Our Life and Times in NYC

We've moved and so has our blog!

2009-08-11T18:05:00.002-04:00

A fresh new start, a fresh new blog! We won't be updating our NYC blog anymore, so if you are interested in keeping up with us in Virginia, please visit us at http://elinandethan.blogspot.com/. We developed these blogs as a way to keep our family and friends updated on our East Coast life and we hope you've enjoyed reading the posts as much as we've enjoyed writing them.

A Fond Farewell to NYC

2009-08-04T15:43:00.017-04:00

The day we left New York City...

Getting ready for the movers - Where's Luna?

The movers packed up everything in 6 hours! They were the most efficient crew ever! There goes our stuff - headed to storage for a while.

Full circle - an empty apartment once again.

Luna saying goodbye to her squirrel friends.

Crossing the Verazzano Bridge - Goodbye Brooklyn!

The past 2.75 years have flown by and we can't believe we no longer reside in the Big Apple! There are definitely things about the city we will not miss one bit (the crowded sidewalks, the often rushed and rude people, and the stink of the streets) but we also have many good memories here. And those things are more obvious to us now as we begin our new life in Virginia.

1. The food - the convienience and the quality of having wonderful neighborhood restaurants (and that aren't chains).

2. The subway - yes, I actually miss the train. It is such an easy and relatively carefree way of traveling. I'm not sure if I like driving....

3. Our Park Slope friends - Chad and Sarah, you were a godsend. We are so thankful to have met you and come visit us anytime! We hope to all be in Seattle again down the road. :)

4. The tap water - it's the best drinking water I've ever tasted!

5. The sights - There was SO much to do the minute we stepped onto our stoop. We made the most of our time in NY and saw everything we possibly could, from museums to shows to restaurants. And there is still lots more to do when we come back to visit.

Here are some of the fun times we had as New Yorkers:

Central Park
Go Mets! Shea Stadium

Boo Yankees! Old Yankee Stadium

Times Square

Rockefeller Center

Riding the F

Christmas at the Rock

Prospect Park

NYC Marathon

Manhattan

Lady Liberty

Jeff Koons at the Met

Delancey Street

The Cyclones and Parachute Drop

Riding the Cyclone at Coney Island

Columbia Snow

Fall in Cold Spring

Batting Helmets on the F

Grand Central and Chrysler

Brooklyn Botanic Garden

Brooklyn Bridge

Our stoop

Wonder Wheel

Thanks for the memories, New York! And thanks to all the visitors who came to see us! We loved seeing you and hope you come visit us in Virginia! :)

Sneaking in some DC sights

2009-07-30T11:51:00.006-04:00

We managed to see some things in DC when we weren't out with the realtors. Our hotel was in Georgetown, so we walked to the Mall and took in a couple museums. I am looking forward to exploring even more once we move. We also went to Roanoke for a couple days at the end of our trip to see Ethan's parents and brother. It will be nice to live closer to family again.

DC/VA

The Townhouse

2009-07-30T11:34:00.011-04:00

We hit the ground running during our househunting trip last week. We arrived in DC on Saturday and looked at houses that afternoon. It took three days of looking, in many different Northern Virginia (NOVA) neighborhoods and at 20+ houses, but we found "The One" on the third day. It's a townhouse in Ashburn, VA - about 30 miles from DC and 20 miles from Tyson's Corner (where Ethan will be working). The house is in a subdivision that includes a pool, biking/walking trails, basketball/tennis courts and is very green and full of trees. It's a big change from our little Brooklyn brownstone but a change we are very excited about. More space! Closets! A yard! A deck! Yay!

Closing isn't until Aug 26 and the movers come tomorrow to pack up our stuff and take it to storage. Ethan, Luna and I will be living in an extended stay hotel in Tyson's for 26 days starting Saturday. While Ethan is at work, I will be job searching and looking for things to do in Tyson's. Fun times.

Oh, and we also bought two Honda's in Roanoke during our Virginia visit. We are doing our share to help the housing and auto industries.

Click below for the townhouse photos:

Ashburn Townhouse

A Wedding in Motown

2009-07-27T11:22:00.003-04:00

I'm catching up on our blog entries before we move this weekend. A few weeks ago we were in Detroit for Sarah and Chad's wedding. You hear so many things in the news about Detroit - most of them bad - so it was nice for us to see that there are many good things about the city. The D gets a bad rap - it's a city who has lost it's industry and is in need of some help. The buildings are old and have lots of character and it's unfortunate that many of them sit empty and boarded up. We stayed in a hotel downtown and got a chance to walk around, ride the People Mover and explore. The wedding was so much fun - the Masonic Temple was a perfect setting for the vows and celebration afterwards. Here is the link to our Detroit photo album:

Detroit

Let the House Hunting Begin!

2009-07-17T20:58:00.003-04:00

The past few weeks have been jam-packed with fun times and unfortunately, I have not had time to post anything on the blog. Today was my last day of work and tomorrow we go to DC/NOVA to look for a place to live. We'll be back in NYC for the last week of July and I promise to post an update here. Hope you all have a great weekend and check back in about a week. :)

A Patriotic Weekend in Boston

2009-07-08T20:07:00.009-04:00

This was one of our favorite Fourth of July weekend's ever. How appropriate we were celebrating our nation's birthday in the wonderful city of Boston. It was an all-American weekend full of baseball at Fenway (the M's won!), good food, friends, and the Freedom Trail. We had a great time walking around the city and enjoying the nice weather. We lucked out and experienced the first sunshine the NE had seen in over a week. I'm sorry I don't have more time to write about our adventure but I took tons of photos and posted the link to the web album below. Our move to DC is coming up in 3 short weeks and blogging has taken a backseat to other important items, such as looking for a place to live, job hunting and tying up loose ends in NYC. I had forgotten how stressful moving is...

Boston

Now on to the next city - Detroit! We head to Motown this weekend for Chad and Sarah's wedding.

Brooklyn Cyclones and Staten Island Yankees

2009-07-02T10:06:00.001-04:00

It's been a week of minor league baseball in the city. The New York - Penn League - Class A Short Season - has two NYC teams - the Cyclones and the Yankees. On Tuesday, we went to Coney Island for the Cyclones game. For one night only, they were the "Barack-lyn" Cyclones, wearing special patriotic jerseys and the first 2,500 fans got an Obama bobblehead. (Chad and Sarah were the lucky ones - we got there too late). It was an Obama themed night and the Cyclones won 7-3. (Note: The Cyclones are in first place, undefeated at home as of today.)

Keyspan Park - the dark clouds luckily passed right next to us and we stayed dry.

Sarah and Chad keeping score.

On Sunday, we all took the ferry over to Staten Island for the S.I. Yankees game. Their stadium is awesome - it's right on the water and the seats look out to a view of Manhattan. And only in the minors can you pay $14 for a seat behind home plate! The Yankees were playing the Aberdeen Ironbirds, who is the team located closest to our new city. I was rooting for them because I don't think it's possible for me to root for any Yankee team. This was a wild and crazy game - lots of HR's, big comeback by the Yankees, 3 hours long.

View from the ferry

View from our seats (pretend the big barge and dredger are not there and you can see downtown Manhattan)

Vinny Pastore from the Sopranos threw out the first pitch.

It was a warm day but luckily for our fair, lily white skin, our seats were in the shade.

It's official - we have now been to all five boroughs of NYC, just in the nick of time!

Have a happy 4th everyone!

3 Years!

2009-06-24T09:57:00.004-04:00

We are celebrating our anniversary today. These past 3 years have been great and we look forward to many more. No big plans for today - our trip to Boston next weekend is our anniversary trip. :)

The Big Lull before the Big Move

2009-06-18T20:50:00.001-04:00

There's been a whole lotta nothing going on around here. The weather has been not so nice - rainy, cloudy - reminds me of being home. Although I hear Seattle has a dry streak going right now. Looks like the East and West Coasts swapped weather once again this year...

Ethan's been away for work for the past two weeks - but luckily was home in between trips last weekend. We hit up the Shake Shack, a burger joint in Madison Square Park that we've been meaning to try for almost 3 years now. (Also, their website is fun). The Shake Shack is super popular - so popular that the website has a "shack cam" so you can see how long the line is before you go. We went on a Saturday at lunch time, so we were expecting a big crowd. The line was indeed long and it took about 45 minutes until we had our Shackburgers and chocolate shakes in hand. The burgers were tasty, I'd say in my top 5. But the best part was the super chocolaty shake. I think it topped the shake I got at Tom's Restaurant...

I know Ethan is not going to be happy about this pic but I mainly wanted to get a shot of his T-shirt. :)

We walked from Madison Square Park to Union Square and along the way saw this building. I just thought it was cool and very French-y. Reminded me of Paris.

Last Saturday was also the Brooklyn Pride Parade that marched through our neighborhood. We stopped to watch on our walk home from dinner.

Life's going to get busy in the next couple weeks - we have a trip to Boston planned for the 4th of July. It'll be my first time in Boston and I can't wait! We'll have lots of photo opportunities there - M's/Red Sox game, fireworks, sightseeing, etc.

The Park

2009-06-07T15:37:00.006-04:00

The weather has been a little iffy so far this spring. Last weekend, we made the most of a warm day and headed to Central Park for some nature time. This place comes alive when the sun comes out - tons of people around. We walked to the Bethesda Fountain, one of the most popular spots in the park. I hope we make a few more visits to the park before our move, since there are still spots we haven't explored.

Aquarium and Cyclone

2009-05-31T15:42:00.001-04:00

On Memorial Day weekend, we paid a visit to the NYC Aquarium at Coney Island. We'd never been and thought we'd cross it off our "Things to do before we move" list. All in all, we were disappointed with the aquarium - I expected more from New York City. The exhibits are in need of a major update and many of the tanks are too small. But hopefully they will get the funding they need from the city and make some changes. There were a few cool things though - Osborn, the sea lion and the jellyfish exhibit.
Osborn put on a show in the aquatheater. He was a well trained, break-dancing sea lion.

Jellyfish - kinda creepy.

Also, I saw my first horseshoe crab ever - these aren't W Coast crabs. I didn't take a picture, but I felt like I was in Jurassic Park. Talk about prehistoric looking- I would be scared if I saw one on the beach. Yikes.

Another item on our "To Do" list - ride the famous Cyclone rollercoaster. It's wooden, fast, and scary. The seats are so padded that I had trouble squeezing into the car. It was a rickety and rough two minute ride and on the tight turns, I felt the car lift off the tracks. But with that said - we had fun and are glad we were brave enough to ride it.

Hanging on for dear life.

DC, Here We Come!

2009-05-23T08:33:00.006-04:00

It is official ~ Ethan was offered a position in the Washington, DC office. This is great news, as we were getting antsy to leave NY. We hope to look for a place to live in July and move down in August. I can't wait to see the cherry blossoms, visit the Smithsonian, see all the monuments....and drive again. Not sure about that last one, I'm going to have to practice a bit before I head out on the Beltway. :)

Ooh-Rah! Marine Corps Half Marathon

2009-05-18T20:27:00.012-04:00

Road trip! We rented a car and drove down to Fredericksburg, VA for the Marine Corps Half Marathon last weekend. Ethan and his brother, Matt, ran the 13.1 mile race on a cold, wet Sunday. It was also the First Annual Via Family "Run Against Diabetes". We had T-shirts made for the occasion and donated money to diabetes research. (Diabetes runs in the family). Ethan and Matt wore shirts with the Via patriarch's names on the back.

Pre-race at dawn
I met up with Courtney and the kids to watch the race. Here they are waiting for Daddy and Uncle Ethan to run by us.
Here they come!

Racing to the finish line! Official finish time: 1hr41min!

T-shirt shots

Uncle Ethan and Cutie Pie

Family in NYC

2009-05-12T17:06:00.001-04:00

My sister and cousin flew out to visit NYC last week. It had been a while since we had any visitors, so it was nice to see some familiar faces and have family close by. I took some days off work so we could have some NYC adventures together. The weather was rainy for about 4 of the 6 days- which never happens here! But weather aside, we had a great time and had some fun NY experiences. Below is a collection of photos from each of our cameras.

A trip to Brooklyn always includes a ride on the F train.

