Saturday morning my wife, daughter, and I took a trip to Williamsburg, Virginia. I dropped them off at the outlet mall and headed to Historic Williamsburg to browse the bookstores, walk the streets, and hopefully get some nice shots with my D90.

Apparently, the entire population of Virginia decided to join us there.  It was wall-to-wall people on Duke of Gloucester Street so getting any decent photos was out. No problem. I had a list of four bookstores to cover.

My first stop was Bertram & Williams Booksellers. They have a wonderful collection of rare and first edition volumes. I almost drooled on first edition copies of The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit. Had I another way home I would have sold my truck and bought them. I carried a couple of (cheaper) volumes around with me as I browsed but decided at the last minute to leave empty-handed.

Stop two was Books-A-Million, one of the warehouse chains. After browsing through Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West, I decided to order Maguire’s Oz trilogy when I got home.

Stop three was my favorite Williamsburg bookstore, Mermaid Books. Last year I found a very cool volume of poetry and prose dealing with winter and Christmas, published in the late 1800s.

After browsing for a half hour or so, I saved the best section for last and stumbled upon a very nice 1926 first edition of Sara Teasdale’s Dark of the Moon. Sweet!

Her story is fascinating. In 1913 she fell in love with the poet Vachel Lindsay who wrote her daily love letters.  However, a year later she ended up marrying Ernst Filsinger, a rich exporter. However, Teasdale and Lindsay remained friends throughout their lives.

Unhappy for most of her marriage, she and Filsinger divorced in 1929. Two years later Lindsay committed suicide and two years following that Teasdale committed suicide as well.

I’ll post a few of her poems later this week. I also picked up a 1963 first edition of John Le Carre’s The Spy Who Came in from the Cold, a novel some regard as the best spy novel every written. I also found a paperback copy of the Journals of Dorothy Wordsworth, William Wordsworth’s sister.

It was a good day.

Happening upon the Brooklyn Brewery (79 North 11th St) in Williamsburg on a Friday night, I had a drink there for the first time – you can take a free tour of the building on the weekends from 1-4PM or have a drink at happy hour. The following evening I happened upon Tea & Sympathy and was drawn like a moth to a light by the radiation of coziness.

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Brooklyn Brewery | Tea & Sympathy

So my boyfriend and I have somewhat of an addiction to mac ‘n cheese. As in, no matter where we are, if it’s on the menu, we’re eating it. We recently got turned on to S’MAC. They’re entire menu is mac ‘n cheese! He had the Cheeseburger, I had the Napoletana. I won. And we won with our wine to go along with it.

One early morning, which isn’t something that happens very often for us (we’re still stuck in vacation mode), we got out asses out of bed and walked a mile and a half to Egg. The menu had my jaw at the floor. We ordered the duck hash and grits and eggs with homemade pork sausage. Boyfriend wasn’t a huge fan, but I love grapefruit so I also had the caramelized grapefruit with mint. A great way for us to start our day… As we walked back home and went back to sleep.

Oh, and Kelis is back at it. Listen to her new track here.

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E’ strano… alle volte non ci si pensa, ma a NY la metropolitana (qui subway) è per la maggior parte in superficie, dobbiamo pensare a tutta NewYork e non solo alla city. Mi è capitato solo l’anno in cui soggiornai a Williamsburg di usare la metro in superficie… poi sempre sotto… in stazioni da film: umide, buie, spartane, in continuo miglioramento senza una deadline…

Ma tornando all’inizio, ogni mattina salgo alla stazione della 125esima, salire è il verbo giusto visto che è in superficie ma molto in alto… fa parte della line 1, la rossa, quella linea che taglia in due manhattan, la city appunto.

Perchè ho scritto di questa stazione? perchè per la seconda volta c’è la calma, è una zona di residenza, in cui c’è movimento al mattino ed alla sera prima di cena, ci sono dei locali, ma piccoli.. in questa parte di città o si studia o si lavora… e i ritmi vengono comunque dettati dalla stanchezza. Fa strano vedere venire la sera, e non sentire il casino di taxi suonanti, si gente e schiamazzi tipici della zona centrale di NY.

