Kiki From The Block

Sometimes there's nothing more refreshing than the color green. Green seems to be popping up everywhere these days. The official color of St. Patrick's Day.... the mellow and enchanting color of Springtime..... the color of money that you win and/or lose because you failed to pick the right teams for your bracket, *sigh*. This thrust of grassed colored extravagance can only mean one thing....It March!. It seems that Madam Winter decided that she would take a break from giving us the cold shoulder this year. Don't get me wrong, my first winter in the city wasn't all TOMS and jean jackets. There were a few days where I felt Jack Frost purposely doing the Cuban Shuffle all over my face. But, it definitely wasn't as bad as I anticipated. Fingers crossed that God doesn't send a random April blizzard. He has a since of humor, that Holy Ghost.... but an snowy April (and unpacking my sleepingbag-esque coat fondly known as "Big Rick") would just be mean. 

"What's been going on since your last post?" you ask. Well, I've entered the wonderful world of television, currently working on a new pilot for CBS called "Elementary". It's basically Sherlock Holmes meets the Boss streets of New York. I would tell you more but, I don't want to upset the CBS Ninja. So, you'll just have to hope it gets picked up and watch it :). Other than that, it's been pretty tame. Eat, sleep, go to work, dance around my room to MGMT. Eat, sleep, go to work, pout because it's not yet time for the 3rd season of  "Downton Abbey". Ya know, the usual. In fact, things have been so uneventful that I wasn't sure what I would write for this lovely blog. After a bit of thought and also taking into account several suggestions from my friends, I've decided to tell you a little about where I live. 

NYC is composed of 5 boroughs: Manhattan, The Bronx (Jenny-Lo once inhabited a block there... or so I was told), Brooklyn, Queens and Staten Island. When my roommate and I first moved to NY, I was determined to be a Manhattan girl. I wanted to be the black Carrie Bradshaw(Shaniqua Bradshaw if you will). Visions of myself strutting up and down the Manhattan streets, charming everyone with newly found city girl wit stopped me from even considering another location. After searching and searching in 90 degree weather and fluke rain storms, my roomy and I decided on an apartment in another borough. I've been here for 9 months my heart has done a complete 180. My borough and I are in love and we may marry, if Rick Santorum will allow it. Some hipster must have spiked my Whiskey Sour because I am, without apology, a full fledged Brooklynite. 

Ahhhh Brooklyn.... the Bridge, the flavor, the fact that your name is said like a trillion times in the hit LL Cool J song "Doin It". There are so many reasons to adore this area. 

The People: Brooklynites are some of the most interesting people around. There's so much creativity bottled in this borough and you can see it everywhere from the clothes to the graffiti, to the musicians on the corner. My first thoughts about Brooklyn patrons were that they were trying to be cool, different, non conforming to the point of being false. But, since hanging out and about I'm starting to feel a bit different. Brooklyn is like a blank canvas and the people are the paint brushes. The people here create an atmosphere so alluring and potent that you can't help but be completely taken over by it. 

Activities: It's kinda hard not to go to Manhattan every weekend in search of the next great adventure but, when I don't, I'm always surprised at all the entertainment around me. There are so many museums! You have the Brooklyn museum, the Botanical Garden, the Underground Railroad (go ahead, make a slavery joke. I know you want to). And if you aren't in the mood for museums, there's plenty of music halls, theaters and of course, The Brooklyn Brewery. Lets not even get started on the yummy eats around that place. Everytime I eat in Brooklyn, the food is amazing. You have everything from Brooklyn's famous pizza, to Nathan's Hot Dog, to oh so delicious Thai Food. 

Last weekend I had the pleasure of spending a whole Saturday in Williamsburg (a sub-neighborhood of brooklyn). I went to Nitehawk Cinema for a special showing of  "Point Break". It was apart of a month long event called "Crazy For Swayze".

Basically, every weekend this month they show a wonderful classic film starring Patrick Swayze. Some of the films included comedy commentary from a duo called "The Raspberry Brothers". It was hilarious! I left out of there with watery eyes, a laughter cramp in my side and a pleasant relief that Keanu Reeves could never really be an FBI agent.

 P. Swayze PBR Commercial 1979. Sheer comedy.

After the movie, I walked around a bit and just took in the beautiful day and atmosphere. 