The Chrysler Building - the prettiest little skyscraper in the city

Main entrance of Grand Central Station - we came here to catch the Metro-North train to Cold Spring.

Located on the Hudson River, Cold Spring is about an hour from the city. It was the perfect escape from the hustle and bustle.

Chapel near the train station - it faces the river and is a popular wedding spot.

Hiking to the West Point Foundry Ruins

This foundry made cannons and shells for the Civil War! Abraham Lincoln visited and inspected the foundry in 1862.

The office building is the only structure still standing - it is being refurbished and will be used as an events venue for Cold Spring.

There really is a cold spring in Cold Spring!

Riverboat on the Hudson

Ice cream break

The cannon that supposedly won the Civil War (a replica I think).

Sisters and blooms

West Point from the train - we saw parachuters in the sky, trying to land on campus!

Rainy day + no umbrella = $0.99 store poncho for Ethan

This was the rainiest day of the visit. We started the day with a trip to the Hell's Kitchen Flea Market (which is supposed to be the biggest in the city). It was almost empty and the vendors that did show up had a bunch of overpriced stuff. Next it was off to the East Village and Lower East Side for lunch and a tour at the Tenement Museum. No cameras allowed in the museum, so you'll have to check out the website for photos. I love this museum, so much history and so many stories to hear. We learned about the garment workers and factories and walked through a tiny 3 room apartment where a family with 12 kids lived during the early 1900s. After the museum, we headed to the candy store.

Economy Candy - Tootsies for Kathleen

Have you ever seen so much candy?! This is trouble.

Club next to the candy store - couldn't resist this photo.

Empire State from Bryant Park

Lunch at Yaffa Cafe, yum. Funky decor and good food.

Kathleen is "livin' it uptown". These subway ads were everywhere. A Real World-esque reality show in Harlem.

A visit with Kathleen is not complete without a new hairdo. So happy to get cleaned up every now and then.

Boathouse in Prospect Park

Chelsea Fun

2009-04-28T20:46:00.006-04:00

Saturday night outing in Chelsea - dinner and a walk with Sarah and Chad. Sarah picked the restaurant and kept it a secret until we arrived. It was fantastic! It's called The Park and we ate in the garden, which literally felt like we were having a picnic in the park. Trees, vines, sky - it was very cool. The food was tasty, I had salmon and Ethan had catfish. But dessert had to be the best part - Ethan had banana wontons with caramel and chocolate dipping sauces. I had fresh berries with vanilla mascarpone. We did not make it to the night club (it has a hot tub!) on the 2nd floor - it doesn't open until midnight! Only in Manhattan....

After dinner, we walked to the Hudson River and explored the Chelsea Piers. We went to the driving range and hit a bucket of balls. Arms were sore the next day.

We have visitors in town now- sis Kathleen and cousin Phoebe! I'll post pics next week - we expect to have many NY adventures to share.

An Afternoon at Citi Field

2009-04-19T17:28:00.017-04:00

Saturday morning : watching the news, seeing the awesome weather forecast, heard there was a 1:05 pm Mets game, spur of the moment decision to buy tickets. We are sure glad we did! It was a perfect day - sunny, 70's and a brand-new ballpark. Hour subway ride to Flushing, Queens. We entered through Citi Field's main entrance - Jackie Robinson Rotunda. This entrance is modeled after Ebbett's Field - home of the Brooklyn Dodgers. Love the brick! Just like Safeco!

Almost the cheapest seats in the house - $30/ea, right behind home plate. Johan Santana pitched a great game - Mets 1 Brewers 0. We saw Mike Cameron as a Brewer!

Manhattan view from the top level

Jackie Robinson Rotunda - #42 remembered forever.

Ethan enjoying his Nathan's hot dog in Section 515

JJ!

JJ Putz (now a Met) threw a 1-2-3 8th inning with 2 K's. I was inspired to get a Putz Mets T-shirt and looked in each Team Store (there are 3!). No luck - they don't sell them. Guess Putz isn't famous enough in NY yet. Time to place a custom order...

One new ballpark down, one to go. Next up: Mega-Yankee Stadium. However, we will not be cheering for the Yankees like we cheer for the Mets.

Project Subway

2009-04-17T10:02:00.005-04:00

Celebrity Sighting: Tim Gunn from Project Runway!

I was commuting home from work a few weeks ago - my hour long, three train commute.....when I found myself spacing out. Turns out I was staring right at Tim Gunn. I was on the express train and he was on the local train next to mine. He was staring out the window as well. Subway riding puts you in a trance sometimes. Anyway, it was pretty fun to see him. He's one of the best parts of Project Runway.

Red Hook

2009-04-09T20:45:00.013-04:00

Red Hook - the Brooklyn waterfront neighborhood is home to NYC's only IKEA, the Real World: Brooklyn, the Key Lime Swingle, Fairway Market, and some cute plant nurseries. Ethan and I went exploring last weekend - Red Hook is directly to the west of Park Slope. It was an interesting walk down 9th St, lots of warehouses and run down buildings. A few blocks away are the Red Hook Houses, the largest housing project in Brooklyn. 8,000 people live there!

We headed to IKEA first, picked up some pillowcases and Swedish fish. Then we walked towards the piers to meet up with Chad and Sarah. Fairway Market is the big grocery store in Red Hook and is located in an old warehouse. There is a patio out back where people can eat lunch and enjoy the view of Lady Liberty. She's looking right at Red Hook! There are also a few antique cable cars parked behind the market.

The Lady

Fairway Market

Next, we walked to Pier 41, which you may recognize from MTV's Real World: Brooklyn. The end of the pier was converted into the latest Real World house. Filming ended a few months ago, so we ventured onto the pier easily. Also on Pier 41, Steve's Authentic Key Lime Pies. We tried the Swingle, a chocolate covered key lime tart on a stick. Yum!

Ethan and the Swingle

Pier 41 - home of the Real World:BK

Pier 41 closeup

Mariners Treasures

2009-04-05T19:28:00.011-04:00

In the spirit of Opening Day, I decided to go through my "Sports Box", where I kept all my special sports memorabilia as a kid. I discovered my Sports Illustrated's featuring Griffey, 1989-2001 Mariners team info guides, baseball cards, and ticket stubs. I thought I would share a few of the items with you, as a tribute to Junior and the Mariners.

1991 - Griffey baseball family, Ken Sr, Ken Jr, Craig (minor league M's player)

1995 SI - The famous ALDS win over the Yankees - best Game 5 ever!

Upper Deck Rookie Card
1989 - My first game of Griffey's rookie season1990 - First father/son game in MLB history - Griffey Sr and Griffey Jr

Last game of 1991 - 83rd win and first winning season for the team.

Here's hoping for a winning season this year too! I wish I was in Seattle to see Opening Day, but guess I'll have to settle for watching our MLB Extra Innings package . Go M's!

An Uptown Adventure

2009-04-02T20:52:00.014-04:00

Last weekend's agenda: exploring the northern tip of Manhattan. It was a journey - two trains and 1 1/2 hours later, we made it to 190th St - Fort Tryon Park and the Cloisters. The park is on the cliffs of the Hudson River. We felt like we had escaped the city - it was very quiet and peaceful. We walked to the Cloisters - a 4-acre area of the park which houses the Met's art and architecture from medieval Europe. The Cloisters were built in the 1930's and archways, columns, stones from medieval times were incorporated into the construction. The exhibits include tapestries, stained glass and gardens (which will be even prettier when trees have leaves and plants are blooming).

Doorway from Burgandy, France - circa 1250 (Photo taken from the Met's website).

Fountain in the skylight room

After the museum, we headed down to the Columbia University area. We ate lunch at Tom's Restaurant - you may recognize the exterior, which was shown in each Seinfeld episode. Tom's is also famous for being the spot Suzanne Vega sang about in her song "Tom's Diner". Good diner food and the milkshakes are amazing!

After lunch, we completed our Upper West Side tour with a trip to The Cathedral of St. John the Divine. According to the brochure, it claims to be the largest cathedral in the world. We learned from eavesdropping next to a tour that the Statue of Liberty could fit inside the cathedral. It really is that huge.

The Rose Window

Resting our legs on the fancy wooden pews. We racked up the miles on our upper Manhattan adventure!

The Sorcerer in Park Slope

2009-03-27T09:58:00.008-04:00

This week, our neighborhood subway station was taken over by the film crew of "The Sorcerer's Apprentice", a live action remake of the story in Disney's Fantasia. The trailers pulled in on Tuesday night and were being packed up this morning. From the exhausted looks of the crew packing up, I think they pulled an all-nighter. As I got off the F-train at 7th Avenue yesterday, I stepped right into the movie set. Lights, cameras, people everywhere! But no action, and no Nicolas Cage. Apparently, he is the sorcerer in the film. And from the looks of him in this photo I found online, he appears to be a creepy, leather clad sorcerer. This may be a "wait for the DVD" kind of movie...

Soccer in Seattle!

2009-03-19T21:26:00.007-04:00

Seattle's Major League Soccer team debuts tonight! The Sounders FC host the New York Red Bulls tonight at Qwest Field for the first game of the MLS season. Welcome to the big leagues, Sounders! We'll be watching from the other coast.

Note: Sounders 3 Red Bulls 0 - Apparently, the game was on TV in NY....which we didn't find out until the next day! :(

Saturday Night's Alright for Bubble Hockey

2009-03-16T21:15:00.006-04:00

We had a fun night out with Chad and Sarah last weekend - we ate dinner at our favorite East Village Italian place (Supper). Then we went to Kelly's pub around the corner to watch some NCAA hoops. It turns out this bar caters to the Wisconsin Badgers, Buffalo Sabres (NHL), and the Chicago Cubs fans. I know, a little random. So we watched some NCAA tournament games, and also a little Sabres hockey.

The highlight was the bubble hockey table in the corner. Apparently, this bar is one of two places in Manhattan that offers bubble hockey. Now, hockey isn't a big deal in Seattle or Roanoke but it's huge in Michigan where Sarah and Chad are from. Their eyes lit up when they saw the bubble hockey and they laid down their quarters for the next game. It was a fun time!

Brooklyn Museum

2009-03-09T13:20:00.001-04:00

Our first outing to the Brooklyn Museum! It's the second largest art museum in the five boroughs (the Met being #1). It's right next to the Botanic Garden, which we will be seeing more of once spring arrives! This museum is filled with many exhibits from Egyptian to Asian art, feminist to modern, but my favorite part was the 4th floor.

When you enter this floor, you are greeted by a beautiful Tiffany stained glass window. And you continue on to the period rooms. These rooms are life sized replicas (and some actual) representing different eras of East Coast housing. It's like walking through a huge dollhouse with really old furniture. :) Among the rooms, there is an 1864 Rockefeller brownstone, an 1806 South Carolina plantation house, and my favorite, the Schenck house - an actual farmhouse

built in Canarsie/Flatlands, Brooklyn in 1775. The house was dismantled and installed in the Museum in the 1960's and moved to it's permanent spot on the 4th floor in 2007. We had a fun day at the museum!

Snow Day

2009-03-02T17:23:00.031-05:00

March 2, 2009: Snow Day.....for Ethan at least. The storied institution that is Columbia University decided that higher education does not rest for snow, sleet or freezing cold winds. Thus, with Elin off to work, I braved the cold to try and get some winter shots of the Brooklyn Botanical Gardens.

The storm blew through late last night and, by morning, we had about 5 or 6 inches. The photo above is our fire escape early this morning.

This is the sidewalk along Prospect Park West, which borders Prospect Park.

Most of the folks in the neighborhood headed out to Prospect Park with their kiddies in tow, literally, to do some sledding.

In the summer, Elin and I sometimes sit out here on our beach chairs. When the snow falls though, this is the most popular hill in the park for sledding. With a gentle slope and plenty of room to stop, it seemed pretty tame compared to the hill I remember throwing myself down as a kid. Back in my day, if the brick bunker next to the pool didn't stop you, then you had to bail out before you sailed down the second hill which was full of rocks, thorns and trees. And city kids think they're so tough.

It's hard to believe that softball season starts in about 5 weeks.

A scenic pond in the park. If you look close, you might be able to make out the graffiti on the rocks (Hint: the spray paint is red). It's all part of that New York City charm.

