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SOTU drinking game, 2008 - 2008-01-27
little light - 2007-12-19
hamburger phone - 2007-12-18
why 'grease' is a perfect LA movie - 2007-12-17
recipe: barley treasure - 2007-10-12

2005-06-12 - 11:58 a.m.

my weekend seemed to just ooze out of the week before. its been nightmarishly hot and humid in new york city this last week, too hot to work in my un-air-conditioned studio, too hot to cook, too hot to do much more than walk to yoga class. luckily, i have the most powerful air conditioner in the world in my loft, and because of my vague and only somewhat legal lease i don't have to pay for electricity. so at least my home is consistently refrigerated.

i'm a total wimp when it comes to the heat. i swoon with incipient heatstroke at the first hint of summer in the city. i wear sunblock religiously. i've seriously considered a parasol.

but i managed to leak around the corner to the new gallery that's opened on the next block. i pressed the flesh and even talked to a neighbor about buying one of my paintings. then i was forced to retire to the airconditioned comfort of my own living room to play chess and drink dominican beer until 3a.

finally yesterday, i managed to get to the beach. the only east coast beach i've been to is jones beach, and that was the day my grandfather died, almost 6 years ago. and it was wintertime. so yesterday when z offered his 1977 ford F-150 as transportation to the far rockaways, i reluctantly (due to a mortal fear of the sun) jumped at the chance.

it took us nearly too hours to get there on the BQE. i thought z was going to go completely mental sitting in the shimmering heat. but eventually we made it to the beach, which was pleasant and cool and lovely. it was over 90degreesF with 90 percent humidity in the heart of brooklyn, but it was barely 75degreesF and not a bit humid at the beach. i was pleasantly surprised, but i think z was a little disappointed, as he'd envisioned a somehow more southern-california-style beach experience.

one of the best things about my friend is that i can count on him to find me almost anywhere. he's found me in many diverse locations such as providence, rhode island, and austin, texas; using little more than a cellphone and google! maps as navigational tools. i left him directions to find us at far rockaway and he joined us for ice cold beers before we'd even had time to pop them open. i'd thought ahead and brought my helmet with me, and was treated to a motorcycle ride up flatbush on the return trip. we beat the rain back to my loft.