What Will They Think Up Next?

 

I'm at Sweet Pickle Books -- Selfie on the right

I took a field trip with a few friends over the weekend and one of our stops was Sweet Pickle Books on Orchard Street. Once one of the first neighborhoods where the great wave of immigrants settled at the end of the Nineteenth Century, it's now a very hip  neighborhood. The tenements and street vendors -- yes, lots of pickle vendors -- have been replaced by upscale restaurants and stores. I don't get there often -- it's on the far east side of Manhattan and two train lines away -- but when my friend suggested it I was happy to add it to my day. 

Sweet Pickle sells used and rare books and pickles. Yes, it's an odd combination, but it's a quirky neighborhood and somehow it works beautifully. They also sell cute merchandise and it was very tempting to think about a Sweet Pickle hat or tote bag. 

Merchandise and great book shelves for browsing!

Here are the famous pickles. 

I was not only tempted by the books and shirts, but the pickles called my name. I definitely need a trip back here. 

Pep and Baby Yoda friends

This get-together was coordinated by one of the group of friends I met in Wildwood in the fall. Our next stop was the Lunar New Year Parade in Chinatown and the Baby Yodas and Pep were wearing bow ties created by my very talented friend Melissa. They all look so festive. I never thought of Pep as a bow tie guy, but he does wear it well. 

I'm not sure where I've been for the last few weeks, but realized it's almost two weeks since my last post, possibly my longest gap in blogging. All is well, just real-life good busy. I've had lots of company -- no complaint -- and I've got my first adventure of 2024 approaching with some planning yet to do. I hope all is well with my Buttercupland friends. 

As ever, thanks for visiting and a cheer for spring -- right around the corner.  

Welcome to Central Park

Please join me in Central Park 

The very closest park to where I live is Riverside Park -- just a block away to the west -- and it's a frequent walking destination. But when I get a little more energy I walk up the hill -- four long blocks -- to Central Park. They are both beautiful urban oases, but Riverside is very much a park for the neighborhood and not a destination for all of New York City. We'll be visiting Riverside in the week ahead, and for today we're spending our day at Central  Park. 

You may have seen photographs of Central Park recently and the park probably looked much more crowded. I stayed on the very edge of the park near one of the entrances and it was blissfully empty, even in the midst of many people visiting the park for fresh air. 

Central Park was the first landscaped public park in the United States. There were already landscaped parks in Paris and London and New York City had advocates for establishing a similar setting in Manhattan. The location was debated and ultimately  700 acres were taken by eminent domain. The area is filled with rocky outcroppings which create a great landscape, but were unsuitable for commercial development. These were not empty acres, but rather the home of 1,600 people. These residents included Seneca Village, a settlement of African-American landowners that dated from 1825. The photograph above is literally the site of Seneca Village, which went from what is now West 82nd St. to West 89th St. 

In 1857 Calvert Vaux and Frederick Law Olmstead were selected to design what would become Central Park. It was a massive public works project with over 20,000 workers, including stone cutters, engineers and laborers reshaping the area's topography to create the pastoral landscape. More gunpowder was blasted in the building of Central Park than at the Battle of Gettysburg in 1863. This was followed by workers bringing in three million cubic yards of soil and planting over 270,000 trees and shrubs. In 1859 this urban masterpiece was opened and by 1865 the park received over seven million visitors a year. What a legacy to New York City and to the world! 

What a legacy to New York City and to the world! I've always appreciated the beauty and proximity of Central Park, but these most recent days have made me even more appreciative. 

It's been cool here, but we've had beautiful sunny days. Flowers are in bloom and we're having a glorious spring. 

As ever, thanks for  visiting and take good care. Much love and wash your hands!

Pink Saturday Goes to the Easter Parade

Easter Sunday, 2019

Though there's no Easter Parade this year, it's still Easter. Luckily, I've got my photographs and memories of a wonderful sunny day last April. I always enjoy visiting Rockefeller Center on Easter and that's exactly where I expected to be today. 

The steps of  St. Patrick's Cathedral 

Directly across the street from Rockefeller Center on Fifth Avenue is Saint Patrick's Cathedral. Yes, this is literally a year ago, when none of us even thought of social distancing. 

My favorite part of the Easter Parade -- which isn't literally a parade, but people walking on Fifth Avenue -- are the hats. Some are store-bought and expensive and others are home created and the product of a year of creativity and work. 

   Two of my favorite creations. The one on the left is definitely my pick for Pink Saturday.