Qui si sentono i camion che scaricano al mattino, si vedono le auto private cosa quasi strana… una zona cmq perfetta per correre… il parco vicino è meraviglioso, il Riverside Park, la vista è sull’Hudson River.. certo non favoleggiante come il Central Park, ma ottimo per correre… anzi chiudo qui perchè devo andare a percorrere le mie miglia quotidiane.

The summer before my only child, Soon-to-be-Abandoned, went to college, I went into mourning.  Stunned by its depth, I struggled to find ways to hold on to my son.  Mr. NYer and I cagily planned the perfect summer vacation that year, a five-day rafting trip down the Colorado River in Cataract Canyon, guaranteed to provide us with a whole heap of quality time with our son.  

The trip was wonderful, and we enjoyed the time together immensely, but that dollop of quality time did nothing to diminish the huge sense of loss I experienced every day as I contemplated the end of his childhood and the end of my role as mother-of-a-child.   Maybe it even made it worse. 

So, how am I dealing with this latest anticipated separation?  It’s different this time, of course.  Soon-to-be-Abandoned moved out out to live in hip and young Williamsburg last year.  He’s 24-years old, an age when, if I remember correctly, one didn’t really feel the need to have Mom & Dad close by.  Grandchildren are, I believe, more than a few years off.  If they appear, we will pack up and follow him where ever he has wound up.    

Mr. NYer worried, too.  ”I feel the need to be his safety-net,” he explained, adding that it was a terrible thing to sell Soon-to-be-Abandoned’s childhood home, the only home he had ever known.  More troubling, most of his earthly goods, the personal artifacts of his childhood, student days — everything — were in our house and he would have to figure out what do with them.  I dreaded seeing the store of “friends” — the two score stuffed animals that he managed every night to pile atop his body before he went to sleep — pulled out of the closet and consigned to the trash heap.

Soon-to-be-Abandoned took the news of a possible move in stride, with a sweet generosity of spirit.  ”Well, of course I will miss you, and feel sad about the house being sold,” he explained, “but the fact that the job sounds really interesting and something you would enjoy helps.”  Great, I thought:  He has no idea what this is going to feel like, and it will hit him like a ton of bricks.  

Rational thought could be deployed to stave off emotion: Soon-to-be Abandoned is resourceful and independent; Montgomery is not on the other side of the world; our wallet was the most important safety net he would need. 

The rational mind dominated until The Crisis. 

When we finally made the decision, it turned out that something else was preying on Soon-to-be-Abandoned’s mind.  He had moved into a new place, with four strangers, in August.  This was an arrangement made possible by Craigslist.  By October, however, a crisis had arisen in the apartment, and his hearty independence and self-sufficiency seemed more an illusion than reality.  Two of the roommates were moving out; he was faced with an ethical and practical dilemma that was resolved only when all of the roommates decided to move out, even if it meant losing their security deposits.  He reported that he was having headaches and that his neck and back were sore. Obviously he had meningitis, and how could I rush in to help him if I were a thousand miles away?

The solution to the Crisis (not the meningitis — that was simple tension) is that Soon-to-be-Abandoned is moving back home for a few months.  This is a good thing:  he gets to save some money, can help out with the house-clearing and packing, and we get to spend some quality time with him before he leaves.

I just hope it doesn’t make it all harder.

