Happy Halloweenie

Warm and Salty, Plus Beer

Last night, Isaac and I tried a pizza place on Charlie's recommendation. It had a line out the door but it moves faster than Terroni (what doesn't?) and there aren't any tables, so you just get your slice and get outta there. I saw a fancy suit couple opening their pie and eating off the trunk of their car, standing in the gutter. Another trio sat in the stoop of a closed shop. We walked with ours.

Then, wandering the LES looking for beers, a small, high window caught Isaac's eye. We looked in. It was a matzo factory! There were two men in there, taking sheets of matzo, gently breaking them into the squares of 4, and placing them on a rotary system of hanging baskets. We were mesmerized. Isaac starting taking photos in the window, pap-style but the door was wide open so I said, "Just ask!" And they were totally nice about it. The man closest to us, without a word, passed us each a cracker. I felt like a trick-or-treating Oliver Twist. For some reason, it was kind of thrilling to happen upon a usually unseen duo of matzo-makers who work under the cover of night and have them silently pass us some warm crackers.

We continued wandering, giggly with the sheets of salty matzo, and one lady yelled, "It's not even Passover!" Then we found $3 beers and chatted until we wandered home again. Bo-homies.

Obama Vision

I was walking along St. Marks Place when I saw these. Hello! I am on a strict budget whilst here but because I didn't know that rhinestone Obama glasses existed before, they were not technically on the verboten list. Anyway, besides a laugh for Isaac when I got home ("Close your eyes!") I think they will come in handy for Halloween (not to mention Nov 4). I am open to any and all of your brilliant costume ideas.

What I really should do is buy a crate and send them to these cuties so they can dress up for their next performance. I previously didn't think it was possible to make T.I. even cuter, but apparently it is. Thanks for the link, Manny!

For lunch today, Isaac and I put together sandwiches and ate them on the roof, where we have an amazing view of the Manhattan skyline by the water. Everything so far is quite fun. Even bagels for lunch.

Back By Popular Demand! i.e. One Email Request From Katie!

I know, I'm so prolific. You can hardly keep up with my blog. But I'm on the road again, with Isey in tow, so here I am with new stuff to say. Whee!

We're basically indoors camping at my friend Charlie's studio in Williamsburg. It's where he paints and lives and I can picture him here, happily listening to his satellite radio, dabbing away at his gorgeous paintings of swear words and middle fingers (really, they're wonderful). That being said, it's small and there isn't much space for anything that is not either a) a tube of paint or b) a paintbrush. None of my packed items fit the above description.

So far Isaac and I have had super amounts of fun even though we haven't really had a plan. That's the beauty of 30 days in a spot. I have my ambitious "One Thing Per Day" rule. "One Thing" times 30 days equals lots of fun. It works!

Isaac and I started by arriving on Friday, severely sleep-deprived because we stayed up way late cleaning house for our friend Andrea who's staying chez nous while we're away. We met with Charlie, who I haven't seen since hanging with him in Paris last year. It was so nice to see him but brief! He was on his way to catch a flight to Paris. We all had a quickie lunch together and then Isaac and I walked across the Williamsburg Bridge to Tribeca where I had a meeting. Then we got burritos and watched a doc. We were totally delirious when we crashed that night.

Saturday we wandered right into the last day of a David LaChappelle show in Chelsea. I loved it!

Then we went to get Susan and Julian's bikes out of storage. So nice of them to lend them to us for our stay. We figured out the rigamarole of swipe cards, keys, made our way through the maze of lockers, retrieved the bikes, came back out towards the rest of the world and...rain! Wind! A guaranteed bad-mood from me if we actually tried to ride these things home! So we put them back and met up with my friend Madeleine. As we walked around Soho, trying to find a spot to grab a bite, the rain picked up and we just went, "Get in here!" We ducked into a random door and found ourselves at a sports bar. People were chanting for the Georgia Bulldogs, like, singing songs and standing on tables and stuff. It was like being back at Trin, but sporty.

Sunday we actually did get the bikes and rode them around, along the water and across the Brooklyn Bridge. It was a gorgeous day. We saw a big crowd across from the Chelsea Market and found ourselves at an art book fair where I ran right into Michel Gondry (eye contact, too shy to say hi). Exciting! Ate a cupcake. Also exciting!

Isaac and I then came home and made stew and had a cozy night in. Tomorrow is Monday morning. What will happen this week? So excited!

P.S. the hipster-icity of Williamsburg is totally out of control. It's Queen West times a thousand. It's all giant glasses and keffiyehs. Really now.