NY is smoky AF so stay inside & read this newsletter
I talk about meaty pasta pillows!
The end is nigh, or at least it looks that way outside my window right now. NY is currently awash under a yellow haze as wildfire remnants from Canada are making their way over us. The vibes are decidedly not great. This is your friendly reminder to wear a mask, be safe, and check on your friends with respiratory issues - we’re probably not ok. Only time will tell if the apocalypse is now or later.
1. Noshing 😋
Beef’s May Fancy Dinner™️ was at Forsythia. We opted for their prix fixe menu & were seated in their smaller dining room. Lorenzo & I don’t opt for Italian food often, & after an underwhelming dinner at Carmine’s recently for Beef’s birthday, we needed redemption. I’m happy to say that Forsythia delivered 👏
The absolute menu highlight for me was the agnolotti (braised short rib stuffed pasta in duck jus). The pasta was in the shape of little pillows that popped open when you bit into them to reveal the most delicious meat filling. These pasta pillows were all nestled in a delicious duck broth. I immediately grabbed my spoon to eat this dish so I could scoop up every last drop while the rest of my party ate with their forks - amateurs. They eventually realized their mistake & made the switch.
Just when we thought we couldn’t possibly eat anymore, Beef caught a glimpse of desserts being made on a table nearby. His eyes freakin bugged out at the sight of a cream puff being assembled. Lucky for him Ally was fully so he at both of their desserts - the cream puff & an earl grey sundae.
Other highlights included the broccolo (calabrian chili, herb aioli, cured egg yolk), the bread basket served with a dollop of ricotta (for $3 you can get more bread & it’s worth it for sopping up sauces, which I was told is the term scarpetta), & Beef thinking that bufala mozzarella referred to cheese covered in buffalo sauce. This menu cost $109pp & I’d say it was very worth it.
2. Watching 👀
Last week I rewatched Into the Spider-Verse to prepare myself for Across the Spider-Verse & the sequel was mostly excellent. I am me so of course I have thoughts. Spoilers ahead, skip to section 3 if you don’t wanna know stuff.
I’m very happy to report that ATSV expanded on the amazing art that I loved so much in the original. The animators used a lot of cool techniques to differentiate between the spider-people & their universes. Most notably Miles & Peter B Parker were animated at different frame rates in ITSV & this was expanded upon in ATSV with the introduction of Spider-Punk. Miles was initially running at 12 frames per second, while Peter B was animated at 24 fps. This made Miles’ motion look a little rougher & Peter’s smoother, though after his “leap of faith” Miles’ frame rate changed to 24fps to indicate that he was no longer learning but on par with the more advanced Spider-Man. Spider-Punk was then animated at even less fps to give him super sketchy motions to indicate that he refuses to conform to anything. Each spider-person also had their very own style of websligning, with Pavitr’s style being really unique & reminiscent of Bollywood poses!
Each spider-person’s world also has vastly different color schemes. Miles’ Brooklyn was probably the most comparable to a “normal” palette. Gwen’s world was described as being like a mood ring, changing colors with her emotions & the emotions of those around her. This was a super cool effect that really played with constantly shifting shading & saturations, it reminded me a bit of A Scanner Darkly.
Story-wise, I did feel like the middle of this movie dragged & felt a bit awkward. It took a long time to get to the Spider Society & while seeing all of the spider-people was super fun, I wish we got to do it sooner. My main issue is with the section around Miles’ dad’s rooftop party - Miles & his parents get into a huge fight, Miles is grounded, he immediately sneaks out with Gwen, then for some reason returns with her to the party & his parents are super chill about it? This whole sequence felt weird & the change in tone made no sense to me - I feel like this could have been shortened & brought us to the Spider Society much sooner (and maybe avoided a part 2).
I did absolutely love The Spot though! His introduction was hilarious but he very quickly went from joke to full-fledged villain. Watching that fight absolutely broke my brain & I don’t know how the animators were able to keep track of all of the objects going in the portals. Like can you even imagine being that talented?
Anyways, Across the Spider-Verse wasn’t quite as flawless Into the Spider-Verse in my opinion, but it was still very good. Saodot mentioned that it feels more like an at-home movie & I agree, if only so you can pause repeatedly & appreciate everything happening on the screen.
3. Exploring 🗺️
Before dinner at Forsythia, we took a trip to The Color Factory & I was surprised at how cool it was. I thought this was just another Instagram popup with a bunch of photo ops (and it wasn’t not that) but it had a lot of fun activities! If you are in it for the photo ops though, they let you register a personal QR code at the beginning that you can scan at preset camera throughout so that you can take photos without your phone. Of course they try to make you buy prints at the end, but they also email you the images for free!
