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March 31, 2005

Macy's Flower Show

flower_fish2.jpgTo avoid stewing in frustrated indecision about whether to buy or rent, I joined elder members of distinguished suburban garden clubs everywhere and took a tour of the Macy's Flower Show this evening. I had never been before, and don't know a tulip from a rhododendron, but it seemed like enough of a New York institution to merit a visit. Plus, I'm up for anything free these days, what with the unmentionable bank-account-freezing crisis at hand.

There was something very retro 50s about it. I can picture well-dressed women with matching handbags strolling around, naming flowers and discussing gardening. It's very proper to know all about plants and how and when they grow -- probably something that used to be taught in finishing school. And the Flower Show seems a bit quaint, like that annual event in Central Park that all the New York socialites go to in fancy hats.

flower_coachclose.jpgOn the other hand, the flowers are gorgeous. Plus, the scope of the show is impressive. An eye-catching fish-shaped flower sculpture is suspended over a pond at the Broadway entrance. On closer inspection, you find that there are large, active, spotted orange fish in the pond (these turned out to be Japanese koi). There are beautiful flowers everywhere -- some familiar and some not. I loved a large, deep red flower with a thick stalk (no idea what the name is), and the orchid section was full of Orchid Thief-worthy samples. Many of the orchids seemed almost unnatural in their complexity, with unique shapes and dramatically contrasting colors (like bright purple and white, or red veins of a yellow background). Some remind me of hummingbirds, or, as The Orchid Thief suggests, of large insects. Amazing feats of indoor gardening were achieved -- the sunglasses area was full of mean-looking cacti, grapefruit and seville orange trees with nearly-ripe fruit were near the stairs, and healthy-looking plants in bloom were everywhere. The flower displays in the windows are also very colorful and bright -- the theme is "the muppets do the Wizard of Oz," which is amusing.

flower_gonzo.jpgI was glad to learn that the flowers aren't all cut and transported, but are still firmly planted in soil. In the 40s, 50s, and 60s, fresh flowers were brought in each day but that proved to be too costly. Now, the show has beds of various kinds of flowers, bushes, and small trees, along with a few bouquets in the aisles. The tour was full of references to what a plant was doing yesterday or last week.

The show is almost entirely on the ground floor and is split up into different "gardens" -- there's a Spring garden, a Meditteranean Garden, a Royal Garden, a Tropical Garden, etc. Since I'm flower-illiterate I wandered around thinking dull thoughts like, "Pretty flowers. Nice topiary," so the free tour (which should be called "Flowers for Idiots Who Don't Appreciate Them") was really helpful. I learned that the big green thing in our apartment is called a ficus, and you can also change the color of hydrangea leaves by altering the makeup of the soil. Just having different flowers named and pointed out with a laser-pointed helped me appreciate the variety and scale of the show.

flower_angel.jpgOverall, there were just flowers EVERYWHERE, which helps to drive home the impression that it is spring (also allergy season). It was somewhat overwhelming. Especially in a place I associate with sucking all of the moisture out of your body and frustrating shopping attempts. The pairing of Gucci and Prada "spring collection" bags and the actual, natural colors that inspire their design is probably boosting sales. The high concentration of plants felt kind of luxurious and expensive. Like the Tuileries had been transplanted to Bryant Park for fashion week or something. All of those living plants completely transformed the dry department store space.

Posted by csageday at 01:03 AM | Comments (0)

March 30, 2005

Brooklyn Museum

There's just no reason NOT to go to the Brooklyn Museum this weekend.

Marilyn's exhibit has been extended, Basquiat is there (seems to be drawing a crowd), and it's First Saturday. Plus, we have a membership so we get in free. And if we go on Sunday maybe it'll take our minds off the strangers wandering through our place at the open house.

Posted by csageday at 02:34 PM | Comments (0)

March 29, 2005

Underwater Windmills

tidaldone.gifGiven the high rate of asthma and generally crappy air quality in the city, this is one of the alternative energy projects that I'm really rooting for: underwater windmills that are powered by nothing more than the tide coming in and out in the East River.

It seems like a relatively simple concept, so it's odd that "tidal power" is still in its infancy. Then again, given that any new energy technology needs tons of venture capital and government support, and our current legislative agenda favors oil (say that with Texas accent -- sounds like "all") and other ancient, polluting, global-warming-inducing power technology, it's not all that surprising. Pilot projects aimed at harnessing tidal power in England and elsewhere have been successful, but the kinks still need to be worked out.