Here's a guy out for a leisurely cross country ski.

This is the Nethermead Arch Bridge in the middle of the park.

Thirsty?

This is the bridge across the pond from the Boathouse (see below). To the right, just outside of the frame was some yellow Caution tape that had been broken. I didn't see any arms or legs sticking out of the pond, so I assume it wasn't part of a crime scene.

The Boathouse

The Boathouse is outside of the tunnel and to the right. For you amateur photographers out there, I was in the classic three-quarters squat position, f-stop 4, shutter speed at 1/16...I kid. I walked into the tunnel, turned around, and pushed the button. Technology did the rest.

Constructed in 1941, this is the largest book depository building in all of Brooklyn. It's a throw back to the Cold War era when people used to go to such depositories to "rent" books. There is no rental fee as long as you bring the book back before its due date. It's called the Brooklyn Public Library. Sadly, most people today refer to places like these as Barnes and Noble.

I finally made it to the Brooklyn Botanical Garden. Unfortunately, they are closed on Monday, so I had to make due with what I could see from the gates and fences that surround it. This is the southwestern gate along Flatbush Avenue, one of Brooklyn's more famous but less scenic thoroughfares.

Here is the Children's Garden as seen through the bars of the gate.

Further up the street, I stumbled upon a gap in the otherwise impenetrable berm that the city has constructed around the Garden to block the scenic views from Brooklynites too cheap to pay the cost of admission. Clever gardeners! Through the hedges, you can see the cherry tree grove.

The main gate to the Garden.

Another photo taken through the bars of the fence around the garden. In the spring and summer, this row of trellises is covered with fancy plants and flowers, none of whose names I know (sorry Clio and Diane).

A closer shot of a trellis taken from Mount Prospect Park which sits on a hill next to the Garden.

That does it for the winter walking tour. My hands are frozen and I'm off to Five Guys for lunch!

Disney Trip 2009

2009-02-22T13:26:00.001-05:00

We recently spent a fun-filled week at Disney World with the Via family and my parents. There were 15 of us - 10 adults and 5 kiddos. It was great to spend time with the entire family - all in one spot. We went to each theme park, enjoyed the warm weather and good company. It was Warren and Marcia's 40th anniversary celebration and also their very first trip to Disney! Here are some photos from our Disney adventure:

First stop: Magic Kingdom - my parents hadn't been to Disney World since the 80's, when we visited for my sister's 4th birthday.

Ethan and Peyton on the carousel

Animal Kingdom was next. These are the siamang's swinging from ropes.

Everest: One of the best rides at Disney World, hands down.

Ethan and Kira (and Dad in the background) enjoying the safari ride. Now if there was only a way to experience the ride without the cheesy tour guide....

Character dinner at Chef Mickey's - celebrating Marcia and Madeline's birthdays.

After dinner, a few of us headed to Magic Kingdom for the firework's show.

The boys in the U.K. at Epcot's World Showcase

Fancy faces!

Belly dancing in Morocco at Epcot

Courtney and Alison at the Hollywood Studios parade

Dinner and entertainment at the Hoop Dee Doo Musical Revue.

The 40th Anniversary dance at Hoop Dee Doo

Ethan making beautiful music on the washboard.

Mom and I after a good ol' country dinner of fried chicken, cornbread, ribs, salad and strawberry shortcake.

The Leavitt's are famous! Their family was chosen to cut the ribbon at the grand opening of the Raytheon Family Technology Center at the hotel. They even made it onto the Raytheon website!

With the Simpson's at Universal Studios

Drenched after a very intense river raft ride at Islands of Adventure. Thankfully, it was 80 degrees that day and we dried out in the sun.

LEGO New York City at Downtown Disney

Marcia, Kira, Peyton and Alison posing at Downtown Disney

Kira and Maddie cooling off in the pool.

Click here for the full Disney album, if you are interested. :)

Welcome Home Griffey!

2009-02-18T20:35:00.004-05:00

Junior is back! This is awesome news and I hope he helps the M's win some more games this year. We will definitely order MLB Extra Innings this season so we can watch him play (along with Ichiro and the gang too). Go M's!

Slacking Off

2009-02-14T22:03:00.003-05:00

Sorry for the lack of posts lately. Frankly, there was nothing very exciting to write about.... until now! We just returned from a week at Disneyworld with the Via's and my parents. It was an awesome trip and photos will be coming soon.

Craft Dinner

2009-01-31T20:19:00.006-05:00

Ethan took me out for my belated birthday dinner on Friday. Since we are both Top Chef fans, Ethan made reservations at head judge Tom Colicchio's restaurant Craft. We didn't see Colicchio there but we did have a fantastic dinner! Craft is a nicely decorated space with friendly waitstaff. The food is served family-style, so you pick the meat and sides you want. Ethan ordered foie gras as an appetizer (I passed - no livers for me) and he said it tasted like bacon. But he also said it was strange to eat an organ. :) Then we ordered scallops, quail, brussel sprouts and gratin potatoes. Everything was so tasty, especially the scallops and potatoes! And we couldn't leave without getting dessert - Ethan ordered the Banana Chocolate Waffle and I got doughnuts and hot chocolate. The doughnuts were made to order and were still warm when they arrived at the table. They were served with chocolate sauce and quince butter (which tasted and looked like applesauce). It was quite a meal and worth every penny. It was definitely the fanciest dinner I've ever had!

Inauguration Weekend

2009-01-21T20:12:00.024-05:00

Ethan and I drove down to the DC area last Saturday for our friends wedding reception. Ben and Kelsey got married in Denver in November but threw an East Coast reception last weekend. It was great to celebrate the wedding with them. They put on a great party with lots of homemade desserts and other goodies.

The newlyweds!

Ethan played bartender for a while - he looks like a pro, doesn't he?

Since it was Inauguration Weekend, we decided to head into DC and take a look at the festivities. Here are Ben, Kelsey, Ethan and I on the Metro - so much nicer and cleaner than the NYC subway! Added bonus: the Metrocards featured a picture of Obama.

On our way to the Mall, stopped to take a photo on Pennsylvania Avenue. The Capitol Bldg is behind my head....

The Capitol decorated with flags.

Ethan coming out of 1 of 5,000 potties for the inauguration crowd. Now that's a lot of bathrooms.

The Washington Monument

The White House - bye-bye W!

Ben and Ethan

When we got to The Mall, we decided to be adventurous and see how close we could get to the We Are One concert at the Lincoln Memorial. Here we are at our concert-viewing spot - right behind the WWII Memorial (which was only open to press photographers). We were still pretty far away but the Lincoln Memorial was directly front and center, an unobstructed view. It was an awesome experience to be in DC during a historial weekend and to see a concert featuring such famous performers. Bruce Springsteen, U2, Beyonce, John Mellencamp, James Taylor, Garth Brooks - just to name a few. :) But the highlight was actually hearing Obama speak in person! He gave a short speech and was articulate and inspiring, as always.

Group shot, taken by our friendly National Guardsman.

O - Ba -Ma! You can see him on the screens...barely. :)

Some people will do anything for a photo....

We had a great weekend with our friends and are looking forward to seeing more of DC in the future. We are excited that if all goes as planned, we will be MD, DC or VA residents by the end of 2009!

Seattle Birthday Visit

2009-01-20T20:24:00.008-05:00

I was in Seattle recently for my grandma's 80th birthday (and also my 31st - we share the same birthday). I flew solo since Ethan stayed behind to feed Luna (and work - duty calls). It was a great weekend - my sister was home too and we were able to see lots of family and friends. Here are some of the weekend's events:

Christianson family photo at Grandma's 80th bday party

Grandmother and Granddaughter annual birthday photo

The family surprised her with a fancy flat screen TV!

I had a friend's night out for my birthday. Kathleen, Danica, Cara and I had dinner at my fave - Madame K's. Then we headed to King's Hardware to meet some more folks before heading to the Tractor Tavern for some special live music.

My cousin Zoe played a show at the Tractor. She's the lead singer in Zoe Muth and the Lost High Rollers. She is also featured this month in Sound Magazine. (That's her on the cover - far right!) This was my first chance to see her live and it was a great performance! She's got talent.

Ben, Cara and I at the Seattle Center.

I met up with Erin, Trinette and her 3 mo. old baby Gwen. We played catch up and got a glimpse of mommyhood. :) It sounds nice.

Gwen is a cutie! Just look at those eyes - she's going to be a heartbreaker...

Brunch at Bad Albert's with Danica and Meghan, followed by some Ballard Ave shopping. Always a good time!

Something is missing here... we missed you, Ethan!

Miracle on the Hudson

2009-01-16T11:00:00.008-05:00

All eyes were on New York City yesterday. US Air flight 1549 crash landed into the Hudson River and all 155 passengers survived due to a talented pilot and quick response from NY and NJ ferries. It was truly a miracle. The personal stories coming out of this are amazing and heartwarming.

3rd Annual Visit to the Tree

2009-01-05T17:27:00.001-05:00

Looks like we started a tradition here (but this may be the last year, as we hope to move in the next 6 months). We made our yearly visit to the Rockefeller Tree on New Year's Day. It was very cold and the plaza was jam-packed with people, so we took our photo and got out of there fast.

We wish everyone a Happy and Healthy 2009!

Christmas 2008

2009-01-02T13:29:00.000-05:00

We had a nice Christmas week in Roanoke with Ethan's parents. We had lots of delicious food, great company and also learned a bit about the Via family history. On Christmas Eve, Warren/Dad drove us out to New Castle, a small town in Craig County, VA where his father grew up. As Warren described it, we were in "the country," and it was nice to be there after too much time in the big city. We stopped at the local cemetery where Ethan's great grandparents and other relatives are buried, tried to find the one room schoolhouse Pop-Pop attended, visited the church where the Via family reunions were traditionally held, and saw the farm where Pop-Pop grew up. We also had a nice visit with Ethan's great-aunt Gwen in New Castle. It's nice to know more about my in-laws family history.

Funny side story: While we visited with Aunt Gwen, she mentioned a Subway recently opened in New Castle. Ethan, thinking as a New Yorker, looked a little confused and asked, "Where does it go?". He was thinking, why in the world does a small town need a subway? After 2 years of living in NYC, we hear the word "subway" and think train, not the sandwich shop. We all had a good laugh, thanks to Ethan. :)

Some of the photos from Christmas morning:

Marcia/Mom opening some goodies from Washington.

Ethan showing off his new Bears hoodie.

Father and son

Onyx relaxing after the Christmas excitement.

We went for a walk in 60 degree weather! No White Christmas for us...

The Blue Ridge Mountains in Warren and Marcia's backyard

Happy Holidays!

2008-12-17T21:25:00.006-05:00

We are in Roanoke, VA for Christmas with Ethan's parents. After a 2 day delay due to a super fun bout with the stomach flu , we hit the road on Monday and drove through 6 states to Virginia. We are enjoying our time here and will post some photos after the holiday.

We hope everyone has a very Merry Christmas!

Can-struction

2008-12-13T20:34:00.011-05:00

You never know what you are going to stumble upon in this city. Ethan and I were going to the movies and decided to stop into the World Financial Center to grab a sandwich beforehand. A Canstruction exhibit was going on and we went to take a closer look. Here are a few of the structures, all made from cans of food!

This one is our favorite!

PC Guy Book Talk

2008-12-11T20:49:00.004-05:00

PC Guy, also known as John Hodgman, gave a book talk at our neighborhood Barnes and Noble last night. He is a fellow Park Sloper and has been spotted out and about (i.e. waiting in line to vote). He is best known for playing the very funny PC Guy on the Apple commercials. He is also a writer and Daily Show star. He spoke at Barnes and Noble about his latest book, "More Information Than You Require". He is an entertaining speaker/salesman and I think Ethan is ready to go read his books. It was a fun night!

The Intrepid Museum

2008-12-05T21:40:00.009-05:00

Here's a video from our visit to the Intrepid Museum with Ethan's parents. Make sure your sound is on. :)

Intrepid Museum

Here is the web album (the video picture may be a little small).

