(formerly known as) the pretzel cathedral

hey, guys on the street. stop yelling “hey beautiful. hey princess. what’s your name? hey snowflake. (oh wait, i’m a white girl? thanks for telling me! i had no idea.) why do you have that look on your face? c’mon talk to me, talk to me.” sick of the hassle, sick of the hustle.

i love that i can walk down the street and sing out loud and not feel self-conscious…because everyone else is doing it, too.

getting to know your local bodega and comparing bodega coffee.

two of my favorite bookstores- book court and green apple books. i love bookstores with nooks and cozy bookreadingsnugglespots.

REAL REAL bagels! and pistachio muffins! omnomnom.

brownstones, naturally.

walking across the brooklyn bridge. it makes me feel like i am in new york city circa 1910 in a giant hat and poofy skirt, carrying my parasol.

neighborhoods with character! hanging with the russians in brighton beach, chilling with the caribbeans in bed-stuy, the atlantic avenue hustle and bustle in cobble hill and the hipsters & hasids in williamsburg, just to name a few.

coffee shops, roti shops, polish bakeries and classic delis to embrace the palate and soothe the soul.

community gardens tucked away amongst the sidewalk cracks. so pretty, they’re worth the sneezing.

easy access to the airport (sooo much better than coming from manhattan.)

the pride people have for their borough!

(i’m still a california girl at heart, but brooklyn is rather phenom.)

theme days

a really glorious thing to do in any city, really. the premise is very simple; you pick a theme and construct your day’s culinary, outdoor, indoor, artistic and physical activities around this. my dear friend sho and i used to do this frequently in san francisco. pour le example we would do snob day on russian hill with high tea and fancy dress, or mexican day in the mission with a visit to museo del barrio and the consumption of a burrito. in brooklyn you have many possibilities. some ideas: west indian day, bourgeois day, russian day, deli day.

library holds

there are lots of libraries in brooklyn, and you can return books at any branch! so you can loads of books on hold. for FREE. it’s delightful. also, the main branch is a rather spiffy building.

parks

favorites: prospect park, fort greene park, greenwood cemetary, the pier at red hook. (p.s. red hook=awesome.)

salt dissolving on my tongue’s edge.

running barefoot by the lake with two girls, creating our own worlds.

the metallic and reassuring clang of sunday’s bells.

the cool wheat lager migrating down my throat.

pedaling furiously on cobblestones, striking headfirst into unbridled adventure.

white winter lights and crisp summer sun.

kuchen concoctions of flavorful bursts.

observing flower after flower in the garden, finding our own trails.

hours and minutes spent in the cafe, letting the roasted-coffee essence overtake my every pore.

creating cabarets. speaking in a fluid, languid dialect.

meeting and connecting.

entering the heart of a mountain.

wandering through halls of oil-rich masterpieces, hardly daring to breathe.

listening to the strains of an intimate violin.

letting the grass carpet my back as i embrace the clouds.

chewing a sweet bite of apple strudel, while my hand is occupied with a book that smells of the ages.

melting and dissolving into love.