Professor Jameel Ahmad, of the Cooper Union Engineering Department, gave an entertaining lecture at Cooper last week about the tidal power project that will make its East River debut this May. The project was spearheaded by the start-up Verdant Power and is proceeding with help from Cooper students and government agencies set up to support such ventures. Though the tides in the ocean are arguably stronger, the hope is that installing the turbines in the East River will make more of a media splash, especially once the six pilot turbines start powering a Roosevelt Island grocery store (an eventual goal).

Here's how it works. A missile-like tube contains a turbine, and a three-armed fan rotates slowly in the water. The contraption sits entirely underwater and turns around based on which direction the tide is moving. The top will be about six feet from the surface, and divers will be used to perform installation and maintenance. The area will be marked by bouys so large boats don't interfere.

My first thought after hearing the basics went something like this:

tidaldone.gif

But the truth is that the arms of this thing spins far too slowly to make "sushi" (Professor Ahmad's word) -- there's about one revolution every two seconds. There is also evidence that "fish are not stupid" and can sense the change in pressure and avoid the area. Still, the environmental impact has yet to be measured. The Verdant group had to cut thought miles of red tape to get permission to put anything in the water at all. As Professor Ahmad explained, corporations grandfathered into environmental protection laws can suck up water, heat it up, and put it back -- killing thousands of fish in the process -- and nobody says boo. But introducing something new, even if it's eco-friendly at the core, is very difficult.

If this effort can maintain its financing, continue to secure permission to operate, and if the pilot project is successful, we could eventually have "farms" of underwater windmills generating power. Unlike big hydro power (dams), an eco-system isn't disrupted and no huge construction projects have to take place. Unlike traditional power sources, nothing is burned or used up in the process and there are no harmful waste products. Even if there is some unforeseen environmental impact, turbines would be relatively harmless compared to the combined effects of drilling for oil in the ocean, transporting it, refining it, and burning it.

Hopefully the popular interest in hybrids and conservation these days will fuel the development of this project (and fund solutions to any environmental problems that do arise). It kills me to think that if we hadn't dropped out of the Kyoto treaty, the U.S. would be required to invest in projects like this (instead, Canada has all the fun). New York State is doing something, at least. Every little step away from oil-dependence counts.

Posted by csageday at 12:02 AM | Comments (1)

March 25, 2005

That's It. We're Renting. Maybe.

2005_03_bubbleman.gifEverything we've read points to a real estate market with inflated prices, propped up by low interest rates, and glutted with investors. Prices are rising higher than incomes and inflation, and buyers are overextending themselves with short-term adjustable-rate loans. It's also cheaper to rent.

Curbed and Brownstoner -- good real estate blogs -- have funny stories about crazy eager buyers and the innovative ways that brokers are taking advantage of them. At one open house, the roof caved in DURING the open house and the place still went for above asking.

Today, the entire American press corps seems to have taken up the story and "real estate bubble" is the catch-phrase. AP has an article suggesting a cooling market and a The New York Times piece likens the current real estate shenanigans to the dot com boom. Last week, The Economist recommended renting over buying last week in an article titled "To Buy or Not to Buy?" (same as my blog post title except with correct punctuation!)

There may not be an overnight panic or crash, as there was in the stock market, but things could even out a bit over the next few years. Prices could stay flat, and if we still want to buy later we'll be in a better financial position to do so.

I just spent my day cleaning up our apartment so an evil, scheming Corcoran broker can come over and case the place, calculate his commission, drool, and take pictures. I feel awful. I become very attached to places I live in, so I have a feeling that this process is going to be difficult. I keep thinking that we should just ignore all the boring details mentioned above and buy the place anyway. As D says, damned if you do, damned if you don't.

On the up side, a clean apartment and a limited lease means we'll have a party soon. But no ogling the place and no offers, please. We'll tell the broker you have bad credit and are using a stolen identity.

My brief adventure in real estate has led me to a few good blogs/sites -- some I like, some I do not -- here's a beginner's list, for interested readers.

(graphic above by Rick LaForce via Inman Blog via Curbed)

Posted by csageday at 06:01 PM | Comments (0)

March 24, 2005

Chile Relleno, Brooklyn-Style

Blue Sage is going to be a food blog for a day. I'm jealous of the Amateur Gourmet's large readership. Plus, this recipe needs help.

Chile Relleno (stuffed poblano peppers) was one of my favorite food finds in Mexico, so I made a valiant effort to make it at home last week. I looked around for recipes and found a few complicated ones, but nothing that sounded perfect. I bought two poblano chiles and an assortment of ingredients I thought might work as filling (since I'm trying to stay vegetarian while not on vacation). The usual options for fillings in Mexico were cheese or beef -- I thought sauteed mushrooms or eggplant with cheese might work.

