My 2¢ on Firefox

OK, so I tried Google's Chrome browser for a while. And kept thinking Google was gonna find a way to interest developers to add cool bells and whistles to accompany it's sleek, bare bones browser capability.

I liked it's simpleness.

I got used to typing search terms in the web address bar...

And while the window pane of frequently visited sites could be embarrassing... I got used to it...

Then the buzz on Firefox re-caught my attention.

"Browse in the fast lane..."

I was thinking about switching back when the NYTimes did a piece that got me to upgrade... And I'm glad I did...

They've added new groovy apps. It seems to move faster than it did a year ago. I love the tabbing off in multiple windows, so orderly that I'm re-hooked on Firefox...

Firefox is the best PC browser these days, bar none.

My 2¢ on Twitter

Broadway's The Elephant Man used to murmur on the radio commercials for the show: "Sometimes I think my head is so big because it is so full of dreams...".

I'd like to amend that to "Sometimes I think my head is so big because it is so full of random thoughts..."

And the way for me to relieve the pressure in my skull is to "tweet them out" on Twitter!

Like my FaceBook post yesterday... I also love Twitter.

But, on the other hand... I completely acknowledge Twitter isn't for everybody...

For me, it's easier to jot a fast thought or a quick note onto my mobile device. (I'm fast on the SideKick's keyboard)

1. Tweet goes out into the ether of the universe, of the Twitter Timeline...

2. Tweet might be noticed by some Twitter follower/friends who might "direct message" a response.

3. Tweet appears in the right hand column of my blog...

4. My simple silly lil Tweet is completely searchable by bots or researchers looking for my mentioned topic...

5. But, most convenient to me, the tweet lands on my very own Twitter profile.

The ToddHellsKitch page turns out to be a magical micro-blog all it's own... Where I can re-visit my life at will. See articles of interest. Issue harmless political rants,

And it's all completely searchable!

Again, *I have the power*... I go back to look for things sometimes or just to look at how I've been spent my weekends or summer staycation on a minute by minute, hour by hour, day by day basis... Or: Not at all!

Twitter doesn't consume me and keep me from enjoying the simple life... In fact, it actually helps me to live in the present moment by clearing my mind of all the clutter of rapid thoughts that match the pace of my life...

It suits me... It's just the way I'm wired...

To each his own... I know Twitter isn't for everyone...

My 2¢ on FaceBook

FaceBook is great. There I said it. I'm baffled about the people in my life who are fearful of it. Like they'll get sucked into a giant vacuum cleaner or something...

Go slow in learning it and adding info...

Don't fear: you always have control... You can reveal the info you want to reveal and to whom... And you control the amount of information that you receive from others... And you contact whoever you want from your past...

YOU have the POWER!

You can even delete, not just de-activate, your FaceBook account if you want...

FaceBook's at its peak these days for the over 40 (and over 50-70 crowd)!

And even after we're all dead, the NYTimes had a piece the other day on the FaceBook profile being a new kind of memorial for the Internet age...

So, what are you waiting for?

It's free! Did I mention that?

Wednesday's Word: Man Cave

man cave, noun,

A room, space, corner or area of a dwelling that is specifically reserved for a male person to be in a solitary condition, away from the rest of the household in order to work, play, involve himself in certain hobbies, or activities without interuption. This area is usually decorated by the man owner without interferance from any female influence. May be a bachelor's entire apartment...

Usage: Todd HellsKitchen retreated to his Man Cave to watch the Yankee's game.

Adapted from Urban Word of the Day

Healthcare Now

Six Democratic Members of Congress from New York are putting the brakes on President Obama’s historic campaign to reform our broken healthcare system.

Healthcare legislation that would expand healthcare coverage for millions of Americans is gaining steam in Congress. But Reps. Michael Arcuri, Scott Murphy, Nita Lowey, Mike McMahon, Eric Massa, and Dan Maffei are stalling the bill because it pays for reform with a modest tax on the rich.

Sign the petition here:

This is our best chance for healthcare reform in a generation, but now these five Democratic members of Congress are putting real reform on hold - even though less than 1% of all New Yorkers would be affected by the tax.

