A Beautiful Day in Park Slope

Yesterday I took a break from my obscenely long walks

that zig zag from the LES to Tribeca to Chelsea

and instead, I gave my feet a break and let the train take me somewhere

I went to Park Slope, to enjoy some eats and visit my favorite flea market

I forgot how much I love Park Slope, I just feel out of place sometimes

because the sidewalks are literally seas of baby carriages,

(do people just get knocked up and move to Park Slope & Tribeca?)

but I had a wonderful day, probably because Uncle Louie G's icees

greeted me as I emerged from the 7th ave F train stop

these irresistible icees are my absolute fave,

so I got a chocolate jell ring & cannoli icee

the cannoli literally tastes like rich cannoli cream, yummm

The flea market on 7th ave has always been my favorite, its in a playground,

giving it even more of a nostalgic ambiance

when I was 15 I would visit to buy hot pink vintage pumps &

to ogle sequined 80s prom dresses I longed to wear to high school

thank god I've gotten more classy since those days in '06,

so now I dig the granny earrings, decor, and kitsch

my best find was a 1957 issue of Ladie's Home Journal

the pages were beautifully illustrated, the ads were witty,

the recipes were classic,

and all of the women were glamorous & flawless (before the days of photoshop)

which left me wishing I was born in the 30s,

yea Kotex "napkins" were sanitary belts in those days,

(I'm sure that idea makes any 21st century girl cringe)

but I'd make that sacrifice just to be a 50s woman

with beautiful kitchen appliances

There were so many other interesting finds at the flea market,

like vintage anonymous family photos, glassware, appliances &

housewife dresses & creepy dolls

one Woody figurine caught my eye,

it was a small toy from when Burger King put Toy Story toys in their kid's meals

which was in my childhood, this little figurine was going for 5 whole bucks

for a 50 cent Burger King toy, a steep vintage price

which made me feel oh so old,

1995 wasn't so long ago!....was it?

Coney Island Photo Diary

There's something so blissfully nostalgic about Coney Island

and thankfully, I found out that Luna Park had not changed a thing

there was still that smell of fried food and saltwater, heavy in the air

and the man screaming "ice cold water bottles, one dollar"

still greeted me as I walked towards the boardwalk

the men sketchily selling Coronas out of their backpacks

still trudged slowly through the sand

and the women selling hand peeled, sliced mangos were still at it

Luna Park did not take away that old-school, rickety glory of

Wonder Wheel park

the same rides that I went on as a kid were still standing

the Tilt-a-Whirl still spinning, creating blurs of primary colors

the Thunder Bolt still blasting cheesy pop music,

candy apples were abundant, their hard cherry shells staining my lips

but most of all, I hoped that Ralph's Italian Ices would still be sitting

under that recognizable white tent

over a dozen flavors that I had loved since childhood

like the pink bubblegum, with tiny chiclets inside that streaked the ice

the brightest of blues & oranges

and Ralph's did not fail me

a Pistachio & Cookies n Cream icee was all I needed

ah, sweet euphoria.

Fruit, Finals, & Frustrations

So, it's study week for finals

and I'm pleasantly overwhelmed

overwhelmed to the point

where I'm on my sixth hour

of sitting in the Deec writing my Hemingway paper

it hurts

just 2 finals, one paper, and 120 more Art History flash cards to memorize

oh, and a Dada collage, great

I bought some used books for my English class this semester

and I don't think I will ever do that again

because you wind up with a book

that someone has decided to permanently scar,

with pen, and odd insights

like on page 36 of my The Sun Also Rises

the person who had it before me

felt it necessary to look up all the French slang and cultural allusions

and now I can always know, since its forever there in blue pen

that Zizi is "French slang for peepee", wonderful insight

I'm trying to relish in academia,

and she taints it with the word peepee, come on

on a better note, the other day

the Deec had real live fresh fruit

not your normal apples and bananas kids,

pineapple! and strawberries!

I was the loon with the two plates of pineapples

and nearly all of the strawberries

I was also the loon who turned into a thief

and stole a bowl of fruit so I can have some happiness in

my dark, dusty room

being bad feels so good sometimes

especially when you can eat a nice big slice of pineapple before going to bed

nom, and everyone knows I'm dangerous around strawberries

so no more must be said about them

om nom nom fruit

Also, I have a large bug to pick with Raymond Ave (the block right outside of Vassar)

there is absolutely no place to get an ice cream cone

a real life, sugar cone

gosh, it's a simple request

but I'm so over wafer cones

they taste like Catholic communion

and I don't want my ice cream to taste like church

so instead I got an italian ice from the pizza place

it was the next best thing

its not the same as home

where you get an icee from the same Puerto Rican man on Delancey

who you've been buying from since you were little

man, do I miss home

but this icee was delish

it tasted like a scoop of childhood

now only if I could have a slice of childhood: a slice of Elio's pizza

you know, the microwaveable kind

that was always on sale when I was younger

and I would put it into the toaster oven

and wait wait wait

then cut it into little cubes

and nom nom nom

I can't wait to go home

I have five more days till I'm free

then its 3 months of shopping, puppy time, Coney Island

oh, and mom-made omelets,

that's the best part.