A Brooklyn Thanksgiving

2008-11-30T17:21:00.008-05:00

Ethan's parents came up from Virginia to spend Thanksgiving with us. It was our first time hosting Turkey Day but it was a success! We cooked a fresh turkey (also a first) and other Thanksgiving staples. With help from Marcia, we managed to escape a kitchen disaster and all entrees came out great. After dinner, we shared desserts with Chad, Sarah and Sarah's parents. We watched the Hawks lose (a common occurrence this year) and succumbed to the tryptophan's effects. It was a good day.

Waiting for the turkey....

Ta-Da!

Ethan the carver

Gathering around the table

Hope you all had a nice Thanksgiving!

Brrrr!

2008-11-23T08:59:00.004-05:00

It feels like winter, with high's in the mid-30's and wind chills in the teens. Not fun. We know it's officially cold when Luna starts using her "love bucket". She ignores this bed for most of the year, until even she can't handle the cold (fluffy fur and all). We have learned while living here that radiator heat is NOT an acceptable source of heat. Last night, we lit all of our candles and turned on the space heater so we could watch our Netflix without freezing. This may be our first real NE winter, since the previous two were very mild. Maybe we'll see a blizzard this year!

Brooklyn in the Fall

2008-11-13T20:41:00.010-05:00

Election Day was a holiday for most schools in NYC, so I voted in the morning and walked up to the Brooklyn Botanic Garden in the afternoon. The trees were still showing their fall colors and it was a very pretty walk.

Even bonsai trees can change color!

The Rose Garden had some blooms hanging on through the last warm days.

My next goal is to visit the gardens after a snowfall. That will complete my photo project titled "Four Seasons in Brooklyn".

NYC Marathon

2008-11-09T11:42:00.008-05:00

Last Sunday, more than 38,000 runners took part in the NYC Marathon. I walked down to the course on 4th Ave (4 blocks from our apt) and arrived just in time to see the elite runners pass by. Our neighborhood is located at the mile 6 marker, so it was still early in the race. Paula Radcliffe won the womens race in 2:23:56 and I got a picture of her in the lead.

Next, the elite men raced by. The winner is wearing the neon yellow shirt, Brazil's Marilson Gomes dos Santos and he finished in 2:08:43.

Some of the 38,000 runners......

My Favorite Subway Station

2008-10-31T09:46:00.001-04:00

The F train stop at Delancey Street has some beautiful tile work. On the downtown side of the tracks, there are beautiful fish mosaics. I did some websearching and found that these are shad, also known as river herring, found in the Hudson River. (I prefer to think they are salmon or trout, since these tiles remind me of home). If only all subway stops looked this nice.....

Parents Visit

2008-10-22T20:13:00.000-04:00

Ethan's dad came through town last week. He was on the last leg of his cross country train trip. He flew out to Seattle and took Amtrak back to the East Coast. He's always wanted to take this train trip and we are glad he did it. My parents were in town last week too. The weather was beautiful - summer's last hurrah. With temperatures in the 70's, we set off to see new things in the city. I took a few days off work so I could join in the adventure. Here are some photos showing all the fun things we saw and did.

We walked almost the entire length of Central Park (the park runs from 110th down to 59th Aves, we walked from 104th to 59th). There is a conservatory garden on the upper east side of the park. We saw this same garden in January but it looks so much nicer this time of year.

Fountain/bird bath in the garden

As we walked down 5th Avenue, along Central Park, we passed the Guggenheim. Most of the time we've lived here, it's been covered in scaffolding for restoration. Now it's back to normal. We also came across a set for Gossip Girl - they were trying to film on the sidewalk next to the park but were having some difficulty with pedestrians walking through the set.

Dog walkers in Central Park - these dogs were so well behaved. The man in the tan pants was like Cesar Milan, the Dog Whisperer, with his "sssst" commands. Those of you who watch the show on National Geographic know what I am talking about. :)

We went to the Columbus Day parade - this is when the motorcades were coming down 5th Ave. There were cops from NY, NJ, and CT who all had their sirens turned on.

We watched the parade next to St. Patrick's Cathedral. We went inside for some quiet time after the motorcade passed by.
We took a day trip up to Cold Spring in upstate NY. It was an hour train ride up the Hudson River. The trees were just starting to turn color along the scenic route. We passed Sing Sing prison and Westpoint along the way. Cold Spring was a very cute town with lots of antique shops and friendly people. It was nice to get out of the city for a day. Here we are at the Cold Spring riverfront.

Pretty tree in Cold Spring

Our train arrived back at Grand Central and on our way back to the F train I noticed this view of the Chrysler Building. The main entrance to Grand Central is in the foreground. The Chrysler may be my favorite NYC building.

George Washington at Federal Hall - site of his inauguration as first US president

We explored downtown Manhattan - Wall Street, Ground Zero, South Street Seaport, Little Italy, Lower East Side (LES), Chinatown - all in one day. We started the day at the Tenement Museum - a must see for our future visitors that includes 5 different walking tours.

"We tell the stories of 97 Orchard Street. Built on Manhattan's Lower East Side in 1863, this tenement apartment building was home to nearly 7000 working class immigrants." ~ Tenement Museum website

New York Stock Exchange

Alexander Hamilton's grave at Trinity Church, located near Ground Zero.

The Trinity Root

This is a bronze sculpture of the sycamore tree root that saved St. Paul's Chapel (also located next to Ground Zero) from falling debris on 9/11.

At South Street Seaport

Ethan's birthday was last week. Here he is with his Brooklyn Blackout cake. Yum!

Unfortunately, Ethan has some big work stuff coming up and is working late and on weekends. I'm sorry he wasn't in too many of these photos but we are looking forward to a normal work schedule soon.

Rooftop at the Met

2008-10-05T11:07:00.007-04:00

There is a Jeff Koons rooftop exhibit at the Metropolitan Museum. Sarah, Chad, Ethan and I went to check it out - it's been on our "NYC to-do" list since the spring. We are so glad we trekked up to the Upper East Side and paid the $20 "suggested donation" to get into the Met. Suggested donations are tricky because you feel guilty for not paying the full amount. I wonder if people ever just pay a penny?

The view from the roof was spectacular - we were above the trees at Central Park. We bought some sandwiches and had a picnic lunch on the roof. The art exhibit was great- who doesn't love a giant balloon dog, a piece of candy and Piglet?

Seattle Visit: Time with family and friends

2008-09-28T20:49:00.012-04:00

This entry wraps up our visit to Seattle. Here are some photos of the other fun stuff we did over the week.

We went on a family bike ride to Burke Gilman Park. Luckily my dad has a good sized bike inventory and we borrowed a few for our ride. Ethan had a fancy folding bike, K had the Hummer, and I had a one with a really hard seat (or maybe my behind wasn't used to sitting on a bike seat).

We met up with friends at King's Hardware in Ballard. We hung out with the cousins, dear childhood friends, and a few of Ethan's old coworkers - people we really miss while we are living on the other coast.

Danica, always animated, Meghan, shooting her own pic, Ethan, and Cara and Ben at the end

Elin with Erin and Chris

Steve, Dan, Phoebe and Zoe

Danica, Meghan, Abby and Elin

Elin and Cara

Ethan, Elin, Cara and Ben

There is a new statue in Fremont - JP Patches and Gertrude "Late for the Interurban". For folks who aren't from the NW, these clowns were the stars of a Seattle based children's TV show from the 60's and 70's.

Click below for the full Seattle album.

Seattle 2008

Seattle Visit: Lopez Island

2008-09-26T22:35:00.021-04:00

We went to the San Juans for 2 days to visit my uncle Paul and his girlfriend Angie at their new house. It's located on a nice piece of property on Lopez Island. Ethan and I love the San Juans and nothing in NYC compares to the beauty and peacefulness of these islands. We were so glad we made time for this trip. I took many photos but I am having problems with the blog layout and can't move the photos into the right order. So here is our jumbled group of pics.

Paul took us on a trail to a hidden cove - we were the only ones on the beach. We skipped some rocks and Paul found a nice spot to rest (see below).

Paul and Angie's new house and barn

View from above the Lopez ferry landing

Family hike out to Iceberg/Icicle Point

Back to the hidden beach, Paul relaxing in the sun.

Hanging one of the barn doors - for a free nights stay and yummy meals included, it was the least we could do.

Pretty sunrise.

at Spencer's Spit

view from the ferry

Iceberg/Icicle Point (I can't remember which name is right).

with Grandma

The Oracle - training for the America's Cup Race

Seattle Visit: Electric Boat Ride

2008-09-22T09:01:00.015-04:00

My parents reserved an electric boat for the family on Labor Day evening. There is a boat rental company on Lake Union that lets groups drive electric boats out around the lake. No chaperone required - just follow the rules of the water and don't go past the Ballard Locks or the UW Montlake Bridge. We set out with my dad at the wheel and took a tour of the lake. Moira and Danica joined us for the ride - it was a fun time! Some of us took turns being captain, although I was more comfortable taking the photos.

Approaching the Fremont Bridge

Sailboats among us

Captain Stan

Helmsman Ethan

First Mate Danica

Second Mate Elin

Somthing you don't see everyday - people having a full course meal while afloat in the middle of the lake.

E and E

Danica and Elin

Kathleen and Moira

Coming Next: Lopez Island

Bye Bye Yankee Stadium

2008-09-21T20:18:00.004-04:00

The last game is being played in Yankee Stadium tonight. So long.....

Seattle Visit: Vashon Island

2008-09-14T13:38:00.012-04:00

It was great to be back in Seattle. We had a busy week, full of visits with family and friends, side trips to Vashon and the San Juans, an electric boat ride, and good weather (no rain!). September is a perfect time to visit because it's usually sunny and warm.

The day after we arrived in Seattle, we headed over to the cabin on Vashon for the annual Thomas family and friends Labor Day picnic. Here are some photos from our day:

Vashon ferry landing

on the ferry

Visiting an organic farm on the island- my grandparents know the farmers/owners, who invited all us over for a tour. Here's Abby checking out the veggies, cheeses, and other goodies for sale at the farm stand. The green beans were a foot long!

Hazel, the milk cow who entertained us when she briefly escaped her pen.

Ethan and Grandpa enjoying the view at the beach.

Ready for the picnic
The 5 of us

Cousins on the ferry home

Sunset on the way home

Next up: Electric boat ride on Lake Union

Somber Day

2008-09-11T20:23:00.005-04:00

Photo taken from NY Times website

There were several 9/11 memorial events today and the annual Tribute in Lights is going on right now. We can see the two beams of light from the WTC site from our apartment window. It was unusually quiet on the subway this morning as people seemed to hold their own moment of silence.

Today also marks the opening of the Service Nation Presidential Forum held at Columbia. Obama and McCain are taking the stage together in a non-partisan discussion about the importance of national service/volunteering. 100 lucky students won tickets through a campus lottery (15,000 students signed up). I entered, since I am technically part of the School of Continuing Ed, but no such luck for me. Instead, we are watching on CNN.

Stay tuned for Seattle montage

2008-09-09T21:34:00.003-04:00

I've been a little slow readjusting to the East Coast after a nice trip back home. We did lots while we were in Seattle and I have 100+ photos to prove it. I'll pick and choose some of the best ones and show you later this week. Maybe by this weekend? :)

Weekend in Richmond

2008-08-29T10:46:00.010-04:00

Last weekend, we flew down to Richmond to see Ethan's brother and his family. Ethan's dad (Gramps) drove up to join us. We had a great weekend and wish we could see everyone more often. We went to Busch Gardens, had a few cookouts, drafted our NFL fantasy teams and hung out. The kids kept us entertained, as always!

Puzzle time with Uncle Ethan

Slinky time with Aunt Elin

Gramps on the log flume ride

This was P's favorite ride of the day.....just wait until he's tall enough to ride the Griffin!
Uncle E and P

The Griffin...Ethan, Matt and I went on this ride once. At this point in the photo, we are suspended for 6 seconds, facing the ground. And then.....

...we are suddenly falling straight down. It was terrifying.

We liked the other roller coaster better (Apollo's Chariot). It looks like an easy, rolling ride but it's actually super fast and awesome. It was Gramps' idea to ride this one!

Bears are #1

Supporting our teams!

Have a great holiday weekend! We are off to Seattle tomorrow so we'll post photos when we return.

