I have a lot to be thankful for this Thanksgiving. I feel like this was another stand-out year for me, much as 2008 was, so this list could get a bit long.
In approximately chronological order, I am thankful for:
> My parents, for being so supportive of me this year while I was unemployed...and while I've been settling in to adult working life in New York City, and when I've moved from home to my first room, and from my first room to my first apartment.
> Miguel, Paul, and Artie, who made working at Kinnelon Pizza not just bearable but, even, fun. I hope they've managed to find new positions at places that better appreciate their hard work since I stopped working there.
> My aunt Amy, who got me in touch with Garrett Kiely, head of the University of Chicago Press...who, in turn, got me in touch with Jennifer Crewe at Columbia University Press.
> Katheryn Schell, Assistant Editor at Columbia University Press, who gave me a fantastic internship experience that taught me a lot about actual publishing and, later, a recommendation when I applied to work with two of her former colleagues at Palgrave Macmillan.
> Charlotte Maiorana, who hired me, made me welcome, and--in the all-too-short time I worked with her--gave me a great introduction to what I can look forward to in academic publishing.
> Leila, who showed me the Editorial Assistant ropes with humor and patience, answered so many questions, and who continues to be an excellent example of what I hope to become in the next few years.
> Brian and Sarah, neither of whom I expected to work for as long as I did--though I'm so glad to have had the opportunity! As awesome as Charlotte and Leila are, I'm a bit more like Sarah and Brian personality-wise, so it's been great to see how they work in publishing, too. I can learn the best from all four!
> All the other Editors and Editorial Assistants, Production Editors and Assistants, and Marketers and Marketing Assistants at Palgrave Macmillan who have welcomed me, taught me, encouraged me, and shown me how this business works. We have a fantastic team that works well together and compliments each other. In spite of some recent turnover, it really does feel like a family.
> Neline, my new apartment mate. We hit it off at New York Cares and embarked on a long and stressful apartment hunt that culminated in finding a truly fantastic apartment that I'm so happy to call home.
Friday, November 29, 2013
Thursday, November 28, 2013
Playing With Food
Seems I've been doing a lot of this lately. First was the wine bottle rolling pin, then...
Kate came in this weekend. I thought we might like a quiet night in, so I decided to make the "easy skillet lasagna" in my cookbook. Note to self: never assume something labeled "easy" will actually be easy.
I had a rocky start, substituting dried tortellini for the frozen cheese ravioli the recipe called for. Of course, there's no real way to tell whether a packet of dried tortellini is equivalent to a pound of frozen ravioli...so I ended up with a heck of a lot of tortellini. That might have been okay--they all fit in the pan, even with an entire jar of sauce--but the recipe called for spinach and I, with my usual waste-not-want-not attitude, decided to put, like, half a bag of spinach in the sauce.
There wasn't much splashing, really, but I was already fed up with worrying about how much spinach was going to fit, how I was going to transfer this into containers evenly, how much cheese I was going to get in the sauce... So I switched it up, threw the tortellini in a baking dish, and baked it. I call it, "lazy lasagna." Next time maybe I'll do it on purpose and throw even more vegetables in.
The meal wasn't done with me, though. After forgetting the bake in the oven and rescuing it at the perfect moment, I apparently forgot to turn off the oven. Come 4:30AM, the carbon monoxide alarm woke us up with its shrill beeping. Since Neline set the smoke alarm off a couple weeks ago with a steak (that did not, in fact, burn) we now know that the alarms sound different. Anyway, we turned the oven off, opened a bunch of windows, set up the fan, prayed the landlord wasn't regretting letting us move in, and went back to sleep. Aiyah!
The Week at Work
Last week was crazy busy. B.F.'s new assistant, E.S., finally arrived--the same week that everyone was holding massive, hour-plus meetings every day of the week! Poor E.S. had a rough time of it, but he was a good sport about it. Of course, between training and the meetings, I was a bit rushed to get things done--but done I did get them! The whole new Business, Economics, and Finance team went out for lunch to get acquainted, and I think we're going to do some good work together.
E.S. and I ended up getting some extra time together. He'd moved up from D.C. with four potential rooms to see...only for all of them to back out. Since Neline and I have a small living room and a futon, E.S. came to crash with us a couple nights to get out of the hostel where he had been staying. Makes me very grateful to have found my first room so quickly!
The Weekend with Kate
This was the bit I was looking forward to all week--Kate came to visit! Unfortunately, her bus got stuck in traffic, so we didn't end up going straight home to eat that tortellini bake. Yep, really. Instead we grabbed dinner at Munchy's in Port Authority--nothing fancy, of course, but they've served me well in a pinch and before interviews a couple times.