I brushed the chiles with oil and broiled them to soften them and get the skin off. While waiting, I sauteed the mushrooms with some garlic, salt, and pepper. When the chiles were cool enough, I got to peeling and seeding them but in the process I managed to shred them a bit. I'm not sure if there's a secret to dealing with that -- the same thing happens to me with roasted red peppers. Getting the skin off is time-consuming, messy, and it looks like the pepper has been destroyed when you're done.

I stuck some cheddar chunks and mushrooms inside each one and used toothpicks to get them somewhat closed. I dipped each one in eggs and then a flour/cornmeal mixture and fried them in oil for a couple of minutes. The end results was something like the chiles we had in Mexico but with something missing -- probably a spice. It just wasn't as flavorful (we also had to be careful of the toothpicks). On the whole, the mushroom, cheese, and peppers were good together but the oil and outer coating were too greasy and gritty.

I think there's probably an alternative to the egg/flour/frying-in-oil cooking method. It wouldn't be the same but the flavor of the chile is what makes this dish work for me and that would still be there. I could try baking them in a red or green sauce. If anyone reading this has any insight on cooking chile relleno/stuffed poblano peppers, let me know.

Another quick food-related item: AG posted a ridiculously easy swordfish recipe the other day -- worth a try.

Update: Gothamist has a Chile Relleno recipe, based on Bobby Flay's Mesa Grill version, that looks interesting. Also, the secret to peeling the skin off is to stick the chiles in a bag after broiling them. Duh.

Posted by csageday at 06:00 PM | Comments (0)

March 23, 2005

Dear Whole Foods (Columbus Circle location),

wftom.jpgYou've taken the concept of the New York supermarket to new heights, accommodating New Yorkers' need to eat out for every meal and spend wads of money on "specialty" foods. The superior square footage and colorful visual displays of lunch options, produce, and organic products have transformed lunch and grocery shopping in the neighborhood. Given this success, and the wisdom of your marketing team, would you consider fixing two EGREGIOUS problems? Please?

1. The LINE
2. The location of the DRINKS

Countless Whole Foods customers are dazzled by the selection of lunch options upon entry, but end up wandering around with a bowl of Indian food for ages looking for a drink. The drinks, mysteriously, are tucked away in a corner of the store that these customers will not find until they've waited in line for 15 minutes.

Even if you know where the drinks are, the line moves just fast enough to prevent a quick side trip to grab a Naked juice on your way to the cash register. And since there's always a line extending beyond the soup station, no one has the time to make that detour before getting in line if they want to make it back to work before 5. Are your store designers playing a cruel little joke?

wfaisle.jpgI promise I'll spend even more money if you put the Vitamin Water near the Cold Bar (I'm getting sick of drinking cranberry juice because it's the only drink not in the drinks section). Maybe the drinks can go in the refrigerators behind the coffee?

Now, about the line. I've heard that it can stretch back to the FROZEN FOODS. That's a half a mile at least. 300 people must have been in line. Yes, I understand that it moves quickly, but I could finish my lunch in the time it takes to purchase it on some days.

Seeing a long line snaking through the store also puts a damper on your happy, healthy, organic food shopping experience, no? Can you build in another switchback? Or add a self checkout? Allow payment of goods at different places throughout the store? I mean, the line is enough of a reason to deter customers from stopping by. I'm not THAT loyal.

Isn't it time to come up with a clever solution for these problems? I know you can. You're not just some evil money-mongering corporation that deliberately forces customers to spend more time in the store than they want to, right?

Thank you.

Posted by csageday at 06:13 PM | Comments (3)

March 22, 2005

NYC Blogging Epidemic

bunsen_honeydew.gifYou still can't find Blue Sage on Google, but there's a link to my last entry on Technocrati's New York page. Hurrah!

I also discovered nycbloggers.com, which is busy finding local bloggers and plotting their locations on the subway map. My stop -- the 7th Avenue F stop -- is chock full of bloggers. One blogger says Methodist sucks, one has a funny baseball/steroids hearing writeup, and Only The Blog Knows Brooklyn looks like a good resource. Blogging doesn't seem to be catching on in Staten Island.

This is a must read, forwarded from a coworker today: How to Blog Good.

Gothamist has a post about Daylo, an alternative to craigslist if you're searching for neighborhood services. The range of services in my zip code is impressive -- I'm not interested in the harmonica lessons or custom-made buttons, but if Derek's not in earshot I can ask Dr. Bunsen Honeydew of Muppet Labs.

