Rooftop

"The steak is a little toasted, but the pork loin should be fine," I explained, manning the spatula in one hand and a Porkslap in the other.

"Yah, we should have put the all the new coals on one side and left the other side open," the grilling expert announced. Sporting a Slayer T-shirt, LA Dodgers hat, a mustache reminiscent American West and smelling like a Grateful Dead show, he gingerly prodded the steak with his index finger. "How long ago did you flip them?"

Acknowledging my inferior understanding of cooking steaks, I relinquished the spatula, "Maybe a minute or two ago."

"I'm Foster, by the way," I interjected, extending my hand around the grill.

"Craig."

Knowing only two people at a packed rooftop party in south Williamsburg, I had smelled an uncharacteristic smoke pluming from the holes of a Weber and took point on the grill. Lightly burning my fingers on the handle of the grill, I quickly flipped the steak and pork loin. With a spatula in hand, I watched the colors change on the Manhattan skyline.

Sunset.

Lounging.

The Williamsburg Bridge.

Fixings.

My conversation continued with Craig for 20 minutes or so. Despite his quintessential Williamsburg appearance, Craig was a managing director at a five-billion dollar convertible arbitrage (google it) hedge fund. He also was an Economics and Computer Science double major. Some people you only meet in New York City.

Here are some more links,

A Restless Transplant (Facebook),

Calm Before the Storm (Picasa).

Muggy

Every few months I get bogged down with work. Life is all about ebbs and flows and this week is a time of ebbs.

On Friday night, I walked along the West Side highway as a thunderstorm rolled in. Even if it's just the Hudson, it's still great to be by the water.

Here are some things that inspire me as of late:

Olives Ahoy: Whole Larder Love,

29 Ways to Stay Creative,

One Trip Pass,

Where Men Win Glory: The Odyssey of Pat Tillman,
Helplessness Blues: Fleet Foxes.

I am planning some trips for the end of June and July. I cant wait to get back on the road.

Here are some more links,

Muggy (Picasa),

The Burning House,

An Interview (GQ).

Skip Those Parts

The warm June wind blew out the flame on a scrap of charcoal bag. Trying again, I lit the scrap with the Bic lighter in the protection of the grill lid and dropped it onto the bed of coals. This time, the flame caught, slowly spreading throughout the salad bowl sized pile. Leaning back in my chair, I smiled in accomplishment and opened a Sierra Nevada.

To the sound of a distant cab's horn and whirr of a nearby AC unit, Evan started packing the burgers between pulls of his beer.

Three years to the day before, Evan, Edge and I packed our essentials into the trunk and backseat of an Audi A4 and set out on a cross country road trip back from New England to Portland, Oregon. Like most 2o year olds, we did it all too quickly, taking turns driving around the clock through the dull stretches and cherishing the beautiful parts.

While on our three day stay in Southern Colorado, I borrowed Evan's DSLR one afternoon. Messing around with the settings on his Canon XTI, I shot the better part of a flash card before returning it with an ear-to-ear smile.

Intrigued, I bought a Canon XSI a few months later and started this blog .

The starter fluid burned off and the flames subsided as we chatted about our past adventures. Set to the stunning backdrop of the Manhattan skyline, nights spent sleeping in sleeping bags under the open sky felt worlds away.

Jacqueline Kennedy Reservoir at sunset.

"We have to get back on the road soon," I said longing for empty sunsets of Wyoming and Colorado.

"Can't wait, but this sure beats Omaha, Nebraska.." Evan chuckled.

"Yeh, we can skip those parts."

Here are some more links,
June (Picasa).

Spoke Too Soon

The rain stopped and people emptied out of New York for the long weekend. With a vengeance, the heat and humidity descended, reminding everyone that it was in fact, late May. In a combination of ignorance and arrogance, I wore jeans for the first few 80 degree days. I am always a little late to embrace seasons.

Practicing hand stands on the Great Lawn in Central Park.

Photographing Sean Crowley's things for The Burning House.

Cheddar Cheeseburger and fries. The perfect summer dinner.

I always wonder where planes are heading. This one just left LaGuardia heading west.

I spoke to soon about summer coming last week.

The Roebling Tea Room

Taking the advice of a few well seasoned New Yorkers, I avoided the traffic and stayed in the city for Memorial day weekend. Exactly one year ago, I packed up my things and moved down from Maine. My first year went by in the blink of an eye. I wonder, where will I be next Memorial Day?

Here are some more links,
Memorial Day (Picasa),

The Burning House (Facebook),

Fosterhunting (Twitter).