On the way home, we swung by Martha's Country Bakery, the same place where dad and I had sampled two thirds of the non-sweet offerings on the menu after the first round of move-in. I figured it was a good day for a treat...though we had quite the task in settling on which pieces of cake we wanted. We finally agreed to split a slice each of raspberry cream and a triple chocolate fudge, then headed home to curl up on the futon and watch Pacific Rim. Good old Guillermo Del Toro--his signature world building was superb, even while Neline was giggling at the cheesy lines, Kate and I were rolling our eyes at the cliches, and all three of us were making irreverent comments about the fight scenes.
Neline and I got an early start to the morning. While Kate slept in, we hauled the boxes containing Neline's new bed platform upstairs, then set about assembling it. Two hours later, I woke Kate up for eggs before we headed out to the Brooklyn Flea to poke among the vendors. We were amazed how many fur coats we saw! Unfortunately I didn't find anything that fit my few apartment needs: interesting coat hooks, small boxes for sorting our silverware, a neat glass bowl for us to pool our discount cards and mailbox key, a small mail basket for the wall, etc.
We then swung by my old neighborhood to visit the Housing Works thrift shop and bookstore in the Lower East Side (ish). Housing Works is a great organization that raises money to help those with AIDS and HIV find support, shelter, and services. Earlier this summer I happened upon their massive outdoor book sale, so I thought we'd stop in to support a good cause. I'd known the bookstore was a good find--Kate found two books she'd been wanting at half their Amazon prices--but the thrift shop was flooring. One pair of jeans with an original tag that read $139 was on sale for $10! I found a fantastic, fitting pair of work slacks similar to the ones that go with my suit, which I love, for the same amount, that were originally from Banana Republic.
Kate talked me into heading up to Times Square (though I was quite vocal about my disapproval of all the rude tourists) to see if we could get tickets to a show...but the line for discounted, last-minute, nosebleed seats was so long that we took one look and gave up. Kate then gamely walked across the width of Manhattan with me to see Grand Central Station...and the nearby branch of Midtown Comics, where we bemoaned the price of gorgeously illustrated comics and graphic novels.
After a quick warm-up cup of hot chocolate from Le Pain Quotidian, we decided to hurry to the nearest movie theater to catch the next showing of Thor 2. I was all for 12 Years a Slave again, but Kate didn't have her glasses and, given that she cried a contact out at Les Mis, was absolutely certain that she would not keep her contacts in for that movie. As it turned out, Thor 2 hit the spot. The gorgeous fantasy world, fun pseudo-science, and ridiculous plot were just what we needed. We rounded out the evening with Subway before hitting the subway and crashing at home.
We had a slow start on Sunday, starting with a viewing of the Doctor Who 50th anniversary special before packing up and heading into town. We'd decided to hit the museums, since we had to bring Kate's bag with us (not enough time to get back to Astoria to pick it up) and we figured we could leave it at the coat check.
Kate had just visited the National Museum of the American Indian in Washington, D.C., the weekend before with Mom and Dad, so we went down to Battery Park on the very southern tip of Manhattan to visit it's sister museum, the imaginatively named National Museum of the American Indian-New York. In addition to a historical exhibit that was actually about American Indians (there were spotlights on Canadian, Central American, and South American tribes in addition to those located in the future US), there was an absolutely amazing exhibit of historical, contemporary, and modern art done by American Indians.
Unfortunately, after that the wind was so cold that we couldn't bring ourselves to battle our way across the point to the Jewish Museum, where we'd planned to see the Art Spiegelman exhibit. Instead, we made a very long subway trip up to Port Authority, where we hung out with hot drinks and chatted until it was time for Kate to go.
And now, since I didn't manage to post this before Thanksgiving, it's time to wrap this up and move on.
Kate came in this weekend. I thought we might like a quiet night in, so I decided to make the "easy skillet lasagna" in my cookbook. Note to self: never assume something labeled "easy" will actually be easy.
I had a rocky start, substituting dried tortellini for the frozen cheese ravioli the recipe called for. Of course, there's no real way to tell whether a packet of dried tortellini is equivalent to a pound of frozen ravioli...so I ended up with a heck of a lot of tortellini. That might have been okay--they all fit in the pan, even with an entire jar of sauce--but the recipe called for spinach and I, with my usual waste-not-want-not attitude, decided to put, like, half a bag of spinach in the sauce.
There wasn't much splashing, really, but I was already fed up with worrying about how much spinach was going to fit, how I was going to transfer this into containers evenly, how much cheese I was going to get in the sauce... So I switched it up, threw the tortellini in a baking dish, and baked it. I call it, "lazy lasagna." Next time maybe I'll do it on purpose and throw even more vegetables in.
