Derek Powazek, co-publisher of JPG Magazine, was in New York during the August heat wave, and has collected the photos he took around town into a new book — Apple Sweat: The 2006 Heat Wave from NYC Streets. You can see some of the photos here (in the August archive) or here. Derek is using Lulu.com to print the book. Check out Apple Sweat, and think about putting together your own photo book.
Cool Project Alert
Felicia Sullivan’s interview with Jancee Dunn, author of But Enough About Me, at SmallSpiralNotebook.com.
Alex Beauchamp’s Girl At Play Blog.
Cat Morley’s Cut Out + Keep Blog.
Now this is a site: The Great Taco Hunt, "a guide to the Los Angeles Taco Scene." Great descriptions, great photos and a great number of reviews. Oh how I wish I had easier access to the Mexican food scene in LA so that I could start trying out all these taco joints.
They just don’t have them out here in NY. Nothing even close.
This site reminded me of my favorite California Mexican food joints. I had probably thought about them just the day before, because I’m always thinking of them. A constant craving. But this site made me want to get back to those places with a vengeance. In San Diego, my favorite spot was El Cuervo. Bean burritos to die for, and nachos piled so high with guacamole, you wondered where they were storing all the avocados they must have needed to get through a day’s service of food. A close second (and open after midnight — BINGO!) was La Posta. Delish, and even more delish after a night out drinking.
In San Francisco, it’s all about the burritos. And the place I went, and wish I could go to right now, was Taqueria Cancun in the Mission. Holy smokes! Not just the best burritos I have ever eaten — It’s some of the best food I have ever eaten.
I’ve been on the great burrito hunt since the day I landed in NY. The search continues. At least I can feast my eyes on the delicious taco treasures found at The Great Taco Hunt.
My best buddy Gordon Hurd (that’s Kendy to me) has just launched a new site: After The MFA. The site intends to be an exploration of what happens after one gets an MFA in writing. Here’s the introductory post (and no, I didn’t buy that bit about the green tea and the chocolate chip cookie), as well as this informative and hilarious entry: Seven Things I learned in a Creative Writing MFA Program. (Number #3 is spot on. I believe that rule applies to many places outside of the MFA workshop setting.) And there’s also an excellent interview with Lewis Buzbee, author of The Yellow-Lighted Bookshop. Looking forward to more posts about life after the MFA, as well as explorations of the writing life in general.
Jenny Vorwaller’s "painting trip of a lifetime" in the Tuscan countryside.
An interview with Felicia Sullivan at CruelestMonth.com.
Samantha Wolov’s blog and photography.
The Long Tail blog.
Jami Attenberg’s new book, Instant Love.
These two awesome food blogs: Cream Puffs in Venice and eggbaconchipsandbeans.
Paul Theroux’s Dark Star Safari.
These excellent book sites: Book-Blog.com, Bookburger, The Written Nerd, and Conversations with Famous Writers.
This 11,000 word post that explores a difficult editing process between writer and editor (with commentary by the writer).
My good buddy G passed along this excellent link: Midtown Lunch. The site features reviews of lunchtime eatery options in Manhattan’s Midtown area, and it’s an invaluable resource. For those who work in the area, like I unfortunately do, no explanation is needed as to why this site is so necessary, but for those who are lucky enough to be able to grab lunch elsewhere, I’ll sum it up: $9 subpar sandwiches at every soup/salad/sandwich joint, and a slew of restaurants of the overly priced/lowest quality variety. But clearly there are options, as Midtown Lunch is proving with its insightful reviews.
One place I would like to give a shout out to, a place that I have visited three times in a single week because it’s so delicious AND cheap, is the Indian food vendor cart on 53rd and Park. $4 for a veggie plate. You just cannot beat that. I hope the editor of Midtown Lunch checks it out and posts a review (even thought it might make the lines even longer).
Very cool found photos site: BigHappyFunhouse.
One of my favorite poetry sites — No Tell Motel — has published a wonderful collection of poetry: The Bedside Guide To No Tell Motel. Edited by site editors Reb Livingston and Molly Arden, the book is full of sexy, naugthy poems of desire. A true bedside guide.
When was the last time you bought a collection of poetry? It’s probably been a while. So make a point of checking out some new poetry, and put this book at the top of your list.
Jennifer Baylis and Andrea M. Dominguez have launched The Nipple Project — a community-based art project that serves to challenge the current bra fashion of more bust but "maximum nipple coverage." Why the push to let it all hang out, but then work so hard to hide the nipple, the creators of the project ask? So with this project they hope to "reclaim the nipple." If you are interested in participating, you are invited to submit your own hand-made artistic interpretation of your nipple (or of someone’s nipple that you love). An exhibit, set to be unveiled during Breast Cancer Awareness Month in October 2006, will feature all of the nipple submissioins "sewn, wired or stitched together to create a large hanging wall installation." Here are the submission guidelines.
Check out 52 Weeks, a very cool project by Jason McHenry. He created a shadow box every week for an entire year, and kept a detailed record of all the objects featured in the boxes as well as journal entries. An incredible way to document a year, and the online presentation really reveals the depth and scope of the project. Definitely worth a look.