I have only just begun to appreciate this wonderful borough. 3 1/2 years of working everyday and letting this city envelope you in the busy noise it rattles can cloud your patience. Sitting in my kitchen, birds chirping behind me, seven-o-clock sun close to setting brings a warmth I have been sorely missing. For 3 1/2 years all I saw was gray. On the 7th floor of an office building on 26th St. and Park Avenue South (near Herman Melville Square!) in Manhattan was where I lost myself each day. I never wanted to work for a big, dumb corporation but it happened out of necessity. Cash flows like water through your fingertips with the great restaurants (Baoguette, Artichoke and Little Owl, ya'll) that are my crack. Though my job was in publishing and it was chill, I still felt like a weird echo of myself waving at people only truly getting to know one or two people that were awesome. Shit was bugged out.

I left that job three weeks ago. Now all I see is sun every morning. I wake up and write from nine in the morning until five in the afternoon with little breaks to take walks in Greenpoint. Leaves that wink through sunlight like clapping on Kent Avenue (easily my neighborhood's prettiest street). I'm off to Syracuse in a few weeks. Then, I'll be in Texas for the month of July doing research in Houston and Austin that involves lots of Mexican food, BBQ, UGK, cars, Astros games, the new family dog Max, swimming with my niece and nephew and working on a few stories. But first, a quick recap of what I've been up to these past few weeks.


My man Andres was doing a signing for his book on Babe Ruth:


The B-R-O came in to town and we ate, drank and did other things that will go into CIA files. Like, eat banh mi and watch weird art at P.S. 1 MoMa in Queens. I haven't partied like this for a week straight since SXSW when I was in my forties. Zing!

Crystal Castles shot:



Sunday parties on a Brooklyn rooftop/loft where we played Super Mario Bros. that was projected on the ceiling:



Went to the American Museum of Natural History:




Chillin' on our Greenpoint bus stop waiting for the B43:


Celebrating Keatlo's B-Day with fake middle school smokes:


I turned 28 at Coco66 w/ dope friends:


Some dude even had balls on his face:


And my boy Rah even gave me the bestest gifts a friend could give: damn good tacos personally delivered from Sunset Park and donuts from Peter Pan!




And we went to the Deitch Projects in Queens:







I will miss this goddamn borough very, very much. But, this is not the end to the story, yes?

Going away party is still to come.

I have to pack now.