The meal wasn't done with me, though. After forgetting the bake in the oven and rescuing it at the perfect moment, I apparently forgot to turn off the oven. Come 4:30AM, the carbon monoxide alarm woke us up with its shrill beeping. Since Neline set the smoke alarm off a couple weeks ago with a steak (that did not, in fact, burn) we now know that the alarms sound different. Anyway, we turned the oven off, opened a bunch of windows, set up the fan, prayed the landlord wasn't regretting letting us move in, and went back to sleep. Aiyah!
The Week at Work
Last week was crazy busy. B.F.'s new assistant, E.S., finally arrived--the same week that everyone was holding massive, hour-plus meetings every day of the week! Poor E.S. had a rough time of it, but he was a good sport about it. Of course, between training and the meetings, I was a bit rushed to get things done--but done I did get them! The whole new Business, Economics, and Finance team went out for lunch to get acquainted, and I think we're going to do some good work together.
E.S. and I ended up getting some extra time together. He'd moved up from D.C. with four potential rooms to see...only for all of them to back out. Since Neline and I have a small living room and a futon, E.S. came to crash with us a couple nights to get out of the hostel where he had been staying. Makes me very grateful to have found my first room so quickly!
The Weekend with Kate
This was the bit I was looking forward to all week--Kate came to visit! Unfortunately, her bus got stuck in traffic, so we didn't end up going straight home to eat that tortellini bake. Yep, really. Instead we grabbed dinner at Munchy's in Port Authority--nothing fancy, of course, but they've served me well in a pinch and before interviews a couple times.
On the way home, we swung by Martha's Country Bakery, the same place where dad and I had sampled two thirds of the non-sweet offerings on the menu after the first round of move-in. I figured it was a good day for a treat...though we had quite the task in settling on which pieces of cake we wanted. We finally agreed to split a slice each of raspberry cream and a triple chocolate fudge, then headed home to curl up on the futon and watch Pacific Rim. Good old Guillermo Del Toro--his signature world building was superb, even while Neline was giggling at the cheesy lines, Kate and I were rolling our eyes at the cliches, and all three of us were making irreverent comments about the fight scenes.
Neline and I got an early start to the morning. While Kate slept in, we hauled the boxes containing Neline's new bed platform upstairs, then set about assembling it. Two hours later, I woke Kate up for eggs before we headed out to the Brooklyn Flea to poke among the vendors. We were amazed how many fur coats we saw! Unfortunately I didn't find anything that fit my few apartment needs: interesting coat hooks, small boxes for sorting our silverware, a neat glass bowl for us to pool our discount cards and mailbox key, a small mail basket for the wall, etc.
We then swung by my old neighborhood to visit the Housing Works thrift shop and bookstore in the Lower East Side (ish). Housing Works is a great organization that raises money to help those with AIDS and HIV find support, shelter, and services. Earlier this summer I happened upon their massive outdoor book sale, so I thought we'd stop in to support a good cause. I'd known the bookstore was a good find--Kate found two books she'd been wanting at half their Amazon prices--but the thrift shop was flooring. One pair of jeans with an original tag that read $139 was on sale for $10! I found a fantastic, fitting pair of work slacks similar to the ones that go with my suit, which I love, for the same amount, that were originally from Banana Republic.
Kate talked me into heading up to Times Square (though I was quite vocal about my disapproval of all the rude tourists) to see if we could get tickets to a show...but the line for discounted, last-minute, nosebleed seats was so long that we took one look and gave up. Kate then gamely walked across the width of Manhattan with me to see Grand Central Station...and the nearby branch of Midtown Comics, where we bemoaned the price of gorgeously illustrated comics and graphic novels.
After a quick warm-up cup of hot chocolate from Le Pain Quotidian, we decided to hurry to the nearest movie theater to catch the next showing of Thor 2. I was all for 12 Years a Slave again, but Kate didn't have her glasses and, given that she cried a contact out at Les Mis, was absolutely certain that she would not keep her contacts in for that movie. As it turned out, Thor 2 hit the spot. The gorgeous fantasy world, fun pseudo-science, and ridiculous plot were just what we needed. We rounded out the evening with Subway before hitting the subway and crashing at home.
We had a slow start on Sunday, starting with a viewing of the Doctor Who 50th anniversary special before packing up and heading into town. We'd decided to hit the museums, since we had to bring Kate's bag with us (not enough time to get back to Astoria to pick it up) and we figured we could leave it at the coat check.