Posted by csageday at 07:01 PM | Comments (2)

March 21, 2005

The Yarn (and Knitting Needles) Bus

We've seen this yarn bus a couple of times on the BQE, and each time we pass it I try to make a mental note to look it up online when I get home. The URL is on the back -- flyingfingers.com. I never got around to it, but I was surprised to find it written up as a New Yorker Talk of the Town piece last week. It also turned up on TV and in the blue blog. It's basically a free shuttle to a yarn store outside of the city, and I have a feeling there's lots of knitting and yarn-related chatter to keep knitters happy along the way. Interesting concept.

Posted by csageday at 08:52 PM | Comments (0)

March 20, 2005

Open House Hopping

openhouse_ceiling.jpgWe went to eight open houses in three neighborhoods today, and to squeeze them all in we must have speed-walked several miles and climbed 20 flights of stairs. Getting to each place, asking the right questions, gauging it's value-to-price ratio, and then running to the next place completely wore us out. We have a better idea of what's out there and what's important to us (and I now share D's distrust of real estate brokers), but we're not much closer to answering the question of buying vs. renting for another year.

We started in Prospect Heights, which we had walked through yesterday. The Brooklyn Museum is nearby, Park Slope is within walking distance, Vanderbilt Ave. has some nice shops, and there are some pretty blocks. Some buildings are not in great shape, though, and the neighborhood doesn't have the same feel as the Slope. It's a mix of big pre-war apartment buildings -- some with serious security grating on the doors -- more modern apartment buildings, frame houses, and brownstones. We started with a nice 2 BR coop with high ceilings and details on St. John's Place, then moved to a not-so-nice 3 BR co-op on Lincoln Place. The difference between those two was an important one -- the first had original details and floors, and the second was renovated in 1989 and had some pretty ugly modern touches. In one of Derek's old apartments, I used to think the old moldings were annoying because you can never get rid of the layers of paint and all the missing parts and dents and whatnot. Modern renovations, if done decently enough, haven't bothered me in the past. Today, though, I preferred the places with the details -- an old fireplace mantle or window casement -- to the modern ones.

We also took a look at a smallish place on Park Place in a brownstone. It was close enough to Flatbush to make trips to the food coop easy, but it wasn't quite big enough. There was clever use of the space in the kitchen, though -- they built the counter under the stairs to get more counter space.

openhouse_12.jpgSince there was no bus in sight, we walked as quickly as we could to 12th street (passing the tail end of the St. Patrick's Day parade on the way -- we always miss that one!). Corcoran had completely renovated one building and had four condos for sale. They were all floor-throughs billed as two bedrooms, but where the second bedroom would fit is a bit of a mystery. Everything was brand-spanking new -- the floors, the granite countertops, the white bathrooms -- even the brokers on each floor looked fresh (argh). Appliances weren't in yet, but I assume various stainless-steel refrigerators, stoves, and dishwashers will appear soon. The whole place was a bit sterile for my taste although the location was great.

With one major exception, the places we saw after that got better and better. The coop across the street was a fourth floor walk-up, but it was really nice. It had a modern kitchen (blue tile, stainless steel appliances) opening up to a living room with a working fireplace. There were 1.5 bathrooms and 3 smallish bedrooms tucked into the back, and there's a roof deck. Plusses: layout, space, location, kitchen. Drawbacks: Four-floor walk-up, far from park, co-op (and peppy Corcoran brokers, but thankfully they don't come with the apartment). After talking things through, I decided this was the one I'd buy today if price weren't an issue and we had to make a decision.

We stopped at home for a quick lunch and change of shoes (it was raining lightly all day), then took the F two stops to Windsor Terrace. WT is a more working-class neighborhood with flag-flying two story houses and some apartment buildings near PPSW (Prospect Park Southwest). For kicks, we started with a house on Vanderbilt near Greenwood Cemetery. It was affordable, but for good reason -- half of the bathroom floor and a chunk of the dining room ceiling had gone missing, and pretty much everything needed work. The basement was finished (once) but D couldn't stand up in it. Next, we saw a place on PPSW. The details were great -- especially the oak beams in the dining room ceiling and the arched doorways. It wasn't in perfect shape though, the kitchen was a bit outdated, and there was no w/d.

Finally, we saw a gorgeous two bedroom co-op on Windsor Place. The owners were doing the selling and they had obviously done a great job with the place. It has a very open feel -- a living room, dining room, and kitchen all connect to each other. They redid the electrical, phone, and cable wiring and ripped out a few walls. The kitchen is new and tastefully done and has tons of cabinet space. The dining room and living rooms have views of the park (and the lake). Near the door, a wall was removed to make a little home-office nook. A hallway connects the living/dining/kitchen area to two bedrooms and the bathroom.