Formula for the Perfect Day

At Vassar, the Leprechaun bus is the quintessential symbol of escapism

the mall, the train station, Stop & Shop

are the basic adventures that Leprechaun will make possible

and most of the time, that's just fine with me

because I usually just get my kicks from food shopping and browsing at H&M

but on Saturday, the Leprechaun bus came in jumbo size

with TVs that broadcasted Zoolander to take me to Six Flags

and so my perfect day began:

One super sized Leprechaun (or any available charter bus)

minus Vassar

plus awesome roller coasters

I love roller coasters almost more than anything else

a bit less than I love ice cream

but thats a whole lotta love

the more apprehensive I am to put my hands up,

the steeper the drops,

and the more terror involved

the better

what can I say? I'm just a simple thrill seeker

and that's why I love wooden roller coasters

they are the best because every second you feel like

some bolts and screws are going to loosen

and crash the little cart will go

plus Cookies & Cream Dippin Dots

I've said this a thousand times

but Dippin Dots are just to delish

and love them

over and over again forever

om nom nom

I told the girl working in the little Dippin Dots booth

that she had my dream job

and because it was 90 degrees

and she was wearing long khakis and a neon yellow polo

whilst working in a small box

she must have thought I was mocking her

I wasn't

plus Johnny Rockets onion rings

which are definitely the best I've ever had

especially because they come with ranch dipping sauce

and extra crunch

and they are never especially fat, gross slices of onions

at Six Flags the ranch came in packets and not in a small plastic cup

and at first I was disappointed

but! I realized they had many other condiments available

and I seriously love condiments

I literally had a condiment buffet with a side of onion rings

ranch, honey mustard, barbeque, sweet&sour

it was blissful

plus a large watermelon icee

which really speaks for itself

when its 90 degrees outside

and you've been waiting on lines for hours

plus a sweet dinner at an outdoor table

at Babycakes, its the best thing to eat outside at night

and let me tell you, the lemon thyme vinaigrette on some baby greens

is out of this world

and lastly, add Tom Poppa & The Marriage Ref

Tom Poppa has great suits, and an annoying laugh

its always funny to watch couples arguing about country line dancing,

not having enough sex, and odd home furnishings

plus, he does a great puppy impression

and that all equals a best day, and a very happy me.

The Golden Age of Ices, Childhood.

I have a research paper due in 4 days

about the Golden Age,

and at this point I feel utterly incapable

I can't really tell you about Ovid's Golden Age

but I can tell you about mine,

it involved a lot of these:

Marino's Italian ices,

apparently kids in the Midwest didn't eat these

apparently kids in the parts of the Midwest don't even have ice cream trucks

how did children live, that sounds like dystopia

but I sure as hell know that all kids in the city loved these

as soon as the temperature creeped above 60 degrees

and out parents would finally let us out of our

awkwardly colored puffy jackets

(I had a red one, probably a silver one too, and they were both ugly as hell)

we could finally run to the candy store and buy an icee (icy, ice)

and it came with the small wooden spoon

which always made it special

eating it at home with a metal spoon never cut it

that was perfect for shaving off little mountains of icee,

probably cherry flavor

cherry was the best, rainbow was also always delish

(they apparently come in chocolate also, which is tickling my fancy right about now)

I remember I would always scrape around it

hoping to get it loose

so that I could strategically flip it over,

which sometimes resulted in the sidewalk

enjoying more of my icee than I did

but after a few spills

my virtuosity grew

and I was able to effortlessly flip the icee over

and scrape all the really icy, super concentrated cherry, gooey, sticky lovely mess

off of the bottom, and it was truly the best part

whilst working on eating the icee, some would melt

and you would be left with a small sip

of cherry juice at the end

and it was just so satisfying

afterward,

my little chemically red stained lips

would just smile, so refreshed and so content.

For other people who are super nostalgic and remember that yummy stuff at the bottom

I found this on the Marino's website

WHY DOES THAT SUGARY FORMATION OCCUR ON THE BOTTOM OF THE CUP?

• The sugary formation on the bottom of the cup is what many claim to be the best accident to happen to ices! The sugary formation occurs when there is an elapse of time from the moment the ices are put into their cups to the moment they are packaged and sent into the freezers. We had thought to freeze our ices quicker to eliminate the sugary formation but most of our consumers enjoyed it so much, they have asked us to make an entire cup filled with just the sugary formation.

yes please to a whole gallon of that!

now I'm totally craving

all the good eats of my childhood,

the frozen, sugary ones at least

count me in to anything messy, preferably with bubblegum.