Kate had just visited the National Museum of the American Indian in Washington, D.C., the weekend before with Mom and Dad, so we went down to Battery Park on the very southern tip of Manhattan to visit it's sister museum, the imaginatively named National Museum of the American Indian-New York. In addition to a historical exhibit that was actually about American Indians (there were spotlights on Canadian, Central American, and South American tribes in addition to those located in the future US), there was an absolutely amazing exhibit of historical, contemporary, and modern art done by American Indians.
Unfortunately, after that the wind was so cold that we couldn't bring ourselves to battle our way across the point to the Jewish Museum, where we'd planned to see the Art Spiegelman exhibit. Instead, we made a very long subway trip up to Port Authority, where we hung out with hot drinks and chatted until it was time for Kate to go.
And now, since I didn't manage to post this before Thanksgiving, it's time to wrap this up and move on.
Sunday, November 17, 2013
NYC Recommendations
I've decided to compile all the places I've been that I would recommend to others. There's also a link to the post I mention them in (if relevant), because I can.
Apartment 138 (8.13.13) - Brooklyn (brunch)
Brooklyn Bagel (6.24.14) - Astoria (breakfast)
Brooklyn Farmacy & Soda Fountain - Brooklyn ** (try Simmi's Sundae!)
Cafetasia (7.30.13) - University Place/NYU area (Asian fusion)
Cafe Katja - Lower East Side (Austrian)
Casa Mezcal - Lower East Side (Mexican)
Dempsey's (4.6.14) - East Village (pub fare)
Dice (8.13.13) - Brooklyn (Thai)
Ideya (6.24.14) - Brooklyn (Latin & Caribbean)
Land - Upper West Side (Thai)
Las Ramblas (11.16.13) - Greenwich Village (tapas)
Martha's Country Bakery (11.28.13) - Astoria (desserts)
The Meatball Shop (8.19.14) - Brooklyn + other locations
Munchy's Gourmet Market (11.28.13) - Port Authority Bus Terminal
Okeanos (6.24.14) - Astoria (Greek seafood) **
Old Town Bar (7.16.13) - Flatiron District (American)
Le Paris (8.19.14) - Upper East Side (French)
Punch - Flatiron District (American)
Sakura Sushi - Astoria (Japanese) (try the "Spicy Girl Roll"!)
Skylight Diner (7.30.13) - Hell's Kitchen (American)
S'MAC - East Village + other locations (macaroni & cheese) **
Tamba (11.16.13) - Kips Bay (Indian)
Topaz (12.15.13) - Midtown West (Szechuan Chinese)
Tortaria - University Place/NYU area (Mexican)
Tortilleria Mexicana Los Hermanos (6.24.14) - Brooklyn (Mexican)
Veselka (6.24.14) - East Village (Ukrainian) **
Birch Coffee - Flatiron District
City Bakery Hot Chocolate Festival (February) - Flatiron District **
Flatiron Hall - Flatiron District
Verlaine - Lower East Side (try the lychee martini!) **
Metropolitan Museum of Art (6.30.13, 6.24.14) [FREE] **
> The Cloisters - (8.19.14) [FREE] - Washington Heights **
MoMA (Museum of Modern Art) (3.2.13) - Midtown
Museum of the Moving Image - Astoria
National Museum of the American Indian (11.28.13) [FREE] - Battery Park
Skyscraper Museum (8.13.13) - Battery Park City
Battery Park (8.13.13)
> Irish Hunger Memorial
Central Park Zoo (6.24.14)
The Highline (7.30.13) **
Inwood Hill Park (7.23.13)
Madison Square
> Flatiron Building
Prospect Park
Socrates Sculpture Park (4.6.14)
Union Square (farmer's market M-W-F-S) **
The Brooklyn Strategist (10.1.13)
East Village Books (7.30.13)
Housing Works Bookstore Cafe (11.28.13) - Lower East Side
Midtown Comics (7.30.13)
Strand (7.30.13) - East Village
Columbia Summer Winds (7.30.13)
In French with English Subtitles (12.15.13)
Lit Crawl
New York Cares
pickle backs (8.13.13)
St. Francis Xavier
> Soup Kitchen
Restaurants
1200 Miles - Flatiron District (Spanish/"Moroccan" tapas)Apartment 138 (8.13.13) - Brooklyn (brunch)
Brooklyn Bagel (6.24.14) - Astoria (breakfast)
Brooklyn Farmacy & Soda Fountain - Brooklyn ** (try Simmi's Sundae!)