We can fight back – but we have to ask fast. I just signed the Working Families Party’s petition calling on the 6 Representatives to put healthcare reform above protecting the wealthy. Will you join me?

http://action.workingfamiliesparty.org/t/3865/petition.jsp?petition_KEY=631


Thanks!

Summer Vacation 2009

Have been enjoying my Summer vacation soooooooooo much!

And been taking loads of pictures...

Here's a few...

Click each photo for a description and more information...

Or browse the ToddHellsKitchen Flickr page.

Juicy 5 Napkin Burger

This fancy burger joint, 5 Napkin Burger, took over the spot formerly known as Jezebel. That was more than a year ago, and I finally got around to it today.

Just from passing it regularly I could always tell it was popular with business people for lunches, tourists on their way to the theater, and a helluva brunch crowd on weekends...

Medium burger was indeed juicy (Hence the name of the place) and it was allegedly 10 oz. It was only "ok".

Bacon was too far less than crispy. Though, the tomato, onion, and lettuce were all fresh and crisp and/or ripe.

The white roll was mediocre. The bottom piece was soo thin that the juice from the burger made a basically un-handle-able mush blob out of it...

I learned later that they did have a multi-grain version (my usual preference)... And that looked much thicker on the bottom, too... Multi-grain wasn't made prominently available on the menu, and so I went with what was stated as "classic". Silly me.

Potatoes were delightful shoestring style... But there weren't really enough of them to make the overall price worthwhile...

The whole meal was over-priced by a mile... $20 with tip. (No beverage).

Despite the name of the place, They only give you one napkin, BTW... It's faux linen...

If napkins were the equivalent of stars, from today's visit, I'd give this place 3 napkins.

(Added Note: The guy seated next to me had just received a tuna sandwich on multi-grain, with wasabi sauce on the side... Admittedly, that looked like a better choice. And he was perfectly delighted with it).

Added Note, too: My friend, Joe, tells me Better Burger on Tenth is truly a better burger... I'll give it a shot next time I'm in the mood for a burger...)

For Your Sunday Twisted Enjoyment

Just finished watching a documentary on The Tiger Lillies...

... and their cool version of Shockheaded Peter they had brought to NYC..

... I missed them when they did a run at The New Victory Theater and many performances at PS 122, apparently...

Here's a clip I just found on YouTube of them doing Bully Boys to brighten your Sunday in a macabre, sick and twisted kind of way...

... Wild

Celebrity Sightings: Mink Stole & Taylor Mead

Two legendary cult film stars were on hand last night at the Producer's Club to receive their Honorary Golden Pineapple Awards as part of the annual Cringe Festival gala.

The charming and delightful Mink Stole, from multiple John Waters films...

And the congenial and witty Taylor Mead of Andy Warhol fame.

Celebrated gossipist Michael Musto, incomparable historian and documentarian Joe Franklin, and producer Virginia P. Louloudes also received Golden Pineapples from Artistic Director Melba LaRose with a wink and a smile.

Evening's theatrical high-point was the New York debut of the intellectually vulgar and outrageously comical Piss Play is About Minorities, So It's Really Important by hot new playwright Don Cummings with a first rate cast including David Youse, Carla Barnett, and Flip Laffoon.

Keeping in the spirit of the evening's diverse, taste-less, and borderline pornographic artistry was the hysterically unique performance artist-comedian Zero Boy in a solo curtain raiser. He was a gas.

TGIF to ONAF?

Have you noticed that I'm not saying TGIF ever during the summer vacation... ???

It's more like Oh No, Another Friday, ONAF !!!

Another vacation week is gone??

Now if I could hit a happy medium and really ever live a day at a time... including Fridays...

I'm working on it!!

Had a great day meeting up with an ooooold friend from high school days at the luxurious Port Authority and running her around to get her breakfast and bearings here in Hell's Kitchen & vicinity...

Later this evening, a big gala play festival opening with a rising Broadway star playright and a reception to finally meet a revered Underground cult film star... (Hint her name is synonymous with a luxurious woman's garment (... That PETA certainly wouldn't care for)

More on all that later...

