I can’t believed that I missed this! From the BikeSnobNYC blog, (scroll down, scroll way down):
New York City is striving to become more bicycle friendly, and to this end you may recall that Transportation Alternatives recently held a PSA contest (in which I served as a juror) in order to promote smugness in the streets. Well, the winners have finally been announced, and I’m pleased to report that I didn’t vote for any of them.
I don’t know why I didn’t think to use the word “smugness”–it pretty aptly describes how I feel about the whole thing.
The Bike Snob details, scene-by-scene one of the videos (dude pushes his car into the river, turns around to reveal a “one less car” t-shirt), hating on it all the way. What bugs me most about that is that the shirt doesn’t say “one FEWER car.”
Also, he points out that the word “livability” doesn’t really mean anything. (”And what is a “livability revolution?” It sounds like forcing people at gunpoint to make their living rooms more comfortable.”). I’m glad I’m not the only one who feels that way.
All of my work these days, for my final papers and such, is about New York and Food. So I sit in piles of photocopied printed and stapled articles and reports and draft legislation about food and agriculture and farm-to-cafeteria initiatives and maps of food deserts and on and on.
It is wonderful. It makes me happy to read these things.
The American Journal of Public Health Research and the Journal of Planning Research and Education do not have pretty pictures though.
But this week there is new Maira Kalman in the New York Times! And it is about thanksgiving and food and bounty and cities. It is lovely, twee & smart at the same time.
These murals are beautiful! Meant to be viewed from the elevated train. Way to be, Philadelphia.
I had a super time at the Transportation Alternatives Biking Rules PSA festival the other night. It’s really nice to see people put in work and make neat videos and have a ton of awesome Brooklyn bike people in a room together. But then, when we were drinking beer and schmoozing at the reception, I got a little bit full of hate. The focus on bicycle safety as something cyclists need to preach to each other really bugs me! Again and again I hear that the thing that makes cycling safer is not more helmets and more lights, but more cyclists! Having people on bikes on the road makes drivers aware, makes cycling more “normal” and more accepted and more safe. I get that TA wants to have cyclists seem like a respectable bunch of eco-friendly, law-abiding citizens that are worth building bike lanes and creating policy for, but it makes me crazy that the focus isn’t on drivers!
At least, the message going to cyclists should be “don’t be an asshole.” I think it’s generally FINE to run red lights and go the wrong way on one-way-streets as long as you’re aware of what’s going on around you, and you don’t get in people’s way. A cyclist running a red light does way less harm that fucking cars parked in bike lanes, or not signaling, or opening their doors into oncoming bike traffic without looking. Fuck the laws about bells and helmets–I can take care of my personal safety. I want more policing of system-wide safety!
Thanks muchly to Ms Laurie for the think to this guardian article today about how “antisocial cycling” is annoying, but not a real threat unlike bad driving, which is.
All that said, the videos were pretty rad. My super planner pal Inbar’s “Cycloptopus” video is totally worth watching.
Also, I’m really digging the Fake MTA twitter updates. “From Nov. 19-Dec. 31, the 59th St./Columbus Circle station will be closed due to the construction of Mayor Bloomberg’s underground lair.”
A lot of the things I look at regularly on the internet are about dresses. Some of it is about making dresses and some is unabashedly fashion. Yeah. I read fashion blogs!
Mostly it’s that journal articles are in black and white and badly photocopied and I need to look at pretty things every now and then, or I’ll wilt. It’s like the poster or print up on the wall at Kat’s house, “girls need cute things or they’ll DIE.”
Dresess like this one! (which is from mociun) And Built By Wendy stuff. And all the vintage patterns over at A Dress A Day. I have a few patterns and some washed and pressed fabric that’s meant to be magically transformed into dresses, but I’m not actually working on that at the moment.
I will say, though, that I am bored bored bored of all the Japanese dress books and the adoration of them on many of the dress and craft blogs. The dresses are all so shapeless and boring (and no doubt would look terrible on anyone with boobs), and the books all seem so samey-same, with models standing in front of white or grey-ish walls, holding on to some inane object. It’s better than the overcutseyness of the amigurumi japanese craft stuff that I’ve never been a fan of, but I have no desire to look at any more shifts or tunics. Urgh.
For those of you that love the japanese dresses (or just don’t know what I’m talking about), Karyn has a quite a collection of them that you can see here.
Oh wow, this dress is amazing!
From etsy, of course.
I saw a bottle of Canada Dry Ginger Ale in the store, with a big “made with real ginger!” front-of-package claim. The ingredient list, though, did not have ginger listed! Just high-fructose corn syrup and “natural flavours.” WTF, Canada Dry?
