Edison's Ghost Machine Book Launch Party

Saturday, October 4th, 2014
8:30PM - 10:30PM

Two Moon Art House & Cafe 
315 Fourth Avenue, Brooklyn, NY 11215

RSVP to jenniferverafaylor@gmail.com

The beautiful and talented Jennifer Faylor is celebrating her first full-length book of poetry and the launch of her upcoming book tour. There will be champagne, cake, a cash bar and a short moonlit reading of poems from the book. If you're in New York City and not coming to this? Lose my number. It's gonna be a great night. You can find her upcoming tour dates below. 

Tour Dates

Monday, October 6, 2014
Boulder, Colorado
Boulder Writing Studio
777 Pearl St., Boulder, CO 80302
Time TBD
Reading and Cocktail Hour  
 
Tuesday, October 7, 2014
Boulder, Colorado
Innisfree Bookstore
1203 13th Street - Suite A 
Boulder, CO 80302
6:00-8:30 PM
Featured Reading followed by Open Mic
 
Thursday, October 9, 2014
Santa Monica, California
Voice in the Well, Warszawa Attic
1414 Lincoln Blvd.
Santa Monica, CA 90401
7:30 PM
Featured Reading
 
Friday, October 10, 2014
Oakland, California
Storks in the Crow's Nest 
Stork Club
2330 Telegraph Ave.
Oakland, CA 94612
6:30-8:30 PM
Featured Reading 
 
Saturday, October 11, 2014
San Francisco, California
Filipino American Jazz Festival
Manila Town Heritage Foundation
868 Kearny Street
San Francisco, CA 94108
Time TBD
Featured Reading 
 
Monday, October 13, 2014
Portland, Oregon
Show and Tell Gallery
Three Friends Coffeehouse
201 SE 12th Avenue
Portland, OR 97214
7 PM
Featured Reading followed by Open Mic 
 
Tuesday, October 14, 2014
Portland, Oregon
Independent Publishing Resource Center
1001 SE Division St.
Portland, OR 97202
7 PM
Featured Reading  
 
Thursday, October 16, 2014
Everett, Washington
Everett Poetry Night - Experiencing Spoken Word
Cafe Zippy
2811 Wetmore Ave.
Everett, WA 98201
7 PM
Mini Feature followed by Open Mic 
 
Sunday, October 19, 2014
Bellingham, Washington
Village Books
1200 11th St.
Bellingham, WA 98225
4:00-6:00 PM
Reading, Q&A and Book Signing 

Larry David's Play "Fish in the Dark"

Larry David wrote a play! And he's acting in it, too. It's a comedy about "a death in a family, it has about 15 characters, and was inspired by the death of a friend’s father." That's all that's been released about it so far.

Thoughts? If he's anything like this in it, then I'll be happy. He'd be a fun person to see live, I think.

It's coming out on March 5, 2015.

Lady Gaga

I used to have absolutely no opinion on Lady Gaga other than the fact that I fucking hated Poker Face. And that wasn't even a jab at her, I just fucking HATED the song. Anyway, no opinion on her whatsoever. 

Then a few years ago, she stepped out wearing this outfit after a plethora of tabloids criticized her for gaining weight.

View fullsize

Seeing her in this outfit made me like her. Maybe that's a dumb reason to suddenly like a stranger, but that's all it took for me to start having an opinion on her. Still no thoughts on her music at this point.

THAT opinion changed again after I recently saw her perform in Atlantic City. This woman? Fantastic. Forgive me for being THE LAST ONE TO KNOW, but I suppose it's better late than never. I can't describe what a fun show it was. I hadn't heard even one song off her new album Artpop before seeing her and I was still just in awe of her. The entire setlist was great, her outfits were way too fun and magnetic to look at - she's such a great performer. Even her between-songs banter was good! If you have a chance to see her on this tour, there's no reason not to. I'll still never like Poker Face, but this woman is incredible. 

You can check the rest of her tour dates here. 

Mindy Kaling's New Book "Why Not Me?"

I think you should know by now how excited I am by the fact that Mindy Kaling's new book is now officially IMMINENT! 

“So much has happened between the time I published my first book and now, The show; my mother passed away; so many of my friends have gotten married. I’m a godmother now, and a homeowner. There’s so much that has happened in that period of time that I wanted to write another book.”

— Mindy Kaling

A release date hasn't been announced yet, but I'll update this post as soon as I hear one. CANNOT WAIT.

Michael Bolton in Concert

You're not a fan, you say? Well, get outta this blog, bud. Lotta bolt talk ahead.

I saw this fine man perform this week in Mississauga and if you ever get a chance to see him - GO. He, of course, plays the big hits - but even the songs he does "off his new album" are still covers of other songs from the past, so it's a win-win situation. The only thing I didn't enjoy was the fact that he has two women who come out and do duets with him at various times. And then when he leaves for an outfit change (of which there are three), one of the women would come out and sing a snippet from one of HIS songs! What the hell?! I paid to hear HIM sing it, not you, bitch! Anyway, hated that. But him? He's a gem. A real national treasure. Also, THIS reggae version is too fantastic not to pass on. 

The two remaining tour dates he has lined up are in Snoqualmie, WA on June 15th and in Peachtree City, GA on July 26th and you can find information on them here. 

View fullsize

Me and my mom AREN'T gonna take an audience shot? Get out of here.

Manhattanhenge

Manhattanhenge: when the sun aligns spectacularly with the NYC street grid.

For 2014 the dates for Manhattanhenge fall on May 29th and July 12th, when the setting Sun aligns precisely with the Manhattan street grid, creating a lovely glow of light across the backdrop of the city, simultaneously illuminating both the north and south sides of every cross street of the borough's grid. 

For these two days, as the Sun sets on the grid, half the disk sits above and half below the horizon. The day after (May 30th) and the day before (July 11) also offer Manhattanhenge moments, but at sunset, you instead will find the entire ball of the Sun on the horizon.

Half Sun on the Grid Times

Thursday, May 29 8:16 P.M. EDT
Saturday, July 12 8:25 P.M. EDT

Full Sun on the Grid Times

Friday, May 30 8:18 P.M. EDT
Friday, July 11 8:24 P.M. EDT

If you're going to check it out, then arrive a half-hour earlier than the times given above.

For best effect, position yourself as far east in Manhattan as possible. But ensure that when you look west across the avenues you can still see New Jersey. Clear cross streets include 14th, 23rd, 34th. 42nd, 57th, and several streets adjacent to them. 

Amy Poehler's Book 'Yes Please'

COMES OUT OCTOBER 28TH, 2014!

As I've mentioned before, I cannot wait for this since it'll likely be FANTASTIC. You can pre-order it on Amazon, if you so choose. 

Gallery Thursday Nights in Chelsea

Museums in New York can be amazing. They can also be pricey (unless you know where to go to pay no admission). If someone's visiting New York, looking for some non-touristy things to do, I will always tell them to go to Chelsea on a Thursday night because they will likely love it. I first went when I was twenty and I'll still agree now that it's such a good way to spend an evening in this city, 

View fullsize

Every Thursday night between 6pm and 9pm, there are a ridiculous amount of (free) gallery openings in Chelsea. There is such a variety of what's showcased (one place could focus on electronic media and the one next door could be purely installation) and it changes so frequently that you'll rarely see the same thing upon two visits. There's also free wine and sometimes food at all of them, since, well they want you to come. You can take a look at what's scheduled ahead of time at sites like Art Cards or Meet Up - but that isn't really necessary to do since you can just pick a street to start on and walk around from there. Most venues are between 22nd and 27th Streets (and from Seventh Avenue to Tenth Avenue), but there are definitely some more spaces (less congested) spread along the outskirts of Chelsea.

Cherry Blossom Season

The first time I actively sought out some cherry blossoms was last year, and I'm glad I did. Look at that gorgeousness! And late-April is the time that they bloom, so you should try to find out where they're at in your area. What's the purpose of seeing them? I don't know, maybe to inject a little visual beauty into your life? Don't analyze it, just go. 

There's a great (updated) map of what's already bloomed and what hasn't at the Brooklyn Botanic Garden, so you can try to plan the best time to go and see them. And you can find semi-updated information on their blooming status in High Park in Toronto over here. 

Brooklyn Cyclones Hosting A Seinfeld Night on July 5th

Why is this happening? 'Cause dreams do come true. I've been wanting to go to a Cyclones game for years, so this couldn't be a more perfect one to go to. 

"On July 5, 1989, Seinfeld aired on NBC for the first time and 25 years later, the Cyclones will celebrate the show that has left an indelible mark on popular culture. The first 2,500 fans in attendance will receive a Keith Hernandez "Magic Loogie" Bobblehead.  In addition, there will be non-stop Seinfeld themed entertainment from beginning to end. Yada yada yada... you'll have an awesome night." brooklyncyclones.com

What kinds of things?

• MCU Park will be known as Vandelay Industries Park for one night only
• Mailmen in uniform get to throw out a ceremonial first pitch
• Anyone who has a business card indicating that they are in fact a "Latex Salesman" will also receive a free ticket to the game.  If we call the number and it's some apartment on the Upper East Side, you won't qualify for the freebie. 
• Fans can visit the information table for an "airing of grievances"
• Closest to the pin / whale's blow hole competition
• The foul poles will be known as Festivus Poles
• "Low-Talking" PA Announcer
• Elaine Dancing Contest
• Everyone Runs the Bases Post-game (but anyone named Jerry gets a head start)
• Game of "Risk" on the Concourse
• Cereal eating contests
• Anyone named George Costanza will be allowed to join our radio broadcast as a color analyst for an inning
• Players in puffy shirts for batting practice

You probably should get your tickets early, as this night is surely to be one of the most popular of the 2014 season. Single game tickets will go on sale Saturday, May 10th at 10AM.  But if you follow the Cyclones on Facebook or Twitter, you will get access to a special pre-sale before the general public.  For more information please call 718-37-BKLYN.

Honestly, the "Low-Talking PA Announcer" is maybe the best idea in the world. SO EXCITED FOR THIS.