Greenpoint Fashion Watch: A Moment of Greenpoint Gratitude
Chile relleno preparation (as practiced by yours truly, anyway) is a rather extensive process*. When I reach the “halfway” point I take a break. This time around was no exception: to this end I took a walk. As I was strolling our fair ‘nabe’s streets I thought about the numerous things I have to be grateful for: having good friends, wonderful neighbors, a husband who tolerates my admittedly eccentric behavior and manifold obsessions; a roof over my head, a relatively well-behaved (and occasionally downright loving) pride of felines and a job whose nature I not only enjoy, but comes with co-workers who render those not-so-pleasurable moments into fun ones.
Above all I am grateful to live in the best damned place on earth: Greenpoint, Brooklyn U.S.A. The Garden Spot of the Universe is home to such Heatherian favorites as the Shit Tits, the Newtown Creek Nature Walk, McGuinness Boulevard, West Street (what’s left of it, anyway), 218 Beadel Street (the house and person who lives in it— both are wonderful) and the old Russian Peoples Home sign on Clay Street (to name a very few). It is also home to some of the most charming, witty, intelligent and kindhearted people I have ever had the pleasure of meeting. I consider it an honor to call these people, my fellow Greenpointers, neighbors.
And, but hardly least, there is this gentleman who I spied in front of La Taverna today. There is so much fashion fabulousness going on here I am not even going to attempt deconstructing it. What’s more, I need to get back to cooking!
More later.
Miss Heather
*Which I will go into later. It ain’t going to be Julia Child, but hopefully you’ll enjoy the secrets to my relleno success.
Happy Thanksgiving From New York Shitty!
Thanksgiving is already proving to be a one for yours truly. There will be not Macy’s parade watching for me; I’m too busy preparing a feast of chile rellenos, beans, rice, and salsa! For this reason today’s offerings will be decidedly lite. However, I have enough time to resurrect an oldie but goody from Greenpoint’s yesteryear for your turkey day enjoyment: Ragamuffin Day.
What was Ragamuffin Day, you ask? This is an excellent question. Imagine if you will trick or treating— but on Thanksgiving Day. On this day children throughout our fair city (Greenpoint in particular) smeared their faces with charcoal, put on the tattiest apparel and went door to door asking:
Anything f’ Thanksgiv’n?
If the man or woman of the house felt charitable he or she would throw them candy, fruit or change for their efforts. And just like the “trick or treating†we know today there was ample latitude on both sides— beggars and beggees alike —for mischief. Do you know what a “red penny†is? You will after reading this article from the November 27, 1931 edition of the New York Times. Enjoy!
Those of you who want to learn more about Ragamuffin Day from a distinctly Greenpointian (and firsthand!) point of view should point and click your way to Greenpt.com. There you will find a number of amusing firsthand accounts of this long gone tradition. Check it out!
Miss Heather
P.S.: This post goes out to my fellow Greenpointer Mieszko. Enjoy your vacation— and don’t forget your sunblock!
From The New York Shitty Inbox: Much Ado About Ichiran
I have received a number of emails in the last 24 hours regarding this much-anticipated and long-awaited noodle shop slated to grace 1015 Manhattan Avenue. Here’s one such example. Christo writes:
Hi Heather
Remember when the noodle shop (ICHIRAN) next to Triangolos had the “registration” box hanging off the front of the building? Well I put my info on the box about 6 months ago, and this is the first contact I received back.
Thought you might be interested.
Eater beat me to the punch announcing this (you can get their take on this infamous email by clicking here). Regardless, here’s what I saw while walking by this afternoon.
Signs of actual activity! Not only is the gate open (so presumably someone is working in there) but they have taped up a smallish sign in the window reading “Ichiran” and no less than two announcements about their web site registration!
Could Ichiran at long last be readying itself to open? I can only hope so. I suspect I speak for many of my fellow Greenpointers when I write that on a dreary day like this I could really use a hot bowl of ramen soup!
Miss Heather
Meet The Jello Mold Mistress of (North) Brooklyn
Thanksgiving Day will soon enough be upon us and with it comes food. Lots of it. To this end I spent yesterday hunting and gathering foodstuffs so as to make Chez Shitty’s traditional Thanksgiving fare: chile rellenos, rice, beans and salsa. Dessert, this year as in years past, is an afterthought. It gets lost in the shuffle. (No doubt I’ll be fighting over pies at Jubilatka today. So it goes.)
Which brings me to the purpose of this post: dessert and things getting lost in the shuffle. Yesterday I featured some UBER-cute commuter furkid porn from a woman named Victoria.
But masterminding photo shoots of a very comely hamster named Edie is but only one her talents. Victoria is also the Jello Mistress of (north) Brooklyn. The title (be it self-appointed or otherwise) is well deserved.
Behold, Swedish Fish jello!
Freedom jello.
For the more exotically (and intoxicantly inclined ) I present Mojito jello, made with (what else): lime jello, mint and rum!
And last but hardly least, Greenpoint jello. The above is described by its creator as follows:
Pineapple Jello died green to celebrate Greenpoint, Brooklyn.
First it was the donut ice cream sandwich. Now it is designer gelatin products. What will my fellow Greenpointers think of next? While you mull this question over, dear readers, I present for your edification a slide show of our very own Jello Mold Mistress’s creations. Enjoy!
You can read more about Brooklyn’s very own Jello Goddess by clicking here.
Miss Heather
P.S.: Methinks the Mistress’s next opus should be shit tit jello.
Gelatin boobs in an azure hue.