I love little treats & happily snacked my way through the exhibits. You get a mini bag of jelly beans right at the beginning, followed by macarons & taffy of all colors, & gelato. You know I also love learning things & there was a room that detailed the history around a bunch of different weird color names. I really liked Scheele’s Green.
Another room had a bunch of different smells scattered all over the walls associated with colors. Sadly ya girl is only 5 ft tall so I couldn’t smell the smells on the top row 🥲 One room was supposed to lead me to my “secret color” & was reminiscent of those magazine quizzes where each question branches you off to a new path. My secret color is Rock Opera, apparently, which is an electric purple. I also really enjoyed the activity that had me draw my partner sitting across from me without lifting my pen & without looking at my paper.
Of course they had a ball pit that they insisted was well cleaned, but I’ve been in ball pits as a child & I know what happens in there. I refrained. This place is pretty cool if you have an hour to kill & don’t mind spending $45.
4. Learning 🧠
While Heidi & I walked uptown through SoHo last weekend, I remarked how we were passing through the area that is home to NYC’s largest concentration of Belgian Block. Most people think the streets here are paved with cobblestone and correcting this is one of my favorite nerdy things to do. So, what’s the difference?
The main different is in the shape & placing of the stones. Cobblestone uses uncut rounded stones, which when laid on the ground don’t naturally nestle neatly next to one another. Cobblestone paths often have additional filler, like dirt, in between the stones to fill out the crevices. This makes for a pretty unstable, wobbly path.
Belgian Block uses granite that has been cut into rectangular shapes that fit together much better when placed on the ground (basically, ground bricks). Because they fit together neatly, very little filler is needed and they create a much smoother surface. The size of the blocks was originally cut to match the size of a horseshoe (4x5in), though the most common blocks found in NY today are the “Manhattan Standard” of 4x7in.
While folks love the fancy European look of Belgian Block, it’s important to note that most of it (in NY at least) is not ADA compliant. I feel like lots of NYC in general is not ADA compliant & that’s a huge issue. I once joined a group that walked Manhattan from Inwood to The Battery & one person in our group was a wheelchair user. I had never even considered how a lot of the sidewalk ramps are not quite rampy enough to allow for easy wheeling. We zig zagged a bit to find alternate routes but traversing the island should be an easy journey for everyone no matter how they travel.
4. What’s Good 😎
Next Tuesday June 13 The Museum Mile Festival returns to NYC! From 6-9pm multiple museums will offer free admission & a stretch of 5th ave will feature musicians, activities, food vendors, & more. 3 hours isn’t a lot of time so you probably want to pick your top 1-2 museums to visit based on their usual prices & availabilities. Though it’s important to note that you can sometimes get free admission to these with NYPL’s Culture Pass or IDNYC!
The Met is always pay what you wish for NY residents & is open late Fridays & Saturdays
The Neue Galerie usually costs $25 & the latest it’s ever open is 6pm
The Guggenheim usually costs $25 & is only open late on Saturdays, otherwise closing at 6pm
Cooper Hewitt is usually $15 & the latest it’s ever open is 6pm
The Jewish Museum is usually $18 & is only open late on Thursdays, otherwise closing at 6pm
The Museum of the City of NY is usually $20 & is only open late on Thursdays, otherwise closing at 5pm
El Museo de Barrio is always pay what you wish, but closes at 5pm normally
The Africa Center is usually only open on the weekends
In addition to NYPL’s Culture Pass getting you free access to lots of museum, the libraries also offer a bunch of other services that I had no idea about! Did you know that you can rent instruments and studio space? The Stavros Niarchos branch of the library periodically goes viral for its lovely rooftop space, but you can also get free seed packets there! If you miss learning Spanish with Muzzy, you can head to your library & use their Mango software to learn 71 different languages. And something very cool that is somehow flying under the radar - you can rent tablets & hotspots. Now I can finally bring the internet to my building’s roof & work up there (once all of the wildfire smoke is gone)
NY has begun experiencing a spike in drug-overdose deaths & I feel like I’ve seen a lot more folks outside who are clearly under the influence of something. Recently, the city installed a vending machine in Brownsville that offers 24/7 access to lifesaving equipment, including naloxone kits, fentanyl test strips, & birth control packs. A few more vending machines are on the way & I hope this is a step towards providing care for those who need it.
NYC Parks has scheduled a bunch of Pride Events for the month of June. I absolutely love taking tours of our parks & while I’m not sure what bird-watching has to do with being gay, I’m excited to find out.
If you’re interested in learning about the history of bygone gay bars in NYC, join the Gay Bars that are Gone walk on June 15. It sounds like lots of folks will have the opportunity to share personal anecdotes in addition to the guides sharing history on this tour & I’m very excited for it!
Happy Pride 🌈