DC Visitors

2008-08-26T21:05:00.003-04:00

One of Ethan's friends from college, Whitney, and her friend Karen were in NYC a few weekends ago. Unfortunately, I was getting over being sick and missed out on a fun dinner - complete with belly dancers! Ethan and I met up with them for lunch the next day - we had a nice time and are glad that we'll have some friends to look up in DC should we move there in the near future.

Prospect Park Zoo

2008-08-20T20:58:00.006-04:00

Last weekend, we went to the Prospect Park Zoo with Ethan's coworker and his family. This was our first time there and we found out it's a cute little zoo. It's been remodeled recently and there is a nature trail, plus a monkey house (complete with baboons), sea lion area, and a petting zoo. It's definately a children's zoo, which was great because we had two kids with us.

Did you know porcupines can climb trees?

Turtle pond

Ethan barely fitting in the shell.

Behind me is a fish aquarium, although you can't see any of the fish.

Alpaca at the petting zoo. I think he just got a haircut.

Concerts Galore

2008-08-15T11:29:00.009-04:00

We took full advantage of the free concerts in Prospect Park this summer. Much better than last year, when we went to ZERO concerts. Last Saturday was a tribute concert to Bill Withers - a 1970's songwriter, singer, etc . He wrote "Lean on Me", "Ain't No Sunshine (When She's Gone)" and "Lovely Day", just to name a few. The concert featured songs performed by lots of different singers, most of them we had never heard of. Maybe that's because we were only babies in the 70's.... The main reason we went to the concert was because The Swell Season was scheduled to perform. (The singers from the movie Once).

Ethan ran into our eye doctor while in the concessions line, who proceeded to get us into the VIP section of the bandshell. We were given wrist bands and got to stand right by the stage. It pays to get your eyes checked!

The summer season ended with a final concert on Tuesday night - Bob Dylan! We didn't have tickets - the show sold out quickly and tickets were selling for hundreds of dollars on the street. We were okay with standing just outside the bandshell- we didn't need to see Bob Dylan, just hear him. I think everyone else in the city had the same idea - I have never seen so many people sitting outside the fences of the bandshell. We stayed for a few songs - Rainy Day Women #12 & 35 (the song from Forrest Gump), Lay Lady Lay and a couple we didn't know. That's one nice thing about this city - you can step out of your apartment, walk a block and listen to Bob Dylan play in the park.

Bikes.....finally!

2008-08-07T21:01:00.006-04:00

We went for a bike ride last weekend. It is embarassing to say this was the FIRST time we've used our bikes since moving to New York. They collected dust in our closet until Sunday. Ethan pumped up the tires, hooked on the front wheels and adjusted the brakes. I removed as much dust and cat hair I could from the spokes. And we were off - 2 laps around Prospect Park. It was a nice day and we saw some interesting things in the Park. As we rode, we heard singing nearby. It turns out a wedding was taking place in the park - there was a large crowd of people wearing native dress of an African country. I don't know which one - I think the flag had yellow, red, blue and green horizontal stripes. Anyway, it was a pretty cool sight.

Waterfalls, Ghostland Observatory and the Mets

2008-07-29T21:04:00.015-04:00

We just experienced one of our top 5 NY weekends. We did some major exploring and braved the humidity while venturing to Brooklyn Heights and Queens.

On Saturday, we walked along the promenade and caught sight of the "Waterfalls" public art exhibit. We ended up at the Empire -Fulton Ferry Landing and future site of Brooklyn Bridge Park. The city is building a new park along the Brooklyn waterfront and from the plans we saw, it's going to be a very nice one - complete with a great view!

Waterfall #1

On the Promenade

#2 and #3 Waterfalls (look very closely to see #3 in the background)

The Brooklyn Ice Cream Factory - located in a 1920's fireboat house on the waterfront. The ice cream was worth the 15 minute wait!

Waterfall under the Brooklyn Bridge

We saw some wedding parties taking photos in this section of the park. Tuxedo's in 80-90 degree heat - how awful.

Later that night, we headed down the block to Prospect Park for a free concert ($3 donation suggested). Ghostland Observatory was playing and I wanted to check it out. I can't believe it was free - what a performance! They use lasers and smoke during the show and the singer, Aaron Behrens, gets very into his dance moves. And I mean very.

On Sunday, we took the G and the 7 trains to Shea Stadium in Queens to watch the Mets play the Cardinals. Ethan and I both agree that Shea is much better than Yankee Stadium. Better team and better stadium. We saw a fun game - a few home runs and a win for the Mets.

The new stadium is being built right next door.

David Wright at bat

Mr. Met in the crowd

The Home Run Big Apple - it pops up every time the Mets hit one out of the park.

The Past Few Weeks...

2008-07-20T20:46:00.007-04:00

Here's a group of photos from some outings in July. I decided to include them all on one post since I am weeks behind on the blog! Sorry about that, but the lazy days of summer have arrived.

A couple weeks ago, Ben (friend from high school) and his wife Joanna were in town. They have been working in Nigeria for the past year and came back to the US for a few week's vacation. We went out to dinner at one of our favorite Italian restaraunts, Supper. We hadn't seen Ben and Joanna since their wedding, so it was fun to catch up and hear stories about their adventures in Africa.

Every summer, the New York Philharmonic performs concerts at parks in all five boroughs. This year, we went to the concert in Prospect Park. It was something fun and new to try and we had a great time! There were even fireworks after the performance - amazing. It was the closest I have EVER been to a big fireworks show. I still haven't mastered taking pictures of fireworks, so you will just have to take my word for it. I need to have my dad teach me how to do that....

There was also a pretty cool sunset that made me feel like I had stepped into a painting. I love sunsets.

We also watched another Cyclones game - this time we sat in the real seats (those bleachers are rough on the backside). It was Billy Joel Night - which meant they played all Billy Joel songs. Unfortunately, the Piano Man did not make an appearance. (That big tower in the background used to be the Parachute Drop ride. It is now a historical landmark and is no longer operating).

The Cyclones watching the game.

Bronx Zoo

2008-07-16T20:50:00.010-04:00

We took a day trip to the Bronx Zoo - it took about an hour to get there on the subway. It was a misty, wet day but it didn't keep anyone away. We had a fun time going to a new part of the city - we felt like we were on vacation (in the boogie down Bronx). The zoo was worth the trip and featured some cool exhibits.

This is one of the older buildings - it's the Aviary exhibit. I like the two rhino statues in front.

We rode the "Skyfari" tram above the zoo grounds. We both felt our stomachs drop when the tram stopped halfway and the wire slacked a bit - it felt like we were falling. But no, everything was fine and the tram started moving again. But a few days later, we saw a story on the local news about the Skyfari breaking down. People were stuck for 5 hours until cranes were put in place to rescue them.

The lions were actually out in the open - this is the closest I've ever been!

Baby and mama giraffe in the rain

This polar bear was having a fun time playing with his ball in the water. Later, he did some very balanced walking around his pool.

This is truly how close we got to the tiger! He was right behind the glass giving himself a bath(just like Luna) and staring at us.

Gorillas in the mist! This exhibit was one of our favorites- it included LOTS of gorillas and mist machines. The Bronx Zoo and the Woodland Park Zoo are well known for their gorilla babies and families. We saw a baby and had a teen gorilla run in our direction and smack the glass in front of us. You can always count on the gorillas for entertainment!

Big poppa silverback

Short gorilla video

Cyclones and Thunderstorms

2008-07-10T01:00:00.002-04:00

A couple weeks ago, we had a very Brooklyn weekend. We headed to Prospect Park for a "Celebrate Brooklyn" concert - every summer, the bandshell is converted into a huge stage for summer concerts. We went with Chad and Sarah to see the "Cold War Kids" - Ethan and I had never heard of them but had a lot of fun doing something new. And it was only a $3 "suggested donation" and a block away from our apartment!

The next day, we headed down to Coney Island for some boardwalk fun and a Brooklyn Cyclones Game. (The Cyclones are part of the Mets farm system - Short Season A).

Sarah took this nice shot of the Wonder Wheel - we all decided to go for a ride on this Coney Island icon. We choose to ride in a moving car, instead of an immobile, boring one. When you reach certain points in the air, the car slides forward on a track and it feels like you will fly right off! It was a little scary at first, but we were brave and survived. After all, this ride has been running for 85 years without an accident! That's a pretty good stat.

Sarah and Chad enjoying or not enjoying the Wonder Wheel? :) Sarah was a trooper - this was her second time on this ride.

Does that say "Danger" on the back of our seat? That's comforting.

View of the beach / Atlantic Ocean

Off to Keyspan Park, to see the Cyclones play the Aberdeen (Maryland) Iron Birds. The game started an hour and a half late - a thunderstorm rolled in and drenched Coney Island. We headed for cover and waited out the storm - it was definitely exciting with lightning strikes all around us and torrential rain creating massive puddles.

The minor league games I've been to are always laid back, fun and cozy. The Cyclones were no different. We enjoyed ourselves more than we have at Yankees games - the crowd was friendly and we felt good about cheering for this team- and there were free giveaways between every inning! Chad and Ethan both caught t-shirts. Can't beat that. The only downside was the concessions menu signs included calorie counts and it became too obvious that the food is very bad for you. But we indulged anyway - after all, what's a baseball game without peanuts and ice cream?

We are heading back to Keyspan Park this weekend - it's Billy Joel Night and that equals fun. :)

Bye Bye Sonics

2008-07-02T21:17:00.005-04:00

Farewell to the Oklahoma City-bound Sonics. The Sonics of the 1990s was the team that made me a fan of the NBA. Shawn Kemp, Gary Payton, Nate McMillan, Steve Scheffler, and Derrick McKey - I miss you. Thanks for the memories!

Waterfalls? In NYC?

2008-06-28T13:51:00.007-04:00

New York is home to four new waterfalls thanks to Danish artist, Olafur Eliasson. "The New York Waterfalls" public art installation started flowing on Thursday and runs until October. Eliasson constructed 4 waterfalls on the East River and they can be viewed along the river by boat, foot or bike. We plan to see the falls in the next few weeks.

Devon and the Heat Wave

2008-06-26T20:41:00.004-04:00

Devon, a friend since college, was in town recently. It was her first time to New York City and we soaked it all in with her. Or should I say, sweat it all out. She visited right in the middle of a nasty heat wave and we had a nice and sticky weekend. We made sure we saw all the major points of interest and took some photos along the way. And there were definately some "only in New York" experiences. :)
We walked on the Hudson River Promenade down to Battery Park and had a nice, hazy view of the Statue and Ellis Island.
Next we ventured to Times Square - hey, you gotta see it at least once in your life, right?
It was our lucky day - there was a Naked Cowboy sighting on Broadway. Don't worry, he was wearing his white undies under that guitar. Apparently, he's been "performing" in Times Square since 1998 - even in the winter.
Rockefeller Center was next - an artist named Chris Burden has this installation on view in the Plaza. It's a giant erector set replica of The Rock. He calls it "What my dad gave me" and it was up in time for Father's Day.

We also had lots of good food throughout the weekend, including this fun night at the Brooklyn Burger Bar. It had been a day of thunderstorms and we made it to the restaurant right before another big rain came through. As we ate dinner, the Brooklyn Pride Parade marched down 7th Ave. in front of the Burger Bar. We went outside to get a closer look and Dev snapped this great picture.

This man was actually very smiley and it's a shame the camera didn't capture the peace sign he flashed Dev after she took the pic.
After getting some tasty cupcakes at Magnolia Bakery, we walked to Central Park. It was Father's Day, so we all decided to call our dad's while sitting on the rocks in Sheep's Meadow.

The next day, we headed down to meet Ethan for lunch. We walked right by the "Law and Order" courthouse on the way to the Thai restaurant. (It's actually the NY State Supreme Court building). Apparently, we ate lunch right next to a city jail. We looked out the window and were surprised to see some rough looking handcuffed folks were filing out of a van. Once again, only in New York. In case you were wondering, it was very good Thai food.

Thanks for coming to visit, Dev! It was great to see you and show you our new home. :)

Family Fun

2008-06-17T11:31:00.013-04:00

A few weeks ago, Ethan's sister Erin and her three kids came to visit us. Three adults, three kids and one cat: that's a new household record. Still there was plenty of room for everyone to sleep comfortably and much fun was had by all.