Cafetasia (7.30.13) - University Place/NYU area (Asian fusion)
Cafe Katja - Lower East Side (Austrian)
Casa Mezcal - Lower East Side (Mexican)
Dempsey's (4.6.14) - East Village (pub fare)
Dice (8.13.13) - Brooklyn (Thai)
Ideya (6.24.14) - Brooklyn (Latin & Caribbean)
Land - Upper West Side (Thai)
Las Ramblas (11.16.13) - Greenwich Village (tapas)
Martha's Country Bakery (11.28.13) - Astoria (desserts)
The Meatball Shop (8.19.14) - Brooklyn + other locations
Munchy's Gourmet Market (11.28.13) - Port Authority Bus Terminal
Okeanos (6.24.14) - Astoria (Greek seafood) **
Old Town Bar (7.16.13) - Flatiron District (American)
Le Paris (8.19.14) - Upper East Side (French)
Punch - Flatiron District (American)
Sakura Sushi - Astoria (Japanese) (try the "Spicy Girl Roll"!)
Skylight Diner (7.30.13) - Hell's Kitchen (American)
S'MAC - East Village + other locations (macaroni & cheese) **
Tamba (11.16.13) - Kips Bay (Indian)
Topaz (12.15.13) - Midtown West (Szechuan Chinese)
Tortaria - University Place/NYU area (Mexican)
Tortilleria Mexicana Los Hermanos (6.24.14) - Brooklyn (Mexican)
Veselka (6.24.14) - East Village (Ukrainian) **
Drinks
Barn Joo - Flatiron DistrictBirch Coffee - Flatiron District
City Bakery Hot Chocolate Festival (February) - Flatiron District **
Flatiron Hall - Flatiron District
Radegast Hall & Biergarten (8.19.14) - Brooklyn **
Tribeca Tavern (12.15.13)Verlaine - Lower East Side (try the lychee martini!) **
Places
Museums
African Burial Ground National Monument (10.16.14) [FREE] - Financial DistrictMetropolitan Museum of Art (6.30.13, 6.24.14) [FREE] **
> The Cloisters - (8.19.14) [FREE] - Washington Heights **
MoMA (Museum of Modern Art) (3.2.13) - Midtown
Museum of the Moving Image - Astoria
National Museum of the American Indian (11.28.13) [FREE] - Battery Park
Skyscraper Museum (8.13.13) - Battery Park City
Parks
Astoria Park (4.14.6)Battery Park (8.13.13)
> Irish Hunger Memorial
Central Park Zoo (6.24.14)
The Highline (7.30.13) **
Inwood Hill Park (7.23.13)
Madison Square
> Flatiron Building
Prospect Park
Socrates Sculpture Park (4.6.14)
Union Square (farmer's market M-W-F-S) **
Stores
Bluestockings - Lower East SideThe Brooklyn Strategist (10.1.13)
East Village Books (7.30.13)
Housing Works Bookstore Cafe (11.28.13) - Lower East Side
Midtown Comics (7.30.13)
Strand (7.30.13) - East Village
Things & Happenings
Brooklyn Flea (11.28.13, 6.24.14)Columbia Summer Winds (7.30.13)
In French with English Subtitles (12.15.13)
Lit Crawl
New York Cares
pickle backs (8.13.13)
St. Francis Xavier
> Soup Kitchen
Wine Bottle Baking
I have Neline to thank for this post's title.
This week I decided to make myself stromboli. As soon as I unrolled the rectangle of pizza dough from its canister, I noticed that one end was wider than the other. We don't have a rolling pin, so I was grumbling and stretching the dough (I did learn something during my time at Kinnelon Pizza) when Neline had a great idea: I should use the (only) bottle of wine on our rack as a rolling pin! She didn't mind a bit of flour on the bottle, so I set to.
I didn't end up putting meat in the stromboli, but I did layer in plenty of spinach, ricotta and mozzarella cheese, diced red pepper and carrots, and--this is the fun bit--some of the leftover sauce from an Indian restaurant we went to. Thought the spices might make the stromboli a bit more interesting!
Kind of a quiet week, for which I'm grateful. I'm actually starting to feel like I've got the whole Editorial Assistant gig under control--I've finally gotten ahead of the things that had backed up before I was hired, I'm working well with authors, I've gotten excited about some projects I might work on... I took an afternoon tea break with Leila to check in about the "Editorial Assistant timeline" and get some feedback. I did get one contract back from an author who had "edited" it as they saw fit and made absolutely absurd requests. I'm tempted to print it and hang it on my wall for when I need a laugh, but something tells me that would be a bit unprofessional.
The most exciting news at work is that the Business, Economics, and Finance lists have been made their own "department," separate from humanities, so it'll be a bit easier for us to pool our resources and work more as a team instead of individually. As part of this change, we'll be welcoming a new Editorial Assistant tomorrow, which means we'll all be able to focus more on acquisition and research than on the administrative tasks that make up most of an Editorial Assistant's work, but which BF and CC had been helping out with to make everything work.