In Flickr News

Well, Flickr is obviously unstuck as I've uploaded a coupla back-logged photos over the last couple days.

I think I figured out the issue, but no live person at Flickr has bothered to contact me...

One sentence added prominently to a FAQ or from their customer service bot would have allowed me to take care of the problem myself, and would probably alleviate thousands of complaints they receive from others.

Essentially, it was one single photo that was tying up the works.... Once I identified it and removed it, everything went fine...

Who knew? I couldn't find anything that suggested a single photo could cause a clog....

Maybe this post wll aid someone Googling around on their own outside of the useless Flickr tech support/customer service system?

2600 Quotes

The 2600th quote came up on my 'lil "and i quote blog" yesterday...

"Damn, that's a LOT of quotes"...

... You can quote me on that.

Wednesday's Word: Arterial Monochromia

Arterial Monochromia - Fictional malady mentioned on episodes of the sitcom THE HONEYMOONERS on CBS from 1955 to 1956. Ralph Kramden (Jackie Gleason) isn't feeling well and goes to the doctor.

TRIVIA NOTE: In medical-ese, "arterial monochromia" means "one-colored arteries" which, by definition, is a redundancy - all arteries are the same color.

In an earlier "Honeymooners" variety show vignette, Ralph had already suffered from "cerebral monochromia," so the show's writers recycled the idea into episodes No. 68 and No. 144.

Source: TV Acres

Yes, Rain!

We just had three previous days of glorious low humidity.

Trekked to art museums, saw friends, sunned by the river, flea marketed, and enjoyed some leisurely quality time with Donner in a breezy open air El Centro yesterday. Late afternoon, no less! (Wunderground reports we are on track for the second coolest July ever recorded).

Am completely grateful for today's rain, as it'll provide incentive to leave this here Greek Diner (sans NYTimes and a few periodicals) and go directly home to tackle some procrastinated chores....

Waaay behind on blog posts, on emails, on tidying up, on digitizing old media, on FaceBook responses, on clearing the desk, the laundry, taking down the recycling & garbage, listening to voice mails, and a DVR backed up with saves....

Rain is also good cuz all the flowers in the Hell's Kitchen tree beds were all starting to look really thirsty...

Thank you, rain...

(Message composed on my T-Mobile Sidekick LX 2009 mobile device).

P.S. 1: Anger & Others

Had never been to P.S. 1 Contemporary Arts Center... Since I'm a MoMA member, it's included as free admission... w00t!

So, I was the first one through the gates today when they opened at noon...

First, stopped for lunch at the cafe' as per Libhom's recommendation...

Had the beef chili special with a piece of cheesecake and the unsweetened iced tea... Really good! (About $15)...

Then I ventured upstairs to see the the Kenneth Anger exhibit and asked the staff person which screen was showing Scorpio Rising... "Oh, the projector is broken... My supervisor came to look at it and left a half hour ago..."

Oy! that's the whole reason I limped all the way over there today... John Waters had mentioned it in a documentary I saw recently as a film that had a huge impact on his film-making...

Well, apparently, I wasn't meant to see it today, I guess...

I did get around to all the other exhibits in the rescued old school building... And enjoyed the stuff...

The AIDS exhibit was completely depressing, of course.

And the stuff dedicated to pop culture was suitably poppy and fun...

Could do without the portraits of 9/11 terrorists... sprinkled throughout the museum. Nope, didn't care for that at all...

P.S.1 Contemporary Art Center is one of the oldest and largest non-profit contemporary art institutions in the United States. An exhibition space rather than a collecting institution, P.S.1 devotes its energy and resources to displaying the most experimental art in the world. A catalyst and an advocate for new ideas, discourses, and trends in contemporary art, P.S.1 actively pursues emerging artists, new genres, and adventurous new work by recognized artists in an effort to support innovation in contemporary art. P.S.1 achieves this mission by presenting its diverse program to a broad audience in a unique and welcoming environment in which visitors can discover and explore the work of contemporary artists. P.S.1 presents over 50 exhibitions each year, including artists’ retrospectives, site-specific installations, historical surveys, arts from across the United States and the world, and a full schedule of music and performance programming.