A second pretty in pink look

Our friend, Pep Le Monkee, joined me at Rockefeller Center

I hope you've enjoyed visiting the Easter Parade with Pep and me and I hope that you had a happy  Easter day. Tomorrow we return to our travels and we're going to Asia, and no passport needed. 

As ever, thanks for visiting and take care. Much love and wash your hands! 

Blue Skies Smiling at Me Pink Saturday

 

I'm looking towards Central Park, which is only a block away. 

At the beginning of this month I put my hat away and figured I wouldn't see my scarf again until the fall. Ha! We've had snow, we've had rain and we've had some gloomy days. But not Friday. Friday was a totally blue sky day and I walked home from the Y and enjoyed the weather, the blue skies and the neighborhood. It was cold, but I was dressed for it and I took advantage of every sunny afternoon minute I could get. 
 

I turned down one of the side streets off of Columbus Avenue and stopped to enjoy the sky, the clouds and the architectural details. 

I love this display in front of one of the remaining bodegas/corner grocery stores in the neighborhood. When I first moved to the area, there was probably a small grocery on every other block, but with rents going up they are becoming scarce. They're not fancy, but they are generally open 24 hours a day/seven days a week. When I needed to leave for work very early or if I was coming home late at night, their lights were a welcome beacon.

The blue skies fade into the sunset over the Hudson River. New Jersey is in the distance and on the left is a memorial to the Union soldiers of the Civil War.

 

Thanks for all the comments and good wishes for the A-to-Z Blogging Challenge. While I was walking on Friday I met two friends also out enjoying the weather. Our conversation sparked an idea and I've shifted my theme. I ran it by a member of my "editorial board" last night and it's good to go. It's going to take a lot more work, but I'm excited. I hope you will be, too. Thanks, B. for your input.

 

 

It's time for a visit to my sweet friends at Pink Saturday. If you want to meet some of the nicest bloggers anywhere, please drop by, too.

 

As ever, thanks for visiting and have a great week. Wishing you -- and me -- blue skies!



 

V Is for Veselka

Most of my A to Z blog friends are done, but I've gotten behind and it's a dash to the finish tomorrow. Get ready for a flurry of blog posts from Manhattan and Brooklyn as we come to Z in our search for the best coffee in New York City. 

V brings us back to the East Village -- also the site of City of Saints -- for a visit to the Ukrainian restaurant, Veselka. The East Village has had a fascinating history and has been home to Little Germany, Yiddish Theatre and the Beat movement. It also experienced significant Ukrainian immigration after World War II. Veselka, founded in 1954, is one of the last of the many Ukrainian restaurants that were found in this neighborhood. 

Truth in blogging, I didn't come here for the coffee. It is a great place for breakfast -- I need to come back later in the day and try some of the other Ukrainian specialties -- and the coffee is fine, but it's not a coffee site. I had an enjoyable breakfast and had a good time exploring the streets in the area -- lots of fun new stores.

 

I'm a pierogi fan and have been thinking about what I would enter in this contest, but haven't come up with anything yet. What would you put together if you designed your own pierogi?

On my way to Veselka I passed St. Mark's Church-in-the-Bowery,  the oldest site of continuous religious practice in New York City. It goes back to 1660, when Peter Stuyvesant, Governor of New Amsterdam purchased land for a farm and built a family chapel here. Throughout the centuries the church has been at the center of writing and theater in the neighborhood. There is still artistic activity in the East Village, but there is a lot of it has gone to other neighborhoods. One of them is Williamsburg in Brooklyn. Through no special planning that is our next stop on the coffee express.

So much coffee and so little time! Let's keep sipping.
 

A is for A Cafe

I'm beginning the Blogging from A to Z Challenge with A Café. No, this isn't a take-off on Abbott and Costello's "Who's on First," but the name of our first coffee tasting site is a.café, on West 58th Street. Though it's only a block from my dentist, I don't generally wander into this area. It's off Fifth Avenue and a relatively pricy part of Manhattan. I passed it after walking on Fifth Avenue on Easter. The name and the extensive coffee menu made it my place to begin my best coffee search.    

It is part of a small chain, with branches in several American cities and London. I generally won't be including national and international chains in these posts, but I am making an exception here. It didn't feel like a chain and the quality of the coffee,  Counter Culture Coffee, is extremely high. 

The coffee descriptions drew me in off the sidewalk.  

