My trip allowed visits to two friends: Mic in the East Village and Gillian in Brooklyn (formerly Park Slope, recently relocated to DUMBO) I was there October 5th - 8th but the weather was what you'd expect on the hottest weekend of August. Mic still managed to shop like a trooper but I was put off buying sweaters!
The weekend was so much fun, I must give the play-by-play!
Friday I flew in and took a cab to Mic's place in the East Village. I buzzed and upon entry began to carry my bags up the stairs to the fourth floor. Immediately, I heard a huge racket of running and stomping, stomping and running. I thought it must be kids playing upstairs. Still, a small part of my brain played out an 'imagine if' (does anyone have a brain that generates scenarios ranging from marginally to completely unlikely several hundred times per day?) and I imagined: "What if that stampede is actually Mic running down cuz she's so excited to see me?!?" Well believe it or not... (and this never happens with imagine ifs)... it was! In seconds Mic and her roommate Anthony were there whisking my bags away from me and carrying them up, up, up. I can't say why this sticks out so much but I guess I just felt welcomed. This hospitality was to set the tone for my whole visit.
Mic and I has some Prosecco (drink of the weekend) and I got meet Anthony and his brother Paul. Now these were two bantertastic high brows brothers of the highest order of funny and I was immediately relishing the richness and colour of the conversation. Mic and I decided to mission out in the East Village. Since the theme was Bohemia, we started out at the Bowery Poetry Club. Since it was Friday night, there was no poetry, only a dj spinning some sounds with video in the background. Very cool but we could not hear our own conversation very well so we moved on. Next we tried to find the Korova Milk Bar, inspired by A Clockwork Orange. Sadly, it had been relocated to White Plains, NY! Dammit! I had my heart set on a little of the ol' in-out in-out along with some ultraviolence! Instead, we went to KGB Bar, which was a lot of fun. Still, the conversation in Mic's own apartment clearly stole the thunder...
Saturday morning, Mic and I got up and went shopping in SoHo. I bought two new pairs of Fluevogs, in the spirit of artistic expression. Seriously, these things make me happy, happy, happy. Mic is always a healthy shopper. She bought a dress, a sweater, some lingerie, a green purse, some cards... I am apparently a good catalyst for her in shopping situations!
At 3 pm we headed back to the apartment to help out Anthony, and his business partner Martha with a segment for their way cool project: The Greatest Living Writers Project. They film poets performing their works and then provide the video to schools so students get exposure to a broad range of spoken word. The poet they filmed was Nikki Batin. The filming was done on the rooftop of Mic and Anthony's building and I even got to help with lighting and one of the cameras. Nikki's work was amazing. It really resonated with me (many of us I suspect) as one of her themes is body image. After the filming, we ate and drank with Nikki and her partner Brooks in the surreal pink light of sunset. As far as moments of appreciation, this was way up there. I felt happy, thankful, and inspired.
Back in the apartment, after the guests had left, Mic, Anthony and I had a groove session including a keyboard (Mic and D), a guitar (Anthony) and a harmonica (Anthony again). That Anthony... so full of tricks! I became addicted to the keyboard and really started to find my groove. Next time I will heighten and explore ;) Mic and I went out to a bar in the West Village called the Ear Inn and met up with some of her friends from North Dakota.
Sunday morning (hungover, second night in a row!) Mic and I headed out to brunch (NoLita Cafe? To be confirmed) and by 'brunch' I mean a huge burger, fries, 3 coffees and 2 sangrias! Mic and I were giggly since we had not slept much and were weak. Then we walked around and did some window shopping but our anticipation of a shower got us back to the apartment quickly. Sadly, no shower was forthcoming. While we were out, a toilet above had continuously overflowed and was leaking water all over Mic's bathroom including the window sill, toilet and part of the shower. Not only were we not taking a shower, we couldn't even pee!
This was when one of my favourite Mic traits emerged... (and there are many!) Mic just took the whole leak thing in stride. She called Anthony, called the super and then... just chilled. I honestly don't remember her dropping an f-bomb or anything! She is so freakin' cool like that.
Unshowered, full-bladder be damned, I was packed and on my way to visit Gilly in Brooklyn...
Stay tuned for holiday in bohemia part two...
xox d
2 comments:
Have I mentioned how jealous I am of you getting to spend another weekend in NYC this year? :-)
What, no trip to broadway? Oh right, that's my priority.
great shoes
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