(Added note: I found an online version of Scorpio Rising here.)

P.S.1 Contemporary Art Center

22-25 Jackson Ave at the intersection of 46th Ave
Long Island City, NY 11101
(718) 784-2084
Hours
12:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m., Thursday through Monday. We are closed on Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Years Day. Le Rosier Café and artbook@ps1 are open during regular museum hours.
Admission
Admission is a $5.00 suggested donation; $2.00 for students and senior citizens; free for MoMA members and MoMA admission ticket holders. The MoMA ticket must be presented at P.S.1 within thirty days of date on ticket and is not valid during Warm Up or other P.S.1 events or benefits.

Jay Brannan in the Mirror

Last I mentioned Jay Brannan on this blog was September of 2007...

Am still a huge fan... I feel like I'm kind of a stalker, actually, as I regularly read his Twitter tweets and comment on his FaceBook updates...

Here's an article on Jay Brannan on Edge. He's been keeping busy since his screen debut in Short Bus.

Here's Brannan's version of Michael Jackson's Man in the Mirror...

It resonates today...

The Unmasking of an Artist

Got over to see the James Ensor exhibit at MoMA yesterday...

Creepy, eerie, macabre, and always interesting!

James Ensor (1860–1949) was a major figure in the Belgian avant-garde of the late nineteenth century and an important precursor to the development of Expressionism in the early twentieth. In both respects he has influenced generations of later artists. This exhibition presents approximately 120 works, examining Ensor's contribution to modernity, his innovative and allegorical use of light, his prominent use of satire, his deep interest in carnival and performance, and his own self-fashioning and use of masking, travesty, and role-playing. Examples of Ensor's paintings, prints, and drawings are installed in an overlapping network of themes and images to produce a complete picture of this daring, experiential body of work. Ultimately, this exhibition presents James Ensor as a socially engaged and self-critical artist involved with the issues of his times and with contemporary debates on the very nature of modernism.

The photo accompanying this post (not taken by me) is of the most famous paintings in this exhibition.

He spent so much time in his work showing masks and false images, often grotesque, or morbid, that it's a bit of a triumph of his spirit that he authentically depicted himself amongst his fascinating subjects.

tThis show runs til September 21, 2009 before it heads to Paris.

Here's a link to MoMA's online multimedia presentation of this Ensor show.

MoMA's Tasty Lunch

Made my way through all the iron barriers lining the West 54th Street roadway* to MoMA to see some of the new exhibitions, including a Member preview, and to have lunch.

So I dove right into their Cafe 2 at the sensible and uncrowded hour of 11:30a and had their Rigatoni in a tomato and sausage sauce (VERY tasty and al dente!) and a thirst quenching iced tea (includes free refills).

The way it works here is you order at the register. They give you a little stand with a number that you prop up wherever you choose to sit amongst the looong communal tables in the dining area. Staffers bring you your beverage and food portions when they are ready by spotting your number. There is another counter in the seating area where you can order more food if you want without having to go back to the original line.

Linen napkins. Decent plates, flatware, and glasses. Nice and classy.

As I said, when I got there, the Cafe was essentially (and delightfully) empty so I had plenty of elbow room to catch up on Sidekick business and browse through the MoMA brochures to plan my self-guided tour to the shows I was in the mood for.

They give a 10% food discount for having a MoMA membership (MoMA has the most valuable Membership program on the planet, IMHO!) My filling lunch was just under $20, a little pricey, but worth it for the artistic satisfaction! LOL

* (President Obama is due to drive this way for a speech to the NAACP later today, apparently)

SyFy WTF?

I agree with Bill Felty. This is too dumb!... Yes, the billboards are up, and the cable listings have been changed... Frankly as I scroll over the listings if I saw "SciFi" I'd stop and look closely... SyFy usually goes unnoticed... And the logo doesn't even look like it's Science-fiction related... Would be a good time for a brand new upstart network to corner the Science Fiction genre, me thinks...