As I initially wrote this is not a scientific taste test. The temperature won't be measured and I won't even be ordering the exact same type of coffee at each site. Generally I will be ordering iced coffee light -- my favorite -- but I may order a cup of hot coffee or if I'm in the mood, a cappuccino. I also won't be displaying pictures of all my coffee orders or many of them. Iced coffee pretty much looks like iced coffee just about everywhere it's served. It's not about how the coffee looks, it's about how the coffee tastes. 

 

Which brings us to my coffee grading system. Don't expect any low grades. If it's below a C (probably a C+) it's not going to be part of the series. I'm looking for good coffee experiences, and if I don't enjoy it, it's unlikely I will write about it. However, unless I'm thrilled, I will not be giving out an A very often, if at all. I hope to encounter some A iced coffee, but that remains to be seen, or tasted. 

 

A.cafe -- based on its location -- was slightly more expensive than my usual iced coffee and as a result I wanted to love it. After my first sip my opinion was that it was good, a solid B. But as the ice melted and the coffee got colder, my opinion changed. I had at least a B+ glass of iced coffee. I'm going to be on the lookout for Counter Culture Coffee and I will be looking to try it again.

 

I did have an excellent breakfast burrito with my coffee, but food -- especially bread and pastries -- will not be part of the grading. I am concerned about gaining weight just looking at some of the baked goods that are featured in a few of the places I've already visited. 

 

I've got two goodies for "B" for tomorrow and I will be sampling "C," tomorrow afternoon, which is alleged to be the best coffee in New York City.

 

As ever thanks for visiting and take good care.

 

 

Rockefeller Center in the Spring

When I think of decorations for Rockefeller Center, my thoughts turn to Christmas and the magnificent Christmas tree that graces the Plaza. But every season has magic, and Rockefeller Center in the spring is no less lovely. The fountains were turned into tributes to spring and I loved the giant Faberge eggs.

I am a fan of topiary and this joyous bunny quickly joined my top ten list. 30 Rockefeller Plaza -- the NBC headquarters -- is directly behind the bunny.

 

The hats weren't limited to Fifth Avenue. This was one of my favorite floral bonnets. 

The Easter Bunny wasn't the only animal buddy that took part in the festivities. A very elegant participant was Kimba, the Chihuahua. I googled Kimba -- I didn't think I was the only person who thought her photogenic -- and there were a number of entries.  I'm pleased she took a moment toose for Buttecupland.  

 

 

Yes, there's the Easter Bunny, the Easter Chihuahua, and our friend, Pepe, the Easter Monkee. He looks dapper in his bunny ears -- a gift from one of his admirers -- and is enjoying them so much he is still wearing them. I think he'll change into his baseball uniform next week to celebrate Opening Day.  

I'm getting ready for the Blogging from A to Z Challenge, which starts this Friday, April 1. Actually, getting ready for the challenge isn't too different from my regular life, which is doing things in Manhattan and drinking coffee. Today I spent a very nice day in Brooklyn -- need to expand my horizons -- drinking coffee, walking and visiting with a friend.  I drank some excellent coffee, took pictures and did a little shopping. I'm not sure if I had the best coffee in New York City, but it was good.

As ever, thanks for visiting and take good care.
 

Blessed Are Those Who Bring Hope: Welcome to New York, Pope Francis.

As I type this post, I hear the television in the background and the sound of the bells of St. Patrick's Cathedral. Pope Francis has arrived in New York City and it feels that the entire city has come out to greet him. There is so much excitement for this visit.

 The fencing and police barricades at Central Park were already in place this afternoon.

 

 

There is also a lot of planning for this visit. One of my job responsibilities was working on city-wide special events and one of my most favorite events was being part of the transportation planning when Pope Benedict visited in 2008. I didn't meet the Pope or even come close to meeting him, but I was happy in a very small way to be able to make his visit go smoothly. I wasn't surprised to see the level of detail needed for this visit. I'm sure planning began the moment travel plans were announced, and they are massive, including the most mundane details. 

 

 Bus signage on Broadway. There's significant rerouting of buses and many streets will be closed.

 

This sign is on West 63rd St., outside of the Y where I exercise. I was there this afternoon and it wasn't 100% sure that it would be open tomorrow. People with tickets to stand in Central Park will access the Park on this street and others nearby.

 





The Y's instructions for tomorrow.

 

This sign concerns the most mundane, a change in the schedule of the Sanitation Department.