Our first full day we travelled into Manhattan to see the Statue of Liberty. Since we also had tickets to see Mary Poppins, we opted for the shorter, cheaper tour of the statue by taking the Staten Island ferry. It's free and leaves every 30 minutes from the South Ferry terminal at the southern tip of Manhattan. Below is Graham on his very first subway ride. He was glued to the window and kept asking "are we in a tunnel?" To Erin's horror, she had left her anti-bacterial wipes in the mini-van. Graham survived though, so if NYC subway germs didn't make him sick, I don't think there's much on this Earth that could.

Here are Erin, Graham and Kira watching as we pulled away from the ferry dock heading to Staten Island. We had outdoor seats on the Statue side and, although it was a bit cloudy, we were still able to see Lady Liberty pretty clearly.

We actually got much closer to the Statue than is shown in this picture, but we liked the water taxi in the foreground.

After the ferry ride, it was uptown to Times Square. We had a quick lunch at Bubba Gump and then hurried to the theater for a matinee show of Mary Poppins. Elin and I sat with the girls and Erin sat in a separate section with Graham. Graham wasn't as engrossed in the play as his older sisters. Erin thought it had something to do with the fact that Mary Poppins didn't "transform" into some sort of weapon or robot. At intermission, I asked Graham how he liked the show. His response: "I can't understand what they're saying." He was right. The British accents were a bit tricky at times. The second act proved more robust with livelier songs and cool special effects, so Graham enjoyed it much better. Proving how grown-up Maddie and Kira are getting, they were both quick to point out the wires that held up the actors during some of the flying scenes. Can't get much by them anymore.

Leaving the theater, we experienced a good, old fashioned Times Square mob scene. You don't appreciate how stressful mammoth crowds are until you're trying to keep track of three kids. Luckily it was only two blocks or so to the giant Toys R Us. We ducked inside and were greeted with a full size, indoor ferris wheel. Unfortunately the line was too long so Maddie and Kira had to settle for a picture in front of it. Still none of the kids left without a toy. Graham got a Transformer. Kira got a Jaguar stuffed animal, and Maddie got a coloring book. Erin threw in some sidewalk chalk and made it out of there without going bankrupt.

We made it home after a long day. Pictured below are Graham and Kira on their favorite chair in the apartment. They had just finished playing the Star Wars Lego game on the XBox and were very excited. Graham started asking about the game at breakfast and didn't stop until we started playing after dinner time. Graham is also our family Wii tennis pro and had a great time beating his mother in a few sets.

The next morning we visited a playground in Prospect Park. Below Maddie appears right at home sitting on top of the monkey bars.

Kira got a little assistance from Aunt Elin.

What would childhood be without swing sets?

Here is Maddie pushing Erin. Is it me or is Erin holding those chains a little tight? This is the same sister who taught me how to do back flips off a diving board when I was about 11. You've lost your edge, sis!!

They made the most of their short visit with us. We will miss having them so close as they move to Florida this week, but it's been great to spend some time with them over the past year and a half.

600 for Junior!

2008-06-10T10:50:00.004-04:00

Congrats to Griffey for hitting his 600th home run!

Here's to hoping he'll be back with the Mariners next year!

Seattle Visitors!

2008-06-09T22:00:00.000-04:00

A couple weekends ago, some friends from Seattle were in town. Dave, Luke, Colin, Jake and Matt visited NYC for Memorial Day weekend / Fleet Week. We had a ton of fun and it was fun to have some familiar faces around. I uncharacteristically took very few pictures, so Dave saved the day and donated a few to the cause.

We had a "Brooklyn Day" - the guys met us in the hip and happening neighborhood of Williamsburg. This is the place where the artists and musicians tend to live. Our reason for visiting on this day was the Brooklyn Brewery. We heard good things about this place and it was time to check it out. We had our tasting tokens (6 for $20), which is a very good price.

Is it me or could this be an ad for the Brooklyn Brewery? This is one of those rare group photo moments where not only is everyone looking into the camera, everyone is smiling. Not pictured is the Brooklyn Brewery kitty that was napping/guarding the bags of hops.

We went on the 3:00 pm "tour" - which lasted 15 minutes and took place in a big room full of brewing vats. They actually only brew and bottle the specialty beers there - the bulk of it takes place upstate. Regardless, we were in good company and the brewery itself was very cool and laid back. There are picnic tables set up inside, so you can basically hang out there the whole day, order pizza and have a good time with friends. The folks below did just that and built themselves a wall of cups.

Ethan and Luke on Bedford Avenue. You may want to put on some sunglasses if you plan on looking at this picture for more than a few seconds. The glare from my forehead could permanently damage your eyes without them. And just so you know, while it may not look like it, there actually is hair on top of my head. Also you may notice that Luke's right hand has a brownish tint. No matter how many times he washed it, it always came back. You never know how your body will react to being exposed to our clean New York City air. I'm glad to report all was normal by the next day.

How many people does it take to find the G train? Look at the concentration between Elin and Colin. It looks like they're planning the D-Day invasion. They did eventually find our route and we made our way back to Park Slope for pizza.

The next day, we were in full tourist mode - we went to Times Square and hopped on a double decker bus. The weather was perfect and great for sightseeing. We hopped off in Soho/Little Italy and ate lunch at a sidewalk cafe. It was like we were in Rome! :)

The Flatiron building (or the Daily Bugle in the Spiderman movies)

Home of Project Runway - where's Tim Gunn?

Little Italy for lunch

Colin: lawyer by day, wine connoisseur by mid afternoon

Dave pays homage to Sex in the City. Holy bicep! Dave you know you could work your triceps a little too.

I'll sign off with some other photos from the visit- thanks, Dave for supplying me with these! :)

I never knew Diana Ross had a park. The playground is really old, but it's had a lot of work done and it looks like a totally different park!!

Enjoying the sun in Central Park (there's Matt! Unfortunately, we had a short visit with him, but want to wish him the best of luck in India!)

Dave and his green twin

I'm Melting!

2008-06-09T13:45:00.006-04:00

The East Coast in the midst of a heat wave - temperatures may reach 100 today! This kind of heat is unbearable and the air is thick. There was a huge thunderstorm last night and apparently the lightning damaged some signals on our subway line. I took 4 different trains to work today! I can't wait for the commute home. Luckily, Ethan installed both A/C units just in time and our apartment is like an oasis.

Marine Corps Half Marathon

2008-06-01T19:30:00.004-04:00

What better way to spend a Sunday morning in Spring than to run 13.1 miles? My friend Chris peer pressured me into signing up for the first ever Marine Corps Half Marathon down in Fredericksburg, Virgina. I caught a flight down to Virginia, crashed at his house for a night, and we drove down to Fredericksburg to run the race. This is the same "friend" who dropped a brick on my finger in first grade, so I really should have known better. The picture above is me somewhere in the middle of the race. The maps the Marines provided of the course prior to the race made the run seem fairly flat throughout, but in reality it seemed much hillier towards the beginning and end. Despite the hills Chris, his co-worker Will and I all finished in respectable times. While traditional wisdom says that carbohydrates should be the focus of your dinner the night before a race, we three geniuses decided to poo-poo tradition and settled on pork barbecue for our dinner. A little running tip for all you hopeful half-marathoners out there: stick to the carbs.

Chris, his wife Megan, and their three sons Brandon, Owen and Kellan live in Leesburg, VA just outside of DC. As I mentioned, they put me up for the Friday night before the race. As you can see, the kids provided the majority of the entertainment. With three kids under the age of 5, I'm not really sure where Chris gets the energy to run 13 miles on a weekend, but he did it. Probably has something to do with the excellent woman Chris has for a wife.

Here's Owen mugging for the camera. The kids were fun. Brandon taught me how to play Mario Kart and then we all went out to a local park and threw rocks into a creek. What more can a kid ask for in a day?

Seeing as how Richmond is only an hour or so drive from Fredericksburg, my brother and his family drove up to cheer us on. They were waiting for me right around mile 12.5 and, after some high fives from Peyton and Alison, I was able to finish the race strong. The race started at 7am, so by the time I was finished and all cleaned up, it was still barely 11am. We had about an hour to kill before lunch, so we went to the local Barnes and Noble. These cushions made a perfect little play pen for Alison, while Courtney and Peyton discussed some of literature's classic protagonists like Dora the Explorer and Superman.

Here is Alison getting ready for nap time in the back seat of the van. Wait, she's buckled in so maybe we were on our way to lunch. Either way, she's still cute.

The Swell Season concert

2008-06-01T14:37:00.000-04:00

Last Monday, we headed to Radio City Music Hall to see "The Swell Season" - a concert featuring Glen Hansard and Marketa Irglova from the movie "Once". We were so excited to see this concert, since we love the movie and the songs are great. A band called The Interference opened and we were pleasantly surprised - I need to add them to our iTunes. Glen and Marketa sounded just like they do in the movie. Glen is a great storyteller and had some great intros for each song. If you have the chance to see this concert, GO! It was excellent! (And Radio City was pretty cool too).

Break from blogging

2008-05-27T10:08:00.003-04:00

Apologies to those of you who check our blog regularly - you've probably been dissappointed lately. Work is busy for Ethan and I - he's been working late and I am getting ready for end of the year closing. We have been slacking on the postings but we'll get back on it this week. Pics from Ethan's race, details from the Swell Season concert, and adventures with the Seattle boys coming soon...

Happy Birthday, Brooklyn Bridge!

2008-05-22T13:07:00.003-04:00

Today marks the 125th anniversary of the construction of the Brooklyn Bridge. There's going to be a light show and birthday party at the bridge today.

Poor Mariners...but a fun day

2008-05-16T11:05:00.000-04:00

A couple weeks ago, we went to a Mariners / Yankees game with our friends, Chad and Sarah. The seats were great and it turned out to be a beautiful day. We were prepared for the rain, but the sun came out and we ended up a little hot and sunburnt. The M's scored 2 runs in the first inning and then they were done for the rest of the game. Another loss, no big surprise. Regardless, we still had a fun time!

SF - The End

2008-05-14T20:39:00.008-04:00

We ended the trip with a walk in Golden Gate Park - which is right next to Haight Ashbury. We stopped at the Conservatory and looked at the pretty orchids, carniverous plants, and colorful butterflies.

This is it for our San Fran recap. We had a fun time with Kathleen and my parents and we enjoyed seeing the sights of the city. We can't wait to go back! K picked a nice city to move to.

Here are a few photos for the SF finale:

We had an intense game of Scrabble one night at the inn. Kathleen was really thinking hard about that triple word score.

Kathleen has this cute backyard at her aparment. I am jealous!

Dad looking sharp in K's shades.

Notice the name on the bus? Instant photo op.

SF Part III - Cable Cars, Sea Lions and a Baseball Game

2008-05-10T14:08:00.015-04:00

During our trip to San Francisco, we rode a cable care from downtown to Fisherman's Wharf. The cable car was pretty cool - it's a lot harder to operate than I imagined. The driver had to pull levers and work the brake- it looked like a good arm workout. They change the brake pads every 3 weeks - good thing because it was a little interesting making stops on the hill.

On the cable car - Mom and K lucky to get seats , Dad standing and hanging on tight.

Down we go...
Cool sculpture at Fisherman's Wharf. This area is the touristy place to visit - much like Pike Place or Times Square. We made a pit stop for ice cream here. You know the Thomas family - we love our treats!

Video of the sea lions at Pier 39. This is a protected area away from the sharks in the Bay who love sea lion dinners. They were very vocal and very stinky. The big one at the end below the Pier 39 sign is the big papa. He seemed to be in charge and liked to push the smaller boys off his dock.

We watched the Giants play the Reds at AT&T Park one night. My parents bought tickets in the center field bleachers - best bleacher seats I've ever seen. The field seemed very close and we had a nice view of Ken Griffey, Jr.. One of Kathleen's friends works at the stadium and got us club level passes (which is like the Terrace Club at Safeco Field). We stopped there at the beginning of the game- it was nice because we got dinner without waiting in long lines and could see the field while we ate. This ballpark is very nice - Ethan likes it better than Safeco! I'd say they are about the same. :)

Out in center field - notice the 756 sign? The only trace of Barry Bonds left in the stadium.