Misc Ramblings

* I've been home and doing chores lately. Lots of clippings piled up on the desk that I've been sorting and/or trashing. (So, why did I keep them in the first place??? Because I'm a nut job neurotic! LOL!)

* This Sotomayor cable TV coverage is a drag. Just show us the highlights later please, CNN. Zzzz. She's definitely gonna be confirmed. So, we already know how this story is gonna end! (Personally, I don't like her... Seems to be way too ego-maniacal to me... But the president didn't ask me for advice).

* Flickr Uploader hasn't worked in weeks. E-mails to their helpdesk come back with useless stock answers that show they completely disregarded my initial email where all the questions they are asking were already answered the first time. I'm quite fed up. And it's been too long since I have been able to add new pics to these blog posts...

* I re-subscribed to BottomLine Personal today. I get a kick out of all the tips... Like: Multi-tasking is not efficient. You get more done faster with fewer mistakes by doing one thing at a time. Focusing on one task also reduces stress and and protects short term memory. According to David E. Meyer, PhD.

*I hate when people throw cigarette butts on the ground. See Cigarette Butts: Tiny Trash That Piles Up from the New York Times.

* Google voice sounds like it'll be a great product when it gets here...

* Let banks bid for your cash interest rates at MoneyAisle or shop for best rates at BankRate.com. Insider real estate info is available at StreetEasy.

*Lincoln Center's 50th Anniversary Face-Lift is almost done, according to the New York Times...

* While I have absolutely no desire to go there, I'm comforted in knowing that the divey Holland Bar survived the gentrification axe here in Hell's Kitchen.

* I cut off the bottoms off some floppy asparagus and stood it up in cold water in the fridge and it crisped right back up! I wonder if it'
ll work for broccoli, too?

* Men's Health Magazine warns Soy might be dangerous for men!

* Berries are considered a super food. I've been eating a lot lately. (Good Todd!)Blueberries are plentiful right now. So are blackberries and strawberries. I've never tried Pomegranate juice, have you? Supposed to be good, but that might just be Pomegranite industry hype?

* I love Fritos dip chips! (Bad Todd!)

Wednesday's Words: Pullin' a Palin

Pullin' a Palin (verb)

1. Quitting when the going gets tough; abandoning the executive responsibilities entrusted to you by your constituents and fellow citizens in exchange for tawdry book advances and profit on the right-wing lecture circuit.

2. A most bizarre and flighty career move that will damn ambitions for higher office or to ever be taken seriously again.

Modified from: Urban Dictionary

Decepticons Beware

Saw Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen just for kicks... And it was stoopid fun!

Loooong movie though... Too long.

But, hey...

Down with Decepticons.... Just sayin!

Public Enemies Romanticized

Saw Public Enemies the other day.

A good vintage 1930's Chicago crime movie romanticizing legendary American bank robber John Dillinger (Pictured).

Johnny Depp playing pretty much anyone more or less romanticizes that person, eh?

Christian Bale was a hot and wicked villain... That is, if you consider the FBI enforcer the villain...

Gotta agree with a friend that the sound was just awful. I woulda thought it was just a poor screening at the multiplex til he alerted me to this... How could this released it with so many garbled scenes?? Really awful!

Still, if you're a fan of the Deppster, ya prolly gotta see it...

Speaking of Depp, I'm itching to see Charlie and the Chocolate Factory again, sparked by all the Michael Jackson retrospecting going on these days... I have that DVD stashed around here somewhere...

3,000 Posts !?!

Yesterday made the 3,000th post on Postcards from Hell's Kitchen. So, I guess this is 3,001...Wow!

Happy Sunday in NYC

I'm soooo happy to be back in NYC that I'm skate dancing...

More from Helldersburg !!!

To answer an earlier commenter's question: Helldersburg is the nickname that I gave to this little "burg" that rhymes with Hell!...

Thinking I'll be heading outta here before the crack of dawn tomorrow. Beat the traffic!

Been a nice stay all in all...