 

 

I am delighted to welcome Pope Francis to America and to my city. There will always be some who will say planning all of these details cost too much and there are more worthwhile things on which the city can spend its resources. But I stand in awe at this moment. The internet has been broken by one of the least glamorous persons imaginable. He is a seventy-eight year old man who is thoughtful, prayer-filled and well-educated. He brings a message of hope and the Golden Rule. May his visit be safe and fruitful. 

 

Welcome to New York, Pope Francis. 

(Sort of) Back on Track Again

I thought returning from a week in New England would be the easiest vacation transition possible. There would be no time zone changes and the flight was only an hour and a half. There were no language changes and the currency was dollars. But from the moment I saw my first tidal pool I had entered a different world, as surely as if I had gone half way around the world.

The view from the cabin on my first night in Maine

I had the very good fortune to visit a college friend who has had a cabin on Spruce Head Island for the last thirty years. She planned a wonderful week, with lots to see, as well as time to enjoy the ever-changing and always beautiful scenery. It was a trip I wouldn't have been able to make on my own. I would have had no idea what was down any of the dirt roads we traveled, and I would have missed so many moments that made the week so special.

The setting sun taken during a walk on the first night of my visit.

I'm happy I took a lot of pictures that evening. The four days that followed were foggy and I didn't see many sunsets like this one again. 

South Thomaston, Maine. This was one of my favorite views. Water everywhere and the Methodist Church on the right.

 

It wouldn't be a proper photo album of Maine without a lighthouse picture. This is the Marshall Point Lighthouse. We stopped here after a visit to Port Clyde and Sunday morning blueberry pancakes.

 

 



 

 

Now my scenery looks closer to this subway picture and my diet is much simpler than the delicious blueberry pancakes. I indulged mightily during this vacation and getting back to less indulgent eating is mandatory. I've grocery shopped, sorted laundry, gone to the bank and even made it to the gym today. It's back to Weight Watchers tomorrow morning and the reality of fried clams and blueberry pancakes. But it's also moments, many moments of remembering the light on the water. As with so many vacation memories they drift back when I don't expect them and I have returned to Maine in my heart. 

 

I'm planning to do two more posts about my visit to Maine. One will focus on the food -- one of the best eating vacations ever -- and another on some of the places we visited, with links. 

 

As ever, thanks for visiting and have a sweet day!

What I Learned on my Summer Staycation

Some people might ask why I needed a staycation. Isn't retirement a permanent staycation? And I will answer, yes. I have been on a staycation for the last 26 months. But even though I'm no longer on the subway each weekday morning at 8:15 and I am able to do my errands at the very civilized hour of noon, life can still settle into a routine. Exactly where I found myself last Tuesday.

So I stopped the routine and took a staycation. For a few days I stopped going to the gym and I stopped blogging. I did minimal errands and I threw my routine out the window. It felt great. I did get to Weight Watchers, walked miles in place of the gym and took lots of pictures for blog posts. I tucked away my planner, ate cookies and let myself dream. For five days I broke out of my routine and thought and dreamed about what I'd like to do, not what I needed to do.

The results weren't that wild, but I enjoyed the summer air instead of the gym and thought of travel ideas that were long buried. I realized I'd scheduled a lot of things when I retired -- I am a scheduler -- but I forgot to schedule my dreams. I don't think I'll make that mistake again.

The rooftops of Manhattan 

 

 

Tomorrow afternoon I leave for a Maine -- time with a friend of long-standing, blueberries, lobster and some of the most beautiful scenery in the world. I promise you photographs, but I can't say when. I may be away from internet connectivity and that could be a very nice break, too. 

 

As ever, thanks for visiting and have a sweet week!

 

 

Madison Avenue Pink Saturday

I took a very unplanned, but equally restorative, staycation this week. I'll write more about it in a post later this week, but one of the things I did do was a long -- almost three mile -- walk along Madison Avenue. I didn't do any buying, but I had a good time window shopping and taking pictures for Pink Saturday. There were some fabulous pretty-in-pink sights all along the street.

Vive l'ete -- Long live summer!


One of my first stops -- window shopping only, no calories -- was at one of my favorite places, Laduree. The macarons were, as always, tempting, but I had miles to walk and pictures to take and I kept walking.

I'm sad to say I don't remember which major designer had this pretty bouquet grace his/her window. I loved the bouquet, but I also liked the reflection of Madison Avenue in the window. If you look carefully, you can see my sneakers in the reflection, bottom center of the photograph.

   Thank you, Missoni, for an all pink window. Generally the designer windows are too high style for this senior citizen blogger, but I like the floral dress. I think it would be just right for a summer garden wedding.