At the concourse behind our seats - right on the Bay. We left our seats at the perfect time and saw a home run go into the water. The kayaker in the picture below was ready but a man on the walkway was too fast and used a net to scoop the ball right out of the water.

One more SF post to come (I told you I took a lot of pictures).

SF Part II - A Birthday, A Prison and Some Parrots

2008-05-07T20:10:00.011-04:00

Kathleen's birthday was April 25, so we celebrated by going to Alcatraz and hiking up Telegraph Hill. We also met up with her friend, Moira, and had a very tasty dinner at the Stinking Rose, a restaurant that puts garlic in nearly everything on the menu.

Kathleen and one of her presents - a sewing box to keep her "notions".

From K's neighborhood (Haight-Ashbury), we headed down to Fisherman's Wharf to catch the Alcatraz ferry.

On the boat

A nice welcome to Alcatraz Island

Inside the main prison building. We listened to an audio tour which was narrated by actual guards and prisoners from Alcatraz. It was a very interesting tour and a little scary to hear about what prison life was like on The Rock.

View of the dilapitated warden's house on the hill

Through a window at the warden's house

View of the city

Golden Gate Bridge - this is the closest we got to it. Next time we'll walk across.

After we returned back, we walked to the top of Telegraph Hill to see Coit Tower. I was not used to walking up steep hills and was a bit sweaty by the end.

Almost there...

Coit Tower - there are floor to ceiling murals inside on the main floor.

For those of you who saw The Wild Parrots of Telegraph Hill movie, you may recognize this tree. This is the spot where the man lived (the tan building on the right) and fed the parrots. We did see some parrots fly away and land in another tree.

Stay tuned for part three...

SF Part I - Road Trip to the CA Coast

2008-05-04T20:09:00.012-04:00

On our first full day in San Francisco, my parents rented a car and we took a road trip down to the Monterey Peninsula. We spent most of our time at Point Lobos State Park - starting with a picnic lunch, hiking on trails, and seeing lots of wildlife. It is one of the most beautiful places I've seen (and a nice change in scenery from the concrete jungle of NYC). We also drove on a really windy road to get to Big Sur and on the way home had dinner in Carmel. Here are some of the photos from our fun day at the ocean.

Point Lobos State Reserve

Heading out on the trail

Sea lions and pups

Enjoying the view

Cormorants on an island

Mating season for cormorants

Birdwatching
Hole in the Wall at the CA Coast

Mom and Sis

In the wind

Pebble Beach in the distance
Big Sur

Waterfall hike at Big Sur

More San Fran photos to come......

Back from San Francisco

2008-04-29T17:35:00.003-04:00

Hello! We are back from our San Fran trip. It was great to see my sister and parents - we went all over the city and I have lots of photos to show. Stay tuned - I'll post them when I get back on east coast time....the jet lag has been a little rough this time around.

Sunny Saturday

2008-04-20T11:48:00.010-04:00

We had some great weather on Saturday - so we decided to walk to the Botanic Gardens and see some cherry blossoms. I love this place! We renewed our membership, so we can go back as often as we like.

We stopped by the Grand Army Plaza farmers market on the way home. I picked up a few flowers. I love having flowers and plants in the apartment but ever since Luna came into our world, it's been very hard to keep anything alive! We'll see how long this daffodil lasts.....as Ethan says, "Teensy is the murderer of flowers". (FYI: Luna has many nicknames, Teensy being one, along with Tuna, Teeny, Lovie, Poopsy, Loony, etc...)

Yankees vs. Red Sox

2008-04-20T11:15:00.005-04:00

On Wednesday, Ethan and I went to Yankee Stadium for the first game of the NY/Boston series. We took the train up to the South Bronx after work and met up with some of Ethan's friends. Here are some highlights and lowlights:

Ethan (along with others) was frisked upon entry to the stadium.
Our seats were in the bleachers. (We discovered that this is the rowdiest section of the stadium, even though no alcohol is allowed. Go figure. At Safeco Field, this is called the "Family Section")
We saw several fans get kicked out for fighting. This is a super intense rivalry!
The Red Sox fans were verbally abused the whole time, so we very quietly cheered for Boston.
The Red Sox lost 15-9 - we left in the 6th inning, since it was 10pm and we had a long subway ride back to Brooklyn.

I am glad the next game we attend will be against the Mariners. Yankee fans are a little easier on the M's fans.

Hollywood comes to Brooklyn

2008-04-16T09:33:00.006-04:00

My friend, Sarah and I were heading out for our weekly walk around the park when she told me about something curious happening in our 'hood. On 7th Ave and 9th St (two blocks away from our apt), the street is lined with big, white trailers. We walked by and found out that a big-time movie is being filmed in Park Slope (they were shooting subway scenes yesterday).

The movie is called "Julie & Julia" directed by Nora Ephron (who also wrote Sleepless in Seattle and Harry Met Sally). Meryl Streep and Amy Adams star in this movie based on a memoir by Julia Child and a memoir by Julie Powell, a New Yorker who wrote about cooking all 500+ recipes in a Julia Child cookbook in one year. I figure it must be a good one if Meryl Streep is involved.

Sittin' on the corner of Lafayette...

2008-04-13T19:49:00.007-04:00

...at the Brooklyn Academy of Music ( I know, not in Louisiana, but the concert really was on the corner of Lafayette and St. Felix in downtown Bklyn!). Friday night was a great night. "Under African Skies" was a well-done ensemble concert, with Ladysmith Black Mambazo opening. They are awesome and fun to watch. They tell stories with their hands as they sing. Ladysmith stole the show, along with David Byrne from the Talking Heads. He sang two songs - "I Know What I Know" and "You Can Call Me Al". Those were the perfect choices for him to sing. Paul Simon, of course was excellent, but didn't sing as many songs as I hoped. But you could tell that he and everyone else on stage was having a blast and that made it fun for the audience. I loaded up my iPod with more Paul Simon and Ladysmith songs and will be listening on my commute tomorrow.

(Photos from a website I found by a man named Paul Fournier. We were not that close to the stage, sadly).

Paul Simon!

2008-04-10T14:23:00.004-04:00

Paul Simon is in the midst of a month-long residency at the Brooklyn Academy of Music (BAM). He's performing a 3 part concert series - based on different themes of his music. We were fortunate enough to snag tickets to the "Under African Skies" concert tomorrow night. It will feature songs from "Graceland" and "Rhythm of the Saints", performed by Paul Simon and guests (Ladysmith Black Mambazo, David Byrne to name a few). Paul Simon is my all time favorite singer and I am so excited. I'll tell you all about it this weekend!

Pike Place in NYC!

2008-04-09T18:26:00.009-04:00

I saw this picture in the daily subway newspaper "amNY" -1971 Starbucks in Bryant Park- it caught my attention and I looked it up on the internet when I got home. Apparently, Starbucks sent out this mysterious email invitation for a NYC event:

For one day only, Starbucks set up a temporary replica of the original Pike Place Starbucks in the middle of Bryant Park. Howard Schultz and the gang were in town intruducing a new line of beans- the Pike Place Roast.

The original logo

Flowers at Macy's and 600,000 Headstones

2008-04-04T19:21:00.000-04:00

Last weekend, E and I headed to Macy's to see their Flower Show. Now, when I hear the words flower show, I think of the Seattle Flower and Garden Show, which has awesome, intricate gardens set up inside the Convention Center. I knew there was not enough space to have that kind of set up inside of Macy's, so I really had no idea what to expect. Here's what we saw:

The main floor of the store had turned into a springtime wonderland - there were flowers, green plants and blossoming trees everywhere!

On Sunday, we walked to one of Brooklyn's treasures. The Green-Wood Cemetery is about 10 blocks away from our apartment and is the size of Prospect Park. The cemetery originated in 1838 and was the inspiration for the creation of Central and Prospect Parks. There are approx. 600,000 people buried here, including some famous NY historical figures (Boss Tweed, Charles Ebbetts, Jean Michel Basquiat). Green-Wood hosts the highest point in Brooklyn (Battle Hill, 220 feet). Here's a brief history lesson for you:

"It can be argued that the battle that took place on this hill actually saved in the United States in its infancy in August 1776. During the Battle of Brooklyn, British troops in flanking maneuver had routed George Washington's army and were closing in on capturing him.

Washington fled with his army about a half mile west across the Gowanus Creek when a group of 400 Maryland soldiers stood their ground on the hill. All but 9 were to perish, being injured or captured. But the delay was enough for Washington to get his men across the creek and into Brooklyn Heights before evacuating to Manhattan under the cover of a night fog."

---from http://www.americasroof.com/

Views from Battle Hill (Statue of Liberty at the end of the street)

Civil War Memorial

Altar of Liberty saluting the Statue of Liberty

Signs of spring!

Green-Wood Chapel

Bright and sunny (and cold!) day at the cemetery

5th Avenue entrance - Gothic Revival architecture - amazing!

If you look closely at the spires, you will see bird nests. As we exited the cemetery, our eyes were drawn up to the nests. We heard birds and as we looked closer, we saw they were PARROTS! We have our very own "Parrots of Telegraph Hill" right in Brooklyn! The rumor is that back in the late 60's, a shipment of monk parrots from South America escaped from their crate at JFK. And the parrots made their home in the cemetery.

Here's a closer shot.

I Love MLB Extra Innings

2008-04-01T14:24:00.007-04:00

Ethan did something wonderful last weekend and purchased the MLB Extra Innings package for our cable system. Now we can watch any baseball game we want, all from the comforts of our apartment. We won't miss any Mariners action this year! Last night, we watched Opening Night and saw the M's beat the Rangers in the snow. I don't remember EVER seeing snow at a game before!

The only downside to this deal is that many of the games start at 10:05 ET - past my bedtime. But there's always the DVR option...

Go M's!

Easter and E.T.

2008-03-24T20:46:00.006-04:00

We spent our Easter walking in Central Park and on 5th Avenue, just after the Easter Parade finished up. We saw people wearing very creative Easter bonnets, like the one in the photo. I'd never seen anything like this before! After walking on 5th, we headed to the Ziegfeld Theater - which was having Spielberg Week. We caught a showing of E.T. on the big screen - for the first time since seeing it as a 4 year old! It was just as I remembered it - sad and sweet. The last time I heard "E.T. phone home" was in high school when my science teacher thought it would be funny to quote that line after he called my name. (For those of you who don't know me, my initials used to be ET and my first name sounds alot like "alien"). E.T. will always hold a special place in my heart. :)

Chelsea Market

2008-03-17T13:07:00.007-04:00

Ethan and I went exploring in Chelsea with our friends Sarah and Chad on Saturday. It was a beautiful day for walking around (still a little chilly, but we'll take the sun any day). My favorite stop of the day was the Chelsea Market. I've heard about it in magazines and on tv but hadn't visited yet. It's like a fancy NYC version of the Pike Place Market - but it's all indoors with no arts and crafts. Developers turned the old Nabisco factory (Oreo's were invented here!) into a marketplace complete with bakeries, wine shops, fresh produce and seafood, cafes, restaurants, etc on the ground floor. I didn't see the flower section, but maybe it hasn't opened for spring yet. The upper floors are made up of various corporate offices (the Food Network, MLB.com, and NY1 - a local news channel). It's a cool building and I know we'll be going back sometime soon.

our neighborhood bodega is on TV!

2008-03-14T12:34:00.004-04:00

I found this info out this week:

Some of you may have seen the recent Citicards commercial on TV - the one with the couple going out to eat at fancy restaurant. They order a disappointing dinner that looks like "elf food" and end up stopping at a bodega for chips, cupcakes, etc on their way home. They filmed the store scene at a market just down the street from our apartment. So if you see the commercial, you are looking at a slice of Park Slope!

More from Florida

2008-03-11T15:38:00.004-04:00

Here are a few more photos from our trip, brought to you by Jim and Amy. Thanks for sharing your pics with us!

