Beyond the Grid
I was just thinking… What if someone blocked off the city block you were standing on at any given moment for the next few hours. Imagine what you would discover. I thought about this today as I strolled down the lovely, East 11th Street, between 1st and 2nd Avenue. Home sweet home for the past 2 years, but still somewhat unknown to me. The neighborhood is “one of a kind” that consists of many different “kinds”. I live in an old Ukrainian tenement building, facing a brand new condo development, amongst a complete mix of locally owned vintage and high end boutiques, italian patisseries dating back to the 1800s, Chinese dumpling shops (authentic and “trendy”), a stamp shop that opened in the 1970s with over 1500 stamps acquired over the years, AND even more nooks and crannies I haven’t gone into yet. My neighbors are the owners of these shops and they are from around the world. Everywhere you go has a cool bit of history that you get to enjoy! Everything has a story and you have the opportunity to create a new story just by exploring what’s beyond the grid.
Check out Casey Rubber Stamps for customized stamps and a huge collection of unique designs dating back to all eras.
I’m also pretty intrigued by a new discrete place that opened down the street the other day. Art gallery/Asian fusion snack bar? I know I can find something good there.
Two items I have been saving for are a record player and a juicer. Maybe it was my instinct that lead me to Melvin this afternoon. I didn’t realize someone else shared the common idea of putting the two together and he went above and beyond and created a shop that enlightens your mental and physical state. I got sunshine on a cloudy day! As soon as I walked by Melvin’s Juice Box in the pouring rain, I felt the urge to glance into the unique space when I spotted hot sauce on every table and a wall of fresh vegetables for juicing in the distance. Melvin immediately jumped out the door and invited my cousin and I in. After coming from from Organic Avenue down the street, which offers juice cleanses and great selection of raw food, we were struck with jungle fever.. think New York raw/vegan hippy vs. The Jamaican Juice Master. We were introduced to the regulars, greeted by the gang, and lead into Miss Lily’s Variety record shop that carries hand picked selection Caribbean records, photography, and art. Miss Lily’s also triples as a gallery and radio station. Where else can all types of people gather together while enjoying the freshest, most delicious juice, browse and play records, all under the roof of a colorful and artistic Jamaican juice shop? I hope to be introduced to the next new and intrigued passerby soon.
I can’t tell you the day I started appreciating the delicious taste of burgers, cheese, or banoffee pie, but I can tell you when I really started appreciating beer. Yes. I love beer and I still wonder why I never realized how delightful the flavors could be. Maybe the whole essence of Jones Wood Foundry completely invigorated my senses and unleashed an extension to my sense of taste - beer (taste) buds. This lively 21st century British pub on the Upper East Side really brought me back (to the UK). When entering the warm pub, your cheeks immediately regain their color as you walk back past the long dark wooden bar. After my friends and I noticed the secret courtyard, our sight lead us in another direction and we continued down the stairs to the communal table which had the perfect view. We started with the artisanal cheese board complete with 3 English cheeses, but the smelly Blue Stilton took the gold. We also thoroughly enjoyed the mushroom salad with mint and truffle oil, brussels sprouts, one mighty fine “bloody as hell” burger, and a selection of “IPAs” (India Pale Ale). One of my favorites was the Lagunitas “Little Sumpin”. After being presented with our own little home made banoffee pie and hearing some Charles Bradley, we no longer felt we were in a foreign pub, but right at home. 
