June 25th

Even the top must scholar in the country would have had a hard time keeping up with their studies with the kind of June I had. There was graduation, then my birthday, and all sorts of things peppered in between, but now I really have to bunker down and make up for lost time (this is a welcome break- my social battery is spent!). Now back to (hopefully) writing every day, skating by in French, and untying the knot that is my philosophy thesis. I also have to start figuring out what I want to do for work. In the perfect world, I would teach philosophy, or pasta making classes, but both of these things require experience and preparation, two things I haven’t got yet- so I will make the mood boards and get back to you.

First of all, Helana the bestie came to visit for a week during graduation.

We did all of our favorite things while she was here, plus some new things she added to the list. She used to live here, but during the pandemic she moved down to Atlanta, where she now lives with her partner Dylan, so her list mainly consisted of her favorite places to eat, and her favorite people to eat with. So we did the works- apparently you can’t get decent sushi at a reasonable price in Atlanta, but Brooklyn is littered with places where you can get a decent lunch or dinner special at an affordable cost, so we threw darts at the map. Liz and Shaun came with us, and it did not disappoint! They also joined us for a truly emaculate visit to Brooklyn Winery, where Shaun is the CDC, and I tell you what, it’s great when you know a guy! I have talked about his food before, it’s very, very good and each season’s menu is better than the next.

We, of course, had to stop at Nom Wah Tea Parlor in Chinatown, and we ordered WAY too much food. I had to show her my new favorite pork bun at Mei Lei Wah also, which, she agreed, is superior in that area. We did some thrifting off the Morgan L stop (if you know, you know) and before I knew it we were saying goodbye. My graduation dinner was at an Italian place that my boss recommended called Bacchi and Abbrachi, also in Williamsburg, and I had the best meatball of my life. I didn’t take too many pictures that night, and that is how you know you’ve had a nice time.

For my birthday- which was a Tuesday- I decided to go all out on Groupon and get myself a spa day. I started early and had breakfast with Jules, stopped at an ancient NYC souvenir store and found the jackpot- I collect vintage NYC souvenirs that have apple and taxi imagery in them, and this place had so much to offer, I will absolutely be going back when I have more time to look around. I found a few patches and pins that came home with me. First I did a buccal face massage, and then I did a combo that consisted of a yoga class, a body scrub, and a full body massage. What I booked and what I wanted at the first spa did not completely align but it was still relaxing and my skin still looks beautiful! They literally put their fingers inside of your mouth and massage your face from the outside and inside. While it was great, it also hurt a little, and what I think I probably wanted was a face contouring facial and massage- and I know that for next time. The second half of the day ruled.

I love yoga, and I hate working out, so I figured why not jump back in! Well, why not is because I am older than 25 years old and even this easy class kicked my ass. I was sore for days after. The body scrub was great, if not a little bit bougie- something about having someone else scrub your whole body like a lay-down bath made me feel like Marie Antoinette with the Revolution at my heels- but the massage was the best of my whole life and I will absolutely be seeing Pina again in the future. The day after I invited myself to my new friend Ted’s plans to go to Coney Island to ride some rides and sit on the beach, which is what my birthday plans have been for basically my entire childhood. The pictures from the rides are priceless, and here is one.

We went to L&P Spomoni Gardens, which is famous for their pizza and ice cream, and I have to agree that it is some of the best pizza I have ever had. I got into it with my friend Ilan about the style of pizza (he is a sort of pizza expert at this point- he started making pizza last year and sells it at pop-ups with his cocktail mixtures sometimes- but I said what I said, and I still think I am right). IN MY OPINION a Sicilian slice (or, as ordered at L&B, the square slice) that is thick and gooey, with cheese, and the sauce on top, is essentially a Chicago slice. Fight me on that (Ilan sure did). It’s a bitch to get to without a car but it is worth it.

Why does this blog feel like an advertisement? Every place I mention you will find on the TikTok- I am forgetting to take pictures because I’m taking videos for the round up videos. One of my favorite things about the city is that there really is so much to do, and the quality of these activities is so high because they all have to keep up with one another. Eating in this city is hands down my favorite thing to do, and because of that, a lot of my special event posts are about where and what we ate. I realized this while making my TikToks. It’s all food! I really should look into food writing, at this point, it comes so naturally to me.

Other honorable mentions for restaurants include Bonnie’s in Williamsburg, a Sichuan place full of delicious shareables, Nowon in Bushwick, a Korean NYC fusion place that Nico took me to for birthday dinner, and the classic Roberta’s Pizzaria. The best thing I had at each place:

Bonnies- Those greenbeans were phenomenal, but also pretty much everything we had was great. Get their spin on the McRib, and skip the dumpling ravioli.

Nowon- they have an option there where you can order a prefix menu for two and just cruise for the night, and thats what we did. Everything was great, but it was a ton of fried food- if you’re looking for creative bar food and awesome cocktails (even the moctails were super good) check this place out. I think they have another location in Manhattan. Get the rice cake chopped cheese.

Roberta’s- I have already written about Roberta’s, I think they’re a staple in Bushwick and I will always go back for that pizza and the dill/mint salad. This time we went with- you guessed it- Liz and Shaun, and the waitstaff was having a bad day, but the food was great, as always.

Bake Shop — after dinner at Roberta’s we went to Bake Shop for dessert and that is currently my favorite vegan cupcake in the city. I will always order a vegan lemon pound cake, even if it is just to take it home for later. When I worked at Catland last summer I would go there before every shift, as it was just a couple doors down, and I miss that excuse to frequent Bake Shop.

I have not done a whole lot of cooking, because we have been eating out so much, and since I wrote so much about food this blog I will spare you the recipes. (Unless you want them, in which case, I will supply.) there was a punk show, my friend’s at Heavy Lag put out a new album, and we did some fun photo booth pics- here I am with Sarah, Ilans wife, after I had made the controversial pizza comments.

This past weekend I took the train out to NJ for a house warming party at my bunny Gina’s new house. It is so easy to get there, her place is so close to one of the NJ Transit stations! It was like the kind of high school reunion you want to go to- just my closest friends and their husbands, eating food and playing yard games. Gina knows how to throw a party, it was decorated beautifully and scheduled months in advance.

I rode with Lexi on the way there and got to see my niece before everyone else. Here she is doing the Elvis lip.

I thought I had posted the graduation pictures, but I don’t see them here, so I will look for those and post when I can. I am hoping these next couple of months are a little less eventful, and much more geared towards writing. We are trying to get Claus certified for international travel so we can take him to Peru with us in September, but it is looking expensive. We went to Mexico without him a few years ago and it was the longest ten days of my life (aside from being an otherwise lovely vacation.) I don’t want to have to travel without him again, but we may have no other choice. i’ll keep y’all posted!