Our Disneyworld Adventures

2008-03-01T15:03:00.017-05:00

We spent a week in Orlando enjoying all the fun that Disney offers (4 parks worth). We stayed in a hotel with Jim and Amy and their friends. It's called Shades of Green and you have to be affiliated with the military to reserve a room. Our inside man was Jim's friend Andy, who was nice enough to include us in on the fun. Since it was Ethan's first time experiencing the world of Disney, we made the most of our 6 days and visited every park. The Disneyworld Resort parks - Magic Kingdom, Epcot, Animal Kingdom and Hollywood Studios - and Universal Studios/Islands of Adventure - each gave us some great memories. Despite the cold weather on the last 2 days, we had a great time being kids again. I went a little picture crazy, so here is a batch you might enjoy. (Note: Ethan and I both wrote for this entry)
Ethan's first steps in the Magic Kingdom! Look at that smile!
Pirates of the Caribbean was the first ride we went on - we found it had been updated with characters from the movies. Here's Ethan as Capt Jack Sparrow. Less makeup than Johnny Depp's version but still somehow scarier.

Thunder Mountain Railroad USED to be my favorite ride, but after this trip, I have a few more favorites. (You'll read more about those later)

We got a little wet on Splash Mountain - luckily the guy in the red shirt blocked some of the water spray. Most of the more intense rides take your pictures during the big drops and for some reason, we were always making the same funny faces. Elin looks freaked out, Amy is usually smiling and Ethan and Jim are catching flies with their mouths. We always had a good laugh looking at those ride photos.

Turkey legs are everywhere in the parks! Ethan was the only one who tried them out. It's a bit too caveman-ish for me. (Note from Ethan: The leg started off being about as big around as my hand. Those thick white strips in the middle of the leg are tendons. Once I got down to those, I just could not eat anymore.)

My 3 year-old nephew Peyton told me to make sure I ride Dumbo Well, the lines were always too long for the ride, so I had my picture taken on the Dumbo right next to the real thing. This one's for you Peyton, and by the way, Dumbo told me to tell you hello.

We tried our hand at the Frontierland shooting range. I think Ethan was the better shot.

Big blue on the Indy Speedway. Elin is in the red car ahead of me. You're not supposed to bump cars, but I guess I have a lead foot. You may have noticed that the steering wheel is on the right side of the car. Lucky for us, the cars can't go but maybe two or three feet to either side of a rail that runs right under the car.

On our first day, we just couldn't get enough of the Magic Kingdom. We took a break in the afternoon at the hotel and then went back for more. It was the "magic hours" night which means the park stayed open later for Disneyworld Resort guests. At the beginning of the fireworks, the Blue Fairy from Sleeping Beauty flew down from Cinderella's Castle. It was amazing. Watching that and the kids all around, you can't help but feel like a kid again.

Shades of Green - there were 2 golf courses next door. Two pools in the back, a great pizza place, plus the insanely reasonable room rates make this the best hotel in Disney World.

The Tree of Life at Animal Kingdom. It looks real, but it's yet another aspect of that Disney magic. It's covered with hundreds of different animals that were individually carved out of the fiberglass or whatever material makes up its trunk.

Here we are right after the River Rapids ride and, as you can tell, we got drenched. We were the only two on our raft to get soaked head-to-toe. I guess we picked the wrong seats. Luckily the sun was out pretty regularly that day, so we dried off quickly. It's just not as fun to walk around soaking wet as an adult. Funny how things change as you get older.

Animal Kingdom has the Mt. Everest ride (the Matterhorn-equivalent). This ride had the most visually stunning waiting area. It felt like we were at base camp at Everest, with displays of climbing gear, photos of Sherpas, prayer flags, stories about the Yeti. However, we hardly ever waited in lines during our visit (yay) and didn't spend a whole lot of time looking at the waiting area decor. This ride was awesome - there was a special surprise that I won't spoil for any of you but it made for a super exciting ride.

Basically Animal Kingdom was like a huge Disney zoo with some rides mixed in. We went on a safari tour which takes you into the "Savannah". Apparently we were there on a good day and the animals were out and about. The male lion even stood up and walked around and you all know how lazy they are. My favorite was this ostrich hanging out right next to the tour jeep.

This picture is for Kathleen. Apparently when the Thomas clan went down to Disney World around the time Kathleen turned 4 or 5, she loved the Mickey Mouse ice cream sandwiches. Well, they're still a staple at all the parks, so here I am enjoying one. On a side note, you may notice that in most of the pictures, I'm wearing my Seattle Mariners hat. While it's primary purpose is to prevent my ever-increasing scalp from getting sunburned, it is also a reminder that Seattle is still our home.

Spaceship Earth at Epcot, and of course my beautiful wife in the foreground. Yes it looks like a golf ball, but I guess it's a spaceship. Whatever it is, it's pretty cool and is the Cinderella's Castle of Epcot. We didn't actually go inside so we don't really have much to report on this.

The fireworks at the end of the night at Epcot were outstanding. The show is called Illumi-Nations because it's held at the World Showcase of Epcot. Basically they have mock-ups of about 11 different countries (from Mexico to Norway to Morocco to England) circling the lake. Not to ruin the show, but they roll a globe into the middle of the lake and it splits open and catches on fire. Awesome!!

In a phone booth in "London"

Here is Jim, Andy and I in Norway at Epcot's World Showcase. Andy is on the right and reserved all of our rooms at Shades of Green. We can't thank him enough! Not pictured is his adorable daughter, Emma.
When I look at this picture, I can't help but think of the old Bugs Bunny cartoon where Elmer Fudd, wearing a similar helmet, chases Bugs singing "Kill the Wabbit, kill the Wabbit, kill the Wabbit." We had just finished Norway's Viking boat ride. It takes you through the "History of Norway." As you would predict, it was a short ride, and per Disney's standard procedure, you exit into a ride-themed store where they sell these hats and many, many, many other Norwegian trinkets.

Our night out at Downtown Disney was spoiled by a typhoon-esque downpour of rain. There are lots of shops and restaurants at Downtown Disney, but we didn't get to see any of them because of the nasty weather. We did get to eat at Gloria Estefan's Cuban restaurant Bongo's. Pretty tasty grub. Here is Amy and I huddling by the bus stop as we waited for the bus to take us back to the hotel.

After a quick morning trip back to Magic Kingdom, we hit Hollywood Studios (formerly known as MGM Studios) for the day. In the background is one of the best rides in all the parks: the Tower of Terror. It's a Twilight Zone themed-ride. Basically you get into an elevator and it falls about 5 stories, goes back up and falls again. Sounds scary, but it was a lot of fun. Another one of our favorites was the Aerosmith roller coaster. It shoots you from zero to 60 mph in about 3 seconds! This was one of the two cold days we had down there; thus the jackets.

Here we are braving the cold at Hollywood Studio's end of day show called Fantasmic. It felt like we were still in New York, but the show more than made up for it.

So here's Mickey Mouse performing in Fantasmic. This was one of the only times we saw Mickey during our trip, so no pics with him this time. You can't really see it, but he's on a multi-level stage in the middle of a lake. They spray a screen of water up between the audience and Mickey and then project cartoons onto the water. Very cool. Later they catch the lake on fire. Yes, that's right, the water catches on fire. Disney goes all out to entertain, and not only was it a great effect, it warmed us up as well.

Our final day in Orlando was spent at Universal Studios and Universal's Island of Adventures. Here is Jim and I finishing up the Jurassic Park ride. We're in the back row on the right. It was still a little cold, but lucky for us we didn't get wet. These parks are a little more grown up than the Disney parks, especially Island of Adventures where they have more of the intense type of roller coasters (Incredible Hulk and Dueling Dragons). Much fun was had by all, but by the end of the day everybody's brains were a little scrambled from all the loop-de-loop and corkscrew-laden rides.

Here's the whole group at Pat O'Briens (New Orleans themed restaurant) after our day at the Universal parks. It was great to see Jim and Amy again. It felt like old times. Their next adventure is a trip to Ireland in May for their first anniversary. Hopefully you'll see more of them here on the blog in the next year or so, as we're trying to plan their visit to New York City.

Off to see Mickey!

2008-02-22T21:35:00.003-05:00

Ethan and I leave for Walt Disneyworld tomorrow afternoon! We'll be there for a week with our friends Jim and Amy. We are looking forward to time off work in warm and sunny Orlando. This will be Ethan's first visit with Mickey and the gang and he is super excited. Thunder Mountain Railroad, here we come!

Have a great week and we'll post photos when we return to NY.

Snowy Day

2008-02-22T21:17:00.005-05:00

It snowed almost all day. Ethan was lucky enough to have his office close down for the day. However, I was not that fortunate and made the trek into work. Here are some photos of what campus looked like in the morning:

Avery Hall - This is my building

a cute little place down the street

2008-02-18T16:09:00.005-05:00

For our Valentine's Dinner, we decided to splurge a little and go to applewood, a restaurant at the end of our street. Whenever we walk by, it looks so cute and we'd say, "we need to try that place sometime". We've heard great things about the food and liked the idea even more when we heard they support local farmers and use wild fish. We had a yummy duck bolognese with gnocchi for an appetizer. Ethan had the rib-eye and I had the bass for the main course. For dessert, Ethan went with rice pudding and I had the chocolate souffle. I normally don't get too excited about food (except if it's homemade mac n cheese, Madame K's or Blue C) but our meal at applewood was awesome. The dessert was my favorite, there was yummy, gooey chocolate pudding in the middle and I loved it. This is definitely a place we'd like to take our visitors to (I know Warren would be in heaven).

Something Cute for V-Day

2008-02-14T16:26:00.005-05:00

Uno, the beagle, won the Westminster Dog Show here in NYC - the first time ever for a beagle!

Message to the Q's: This could be Charley one day.... :)

A Broadway Night Out

2008-02-10T12:05:00.000-05:00

We had a fun Saturday night with our friends Chad and Sarah. It was quite an adventure - we went to Hell's Kitchen for the first time (had burgers at the Mercury Bar), went to see a Broadway show (The Homecoming) and saw an actor from Grey's Anatomy/Private Practice (Kate Walsh) as we picked up our tickets. The play was odd. We seem to be on a roll when it comes to picking off the wall plays. Still it was neat to see...

Ian McShane (Deadwood's Swearengen)...

...and Michael McKean (Best In Show, Lenny from Lavern & Shirley) up close. "Up close" of course meaning from the balcony.

Celebrity sighting: Kate Walsh at the Cort Theater will-call. We just missed seeing Ricky Martin by one night; at least that's what the coat check/concession stand guy told us.

My NY Voting Experience

2008-02-06T12:57:00.000-05:00

Last night, I voted for the first time as a New York State citizen. Since I voted absentee throughout most of my voting years, a trip to the polling center is very unfamiliar. My friend Sarah (who moved from Seattle to Brooklyn with her fiance) lives a block away from us, so we decided to go embark on this adventure together. We walked down the street to P.S. 107 and entered the lunch room polling center. It was like stepping back in time. The voting machines were the lever kind with the black privacy curtain. I pulled back the curtain and found myself looking at lots of little switches and a big red lever. I had never used one of these before and when I asked the nice old man at the table how to use it, he looked at me like I was crazy. I told him I had never voted using this kind of machine and I needed help. He told me what to do and I cast my vote. While I was voting, I could hear him say, "That young lady just asked me how to use the machine! No one has ever asked me that!" I was the strange one in the room last night. People have said those machines were used in the rest of the country as far back as the 60's! For some reason, New York hasn't caught up with the latest voting technology....maybe next time.

Out and About

2008-02-04T20:39:00.001-05:00

On Saturday, we took the F to the 42nd-Bryant Park stop. Fashion Week started on Friday and the famous white tents are up once again. There wasn't much going on outside when we walked by, just a few camera people waiting for something to happen and curious folks like us. We kept on going to the AMC Times Square Theater and saw a movie (There Will Be Blood). On our way back to the subway, we had the Chrysler Building in front of us and the Empire State Building to the right. The ESB was glowing blue over the weekend for the Giants. Someday, I'll get a picture of the Chrysler Bldg during the daytime...

Giant Upset

2008-02-04T09:21:00.000-05:00

What a game! The Giants shut down the Pats and won a great one! The city went nuts when the game ended - honking cars, screaming fans in the streets. The victory parade is tomorrow - starts in Battery Park City and ends at City Hall Park (which happens to be right by Ethan's office building). Maybe he'll see Eli or Plaxico...