a beautiful day in brooklyn spent walking along the east river

apologies for the delay in posting – there are just too many things going on! i haven’t had a chance to upload anything substantial these past couple of weeks, but there are so many places i’ve gone and things i’ve seen that i want to share. with trips to manhattan, brooklyn, and los angeles in the past several weeks, i have too much to write and not enough time to do it. in the meantime, a few things i came across during my travels that i just adore:

• the sketchbook project in brooklyn – this is a library based in williamsburg that also roves across the country and encourages artists, writers, even YOU to sketch in a notebook, tag with themes, send back to the project, and then allow others to check out your work. you are notified each time someone checks out your book, and you can check out others’ books through random selection or by searching with key words for themes people have associated to books. so hipster, so fun.

the sketchbook project library in williamsburg, brooklyn

• my new book – one of my favorite things to do in new cities is check out their independent bookstores. my friend, matt, took me to powerHouse books in DUMBO (Distict Under the Manhattan Bridge Overpass…seriously), brooklyn, and i purchased a copy of “a week at the airport” by alain de botton. basically, he was given access to an airport for a week, and he writes about what he saw, his adventures, and who he met. there are photos. i cannot wait to read it. problem: i still need to finish infinite jest, and i only recently made it to the halfway mark circa page 600.

powerHouse books in dumbo, brooklyn, where i purchased “a week at the airport” by alain de botton

• the magic castle – when i lived in la, i thought this elusive magic castle was dumb. basically, it’s this old castle-like house where a bunch of magicians go each night and perform tricks and illusions for members (and their guests!) who adhere to a strict dress code and pay a lot for dinner. except then i heard that neil patrick harris was the president. so off we went, underdressed in business casual but overamazed at the ridiculous amount of times i kept saying “no really, how did you do that??” no photos were allowed inside, but suffice it to say that the three stories worth of narrow hallways lined with pictures to the ceiling, a piano with a ghost that plays any song you request, and tricks performed up close and even in your hand will leave you amazed…and full from the delicious meal, as well. i shall return.

red carpet at the magic castle (like my work badge?)

i hope you have been just as busy and exploring new places on your own. let me know if you’ve found any i should check out! i’m looking forward to being back in town for a few weeks to have some adventures around dallas.