So Punny I had to laugh

Saw these a while back. I was walking home from work and had to stop and chuckle. I can't decide which is my favorite....I may be leaning towards "wristy business"

Memphis, Tennessee

We just got back from a short trip to Memphis. We were there for the Memphis International Film Festival where Jordan's film Body/Antibody was shown. We met lots of great folks there and ate tons of health food (BBQ). The hotel where we stayed was a short walk to the theatre. When the French Quarter Hotel was built, I am sure it was a great place to stay but the years have taken their toll. Our room even had a huge jacuzzi tub but I was not tempted to use it. I won't talk about what I found under the mattress. Everyday we had to get our key card reactivated because it didn't work and staff didn't really seem that familiar with the area restaurants and could only recommended the Applebees, McDonalds or the IHOP. Luckily we stumbled upon some really awesome restaurants just by walking around. The staff was really nice though as was everyone we met in Memphis. We had one cab driver who could have been the mayor of the town. On our trip to lunch he had at least three conversations with folks in other cars- one guy he rode bikes with in grade school and hadn't seen in years.

Lobby of the French Quarter Hotel.

I liked this wallpaper in our room


This is the oldest store in Memphis.


The window displays.






This bar (Ernestine and Hazels) used to be a flop house where ladies practicing the oldest profession would peddle their wares.


A poster in the BBQ restaurant the Rendezvous


Memphis has no shortage of cool old signs


This sign is not so cool. It was posted outside a bar. I saw a similar sign in a shopping mall also.


We did make it to Graceland. Here are some highlights.

Living room with 9 foot sofa


Lamp in the jungle room


The pool room. Good luck finding the sofa




The TV room--watching 3 televisions at once--was Elvis "The Man Who Fell to Earth"


Takin' care of business in a flash


The Pink Cadillac


24K gold sink basin in the big "E"s private plane. Also, he had 24K gold plated seat belts onboard


Some of the Jumpsuits


What a tiger!


My favorite in the collection


Belt buckle detail


Cool Ad for show


Fun movie poster


A button collection

Berch in Ditmars Area

Here are some of the works of Berch that can be found in the Ditmars Area in Astoria. Often he paints seasonal greetings on windows. The following image is just one example. Many shops have this same motif on their windows.


This pastural scene looks as though it could be an early work.


A shop gate makes an excellent surface to convey a bridge scene at sunset.


One of the best Greek restaurants in Astoria, Taverna Cyclades, has scenes of Greece depicted on the outside building.

A close up at the Taverna


This tropical scene has been tagged


This scene seems to depict the American dream




Berch's eagle has landed


A textured wall poses no threat to Berch's talent. This one is like a pointillist cityscape


This seems like some of Berch's more mature work. Skillful use of the medium. The wall finish must have been a dream surface to work on.






Every where I look I notice more Berch in the neighborhood. Just the other day I was on Broadway in Astoria and noticed some works. I know there is more to find in the Ditmars area and beyond the search continues.........

Easter Sunday Stroll

Who is the Captain of this ship? Why is there a Captain Morgan statue outside a local hookah bar? Why not. That is why we live in an awesome neighborhood. Jordan and I took a stroll through the neighborhood on a crisp but sunny Easter Sunday. We crossed over the Grand Central Parkway to the Ditmars neighborhood where Jordan spent many years as a bachelor and where we first got to know each other. We passed McCanns pub and the Greek restaurant where we met for our first date. Memory lane.... Some things changed but alot stayed the same. As I had mentioned in an earlier post, there are a lot of great representations of the work of Berch (more Berch File and Old Signs posts to come soon). There are a lot more Japanese restaurants (we had dinner at one and it was delicious). There are some more cute restaurants and cafes. The Top Tomato fruit stand is still awesome and still open 24 hours. We wondered which neighborhood had more cool stuff going on? I don't know. Luckily 30th Ave. and Ditmars are very close to each other.

Inspirational colors/patterns

I am liking these colors right now. Okay, who am I kidding? I usually gravitate towards these types of colors.

This is from a garment that is currently for sale where I work


These are some papers I picked up today.

Magic nature

Saturday morning Jordan went out for milk and brought me back these beautiful tulips. The flowers were nice and tightly closed. I snipped the ends and put the tulips into a vase. Before our eyes the flowers opened up. I thought they would only last for a day. We went out and when we came home that night they had closed up again. Here it is Monday and they look just like they did when we came home on Saturday night. So pretty and magical.
This photo was taken on Saturday morning

This photo was taken Monday evening

Friday at the MOMA

Friday I found out that I was able to leave work early. So what did I do? Went to MOMA and boy was it crowded. Tried to take in the new show "Design and the Elastic Mind" I couldn't spend to much time there. So many people that it was hard to move around and see the exhibits. A friend went on Saturday and said it was the same situation. I did like this piece. I guess the idea is that the plant would twine its way through the hoops and become a screen.



I also checked out the color show while I was there. I enjoyed that. I really liked the installation of the Dan Flavin piece. It was in a spot where it could really be appreciated. It confirmed to me that where the Dia Center has their Dan Flavin pieces installed is unfortunate.
I also enjoyed lunch in the cafe and this cardboard sculpture .

