Category Archives: places of interest

December 25, 2008 · 11:06 pm

Too much food and the Chapel of Sacred Mirrors

cosm

Tonight was our big fat Italian Christmas, except there was no one fat and not all that many Italians come to think of it. In fact most of us were Jews. Except our hostess whose holiday dinners have become the most coveted invite in the zip code. Every one of the guests was scheming how to secure a place at the table for next year. Except for us, of course, we are a lock AND we can bring the dog.

After dinner some of us got into a philosophical discussion about our expectations for the coming year that included much spiritual conversation. One friend brought up the Chapel of Sacred Mirrors, an art exhibit in Chelsea. My first reaction was, oh no, an exhibit that will not only reveal inner secrets, but back fat as well. Not sure I need to go there.

Seriously, it does sound kind of cool. Here is a quick description from the website:

The Sacred Mirrors series is a totally unique work of contemporary sacred art created by Alex Grey. This installation of 21 framed images, consisting of 19 paintings and two etched mirrors, examines the anatomy of body, mind and spirit in rich detail. Each painting presents a life-sized figure facing viewers and inviting them to mirror the images, creating a sense of seeing into oneself.

Ok, so maybe I can lose the narcissistic fear of back fat and I will check this out. This is the line that got me:

The Sacred Mirrors dramatically reveal the miracle of life’s evolutionary complexity, the unity of human experience across all racial, class and gender divides, and the astonishing vistas of possibility inherent in human consciousness. 

Pretty tall order to ignore. For those interested, the show closes on New Year’s Eve. Surely let me know if you visit.

Oh, and the lasagna was to die for!

Haven’t had enough of me yet? You can also read me at Mid-Century Modern Moms and at 50-Something Moms Blog.

For photo enthusiasts, visit Leaving the zip code, photos from outside the comfort zone.

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December 22, 2008 · 12:25 am

Humanely Raised Ham?

humanelyraisedham

I came across this sign in one of my favorite eateries in the Flatiron District, The City Bakery.

This sign struck me as being sort of silly. Humanely raised before we slaughter you and slap you on a piece of bread with gruyere. Is part of the humane treatment to avoid humiliation by being paired with a pedestrian cheese like ordinary american?

Yes, this noise in my head is truly never ending.

Haven’t had enough of me yet? You can also read me at Mid-Century Modern Moms and at 50-Something Moms Blog.

For photo enthusiasts, visit Leaving the zip code, photos from outside the comfort zone.

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December 17, 2008 · 8:17 pm

What kind of free offer is this?!

free-offerThis one is priceless. In my mail, addressed to Mr. & Mrs. Amy E. My Maiden Name (Gary just loves this!), would be this lovely promo.

And who, you might ask, has sent me this charming offer?

Pine-friggin-lawn Memorial Park and Garden Mausoleums. Um, park and gardens? Correct me if I am wrong but I see dead people!

The scary part is that we already own real estate here, thank you very much. And I am trying my best to stay the hell out of there for as long as possible.

What was the free offer for? A Let’s Face it Now booklet that answers all those ‘questions’. Like these (with commentary of course):

Do you need a will? (do you really need to ask this question?)

What does survivor do with will? (nice grammer – contest it, of course, that is what makes for a good family fight)

How about lawyers’ fees? (right off the bat I will say they are too high)

What 6 phone calls must be made? (1. liquor store, 2. liquor store, 3. liquor store, 4. liquor store, 5. liquor store, 6. dry cleaners – they always have the black dress)

How do you claim benefit payments? (call the high priced lawyer)

How do you arrange for family memorial property? (I am sorry here, but don’t we call these graves?)

cemetary

Keep in mind I do this kind of stuff for a living. I can only imagine what the meetings for this piece were like. Check out this picture. Can you imagine art directing this shoot? Cuh-ree-py!

I thought receiving the AARP card 3 times before I turn 50 was bad enough, but now this!

Sheesh! And a happy holiday to these guys too. Thanks Pinelawn Memorial Park and whatever, I will pass.

Haven’t had enough of me yet? You can also read me at Mid-Century Modern Moms and at 50-Something Moms Blog.

For photo enthusiasts, visit Leaving the zip code, photos from outside the comfort zone.

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December 12, 2008 · 11:23 pm

NY Friggin’ Hamster House?

nyhh

This will fall under the category of ‘You Just Can’t Make this Up’. I was half listening to WFUV (Fordham University’s gem of a radio station) when a report came on about the New York Hamster House.

Yes, ladies and gentleman, New York has it’s very own shelter for homeless hamsters. Here is quote from the site in case you are not inclined to click on the link:

“Wilhelm, the first guest, was found running across Broadway at Thayer Street in Inwood. Since then, the NYHH has taken in over 500 homeless animals, and has placed most of those in happy, safe forever homes. We shelter, adopt out, and board hamsters (as well as gerbils and mice).”

How lovely that the gerbils and mice are included. This is what I call non-sectarian rodent rescue.

In keeping with the idea that EVERYONE has a blog, the NYHH also has one. Please note that October 30th post has a photo of a hamster in a cheerleading uniform. Better watch out for those cheerleaders, they can be vicious.

