It's been several months since I raved about Coney Island. I'm overdue.

Coney Island is my favorite place in nyc -- and quite possibly my favorite place in the world. It's like disneyland but cheaper and with more tattoos, more beer, and the greatest sideshow on earth. I spent Saturday among the rides and the freaks on the boardwalk with the kiddies. It was a beautiful last weekend for the park. I'm hopeful that the magic won't disappear as the developers move in this fall to reclaim astroland (home of the cyclone).

I want everyone to experience Coney Island. The Sideshow, in particular. To that end, I am seriously planning a freakshow-themed birthday party this fall. November 2nd... SAVE THE DATE!
This is likely to be the most exciting / biggest event I host in my life, with the possible exception of a wedding-type ceremony at some point... (but I wouldn't hold your breath for that).

In fact, Insectavora called today to talk through the details of the event. [n.b. I was out of the office when she called. When Josina handed me the slip of paper with her number and the message, I collapsed on the Brooklyn Bridge. It was an involuntary reaction -- the thought of Insectavora picking up a phone and calling me actually caused my legs to buckle. She's that fucking amazing. It was as close to reactionary fainting as one can get without losing consciousness]

But it gets better... If I have any money left, I'm signing up for sideshow school with the legendary todd robbins. Believe it or not, there is a class I can take to learn the basic sideshow arts:

hammering nails into my head (the "human blockhead")

sword swallowing

fire eating & fire breathing (they're different, as you will learn at my party)

snake charming

assorted magic tricks

and if I pass the course, I even get to perform alongside all my idols at the C.I. sideshow. so for my 24th birthday, I'm hiring professional sideshow entertainment. by my 25th birthday, i WILL BE the professional sideshow entertainment...

i'm now comfortably into my third semester at work. the time has flown by, and it's wonderful to find myself in the role of the informed veteran. the kids are great, and i continue to learn new things about this city every day.

unlike last year, i'm determined to have a life outside of work this year. i'm off to a good start. i've caught a bunch of great concerts in the last few weeks -- including a last minute appearance the show of an old college math friend.

i then spent the weekend interviewing potential bosses at all the area gas stations here in new york. i may have found a perfect arrangement: the owner of the gas station around the corner offered to teach me to work on cars (plus a hip embroidered attendant's shirt) in exchange for a few hours a week behind his cash register. I had quite a bit of fun training over lunch today. I'm getting good at NY Lottery, and I'm hopeful that day #2 of learning Arabic will be a bit easier.

I think it'll be a good week and a good fall. This saturday we're headed to Coney Island, my favorite place in the city. I'm hoping to get to the sideshow before it opens to talk to Insectavora about my birthday party in November...

Lady Bird just passed away... :(

LBJ (& LBJ, LBJ, LBJ, and LBJ) have always been an inspiration to me. I hope to do half as well when naming my own family some day. Little Beagle Johnson was the greatest dog name of all time. I've always given Lady Bird credit for that one.

I'm not sure how I went so long without checking out Regina Spektor's music. I finally gave her a listen a few days ago, and I've spent most of my free time since then in a frenzy of downloading and listening. I'm not quite sure how to describe it: it's got an indie pop feel, but with more soul. Delightful, if I had to pick a single word.

But really, talking about music is like dancing about architecture... so have a listen

Regina Spektor - Fidelity (MP3, ~5 mb)
Regina Spektor - Us (MP3, ~7mb)

Poll #1002791 dating a former babysitter
Open to: All, detailed results viewable to: All, participants: 14

Is it ever "okay" to date a former babysitter?

Mitigating factors: what makes it better? (check all that apply)

Deal breakers: what makes it a whole lot worse? (check all that apply)

Internets - please weigh in as our moral compass. Could this be ethically okay or no? Plz advise...

Let me preface this by saying I love timbuk2 -- amazing bags for carting my 'pooter about and for urban living in general.

But today, I received this in my inbox:


I was offended. Before today, I'd never written a company to tell them that their ad crossed the line. I've certainly seen more offensive ads - plenty of them, in fact - but never from such a cool company. The combination of the crying girl and the stealing of the virginity line made the rape inferences hard to ignore. Needless to say, i was not inspired to buy a new bag.

Am I crazy? Have I been over-sensitized by the gender unit we're currently studying here at cityterm? Timbuk2's customer service responded and essentially said yeah, we thought that was offensive too. sucks, eh?. [my words, not theirs]. I can't explain it, and I don't know what I expected, but I found their response totally inadequate. Am I the only one that thinks this promo crosses a line?

( for the sake of completeness, here's my entire exchange with timbuk2 )

AIDS Walk NY 2007 will take place this Sunday, and I will be walking with my students. AWNY is in its 21st year, and in that time it has grown to be the largest AIDS fundraiser in the world. The money raised by AIDS Walk will help fund research, educational programs, and support for those living with HIV/AIDS.

I would appreciate any donation you can give, however small. You can donate online by clicking the link below, or you can send me an email if you'd prefer to mail something in. I wouldn't normally ask for donations here, but this is an incredibly worthy cause and a great event. If you're going to be in NYC this Sunday, I'd love for you to walk with us. Let me know if you'd like to be an honorary member of the CITYterm team. Pictures undoubtedly to follow early next week...

donate online

I took delivery of my MINI on Friday afternoon, just in time for the perfect weather that hung around all weekend. I think I'm in love. I'm a bit sad to say goodbye to my Prius, but we enjoyed a lovely final drive up the Hudson River together on Friday before I traded her in.

