Irene in Beacon: Fishkill Creek

I ended up weathering Irene north of NYC, in Beacon (I couldn't miss a fabulous birthday bash that had been on the calendar for quite some time!). The storm wasn't so bad on my friends' little street--other than an 11-hour power outage, a looming dead branch that never came down, and (for me) having to stay an extra day waiting for the Metro-North Hudson Line to be cleared, all was well for us. But the Fishkill Creek was another story, so I wandered over to take a gander...and some video and photos...

Pic O' The Day: Nobody Innocent

Chumley's Update...

...in today's Times. Still no sign of completion. *sigh* (Well, perhaps there is, but why am I not believing it?)

Return To Storm King

It's been at least a decade since I first visited the Storm King Art Center, about an hour north of NYC in the west side of the Hudson in New Windsor, NY. It's ridiculously close to Beacon--which I visit at least once a month--so it's a bit embarrassing that I haven't returned sooner. Founded 50 years ago, it's 500 acres of rolling land, meadow, and forest dotted with fascinating sculptures by some of modern art's masters, including Alexander Calder, Maya Lin, Andy Goldsworthy, and numerous others.

It's a beautiful, beautiful place to spend the day and wander around. Let the photos speak for themselves...

Maya Lin's Storm King Wave Field.

Andy Goldsworthy's The Wall at Storm King.

Roy Lichtenstein's Mermaid.

Mark di Suvero from afar.

Some Calder, of course.

In the background, a new acquisition by Zhang Huan, Three Legged Buddha.

Okra Time!

Thanks to a generous neighbor with too many plants, we've been growing a row-and-a-half of slimy deliciousness in our Stony Kill plot this year. Having grown up north of the Mason-Dixon, I never knew what it looked like on as it grew...but now I do! Gorgeous flower, pointy green goodness. Yum.

Pic O' The Day: Hope & A Shopping Cart

Official KKNY Decree: The NYC Scent Of Summer 2011 Is...An Olfactory Kaleidoscope Featuring Garbage & Weed

I know, I know...it's late in coming this year. People have been asking, "KK, you haven't called it yet! What's the scent of NYC 2011?" Well, I must admit, it's been a difficult decision this time around. The smell of 2010 was easy, but this year's been problematic. I was going to call garbage in early July, but whenever I left my neighborhood, the smell just didn't stick as well as it usually does. Frankly, it's been an odd summer, and there has been no single scent that's taken precedence over the others.

So, I've decided to call this year an Olfactory Kaleidoscope, comprised mainly of garbage with an overlay of weed (apparently, the economic doom and gloom has lead to the formation a cloud of second-hand pot smoke that has been hovering over the city...and I'm not the only one who's noticed it). Lower Manhattan smells like urine (though the pot cloud has probably grown in strength over the past week with all of the recent market jitters), many residential neighborhoods smell like dog poo, and West Chelsea actually has occasional floral whiffs--thank you High Line!

But garbage and weed permeates everything, so...there we go!

In Today's Dining Section: On The Evolution Of NYC's Hot Dogs

A great article in today's Times on how today's changing street food scene is altering one of New York's staples: the hot dog.