Pistachio Ice Cream & Great Friends

Dick Zigun said we should chug our beer? Okay, since he said so.

Went to my second home, Coney Island, on Friday night and helped the Annual Congress of Curious Peoples choose their new members. There were five categories and after we all had a thorough and educational discussion led by James Taylor, we made a decision on a certain category, and welcomed in the new inductee with a chant and a drink. And by drink I mean (if possible) an entire drink. And Coney Island Lager comes in a 22 ounce bottle.

A great time was had by all.

When all of the categories were finished, the audience was cleared of any children and the rest of us were treated to a very special act by Charlotte Sometimes - a new take on the "human pincushion."

After the show I had the honor of buying Norman a Kid's Meal from Nathan's. If you haven't already heard, the Kid's Meal is the way to go if you want a hot dog, fries, and a soda, because it's much cheaper. Yes, of course it's hillarious to see grown men buying Kid's Meals, but it's part of the fun. Especially when you're drunk.

The next day I slowly made my way back to Coney, this time with my cameras and mini-tripods. I checked in with the other people recovering from the night before just as the Sideshow was opening for Alumni weekend shows. This is where performers of Sideshows past came back to work there for a bit. Eak the Geek was back, as were Tyler Fyre, