the great outdoors

longer days and warmer weather mean more opportunities for dining al fresco. check out some of these neat outdoor spaces:

artz a-plenty

just thought i'd share another great site for buying affordable art... 'cause that's what i'm into these days. i bought this 11x14 photo of the portuguese beachfront from 20x200. ( i'm dying for summer to arrive, can you tell?)

beirut in brooklyn

after four years of missing every possible beirut show within a 90-mile radius of nyc, i will finally get to see him/them play. beirut will christen the northside festival this summer on june 17th at mccarren park in williamsburg, so don't miss it! i'll save you a spot on my blanket...

get your tickets here.

summertime in the city

ahh where to begin?! i think this past week has been especially summer-like. lots of great music, delicious food and good company. last weekend, i went to a cookout at dear daniel's (old roommate) new place. while he put on quite the spread (as usual), i left with more than just a belly full of swiss cheese-stuffed hamburgers and grilled veggies... he passed along some great new music from a uk band called stornoway ("zorbing" is a personal favorite).


we ended up seeing them play last wednesday at union hall in park slope and fell in love... hard. they're brilliant storytellers whose songs bring an enormous smile to my face every time i hear their album. the show was electric, and i get the feeling brooklyn gave them just the reassurance they needed while testing the waters stateside. when they opened with "i saw you blink," their faces lit up as the crowd joined in singing all the words. it was adorable. i'm sure they will be equally as enchanted/ing when they return to nyc in november :)

i also caught bear in heaven at the south street seaport last friday as part of the river to river free concert series. such a stellar show! seriously hypnotic (strobe light aside). their energy was contagious, and the whole experience totally exceeded my expectations (which were already high to begin with). "you do you" and "lovesick teenagers" are my jams, but the entire album is amazing. i think they're touring this summer, so everyone should try to get in on that action. you certainly won't be disappointed.

summer's only half-way over, so there's a lot more good music to come i'm sure. the jelly pool parties started up this weekend, so those will become a summer fixture throughout july and august no doubt. man, summertime in the city is pretty great.

never too early

i stumbled across these swimsuits today on anthropologie.
i realize it's a tad early to be thinking about summer,
but it's hard not to when it's so gosh darn cold outside.
i'm adding these gems to my wish list.

note: i'm 60 years old at heart :)