Our Production team is working hard to get our December books ready to go, so a few of us headed out after work to let off some steam. The original plan was to go to a bar, but we got side tracked by a tapas bar--which I thought was an especially fortuitous change to the plan! Apparently this restaurant, Las Ramblas, is quite well-known. It's tiny and always crowded, so when we saw that there was a table open, we went for it. One of our number had never "given olives or mushrooms a chance," and when she did, she found that she liked them. Yay! (Guess who ordered the mushroom dish? Yup, yours truly.) She got some payback, though, by ordering mussels. I gave them a try...and liked them! So I now like mussels, though I don't think I'd want to eat many of them, and certainly not plain. We also tried two different kinds of sangria--pear and pomegranate.
Yesterday was a day for stay-at-neighborhood chores and enjoying the lovely warm air. After choosing this week's meals I went to get the groceries to make them...but, search high and low, I could not find kalamata olives. Tell me, how is this possible in Astoria, one of the most Greek-influenced areas in New York City? Aiyah! Afterwards I did laundry in a laundromat for the first time. So exciting, I know. But I did do a bit of writing while I waited, so I guess that's what I'll be up to on laundry days.
For the evening Neline and I met up with one of her friends to see 12 Years a Slave. Shockingly, I am not going to break it down as I have done with other films. It was excellent and brim-full, and I'm still chewing it over, really. Some of the reasons that I'm driven to write about films are their disregard for human life and decency and the problematic or completely absent handling of complex social issues. 12 Years a Slave was, obviously, a film that had those kinds of concerns at its heart. The only things I will say are these:
And that's it! I'm sure you're relieved. Kate'll be over next weekend, so there should be more interesting things to write about then.
This week I decided to make myself stromboli. As soon as I unrolled the rectangle of pizza dough from its canister, I noticed that one end was wider than the other. We don't have a rolling pin, so I was grumbling and stretching the dough (I did learn something during my time at Kinnelon Pizza) when Neline had a great idea: I should use the (only) bottle of wine on our rack as a rolling pin! She didn't mind a bit of flour on the bottle, so I set to.
I actually think it worked better than most rolling pins I've used
because the weight was nice and even.
I didn't end up putting meat in the stromboli, but I did layer in plenty of spinach, ricotta and mozzarella cheese, diced red pepper and carrots, and--this is the fun bit--some of the leftover sauce from an Indian restaurant we went to. Thought the spices might make the stromboli a bit more interesting!
Kind of a quiet week, for which I'm grateful. I'm actually starting to feel like I've got the whole Editorial Assistant gig under control--I've finally gotten ahead of the things that had backed up before I was hired, I'm working well with authors, I've gotten excited about some projects I might work on... I took an afternoon tea break with Leila to check in about the "Editorial Assistant timeline" and get some feedback. I did get one contract back from an author who had "edited" it as they saw fit and made absolutely absurd requests. I'm tempted to print it and hang it on my wall for when I need a laugh, but something tells me that would be a bit unprofessional.
The most exciting news at work is that the Business, Economics, and Finance lists have been made their own "department," separate from humanities, so it'll be a bit easier for us to pool our resources and work more as a team instead of individually. As part of this change, we'll be welcoming a new Editorial Assistant tomorrow, which means we'll all be able to focus more on acquisition and research than on the administrative tasks that make up most of an Editorial Assistant's work, but which BF and CC had been helping out with to make everything work.
Our Production team is working hard to get our December books ready to go, so a few of us headed out after work to let off some steam. The original plan was to go to a bar, but we got side tracked by a tapas bar--which I thought was an especially fortuitous change to the plan! Apparently this restaurant, Las Ramblas, is quite well-known. It's tiny and always crowded, so when we saw that there was a table open, we went for it. One of our number had never "given olives or mushrooms a chance," and when she did, she found that she liked them. Yay! (Guess who ordered the mushroom dish? Yup, yours truly.) She got some payback, though, by ordering mussels. I gave them a try...and liked them! So I now like mussels, though I don't think I'd want to eat many of them, and certainly not plain. We also tried two different kinds of sangria--pear and pomegranate.
Yesterday was a day for stay-at-neighborhood chores and enjoying the lovely warm air. After choosing this week's meals I went to get the groceries to make them...but, search high and low, I could not find kalamata olives. Tell me, how is this possible in Astoria, one of the most Greek-influenced areas in New York City? Aiyah! Afterwards I did laundry in a laundromat for the first time. So exciting, I know. But I did do a bit of writing while I waited, so I guess that's what I'll be up to on laundry days.