Honestly, I am a lover of animals and I appreciate what Ms. Jessica Wells is doing. But for some reason I just can’t get past the idea of what this place must smell like.

Haven’t had enough of me yet? You can also read me at Mid-Century Modern Moms and at 50-Something Moms Blog.

For photo enthusiasts, visit Leaving the zip code, photos from outside the comfort zone.

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December 9, 2008 · 10:16 pm

Gotta Get Me a Slice of Vodka Pizza

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Where has this place been all my life?! (answer: Spring Street, NYC). How many times have you thought to yourself, ” What I wouldn’t give for a slice of vodka pizza?”

It is both satiating and inebriating. Simultaneously. What could be better?

Would mushrooms be overkill?

Haven’t had enough of me yet? You can also read me at Mid-Century Modern Moms and at 50-Something Moms Blog.

For photo enthusiasts, visit Leaving the zip code, photos from outside the comfort zone.

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November 19, 2008 · 12:14 am

Spam… A LOT

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Allen Brisson-Smith for The New York Times

Am I living in a time warp traveling at light speed back to my childhood? Could Spam actually be back on the top of the food charts? What next, Velveeta – the spam of cheeses? Vienna sausages?

Believe it or not, Spam made it to the cover of Saturday’s NYT business section. Andrew Martin wrote a comprehensive article about Spam sales in the down economy that gave me way more information than I ever cared to know about the grisly little cake of gelatinous gooey meat product. There were however some great factoids I have to share here:

1. They market Spam with the tagline “Crazy Tasty”. I LOVE that. I wonder how long they have used that.

2. Austin, MN advertises itself as Spamtown and has 13 restaurant with Spam on the menu. (Note to self: do not take Gary here, there will be no egg white omelettes, bagels with a schmeer or Earl Grey tea with honey) 

3. There is a Spam Museum where you can buy Spam ties (Rik, you need this account) as well as many other wonderful Spam gift items. The tagline is “Sure Beats an Art Museum”. I swear. I am crying from this. You should see me here in the command center, hysterical laughing. I am so easily amused. I MUST visit this place. Gary’s 50th was a trip to the Rock ‘n Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland. Same guests, please pack your bags in September, my 50th is going to be in Austin, MN.

4. Because it is vacuum sealed, Spam can last for years. They say it is “like meat with a pause button”. Ew, I am sorry, that is just not right.

5. On a recent day 149,950 cans of Spam were made on the day shift. That’s a hell of a lot of Spam. Perhaps we should start watching Hormel’s stock.

Some other products with soaring sales are Velveeta (I read that after I wrote the first paragraph, I must be a trend forecaster), pancake mixes, boxed mac and cheese, instant potatoes, Jell-O and Kool-aid. Wait, did someone just open my mom’s pantry cabinet of 1968? Are canned string beans on this list too? Do they still make Fizzies? I friggin’ loved root beer Fizzies. Anyone? Fizzies? Was it just me?

So, what? We throw out all that we have learned about healthy eating and go back to high fat and preservative foods to save money? Hmmm… cyclical. What’s old is new again.

Spam is the new fois gras. Honestly, they look the same to me.

Since this post has made me nostalgic for my childhood days, I will leave you with one of my favorite Monty Python skits. Jeanne, this one’s for you babe. (email subscribers, click over the blog to watch this, it will make you laugh)

Haven’t had enough of me yet? You can also read me at Mid-Century Modern Moms and at 50-Something Moms Blog.

For photo enthusiasts, visit Leaving the zip code, photos from outside the comfort zone.

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September 11, 2008 · 10:38 pm

Freakatorium

Tonight I was saddened to find out that the Freakatorium – Manhattan’s freak museum – or as it was also referred to, El Museo Loco, closed its doors.

Ok, so I am a little late to the party here. It closed in January ’05. I told you I don’t get out of the basement much!

I was preparing to write this post, looking back fondly on the day spent there with the best of friends (hi Ron, checking to see if you are reading). I googled it to get a link for this post and there it was. This sad announcement of its closing.

What a loss. This place rocked. It is the place where Gary bought one of his favorite T-shirts, Zoma the Canibal. Yes, they misspelled it on the shirt. See.

I am pretty sure that I had to ask him to take that shirt off at least once. Maybe we were going to a kid’s birthday party, or worse, Open House at the kid’s school. It is a great shirt though, don’t you think?

Back to the merits of the Freakatorium. It was a tiny little storefront shop really. Squeezed in between a tragically hip eatery and a corner Bodega on the then gentrifying Clinton Street. This place had it all.

Here is a list of the few amazing items of oddity that were housed within its frankly creepy walls:

Pictures of Jo Jo the dog-faced boy

An authentic living, breathing 2-headed turtle (no joke, I saw it move around)

Sammy Davis Jr.’s glass eye

A conjoined twin pig fetus (ew, ew, ew)

See for yourself. This vid is a tad long but Johnny Fox is so weird and wild in a John Waters sort of way. I could not help but watch it to the end. Must admit that parts of it were a little bit liking staring at the accident.

Too much free time?

Maybe.

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