 

While we're thinking of weddings, here is a photo of a pale blush -- or is it gold? -- gown in the Vera Wang window. Madison Avenue goings on and the photographer are reflected in the window.

 

This is only for window shopping and definitely for Pink Saturday.

 

I'm definitely back from my staycation state of mind. I'm blogging, doing errands and in a little while I'll be back in the gym. I did a lot of walking outside, but gave myself a few days off from formal exercise. Now it's time to return. Sleeveless dresses definitely call for some time with weights. 

 

I hope you're having a sweet Sunday. As ever thanks for visiting, and take care!

Pink Saturday (and Sunday) Summer Shopping

It's time to relax, have some lemonade and get together for some Pink Saturday fun. Until today. when it's a humid summer day, we've had beautiful spring weather. I've even been inspired to do some shopping. I haven't bought anything, but I've done lots of looking. Here are a few of the most fun things I've discovered.

 Fabulous flip-flops

 

 

I'm not a flip-flop wearer -- I need a lot more support for walking around New York City -- but if I was I would have a hard time choosing which pair I'd like best. The all pink pair in the top row caught my eye first, but they're all pretty cute. It's a tough decision.

 

More fabulous flip-flops

 

This is an easier decision for me. I'd pick the hot pink ones with the crystals. They would certainly jazz up my wardrobe.

 

 

I haven't been wearing hats in the summer -- though I think it's a good idea -- but this bright orange one has me reconsidering hat wearing. Would you pick the orange hat or the blue hat?

 

 

I love the colors. I'm usually much more covered up, but the colors here caught my attention.

 

 

I'm enjoying a somewhat lazy-daisy day. I did get my thirty minutes of exercise in for the day and met a friend visiting from out of town for brunch, so it wasn't a completely lazy-daisy day.  I'm happy to be blogging -- two days in a row -- and I've got my list for posts for the rest of the week.

 

As always, thanks for visiting. Take good care and have a great week!

 

Where Did My Spring Go?

When I left for Japan almost three weeks ago it was still winter, not the depths of winter, but cold enough for my light winter jacket. I was reasonably -- actually, almost certain -- that when I got back it would be spring. After all it would be nearly May when I got back.

Yes, the trees are blooming -- and somewhere in my phone are the spring flowers -- but I am still wearing my winter coat and heavy jeans. We've been promised warmer weather this week, but I won't believe it until I feel it. We're also having a boiler emergency in my building. Our boiler has gone far, far away and while we do have an emergency system for hot water -- a problem for two days last week -- there's no heat. This shouldn't be a problem in late April, but as we know this isn't a year for weather as we've known it. Of course with the state of the world tonight, I still count myself as very fortunate. My prayers are for those in Nepal, also without heat. and in much more dire circumstances.

So that this isn't a whiny post, I'm adding a Monkey Monday picture, taken in the airport in Seoul.

 
No, this cute little guy didn't come home with me. The prices in the airport were, well they were the typical double the prices not at the airport.

I think I'm getting closer to Eastern Daylight Time, but I'm not there yet. I will so appreciate being on a more regular schedule.

As ever, thanks for visiting and take good care.

I Thought It Was Spring -- (Almost) Wordless Wednesday

Yesterday...The sidewalk tables were out on Broadway and the flowers were in the planters. It was just about warm enough to entertain thoughts of eating lunch al fresco. By the time I went out to do an errand last night I was desperately trying to remember where I put my gloves. It's not winter, but it comes pretty close.  I'll be eating indoors today.

Wishes for warm and sunny, if not for the weather, in our lives.

At the Easter Parade Pink Saturday

For our Pink Saturday fun this week we're going to Fifth Avenue for the Easter Parade. Though the afternoon started out a little overcast it was still fun to sit outside and then stroll down Fifth Avenue to see extraordinary hats.

There were Easter basket hats...

 

more Easter basket hats...

 

 

...and bird cage hats!

 

There were lots of bunny ears...

 

 

...and more bunny ears!

Despite the crowds -- it sounds odd for someone living in New York City, I'm not a fan of crowds -- I had a lot of fun with my friend, Lynda, looking at the hats. We were accompanied by the grandest monkey in the Easter Parade, Pepe. He was also the only monkey I saw during our visit to Fifth Avenue.

We found a nice place to watch the scene on Fifth Avenue at 59th Street. The building in the background is the Plaza Hotel.

I hope it was as happy an Easter Day for all of the visitors to Buttercupland as Pepe and I had.

Wishes for a bright and sunny week.