Took my parents to dinner last night at Chili's. It's a chain. They were delighted... And there were enough leftovers to cover today's lunch and/or dinner... The whole bill was less than I paid last week for a single Mutton Chop meal at Keen's Steakhouse in NYC... But, hey... Chains are about all there is in Helldersburg...

Checkout the article that I just spotted on NYTimes online on Maryland crabhouses... It gives a taste of the local seafood obsession. We got our crabs to go. My father brought up half a bushel from the Eastern Shore of "medium males"... We got two meals out of them and there are still a few leftover that he can pick for crabcakes... They were heavy and tasty... I don't know what he paid for them...

My mother gave me a few shirts from Kohl's and a Kohl's giftcard for $25. Belated birthday gifts... That gift card paid about a third of the value of the Levi 501's and grey camouflage shorts I picked up there this morning... The empty gift card goes to Lady Donothing for her vast collection.

Always been an early bird... I was awake at 5am today. Had a nice slow walk with the doggy around the yard, and we sat on the porch a while and listened to the morning birds... A lovely sound... Although the people down the street, who used to have a crowing rooster now, have an aviary full of cooing pigeons... Pigeons?? Well, at least they reminded us of NYC...

Camped out in a booth at McD's to do some paperwork... Had a book from the Helldersburg library that I gleaned a slew of quotes from for the quotes blog... Happy for No Reason by Marci Shimoff. Was annoyed though that she credits The Secret throughout her book and never once mentions Esther Hicks, who was the whole force behind the Attraction business...

Anyway, the booth at Mickey D's reminds me of all the hours I used to spend at the McDonald's in Alaska when I was on brief shore leave, and would sit and sip Diet Cokes and write hundreds of postcards... Interesting euphoric recall...

The Helldersburg branch is full of senior citizens sipping free coffee refills.... It looks like a retirement home most days.


Then to Walmart to stock up on generic antacids and dental floss to take back to NYC... Saved quite a few bucks on what these things cost at Duane Reade or CVS in NYC... Before the Kohl's spree...

Now, in the Helldersburg library right as it opened at 9:30am and doing this here blogulating on a library computer.... Where I'm sure every keystroke is being monitored by the moral police... Just to make sure I'm not a terrorist or anything... Or worse: a Democrat... or a homosexual... or...??? Too late on the last two!

Helldersburg Library gets points for leaving on their periodical racks the current issue of GQ that features a nude (but tastefully covered) cover piture... Jeers to Walmart who apparently removed it.

... It's been a fine little visit, but I do miss Hell's Kitchen...! I do, I do, I do...

Friday in Helldersburg!

Lordy! Lordy! Lordy!

Country road take me home, to the place where I belong...

....New York Frakkin City!

Soon.

Not sure when yet...

But, soon!

On the Road Again

Yup, I'm back in Helldersburg for the regular summertime visit with the parental units...

Both are well... Thanks for asking!

Yup. Had Maryland Blue Crabs already. They're running heavy... *Nice*.

Been eating most meals out at the usual suspects: McDonald's and KFC, where vegetables are tooo rare... I can't wait to get hiome for a number of reasons... Not the least of which is to start eating healthy again... I miss whole grains and dark leafy veggies, I do!

Tried finding a few new places this trip... Mapquest is pretty useless, as the addresses show up great distances on their maps than where they really are... Streets here all have Republican names... Like the corner of Liberty & Freedom... The address I was seeking didn't wind up being anywhere near there. It's like they are paranoid and so you have to ask locals for directions... Something unsettling about that...

Doggy is loving rolling around in the grass, and I'm enjoying not to have to scoop up doggy doo... Doggy also loves running all over the house... In a big circle from the kitchen to the livingroom to the diningroom and back.... round and round...

I'm at the Helldersburg Public Library for the first time that I had my password with me to access the 'puters... They are arranged in a fashion so that EVERYONE can completely see exactly what you are looking at online... Again, unnerving...

I hate Helldersburg...

Wednesday"s Word: TMI

TMI; (acronym); definition: Too Much Information; way more information than you need or want to know about someone.