If anyone can do it, it is you Victoria. This isn’t simply about foodstuffs; it is a matter of Greenpoint pride. Make it happen. If you build it they will come… TO EAT!
Photo Credits: the Jello Mold Mistress of Brooklyn, Tony Liub and Mister Heather
New York Shitty Day Ender: A Very Greenpoint Bedtime Story
It recently came to my attention that the owner of T & N Wine, a fabulously cranky man named Chris, has rolled out a real doozy of a Thanksgiving display. Among the items employed are eighteen artfully placed bottles of Wild Turkey 101 (any less proof would be an insult to the Garden Spot of the Universe) and one very real— and anatomically correct— turkey.
I have written about this already. Yet none of my readers seems to have noticed this curiously (and, it should be noted, prodigiously) endowed fowl. No worries, the local population has. This display has literally stopped passersby in mid-stride. I learned this earlier today— noon, to be exact— when I was out running errands.
A 40-something gentleman exits T & N after making his lunch-time acquisition of spirits (vodka as best as I could tell— every hour is happy hour on Manhattan Avenue). He stops, looks at the window and laughs. LOUDLY.
Me: Nice, eh?
Man: Yes, very nice.
Me: As you can see that turkey is a male.
Man: It is?
Me: Yeah, look at it.
Man (looks, a puzzled expression clouds his face): How do you know it is male?
Me: Look closer at the turkey.
Man: ???
Me (getting exasperated): LOOK AT IT’S CROTCH— or what’s left of it, anyway.
Man (looks closer): AHAHAHAHAHA! Very funny.
Me: I told you that turkey is, uh was, a male.
Man: You are a very nice lady. Would you like to go for a drink… or a cup of coffee?
Me: It’s nice of you to offer but I have to be somewhere. Soon.
Man: You are a very nice lady. STAY THAT WAY! (wanders off laughing to himself)
The End.
Miss Heather
Greenpoint Bodega Watch: OPEN!
True to the proprietor’s word the Mini Mart Deli Grocery at 1068 Manhattan Avenue is open for business!
Intrigued by the palette containing ten pound bags of onions for a $1.99 (a bargain at twice the price) I went inside to see what’s up. It is still very much a work in progress— but all the essentials are there, e.g.; coffee, tea, toiletries and the like. There were also a couple surprises:
- The (admittedly limited) produce section sports some of the freshest veggies I have ever seen north of Green Street.
- A vast assortment of Indian sweets graces the space next to the cash register. When I went to purchase my $1.00 extra large cup of tea (per the owner this was a “special grand opening offer”) a woman was busy selecting her confection of choice. It was a time-consuming decision (hey, I understand) but she was pleased with her choice. And the proprietor, who is a very nice guy, promised her a free cup of coffee in return for her patronage.
This same gentleman assured me he will be stocking a vast array of “heat and eat” Indian foodstuffs (starting at buck a pop) for north Greenpointer’s (24 hour) delectation. I can hardly wait!
Mini Mart Deli Grocery
Opening Date: NOW!
1068 Manhattan Avenue
Brooklyn, New York 11222
And that’s all she wrote.
Miss Heather
Reader Contribution Du Jour: Smoothies?
This, the latest business to occupy the space formerly known as Subs Ur Way (and Dixie), comes courtesy of Caryn. Still no word on what’s going to be next door. In any case I hope this business will last longer than its predecessor. The game of musical storefronts at 821 Manhattan Avenue has become so convoluted even I am having trouble keeping up!
Miss Heather
P.S.: I have a confession to make. At a casual glance I thought those grapefruit halves were boobs. Methinks the Greenpoint glory that is the anatomically correct Thanksgiving display at T & N Wines is getting to me.
Burglary On Green Street?
Filed under: 11222, Criminal Activity, Greenpoint, Greenpoint Brooklyn, Greenpoint Magic
It has not been a good month for Neer, better known to many of you as one of the lovely ladies who works at A.J. Farms bodega at Green Street and Manhattan Avenue. First it was the catnap and subsequent return of Larry the cat (who can be seen at left). Now her apartment has been burglarized! But this is a lot more disturbing than a mere act of theft— as I learned when I spoke to her last night. Here’s a basic rundown of what happened.
The incident came to pass at 5:00 a.m. last Saturday morning. Here sister awakened to see a man looking around her room. She asked who was there and the man (who was described as being about six feet tall) bolted. They searched the apartment and noticed a number of items of value were missing, including her i-Phone. Neer called it twice. The first time she got no answer. The second time a voice said:
Manhattan and India, ATM, florist
Not wishing to put herself in danger, Neer did not go the location in question. She called the police. However, she later received a call from the florist: they had found her cell phone at the ATM in question. This has since been returned to her.
As you can imagine this incident has upset her tremendously. It’s bad enough to be robbed— but while you are sleeping? That’s just plain scary! Apparently the superintendent of the building in question added insult to injury by not seeming to be concerned. It has not been established whether or not the front door to her apartment was picked or if it had been left unlocked. B if you ask me that’s not terribly important all things considered: someone robbed her apartment while she, her sister and roommate slept!
Let this be a warning to you fellow readers: be mindful of who enters and exits your apartment building and make sure your front door is locked when you go to bed!
Miss Heather
Reader Contribution Du Jour: SH*T
Filed under: 11222, Dog Shit Signage, Greenpoint, Greenpoint Brooklyn, Greenpoint Magic
Jay Lombard (who discovered and forwarded me this lovely item) notes:
On eagle street… Just a turd’s throw from the shit tits
How very appropriate. What I want to know about is a dog that doesn’t shit!
Miss Heather
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