For the evening Neline and I met up with one of her friends to see 12 Years a Slave. Shockingly, I am not going to break it down as I have done with other films. It was excellent and brim-full, and I'm still chewing it over, really. Some of the reasons that I'm driven to write about films are their disregard for human life and decency and the problematic or completely absent handling of complex social issues. 12 Years a Slave was, obviously, a film that had those kinds of concerns at its heart. The only things I will say are these:
1) I hope with all my heart that Lupita Nyong'o has a wonderful career ahead of her
2) I need to watch some more Steve McQueen movies
3) Listening to the audience react was just as important a part of the movie experience, to me, as the lighting, the costumes, and the historical accuracy
4) Benedict Cumberbatch should be fined for his atrocious "Southern" (US) accentAfterwards we went up to "Curry Hill," which I'd never heard about--an area with a high concentration of Indian restaurants. Hey, I'm certainly not complaining! Neline and I got some absolutely delicious lamb at Tamba, though we're not quite sure what we ended up ordering since there was apparently some confusion in the kitchen. This is the source of the sauce that went into my stromboli.
And that's it! I'm sure you're relieved. Kate'll be over next weekend, so there should be more interesting things to write about then.
Wednesday, November 13, 2013
The Monster "Frankenstein" Post
I mentioned in the last post that I saw Danny Boyle's Frankenstein twice. For those of you who don't know, England's National Theatre (perhaps best known on this side of the pond for premiering War Horse, with its stunning puppetry) premiered Nick Dear's version of Frankenstein in 2011. One of the many remarkable things about this version of the play was that the two main characters, Victor Frankenstein and his creation, were played by two actors--Benedict Cumberbatch and Jonny Lee Miller--who switched off roles each night.
Fun fact: both Cumberbatch and Miller are playing modern-day versions of Sherlock Holmes on different sides of the Atlantic. Check out BBC's Sherlock for overall production excellence and CBS's Elementary for a show with an ethic and atmosphere that are actually as contemporary as the setting.
I couldn't decide which version to see...and I love Mary Shelly's Frankenstein. I've read it four times! So I decided to make this my first major "grown-up" splurge and got a ticket to each version. And, naturally, I wrote down my reactions after each.
For those hoping to avoid the coming thought avalanche, I'll summarize with a (slightly trimmed) text exchange I had with Mom, who wanted to know which version I'd recommend for her, if she wanted to see it.
I love how she thought for two seconds that I was capable of restraint!
Fun fact: both Cumberbatch and Miller are playing modern-day versions of Sherlock Holmes on different sides of the Atlantic. Check out BBC's Sherlock for overall production excellence and CBS's Elementary for a show with an ethic and atmosphere that are actually as contemporary as the setting.
I couldn't decide which version to see...and I love Mary Shelly's Frankenstein. I've read it four times! So I decided to make this my first major "grown-up" splurge and got a ticket to each version. And, naturally, I wrote down my reactions after each.For those hoping to avoid the coming thought avalanche, I'll summarize with a (slightly trimmed) text exchange I had with Mom, who wanted to know which version I'd recommend for her, if she wanted to see it.
Me: I've been thinking about what to tell you about Frankenstein. It's a tough call.
Me: If you want more horror, see Miller as the creature. If you want more pathos, see Cumberbatch's creature.
Me: I will say no more or I will spoil.
Mom: Thanks! Excellent comparison in less than 200 words :D
Me: But I have 8 single-spaced pages if you're interested after you see it. ;)
Mom: ROFL! Of course you do!
I love how she thought for two seconds that I was capable of restraint!
***DO NOT READ ANY FURTHER IF YOU DO NOT WANT TO READ SPOILERS***
I have made negative-NO attempt to avoid spoiling the play's plot or performances.
Please be aware that the play contains a rape scene, which I discuss at some length. If descriptions and discussions of rape bother you, please don't read further.
Tuesday, November 12, 2013
Welcome to Astoria!
I am well beyond owing you all (four? five?) a blog entry! But it's for a good reason--for the past month I have been crazy busy finding and moving into an apartment.
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In an earlier post (the last one? it's been too long!) I mentioned that I met my roommate, Neline, at St. Francis Xavier while we were volunteering. We hit it off pretty well and, what do you know, a few weeks after that she was asking around if anyone was interested in moving--and I was! We hung out a bit to make sure that we were a good fit and then we hit the streets.
Finding an apartment was a long, stressful process. There weren't many choices in our price range. Most people didn't return our calls or emails. Two of the ones who returned my calls told me they no longer had the two-room available but had one-rooms. Dude, if we ask for two rooms, we need two rooms!