Example: Person A: I have a hole in my underwear.
Person B: um, TMI, Dude...

Drive Me to the Moon

"May the light of the fullest moon of the year tonight reflect our own fullness, our own inner light, our own supreme connection to all things seen and unseen".
-- Ann Hampton-Callaway

Doggy and I are headed off on a road trip today before dawn... Wish us well!

Dante's Inferno Crucifies Barney

Saw the 2007 film Dante's Inferno on the DVR from it's recent run on Ovation!

Great fun! Extremely well done from design to execution!

Essentially...

... Beautiful paper puppets tell the story of a man with a hangover who goes to hell and back...

Including a trip to DC...

He's shown a parade of hippocrites that includes corporate logo puppets...

And you have to LOVE a film that crucifies the big dopey purple dinosaur...

"I love you, you love me"... Indeed.

A masterpiece of a little film...

Yup, I'm Old!

Happy Birthday to me!

(Message composed on my T-Mobile Sidekick LX 2009 mobile device).

Happy 4th!

Happy 4th of July 2009!

A Hot and Tasty Hunk of Meat

I finally took Anthony Bourdain's delicious advice and went to have the signature mutton chop at Keen's Chop House. Over by Macy's in Herald Square.

This was one fabulous hunk of meat... I followed the Chef's suggestion and had it medium.

Added the grilled mixed veggies (The grilled fennel was my favorite)...

And the sauteed escarole was tasty and a good accompaniment to the meat...

The decor is coolly masculine and club-like!

Loved the tobacco pipe ceiling that has to be seen to be appreciated... Keen's owns the largest collection of churchwarden pipes in the world.

It's a dimly lit old world gentlemen's club ambience.... Too dimly lit for decent photos, damn it!

But ahhh, that hunk of meat!

What a hunk!

A Parallel Presence

I swung over to see the following exhibit this morning...

"The UBS Art Gallery celebrates the 120th anniversary of the National Association of Women Artists (N.A.W.A.), the oldest active American women’s art organization, by presenting A Parallel Presence: National Association of Women Artists, 1889-2009. On view from May 14 to July 31, 2009, the exhibition will illustrate the ongoing influence and engagement of N.A.W.A. members with the many stylistic innovations in American art since the establishment of the group in 1889. A Parallel Presence features work by 55 artists including Theresa Bernstein, Bessie Potter Vonnoh, Blanche Lazzell, Dorothy Dehner, Louise Nevelson, June Wayne, Pat Adams, Faith Ringgold, Idelle Weber and Martha Walker. The exhibition will explore the individual visions of N.A.W.A.’s members by presenting work in a wide range of media, including painting, sculpture, woodcut, photography and video. A Parallel Presence also features documentary images, correspondence, exhibition catalogues, brochures, and other materials from the N.A.W.A. archives representing the organization’s activities over the years".

A lot of very nice stuff...

Danse Macabre, a 1933 lithograph by Mabel Dwight features a wonderfully ghoulish marionette show (pictured).

I also enjoyed seeing a delightful 1930 soft sculpture, Mrs Brown and Catherine, by Faith Ringold (Author of children's classic Tar Beach). Also World Within a fascinating installation of mobiles by Ela Shah; Lily Harmon's whimsical The Donkey Game (1947); and wonderful study in collage by Claire Shainess circa 1950.

The UBS Art Gallery is located in the UBS Building at 1285 Avenue of the Americas (between 51st and 52nd Streets) in New York City. The Gallery is on the ground floor of the building and exhibition hours are Monday through Friday, 8:00 a.m. until 6:00 p.m. Admission is free.

Wednesday's Word(s): Hiking the Appalachian Trail

Hiking the Appalachian Trail

To have an extra-marital affair. Stems from the disappearance and subsequent reappearance of South Carolina Governor, Mark Sanford (R). Sanford had told his aides he was out hiking the Appalachian trail. In actuality, he abandoned his gubernatorial responsibilities to pursue an affair in Argentina.

I tell you, I just saw Mary's man Hiking the Appalachian Trail.