Of the places we saw, my two favorites are the 12th street and Windsor Place coops. They're both a bit more expensive than our condo, and both have more space and light and are in better overall condition. On the other hand, I'm starting to see the wisdom of buying something in a great location -- though we can't get more space and light into our current condo, we could put in the work to make ours look better over time. And given the prices of places we saw, it's clear that ours is priced according to the market. The market's just on speed.

Posted by csageday at 11:51 PM | Comments (1)

March 19, 2005

Home Theater Survey

Derek answered a bunch of questions posed by an "international research group" that cold-called us Friday night. All of the questions were about multimedia systems and gadgets and computers with DVD drives. It was Derek's ideal survey. He reads Home Theater Magazine on the train, could easily write the articles in the same magazine, and lusts after projectors and high definition TVs and various other gadgets I don't understand. Given his job, he could outfit us with all sorts of stuff, but when asked about the size of his TV, he answered: "A 20-inch, I'm sorry to say." Poor Derek. Even more shame ensued when he was asked if he owned a home theater system. "Well I have the sound system but I can't say I have the screen." His chance to shine came and went because a) I don't like big TVs and b) he understands that and gave his 27-inch TV away to make me happy. That seems worthy of a 10-year investment in real estate together, doesn't it?

Posted by csageday at 10:15 PM | Comments (0)

Stand. Clear. Of. The. Closing. Doors. Please.

72ndstreet.jpgI wish I could blog on the train. When will the entire subway system be a wireless hotspot? With all the extra money the MTA is getting now, maybe they could start working on that?

On my way home this evening, there was a B/D train mixup at Columbus Circle. I heard this professional-sounding announcement about 10 times: "The B as in Brothel [okay, my hearing is bad -- it was probably "brother" or something but I kept hearing "brothel"] and D as in Delta train will be running on the 8th Avenue line [pause] from 59th street [pause] to West 4th street."

Here's my question: The announcement was made in that familiar MTA male voice. Each word was enunciated well, the cadence was slow and careful, and there was no strong NYC accent. It sounded automated, but that type of train re-routing is rare so it's not like the MTA would have that specific message on hand. When the announcement changed a bit to include the word "normal" it sounded like "nawmal" and "fourth" sounded like "fowth" -- dead giveaways for a New York accent concealed underneath lots of training.

It seemed like some MTA employee -- expertly trained to pause between every word and schooled in the art of announcing delays in the MTA-sanctioned way -- might have been making the announcements. Do MTA employees go to special announcement-school to lose their Brooklyn and Queens accents and learn to speak like machines?

If a real person was repeating that message over and over, where was he sitting? Was someone tucked away in a special station office hidden above the platform (where those little doors go)? Or is there a staff of MTA announcement specialists sitting in a office somewhere, waiting for the chance to have their voices piped into stations?

On the Union Square 4, 5, and 6 train platform, this recorded message uses a similar style: "Please stand clear of the moving platforms [pause] as trains enter and leave the station. [pause] Your safety matters to us." While waiting FOREVER for a 6 one day it sounded like maybe they were practicing -- I mean, the thing repeats every 5 seconds, and it alternates between a male voice and a female one. I had to pick out a specific speech pattern (the combined "to-us" at the end) to assure myself it was a recording -- just the same thing infuriatingly repeated ad nauseam.

The MTA has more likely spent all the public's money on some 6-train-like voice automation software, and MTA employees provide pre-recorded pieces that can be pieced together. But wouldn't it be so much more interesting if there were this special discipline? Not that it's effective -- the crowd on my train seemed to trust the heavily accented conductor more than the automated guy. And as much as I love the 6 train for the lumbar support in the benches, I'd hate to have those automated announcements on the F train. The real conductor's don't-hold-the-door lectures are so much more amusing.

Posted by csageday at 01:32 AM | Comments (0)

March 18, 2005

Lloyd Speaks

Finally, the rest of the world can share Lloyd's unique insight into the world of film (and the waitstaffs of the restaurants he visits). He has started a blog. Must say he has a knack for it: "The audience was enraptured -- everyone except for the fellow who exited the theater midway through the screening, blasting out a klaxon of a fart. Probably a critic."