(photo from coreyu)
No matter, because my ginger beer is almost ready! It’s easy to make–just start with some ginger bug, which is grated ginger and sugar in a jar on the counter, fed every other day until it gets all ferment-y. Then make some tea/syrup, boiling ginger with sugar (exact measurements available upon request), then pour that into an empty pop bottle with strained gingerbug. Put a lid on and let sit somewhere warmish for 2 weeks. Then refrigerate and enjoy!
In the opening scene of the season finale of Mad Men last night, Betty Draper goes to visit Roger Sterling in a freshly mowed hay field wearing a huge white wedding dress and gets shot in the head with a rifle by an off-screen Jane. She was aiming for Roger, but the first bullet missed and he hit the deck like a good soldier. As the second bullet entered the back of Betty’s head, the camera swung around 180-degrees in a Matrix-like way and we see the bullet exit her neck about two inches below the ear. A ray of light shines through the hole as the bullet exits, as if Betty is made of pure light. (not really)
But seriously, folks, it was a good episode, no?
Dear Kat,
I remember that frustration indeed, but looking at those photos (plus the fact that my sewing skills have developed over time) makes me think that I could make some structural mittens now, without even reading the pattern/recipe.
Thanks!
Love,
Dory
On one of the hottest days in July, I went over to Emily’s house to help with the canning of some jam and some dilly beans. On her dining room table (the one that has all the food on it in that post about Brooklyn thanksgiving a few posts back), she had a copy of Putting Food By — the classic 1970s (revised in the late 80s) book about food preserving. I found my own copy of it at Value Village in Toronto and was thrilled. How often do you find exactly what you’re looking for on thrift store bookshelves?
No-so-secretly, I’m excited that it’s no longer jam-making time…I’m a much bigger fan of salty and spicy things. I am particularly excited about making pickled mushrooms, pickled onions, maybe some beets, and some apple chutney.
Yesterday I went to see Julie Doiron and Herman Dune play at the Bell House. I used to have a “no Julie Doiron in November rule” because it can be such sad music and November is often so grey. But her new stuff is more upbeat and November in New York isn’t really winter yet, so the rule doesn’t apply. Both She and Herman Dune have lots of songs that mention months–mostly Octobers and Novembers and Decembers.
There’s one HD song that he played that talks about “when the water gets cold, and freezes on the lake” and I was thinking about a lake I walked on a few winters ago, in Northern Ontario.
The USDA has really wonderful old images on Flickr! Look how excited I am about the USDA! Here are two canning-related ones that I think are super.
I found these through the Know Your Farmer Know Your Food website, which is the most beautifully designed government thing on the web.
Also, I finally got around to buying a canning pot and tools–from Amazon of all places. (I still think it’s a bookstore, and I still I think I don’t shop there). Next year, I guess, unless y’all like pickled brussels sprouts.
At Anna’s wedding, there was a moment when Anna and Leah and I posed together for some professional photographs. The only one I’ve seen of those (maybe the only one there is?) is of our feet:
I also came home with this shot of my family’s feet at the wedding:
(I switched shoes at some point, from the yellow heels to the blue flats.)
I love these feet photos (and the ones up on the blog header)! I don’t really know why, though! Maybe because they are self-portraits I can take without too much trouble, and they often really do capture the place and event…
This post from my dear friend Kirsten reminded me that last year I successfully participated in NaNoBloPoMo–and so even though it’s already the second I’ll give it a go this year as well. Hi Kirsten! (And Emily and Kurt with whom I participated last year, a slightly drunken pinky-swear sealing the deal).
Yesterday I woke up late, ate eggs AND waffles for breakfast with Zach, watched Crooklyn, and then drove up to Connecticut for a long-weekend (election!) holiday at the farm-mansion with Anna and Naf.
The night before was Halloween. Zach and I made matching Max-from-where-the-wild-things-are costumes (full disclosure: I am still wearing my grey sweatpants with the tail attached. I am a costume-obsessed 9-year-old this week) and then split up for the night. At my shindig Kelly was decked out as KW (with little stuffed owls tucked into her belt), so we had fun howling together.
(photo by Tanveer)
A few weeks before that, the same group of wonderful people held Brooklyn Thanksgiving — a whole slew of people were actually going to be away during real thanksgiving, so we held it early. This photo comes from Emily:
I tried to uphold the tradition of making waffles on thanksgiving, but Em’s waffle iron was mysteriously missing. So we had thanksgiving pancakes with corn salsa. Totally yum.
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