Practically a prairie!

Per my little teaser yesterday, my brother and I visited the High Line! (Did you guess that?)

For those of you who don't know, the High Line is a new, urban garden on the west side of NYC.

Several years ago, the city of NY decided to take a one-mile section of railroad tracks from a former elevated freight railroad spur, and turn it into a garden.

It's the one of the coolest restorations projects I've ever seen!

There are tons of different aspects of the High Line that encourage interaction with nature.

This interesting structure was actually a series of bird houses.

(And yes, most New Yorkers would kill for the view of the Empire State Building that the birds had!)

I love the way the public spaces of the High Line blend into the garden spaces.

And since I've always loved prairie grasses, I think the landscaping is perfect!

Don't you agree?

So the next time you're in NYC, I think you should head on down to the High Line.

And even if you've been before...

You should go back...

Because another section of the High Line was opened this summer, and it's great!

In the new section, there are areas where trees were planted at street-level, so the top of the trees reach the elevated park... it's so cool!

Thanks for joining me on this photo tour of the park!

(And SBV: thanks for visiting me and carrying around my bag all afternoon- I had a blast!)

Thank you for stopping by- I hope you have a great day!

"... It gives a lovely light!"

There are few things more wonderful than a summer campfire. There's something about the cool air, a gentle breeze, the buzz of insects, and a smoky scent that make me supremely happy. So when we were on vacation I got to enjoy a lovely little blaze, courtesy of my brother!
My brother makes great fires! He was an Eagle Scout so he can whip up an inferno in no time flat!
Before long, he had built this perfect bonfire. But the fun didn't stop there, because earlier in the day we had stopped to buy the ingredients for s'mores!
I don't know about you, but I love s'mores! I love how hard it is to be patient while the marshmallow toasts... I love the way the chocolate gets all mooshy once the s'more is completed... and I love the way I get messy and gooey every time I eat this blessed treat! Like most folks, I have a very specific method to create the best s'mores. First, I skewered the marshmallow and toasted it until the end was a bubbly golden-brown.
Then I carefully removed the marshmallow, and reinserted the skewer on the other end before returning it to the fire. (This ensures that my marshmallow is toasted on both sides, and therefore the perfect consistency to make the messiest dessert!) After I was content with the color of the marshmallow, I slid it off the skewer and smashed it between graham crackers and a few pieces of chocolate.
Talk about yummy! I must admit: it was hard to stop eating long enough to take this picture.
And as usual, I got sticky marshmallow gunk everywhere... including my shutter button! But the mess was well worth it, because you can't beat a good s'more!
After we'd had our fill of s'mores and mosquito bites, we decided to call it a night. My brother deconstructed his fiery masterpiece, and we watched as the embers burned into nothing.
Talk about a fun way to spend the evening! I hope you had a great weekend- thanks for stopping by!

"School's out for summer!"

I'm officially on summer vacation, which means I won't be back to this part of town for a couple months!
As I was cleaning up my desk on my last day, it started to hit me that I won't be back for quite a while. And while I won't miss things like this...
I might miss these...
And this! (Frankly, I'm just hoping it's still alive when I get back...)
But do you know what I'll miss most of all? My daily iced tea from Starbucks!
And while I might miss a few minor things while I'm away, I can't wait to embark on what will certainly be an epic summer! I have all sorts of exciting things planned, including various travels and lots of time spent with people that I love- it's going to be so much fun!

So, what fun and exciting plans do you have for the summer?

An evening in Bryant Park

Last night, I spent almost 5 hours in Bryant Park. Don't worry- it's not Fashion Week yet...
It was the HBO Bryant Park Summer Film Festival. Every Monday throughout the summer, a movie is shown at dusk... for free. As you can imagine, it's fun and outdooors, which means it's also POPULAR! So I got there around 6...
Took off my sandals...
Plopped down my cooler...
And read a book.
I had a bit of free time, so I took some pictures from where I sat... it was a beautiful day but SO HOT! 95 degrees is not my favorite weather, to say the least...
But lucky for me, this handsome guy showed up!
I had brought a picnic- I was so excited to use some of my new "picnic-ware"!
I brought some fruit...
And olives, hummus, and a version of caprese salad.
When he does things like this, I just crack up!
In order to see the screen, the movie doesn't start until dusk... which meant that we had nothing to do until 8:30 pm.
Thankfully SFS' iTouch had enough battery to keep us entertained. Although he totally creamed me in Tank Wars, I blew him out of the water in Big Buck Hunter. I know- I'm just as surprised as you!
I really like this photo- plus, it's a great shot of SFS' fancy watch.
As we waited, it started to get darker...
And WAY more crowded!
We were starting to get antsy...
But lucky for us, it was getting darker and DARKER!
And the previews started on the button! (Also, how great does the "Where the Wild Things Are" look? Way to go Spike Jonze!)
We were supposed to have scattered thunderstorms all night. Although the sky looked ominous at times, the weather held off.
I don't think I've mentioned it, but the movie was The Magnficent Seven. It was good, though I have a hard time seeing Yul Brynner as anything other than the King of Siam or Rameses II!
We had such a good time! Next week is the last movie of the summer- and they're showing Close Encounters of the Third Kind... maybe we'll see you there? I hope you have a great Tuesday!