Posted by csageday at 12:00 PM | Comments (0)

March 15, 2005

To Buy or Not To Buy

brownstones.jpgWe knew it was coming. Sort of. The dreaded news that our landlord is selling our place when our lease is up. I LOVE this apartment. The location is perfect, the neighborhood feels like home. But the damn real estate market is a joke. We could buy it, but there's some kind of catch that involves not eating at restaurants or traveling to foreign countries for the next ten years. For some perspective: We could have bought my grandmother's (falling apart but gorgeous and huge) house, including indoor tennis court, bungalow (read: other house), barn, pool, and 12 acres for less than our tiny 2 bedroom in Park Slope would cost us.

Funny how a real estate crisis can rearrange your perspective in the space of a day. D and I have to decide if a) we want to stay together for the next ten years and b) we want to live in NYC for the next ten years. We are also painfully aware of our exact net worth and the average cost of a Park Slope two bedroom. (And a Prospect Heights one, a Ditmas Park one, a Windsor Terrance one, etc.) Whatever Mexican disease I contracted is NOTHING compared to the dilemma we're facing now. We've been renting for ages -- we should be buying, but have you LOOKED at Corcoran lately? Where the hell do people dig up that kind of money? Do all the harmless-looking couples walking around have secret lives as hitmen? Are they trust fund kids? Are they all just really smart people who bought a decade ago? What's the secret?

Before the CRISIS arrived I was going to write a glowing entry about how nice it was to be home. Every weekend, I usually walk from our end of 7th Avenue to the Food Coop on Union Street, stopping at various favorite spots along the way -- the used bookstore, the kitchen store, the flea market, La Bagel Delight, etc. It never fails to cheer me up (or make Derek go mad with impatience and frustration). I have all of these casual acquaintances with people who work at stores -- I know my pharmacist's name and he knows mine, Adam at Urban Optical knows who I am, there's a chance I'll run into someone I know at the coop. On top of that, there's a huge community of writers in Park Slope. Take this conversation at 7th Avenue books, for instance. I had promised D I would NOT BROWSE in the bookstore for 3 hours (he was waiting outside, hands in pockets, starting at me) so I asked for Murakami's Norwegian Wood (I really liked The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle).
Store guy: "Did you look under 'M'"
Me (looking again): "Yeah, don't see it there."
Other browser: "It's really hard to find Murakami in second-hand stores."
Me (surprised): "Oh. Too bad. [to Store Guy] How about Jonathan Safran Foer's new book?"
Story guy: "Sure, it's right here ... [points to large empty spot on shelf] ... oh, wow, I guess we sold out."
Me: "Shoot, maybe it's cuz he was just written up somewhere ... can't remember where ..."
Other browser: "He was written up everywhere."
Me: "Yeah, but I really liked his last book."
Other browser: "I didn't really like it."
Me: "I didn't like it at first, but it grew on me."
Other browser: "Well maybe I'm just bitter that he was written up everywhere at 25 years old."

Interpretation: O.B. is a 30-something writer who's still making peanuts while J.S.F. is the publishing industry's golden child from Brooklyn, just because he wrote a clever novel that has mass appeal. The entire community probably resents him. How can I possibly leave a community made up of jealous writers who shop at the food coop and frequent secondhand bookstores? This is obviously where I'm meant to stay.

Posted by csageday at 10:43 PM | Comments (6)

Plenty?

plenty_magazine.jpgD handed me a magazine called Plenty while we were passing the time in the Houston airport last week. At first glance, I thought it was a teen magazine and gave D a look. The title was an almost offensive shade of green, and a scantily clad model was karate chopping a comic-book-style superhero. They both have speech bubbles but I couldn't make heads or tails of it. I stared at the tagline: "Smart living for a complex world" and still couldn't figure it out.

Turns out that Plenty is a well-written, interesting magazine aimed at 20- and 30-somethings concerned about environmental issues. The mag was practically written for me. There were articles about solar and hydro power, ecotourism (with 10 write-ups of exotic spots), "green gear," and eco-friendly fashion. The articles are all well-researched, fun, and easy to read. There were short pieces on estrogen in the waterways, hybrids, florescent lightbulbs, and global warming. If someone does something about the design team (or is it the marketing team? The title and tagline are confusing, too), Plenty could certainly find an audience with the hordes of young Whole Foods customers.

Okay: Just checked the site again and they've released another issue with another odd cover (but great content). I don't get it -- this isn't Maxim. At least the neon green is gone.

What does "Plenty" refer to, anyway?

Posted by csageday at 12:16 AM | Comments (2)

March 12, 2005

Ixtapa/Zihuatanejo, Mexico

I think the plane ride and shock of winter (snow!) and work upon our return has had more of an adverse effect than I anticipated. I just spent the morning in bed with frozen corn on my head -- and we went to bed early last night. Hence the delay in part II of the travel blog. Blog entries are also piling up in my head but I can't seem to summon the energy to post things.