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bedford avenue is basically the epicenter of williamsburg. indie shops, 24 hour (basically whatever you need…), bodega’s, coffee shops a-plenty, thrift stores, book stores and boutiques on every block… it’s non-stop 24/7 and, yup,  we live here……we’ll call it our temporary home for the next 2 months…..

our sublet apartment is perfect – exposed brickwork, hardwood floors, newly re-finished bathroom….it’s just right for what we need. a centrally located place to rest our heads. and feet. although a bit noisy (read: 24/7 madness!)…it’s fun, busy, crazy brooklyn and most of the noise is loudest on the weekends anyway.

it’s actually a fantastic introduction to nyc, the nearby neighborhoods like greenpoint and long island city (in queens) to the north, and south williamsburg then fort greene and clinton hill to the south.

we are officially one week into our new home. we have set out each day exploring a different street, neighborhood or location.  for those of you who know us well and already know, but for any others joining in….we like – LOVE – to cook (and eat!)  – - and for that, new york is paradise.

anything, and everything, you could possibly ever need (or want) is at your fingertips. not only ingredients, but eateries that are so authentic you feel transported in time….

yesterday, while exploring the brooklyn neighborhoods of cobble hill, boerum hill and carroll gardens, we stopped for brunch at one of the well-known french bistro’s (of which there are plenty). after basically licking our plates clean, we were satisfied with our benedict’s royal: eggs benedict with smoked salmon and potatoes with onion. (mmmm…think I just started to drool again…….). it was delicious!!!

we later found out that carroll gardens is home to the vast majority of french immigrants in new york and steadily growing.  french bistro’s and truly authentic pâtisseries lined the streets. ahhh, a taste of france right here in brooklyn.

there is so much to see, so much to do and as always, there’s never enough time in one day for it all! it’s almost difficult to even summarize how wonderful our first week in nyc has been!

so with our intermittent ‘borrowed’ internet connection, it’s been hard to spend time online…..but i promise to begin writing often again….and guess what?!?!?!

…..my sewing machine, fabric and notions will all be here this week!

if you were here next to me now, you would see me smiling and even perhaps from afar know that  i am happy to be here.

an entire year has passed since we embarked on our last adventure, and now as we begin a new one……

we’re home sweet home in brooklyn

i can’t wait to share it all with you my dear readers….lots more to come…

the front door to our building, from the inside looking out.....a bit of graffiti for anyone?

letting go…

slumber party…

accessory…

measuring up…

picnicking problem…

looking down the…

looking for Thanksgiving…

lost and found…

WEDNESDAY nov 25
6:30 - 9:00 AM       (Open) Mysore Ashtanga Yoga
8:45 - 10:30 AM       (Open) Open Studio
11:00 - 12:00 PM       (Open) Mama Moves Post-Natal Pilates
2:00 - 3:15 PM   (Open) Pre-Natal Yoga Flow Cancelled Today
3:30 - 5:30 PM       (Open) Mysore Ashtanga Yoga
7:00 - 8:30 PM       (Basic 2) Iyengar/Rope Wall Yoga
9:30 - 10:30 PM   (Int 1) Late Night Vinyasa Yoga Cancelled Today

THURSDAY nov 26
6:30 - 9:00 AM       (Open) Mysore Ashtanga Yoga
8:45 - 11:30 AM       (Open) Open Studio
3:30 - 5:30 PM   (Open) Mysore Ashtanga Yoga Cancelled Today
5:45 - 7:15 PM   (Open) Yoga Through and After Cancer Cancelled Today
8:00 - 9:15 PM   (Int 1/2) Hatha Vinyasa YogaCancelled Today

FRIDAY nov 27 *holiday sangha boutique sale*
6:30 - 9:00 AM   (Open) Mysore Ashtanga YogaCancelled Today
8:45 - 9:30 AM   (Open) Open StudioCancelled Today
12:30 - 2:00 PM       (Int 2) Led Primary Series of Ashtanga Yoga
3:30 - 5:30 PM       (Open) Open Studio
6:30 - 7:45 PM       (Int 1/2) Vinyasa Yoga

SATURDAY nov 28 *holiday sangha boutique sale*

SUNDAY nov 29
10:30 - 11:45 AM       (Int 1/2) Vinyasa Yoga
4:30 - 5:45 PM       (Basic 2) Very Vinyasa
6:00 - 7:30 PM       Workshop / Special Event (Restorative Yoga)

always look on the bright side of life…

equal parts…

still bubbling…

loving math…

then add butter…

foggy…