: our home of 6 months that is.
Red Hook fits us. Far more than Bed Stuy ever did. There's an unquantifiable something about this neighborhood that is just right. With all the other possible iterations put to bed, Red Hook became the perfect choice.
So I got the call that my father had died and as we went through the motions of doing stuff that had to be done, I got to thinking about how almost everybody in my family line are strangers in strange lands. One grandfather growing up in Philly from English and Danish parents. Then he moves to Hawaii and marries a Hawaiian woman whose first language was Hawaiian and whose parents were once subjects of a Kingdom.
My father's parents: pulling up roots in the Philipines and taking the entire family to Hawaii, looking for a better life. Toughing it out in hard conditions and losing far too many children in the process. Life was brutish and short for them.
My own parents: island folk striking out on "the mainland" in search of opportunity. Making a life in Los Angeles. A life full of experiences that they could never have imagined back on the plantation house and dirt roads of Waipahu or in the birthright home in Papakolea.
We seem to be wanderers; always a different place to be, a new thing to try.
I think of this legacy - the sacrifices these people have made along the way, the many good times and the occasional horrific situations that they had to endure. It makes me humble and proud. Proud most of all of the personal dignity, grace and honor that they have shown in the new and unfamiliar spaces they have found themselves.
For that I am thankful.
It's been a whirlwind month. After a seemingly endless stretch of time looking for a proper retail space, things began to jell recently. On the same day that we finally decided on a space, my father passed away which initiated a flurry of activity that required immediate attention in three separate time zones from Brooklyn to Hawaii.
Our search for a space had led us briefly to Philadelphia. Philly is the city where Mollie's father, Marvin Dash, ran Everbrite Printing Company for many years. He grew up there. One of my grandfathers also spent his childhood in Philly - coincidentally only a few miles from where Marvin lived as a child. There are so many things I like about that city, a few things that I don't like. There's always something damned interesting to discover every time we go there. But for a store and possible relocation, it wasn't in the cards right now.Ultimately it was a matter of taste - Mollie felt that Brooklyn was/is/continues to be the optimum place to be. After burning through the ideas of Philly, Williamsburg, Carroll Gardens, Gowanus and other places we finally came back to home: our home of 6 months that is.Red Hook fits us. Far more than Bed Stuy ever did. There's an unquantifiable something about this neighborhood that is just right. With all the other possible iterations put to bed, Red Hook became the perfect choice.
So I got the call that my father had died and as we went through the motions of doing stuff that had to be done, I got to thinking about how almost everybody in my family line are strangers in strange lands. One grandfather growing up in Philly from English and Danish parents. Then he moves to Hawaii and marries a Hawaiian woman whose first language was Hawaiian and whose parents were once subjects of a Kingdom.My father's parents: pulling up roots in the Philipines and taking the entire family to Hawaii, looking for a better life. Toughing it out in hard conditions and losing far too many children in the process. Life was brutish and short for them.
My own parents: island folk striking out on "the mainland" in search of opportunity. Making a life in Los Angeles. A life full of experiences that they could never have imagined back on the plantation house and dirt roads of Waipahu or in the birthright home in Papakolea.
We seem to be wanderers; always a different place to be, a new thing to try.
I think of this legacy - the sacrifices these people have made along the way, the many good times and the occasional horrific situations that they had to endure. It makes me humble and proud. Proud most of all of the personal dignity, grace and honor that they have shown in the new and unfamiliar spaces they have found themselves.
For that I am thankful.
Thursday, August 12, 2010
traditions
We attended one of the most inspiring talks at the tanker ship Mary Whalen PortSide event series. It's like a block away from our apartment, and (as we discovered this evening) it kicks ass. Hosted by Carolina and her magical bottle of Sangria. (I forgot my Bourbon at home.)
Robert LaValva was there and weaved through the complex narrative that led to his launching and nurturing of the New Amsterdam market.
The conversation was deep, meandering through slow food, the history of the Fulton Ferry (before it was known by the name "Fulton"), the parallels of city design between Amsterdam and New Amsterdam... too many tangential subjects to cover here. It was pretty damn cool - had me interested the whole time (and I don't have an attention span.) That market of his truly does have a direct spiritual lineage to the deep past.
Robert's commitment and passion to more ethical, healthful food choices fits in well with these more mindful times we live in. He is a great evangelist for the cause, full of passion and curiosity.
I look forward to visiting his New Amsterdam Market this Fall.
- andfriend
New Amsterdam Market meets on Sunday, August 22 and then weekly starting Sunday, September 12.
Location: South Street between Beekman St. and Peck Slip
Robert LaValva was there and weaved through the complex narrative that led to his launching and nurturing of the New Amsterdam market.
The conversation was deep, meandering through slow food, the history of the Fulton Ferry (before it was known by the name "Fulton"), the parallels of city design between Amsterdam and New Amsterdam... too many tangential subjects to cover here. It was pretty damn cool - had me interested the whole time (and I don't have an attention span.) That market of his truly does have a direct spiritual lineage to the deep past.
Robert's commitment and passion to more ethical, healthful food choices fits in well with these more mindful times we live in. He is a great evangelist for the cause, full of passion and curiosity.
I look forward to visiting his New Amsterdam Market this Fall.
- andfriend
New Amsterdam Market meets on Sunday, August 22 and then weekly starting Sunday, September 12.
Location: South Street between Beekman St. and Peck Slip
Tuesday, August 10, 2010
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