Click here for photos from Ixtapa/Zihuatanejo (March 3-8).

We drove back to Ixtapa/Zihuatanejo on Tuesday and met up with Derek's parents and Aunt Nancy, who had just arrived. With Derek's grandparents and his Aunt Debbie, we were eight.

zihua_beach.jpgZihatanejo sits on a bay and used to be a tiny fishing town. Its transformation to a tourist-friendly resort area began in the 70s (when D's grandparents first started going there). Right next door is Ixtapa, which also sits on a bay and was built as a resort town. It has new roads with manicured landscaping, a pedestrian area with restaurants and gift shops, and several huge resorts. It looks like L.A. Many of the tourists don't venture beyond their own resort area once they arrive. Some hotels are all-inclusive (read: very expensive). To get on and off of Ixtapa beach in some spots you have to pick a resort to walk through -- we picked an all-inclusive hotel one night unknowingly and found a Disney-like reproduction of a Mexican fiesta inside populated entirely by Americans and Canadians. There were tables with jewelry and handicrafts, there was a band, and people were milling about, but it was so strange -- a much more authentic (and cheaper) version of the same thing could be found in Zihuatanejo on Sunday, but these hotel people chose the "safe" artificial version.

Zihuatanejo, thankfully, is still partly the real thing -- it hasn't lost its local character. Fisherman still camp out on the beach, and if you walk around outside of the touristy center you can find all sorts of Mexican shops -- there are meat shops selling whole chickens with their heads hanging off the table, Mexican stationary stores, shoe stores, etc.

zihua_pacifica.jpgWe usually ate dinner as a group at places where D's grandparents are regulars or know the owners (their favorite is Daniel's -- you can see a photo of Daniel in the slide show). They have relationships with many fellow retirees and locals in the tourist industry (they've been coming for 30 winters), so we were always greeted with open arms. During the day, Warren, Ruth, and Debbie tend to go to the Pacifica Resort, which is on Ixtapa beach and has a nice pool/restaurant and plenty of umbrellas set up on the beach.

laropa.jpgWe spent a couple of afternoons with them, but also did a few things on our own. We visited Playa La Ropa -- Zihuatanejo's long, lazy beach -- and ordered pina coladas and tacos at Restaurant Cocodrillo ("Crocodile" -- there are a couple of crocodile sanctuaries in the area) . We also rented a Hobie Cat and sailed around the bay one day (circling a huge, HUGE, cruise ship anchored there, which kindly dumped sewage in the bay that we had to sail through).

We took one day trip with Derek's parents to Petatlan -- a town about a half hour to the south of Zihua. It was also more of a local experience -- we even had a bunch of kids call us "gringos" and laugh hysterically outside of the church. Normally I'd have a retort for them in Spanish, but I held my tongue -- I mean, we were totally obvious gringos (fanny packs, cameras, etc) doing little to blend in with the crowd.

Petatlan is known for its church and gold trinkets (which people buy and leave for the statue of Christ in the church). It's the first place where we ventured into a real taco stand offering tacos with "head meat" -- we asked for tacos de bistec, but I'm not entirely sure what kind of bistec that meant (bistec=beef). They were very flavorful -- they come with onions and cilantro on top and the tortillas are fresh -- sooo good. We started with a cautious order of two and ended up eating seven. I also tried one of chiva -- goat -- which was good but not as good as the bistec ones.

A list of food finds on the trip:

anys.jpg

On Sunday we went with Derek's parents to Tamales y Atoles Any -- a restaurant know for its tamales and "the most consciously traditional Mexican cuisine in town" (Lonely Planet) -- and had my favorite meal of the trip -- Pozole, tamales, a chile relleno, a pitcher of horchata, and tacos. We took a walk around town afterwards to walk off the meal and discovered that there were people everywhere. There was some sort of fiesta going on, and we caught the end of a (Riverdance-like) dance performance in the town basketball court.

casabonita.jpgThe other notable day was our first, when we went to Isla de Ixtapa for the day with John and Bonnie. We met Luis, a guide, on the boat ride over (I was shamelessly practicing my Spanish on him), and he took us snorkeling. We had both forgotten our contacts (can't snorkel with glasses), so we couldn't see much, but Luis scattered some saltines in the water and we were mobbed by fish. Some were colorful Seargent Major fish and a larger one (I forget what they're called) nibbled on Derek's hand. The current was too rough to see coral, but we were blind anyway so it didn't matter much. We had a great spread of Huachinango and lobster (grilled on a wood fire in the sand) for lunch.