I will undoubtedly be posting a few more photos. The new car is absolutely gorgeous inside and out. I've never owned a brand new car before -- it's quite a feeling (and the smell!!!). It was a great weekend. I just hope I can sneak out of work at a reasonable hour this afternoon so I can get some more driving in.

although, really, i've been almost wanting a dog for several months now. i just wish i didn't like jetting out of town on short notice so much.



have a mentioned how delighted i am that natalie dee and drew have started videoblogging? for the record, i think videoblogging is ridiculous and can't imagine saying (typing) the previous sentence about any other pair (or singleton) in the world.

ps - for anyone wondering who natalie dee is (drew, too), it is worth clicking on their names above. the short answer is that she drew this lovely default icon back when i had long red hair.

pps - i now have short blond hair, but natalie ain't taking requests these days. particularly now that she's making videos. really blond since my recent vacation -- sun, not bottle.

ppps - while I'm at it, this video is an unbelievably close runner-up. it makes me &heart; my own ten point four point eight.

After a grueling (and occasionally gruesome) week of intense admissions discussions, my spring break is nearly here. I'll be working frantically for most of today to wrap up all the loose ends that need attention before I leave town.

Tomorrow morning, though, I'm getting out of here. As charming as the foot of snow on the ground is, I'm looking forward to walking outside without ice chunks sneaking into my boots. In roughly 36 hours, my plane should be touching down in Key West. I've never done a solo vacation (until now), but I'm excited to spend a couple days setting out on my own.

I'll be taking a suitcase of work along with me - papers to grade, comments to write, paperwork to process - but I'm hoping that the work will be a bit more bearable once I'm poolside in 80 degree sunshine.

On an unrelated but equally delightful note, I went to Markaholic's NYC debut last weekend at The Annex. Best concert of my life, hands down. I'm sure my delight was helped by the fact that (a) his adorable mother was in the front with her earplugs in and (b) Mark dedicated his hot new single Fearless to me. Even ignoring the little bonuses, though, it was a spectacular performance complete with back-up dancers and lots of Cincinnati love. For anyone planning to be in the city on April 19th, he's got a show booked at Don Hill's.

today i set out with a small group of students to take photos of the brooklyn bridge for a project we're working on.

instead, we got a bit distracted and took a tour of the jehovah's witness world headquarters. it was a truly fascinating adventure, even if there were several creepy moments.

the art in the building was also not to be missed. unfortunately, i've failed to track any of the images down online.

i can't think of a better way my group could've stayed out of the rain today. if you're ever looking for something to do in brooklyn...

My first batch of students will be arriving here in less than 12 hours, and there is still so much to be done. I've worked a number of 12+ hour days this week, but the things we're talking about are fascinating. Plus, our work occasionally includes things like delightful dinners out together, exploring secret gardens, and observing the coast of New York City by kayak.

I love my job. It's going to keep me very busy in the coming weeks, but it's exciting to join a program that is doing such great work in such a unique way. Tomorrow at this time, there will be 22 sixteen-year-old girls whispering to each other on my hall... (yikes!)

Opening faculty meetings have been keeping me very busy. It's hard to believe that our students will be arriving in just a few more days. It's frightening but also very exciting. On friday I had a lovely city adventure with the faculty -- after a workshop in the morning, we had lunch downtown and then took the ferry over to staten island to visit snug harbor. the gardens there were gorgeous. we enjoyed exploring each nook and cranny of the chinese scholar's garden, and we even broke into the maze housed in the secret garden.

today, i headed to the bronx with anne and carleen to check out the chihuly installation at the new york botanical garden. it's been the talk of our office this week, so we were eager to see it for ourselves. wow. dale chihuly is a brilliant man. he's completely batty, but brilliant. if you're going to be in the city between now and 10/29, i highly recommend seeing it for yourself.


more photos of the chihuly installation on flickr

North Carolina was absolutely beautiful. Lots of interesting adventures, and Blowing Rock was just as charming as I had remembered it from years ago. It was definitely a good weekend.

After spending a full day in the car, I'm pooped. I've got a fair amount to process, but it can wait until tomorrow. My bed is calling to me.

here is the latest song i can't stop listening to. i've been on an erin mckeown kick since anne and i saw her twice over spring break. this song is slow but powerful; it's folky and bluesy and absolutely beautiful.

Erin McKeown - You Were Right About Everything (MP3).


erin, last week @ the southgate house

When I went in for a haircut yesterday morning, the woman made a remark about my double crown. I hadn't thought about it for years and years. I remember my mom talking about it when I was tiny, but then I went off to kindergarten and had other things to think about.

Anyway... after my haircut I realized I've never actually seen a double crown (since mine is on the back of my head). A true product of my generation, I googled it. I didn't find any good photos, but I did read a pretty astounding claim: According to the internets, right handed people have hair that grows clockwise from the crown. Lefties have counterclockwise hair growth. And apparently those with double crowns are ambidextrous. I generally disregard internet claims like this, but I think it's pretty crazy that I happen to be both double crowned and ambidextrous. Perhaps there is some link even if not a definitive one? So far the 3 people I've checked (including myself) fit the pattern.

This brings me to my totally unscientific poll. If you've got a sec, have a friend take a look at the back of your head and see which way your hair grows...
Poll #667919 Hair and Handedness
Open to: All, detailed results viewable to: All, participants: 6

I am...

My hair grows...

Do you support the internets' claim?

and on a tangentially related note - i cut off all my hair yesterday. as in boy-haircut-short. i'm really diggin' it.

andrew bird - skin (mp3)

london was wonderful.