The Sorcerer in Park Slope

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!

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

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

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

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

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!

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

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

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!