Star Trek Convention in NJ

A young fan


A not so young fan



This weekend Jordan and I made our way to Secaucus, New Jersey for the Official Star Trek Convention. Jordan is a big fan and is in the midst of watching every single episode of the Star Trek franchise starting with the original series. He is currently up to watching The Next Generation and Deep Space Nine. He alternates between the two because they were on at the same time. It will take him a long time to finish this project and he is very committed to see it through. I do admire Jordan in his ability to start a project and see it through to the end. Like the year he read one book a week or the year he watched 365 movies and kept a journal to document all the movies. He still keeps a movie journal but doesn't see as many as he used to on account of the Star Trek Project. So the convention was fun. It was pretty much what I expected. Jordan was a little disappointed that there weren't as many people in costume as the Las Vegas convention. I was surprised at how many middle aged women there were. There were alot of folks there that perpetuated the nerdy/socially awkward stereotype. And the fashions.........I forgot to make sure to wash my "I'm with illogical" t-shirt. Jordan got a lot of compliments on his t-shirt. He did warn me in advance that he was going to buy a lot of toys........... and he did.



The Second Place Winners in Costume Contest (Should have been First Place)

The Berch Files Begin Now

This is a project I have been meaning to get to for a while. There is a painter who paints on shop fronts, delis, and restaurant windows. Jordan and I have always noticed his work. We saw a lot of it in Jordan's old neighborhood up on Ditmars. Berch's style is unmistakable. Jordan has seen him at work and has talked to him. I don't think he lives here in Astoria. I forget where Jordan said he lives but, he has a lot of patrons in the Ditmars area. I have spotted some examples around 30th Avenue. The Bagel Shop window pictured here is on 30th Avenue.





This Tuxedo Shop window is on Steinway Street. There are many more examples out there. Spring is just around the corner and will be a great time to scout out some Berch works. As I find them, I will post them. Maybe one day I will get to see Berch working.

I Saw the Sign....

I enjoy walking around looking at signs old and new. I am particularly interested in old signs. Sometimes it is a shame to see them get torn down. I have observed many in my neighborhood and now they are gone. I try to capture them before they disappear and become a fancy cafes. There are a couple that I photographed last year and would like to find in the archives and share. The following photograph is an example of a case where an Army/Navy Store closed, took down their awning, and revealed the remnants of an old Nash's sign. I bet the sign was originally illuminated. Neon maybe? Who knows? I am glad I noticed it before it got covered again.

Shop Displays in Astoria

The thing I love about living in Astoria is the variety of shops and things on display. Queens is the most ethnically diverse county in the world and the shops reflect that. By walking just a few blocks in my neighborhood you can experience so many different things. Sometimes you can be in a shop and imagine yourself transported to a different place. Walking home the other day I saw this window.



The next day the shopkeepers changed thing up.



I always thought this hosiery shop window was interesting. The backside enhancements are $49.95 Do they stick on? I imagine they would get sweaty.

Friday Date Nights

The last few Fridays have been great date nights. Somehow going out on Friday makes the weekend seem longer and who doesn't love a longer weekend. So, the Friday before last, Jordan and I went to Arturo's for a nice pizza pie. Arturo's has been around for awhile and are famous for their coal oven pizza. They also have live jazz music which was great. We ordered a small pie with tomato and pepperoni. The small is very generous in size. We had left-overs that almost lasted until breakfast. (There is a midnight snacker in our neighborhood with keys to our house-so I've been told)



So this Friday Jordan took me to a really nice restaurant in Midtown. It was the Lever House Restaurant. The Lever House is a great modern building that always has interesting art installations in the lobby. The last exhibit was by British artist Damian Hirst. We had a chance to see that exhibit a few weeks ago. It is now in the process of being dismantled. I happened to notice some interesting shadows on the plastic curtains that were up on the windows.





So after snapping a few photos of shadows we were off to dinner. The interior of the Lever House Restaurant is terrific. It is described online as Mid-Century Modern. It is the type of design that Jordan is into. It was funny, as we were leaving we heard a British man say "It's like 2001 a Space Odyssey". The food was fantastic. I tried the lobster. Jordan had the porkchop. I had a decadent chocolate caramel tart with peanut icecream. Jordan had the cheese plate. I should not have had the coffee. I was up most of the night with all the sugar and caffeine. Oh well it was worth it. I wonder what next Friday night will bring?

More Photos to Share from the Archives

Goober loves Jordan


Excitement At Rockefeller Center


The aftermath of cab fire


Beauty Salon--Burlington, North Carolina


Paperbag Puppet Factory--Saxapahaw, North Carolina





The folks and Joe at Shatley Springs


Health food served at Shatley Springs


Mom and Dad having fun at New River State Park


Christopher and Cassidy find treasure by the river


The pumpkin and me


Pumpkin with beret


All lit up


Jordan at the museum on his birthday



Me goofing around at work


Goober relaxes during holidays


Cassidy prepares for the party


Dad's Surprise Party


Joe's Special Margarita--all gone


Jordan and George--a winter day at Pier Village


lip sofa in ladies room at Oyster Bar