This year has been all about Martin Luther King Jr.   His monument was recently unveiled in Washington D.C. after many, many years of planning, design, and debate. This May I traveled to Memphis for the first time and visited the Lorraine Motel/National Civil Rights Museum. I saw the room he stayed in, and the balcony where he received the shots that would end his life. I went into the building across the street and saw where his killer laid in wait with the perfect vantage point. I cried and grieved for a man I didn’t know but somehow missed anyway. This October, Broadway has decided to tell the story of the man behind the legend. “The Mountaintop” is a fictitious tale contemplating what MLK Jr. would have been thinking, feeling, and doing the night before his assassination. That evening, April 3, 1968, he retreated to the Lorraine Motel (a common stay for him) after giving a speech, “I’ve Been to the Mountaintop”, at Mason Temple, which provides the play with its title.

I was never a fan of food that was sold on the street. Not even pretzels or what New Yorkers refer to “dirty water dogs.” (a.k.a. hot dogs stands). Don’t even get me started on coffee that comes off a cart. But times have changed. Food trucks now are all the rage. NYC is a hub of food trucks specializing in anything you can think of.   Just to name few, there are: ·     Gorilla Cheese NYC selling gourmet grilled cheese sandwiches, ·     The Big Gay Ice Cream Truck that has ice cream treats delicious and original you won’t see them anywhere else, ·     Chef Rocco Dispirito even has one selling healthy foods. I have not yet tried these but they are on my to do list, which is growing by the second. For every item I cross off, it appears five more go on. But one food truck I am proud and satisfied to say I have tried, loved, and can cross off my list, despite that I will be going back, is: Wafels and Dinges. Can I just say I love the Belgians!! They are geniuses. I wil

No matter where I go I try to fit in something that I can cross of my to-do list. I like to merge my two worlds as it were. My “real” life is going to my day job and completing my obligations to family and friends. My “second” world is this blog and all the things I want to do and see. Since timing is always an issue and I never seem to have enough of it, maximizing locations is the only way I can function at all. This is especially true if I am in an area I am not likely to go back to soon. Recently I was in New Rochelle and in between running errands there, I had a window of opportunity: one whole hour to myself. I decided to use that time to swing by Thomas Paine’s Cottage. It’s what you would do, right? Actually it is a place I have known about for some time and only recently made a mental note to get there. I love all historical places, even if the person isn’t buried in their backyard, although if he were buried there that would have been a definitely plus for me. In the i

I love lobster tails, both kinds. The seafood version is to die for with melted butter and the best can be found at Scoma’s in San Francisco. However, when we are talking about the best pastry version, luckily that answer is a lot closer to home for me. Ferrara Bakery and Cafe in Little Italy New York City is where I want to live out my final days.  For those who may have never heard of lobster tail as a dessert, let me tell you what you have been missing. Lobster tails are Italian pastries that have a hard, crunchy shell (sort of in the shape of you guessed it- a lobster tail) that is filled to the brim with French Vanilla custard.   Rarely it may have a cannoli filling but those aren’t as good. Powered sugar goes on top for fun. The combination of the crunch and semi-sweet filling is over the top. Since I am not really into sweets, the texture adds to the appeal. It is my all time favorite kind of dessert. Every year if I am home for my birthday it is what I have for bre