I have to say (again) that sun does wonders for your mood. Ruth and Warren both just celebrated their 80th birthdays (the occasion for the trip) and they both look a lot younger than 80. They also eat healthy food and take vitamins, but I can see how relaxing on the beach might have contributed something. I think we need to spend a few years doing "research" on coral in Australia or something -- why suffer through ice and snow when you could be sitting in the sand with a margarita and a good book?

Posted by csageday at 09:43 PM | Comments (0)

March 10, 2005

Patzcuaro, Mexico

Warning: This is going to turn into a travel blog for a few days. We're back, with sunburns and crappy amateur photography and Mexican pottery.

Click here for photos from Patzcuaro (March 1-3).

Overall it was a good trip, with a two day visit to Patzcuaro and a week in the touristy coastal Ixtapa/Zihuatanejo area with Derek's family. The best parts of the trip were the quiet or unexpected bits, where D and I walked around back streets in Patzcuaro or found a decent restaurant. It's amazing how a lot of sun and a tropical climate can turn your mood around, especially during a crappy winter.

patz_steps.jpgThe weekend trip we had planned to the mountains -- to get out of the touristy coastal towns of Zihuatanejo and Iztapa -- turned out to be a great idea. Stopping on the three-and-a-half hour drive for a coco (a coconut with a straw in it, then the coconut meat mixed with lime and salt in a bag) wasn't. I knew very well that we were NOT supposed to drink the water for fear of infection by various scary-sounding bacteria and amoeba. I knew that we were supposed to avoid any and all interesting or homemade foods. But the highlight of any international trip for me is food -- I have to try EVERYTHING.

So we were good for about 24 hours and then we broke down and had a coco -- which is fine -- but we probably shouldn't have wolfed down the coco/lime mix and coco bread afterwards, since we could see that it was made under not-so-sanitary conditions in a little village more dogs and cats than people. It was really good. But it kind of ruined half of the Patzcuaro trip for me, since I felt miserable for the next 24 hours. Derek was fine for the next few days but it eventually caught up with him and he was out for a day, too. Whatever, it was worth it.

The Mexican highway experience was interesting -- on a weekend you'll end up having to stop in every little village and give a contribution. Each village has a speed bump, so you have to slow down, and some sort of group will be fundraising. We ran out of Mexican change and ended up giving out American money. We also passed a military checkpoint, complete with intimidating soldiers with machine guns.

janitzio.jpgPatzcuaro is a sizable town with a very European feel and two classic plazas. There's also the large Patzcuaro Lake nearby with a few islands. Our hotel (Mansion Iturbe) was an 18th century residence with gorgeous old woodwork and high ceilings. It was on the Plaza Vasco de Quiroga, which is lined with centuries-old trees and is constantly full of people. We arrived on a Sunday and everything felt very festive. The large market in the other town plaza -- Plaza Gertrudis Bocanegra -- was full of busy taco stands, and people were walking around town visiting shops and restaurants or sitting on the fountains in the plazas. It was much cooler than the coast (actually a bit chilly). And best of all, we hardly saw any Americans. Not even the people in the tourism office spoke English.

j_steps_down.jpgOne major attraction is the island of Janitzio, a small "fishing" island that has a large statue on top. Over the past 50 years it has morphed into a huge tourist magnet. A ferry took us across the Lago de Patzcuaro to the island, and we walked up endless winding steps past countless gift shops to the top for the view. When we finally made it to the top -- sweating, thirsty, and in need of a rest after climbing for half an hour -- we were met with an entrance gate and a sign that said 6 pesos to enter. A group of Mexican tourists laughed out loud when they saw it. The entire island exists to help tourists part with their money.

We also wandered around Patzcuaro a bit, enjoying the plazas and market and shops. We tried to local specialties -- pescado blanco and sopa tarasco -- at El Primer Piso (very good) and had two great breakfasts at our hotel. Mexican scrambled eggs (with peppers and onions) in torillas dipped in beans and huevos divorciados (one fried egg in green sauce, one in red, on a tortilla) are both fantastic.

On our way back, we went up to Estribo Grande, an old volcano outside of town. At the top, there is yet another collection of endless steps to climb -- at least 400 though we didn't count, but the view is fantastic and it was peaceful and quiet.

Enough for today. More travelblogging tomorrow. Expect a rant about huge resorts built on formerly serene beaches and criticism of the Disney-like resort experience.

Posted by csageday at 12:28 AM | Comments (1)