Finally I hit gold: a two-room apartment with small rooms but with a living room for $200 less than our hoped-for maximum. I took that one seriously and emailed the broker three times...and got a response! Neline and I saw it and liked it and the rest is history. The broker was great to work with, giving me a blank lease to read in advance so I could ask questions.
The last week in my old apartment was really weird. Since move in/move out was on November 1st, a Friday, I'd have to move my things out on Sunday in order to fit with Mom and Dad's schedule. While I was packing Saturday, Max called the landlord to look into fixing our horrific shower (so glad to be away from that!) and then promptly left for the day. So later that afternoon, when the landlord came, Mara knocked on my door to tell me we had to hide the washing machine in my room. In the middle of this farce, she saw the boxes and said, "Are you moving?" Apparently Max hadn't even told her!
I slept on a camp mattress in a sleeping bag for the week and lived out of a suitcase. I might not have bothered if I hadn't had the first of two showings of Danny Boyle's Frankenstein to attend on Wednesday. (Massive post next--I won't announce it on Facebook, because it's full of spoilers.)
On Thursday morning, Halloween, I packed up the last few things in my room, left the keys on my desk, and said good bye to the Lower East Side/East Village. I commuted from New Jersey for the next two evenings and, come Sunday morning, set off with a van load of furniture for Astoria.
Where is Astoria?
That's Manhattan on the left. Astoria is in Queens.
Once again I'm in a neighborhood with questionable boundaries. Historically, Astoria is more in the area in the circle, and the bit that Google Maps calls Astoria is Long Island City...but, of course, all the landlords in LIC and Upper Ditmars (above Astoria) want to call their area "Astoria" to attract tenants. Neline's lived in Long Island City for a few years, so she was in the know.
My Dad and I met Neline on the doorstep with her moving crew of three guy friends. We unloaded her first car, switched out that one for our van, and then unloaded the furniture. I'd brought most of the big pieces, like our kitchen table and bookshelf, and I wanted her to be able to start settling in. It was great that we got the extra help. Dad and I took a lunch break at a local bakery, ordering two of only three non-dessert items on the menu, and Dad pointed out that none of the first-floor windows had bars on them as they did in Manhattan--a good sign of a good neighborhood.
Back home for another load! We squeezed in with most of my actual living supplies (clothes, mugs, bedding), barely made room for Mom, and took the rest into the city. Mom and Dad helped unload everything and set up the futon, and afterwards the three of us went out to dinner at a local Greek restaurant. Astoria has a very strong Greek influence, especially the part we live in.
Anyway, enough with the words... time for pictures!
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View from our front door. Bathroom is to the right and Neline's room is about a 120 degree angle to the right. That's the fridge on the right of the picture, and those two doors go to my room (left) and the living room (right).
View of the entry/eating area from the kitchen. There's a closet with overhead storage space on the left wall. That's a Maron kitchen table with old Lawrence chairs from all the way back when a table for four was big enough for us.
The kitchen! Pretty nice setup, I must say. We've got a very nice stove and enough space to turn around even after we put in some shelves against the wall. There's a brick wall out the window, so we get natural light without giving up privacy.
Here's the living room! We've got a futon couch (good for visitors *hint hint*) and a really comfortable papasan--that round cushioned chair on the right. Edna's in the window. I will notice in two minutes that it's snowing outside.
Audrey's new home! She's glad to be out of the basement. Shout out to Sam for bringing some sophistication and class to my first apartment! As you can see, that one bookshelf just isn't going to cut it for two bibliophiles. We're working on it. Oh, and you can't see her in the picture, but Lucy is on the shelf over the door.
And, finally, my room! I got to bring my captain's bed from home, so there's storage underneath, and Neline gave me the closet-substitute she was using at her last apartment, which is the perfect size for all my things.
View from my room into the kitchen. I leave my door open most of the time to make everything feel bigger. In theory, if I closed my door that mirror would shine some light from the living room into the kitchen. It does work...but I only close my door at night!
It's been a crazy week of settling in, setting up internet, getting used to my commute--which is, funnily enough, almost exactly the same length as my commute from the Lower East Side. Subways, unlike buses, don't have to stop every single block!
We have a few things left to get. Neline needs an elevated bed to give herself more storage space. We both need another bookshelf in our living room--two book lovers quickly overwhelmed the one bookcase we brought. Because our prewar building has high ceilings, we'll need a stepladder. And we haven't put much of anything on the walls yet, though I may raid the guest room in New Jersey, which (unfortunately for its decor) has many of my favorite pictures on the wall.
I think that's enough for now. I do have a monster "zoom-in" post coming up, after all...
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