The Atmosphere: Brooklyn is a lot more beautiful than people think. It's just a different kind of beauty. In a way I feel like it's one of the main reasons people are attracted to that area. Manhattan is Paulina Porizkova. Brooklyn is Agyness Deyn. While out and about, I managed to take some pictures. Now be nice.... i'm no Annie Leibovitz.

I live in a little sub-neighborhood of Brooklyn called Bushwick or "The Bush" if you're feelin' fresh. My home resides in Bushwick, on Bushwick Avenue on the Bushwick-Aberdeen L train stop so, yeah....I'm pretty much in the heart of it.

I live in a 3 story apartment building next to a small bodega. When my mother came to visit, she would happily get coffee from the bodega every morning. She became friends with the guy that worked at the counter and before leaving, she happily informed me that the charming man behind the counter was in a biker gang and agreed to keep and eye on me and my roommate. So rest easy you guys. For all you Veronica Mars fans... I pretty much have my on PCHers so... booya. 

This is my super Robbie. He's pretty much one of the more interesting characters in my area. Its hard to describe him. He always has a story to tell and always seems to be in a jolly good ol' mood.  Robbie kind of sounds like Gary Busey if Gary Busey grew up in the heart of Venezuela. 

 This is my apartment. If someone were grasp a cube on opposite ends and pull it, stretching it out to capacity, that would pretty much describe my place. But what can I say... it's my haven. Home is where the heart is right? When I'm sitting in my apartment, listening to my records with the window open and a book in my hand, everything feels peaceful. It almost reminds me of those perfect, porch, summer evenings of the south.

The living room and kitchen

My Sanctuary 

So, there it is... a little bit about the place I call home. Just a tiny part of this grand mass of a city. A part that's burrowing into my way of life. Even if I don't settle here, It's definitely an amazing chapter that I'm sure I will take with me where ever I go. Now, please don't mistake this blog for a "Brooklyn Only" exhibition. New York has so many different regions, within a region, within a region that I'm sure everyone falls for tiny pieces of  it at a time. Who knows where I will be next year. I may be writing a different blog about my love for Harlem or Astoria. A woman's heart is an ocean of mystery and there are many places, people, and events that can reside there. An ocean of mystery? Did I just quote the old lady from "Titanic"? Yeah.... maybe it's time for me to go to sleep. Until next time.....

 You really can't get any cooler than that.

Pudge Watch 2012

Things are going ok with the war against weight. I need to get a little more motivated. My workouts have become a bit lull which means that I've hit a sort of workout plateau. I'm thinking it's time to get some new music. So, if you have any songs to suggest please let me know. It's time to liven this sucker up.

5 Things I'm Digging On At The Moment

1). The Shoes "Time To Dance"

             This music video stars one of my many admirers Jake Gyllenhaal playing a Hipster murdering Sociopath. Now trust me guys, this video is a little harsh and hard to watch but, from an actors view... it's amazing. The vacant look in his eyes is just haunting. Plus, the song is pretty awesome, it will be going on my workout mix.

2). Busty Girl Comics

           A friend of mine introduced me to this website and boy.. it's hilarious, and  annoyingly accurate. http://bustygirlcomics.com/

3). The Hunger Games

             Yeah, I know... I'm always into The Hunger Games. With the release of the movie less than one week away, my love for the mockingjay has gotten a little out of control. I am eagerly awaiting this movie. I know Jennifer Lawrence will be amazing and I can't wait to see such a haunting story on the big screen.

4). The Beach Boys & Garbage

          Ummm yes, I know that these 2 group of musicians have nothing in common,  *gasp* or do they? Well I am here to tell ya they both have something in common and that thing is ME! I will be attending both The Beach Boys: 50th Anniversary Tour and the 1st Garbage tour in 7 years this year in May. I won my tickets for the Beach Boys on the radio. *Sigh* I think this is gonna be the best concert year since MUSE.

 The Beach Boys minus honorary member Uncle Jesse *cough* I mean John Stamos

Garbage.... Oh boy I can't wait!

5). I Want You To Be My Second By John-Mark Davidson

              This book is a collection of short stories and the first book by John-Mark Davidson. I just got the book a few days ago and I've already breezed through it. When I read these stories, they play like a film in my head. John-Mark does a wonderful job of allowing you to into the situation. I hear the words and see the expressions and jesters between the lines. It's honest, humorous and evokes emotion. Trust me guys, get it... read it.I Want You To Be My Second

Love Always,

    The Girl who does indeed love Brooklyn but does not love it enough to tattoo it on her body.

Exibit A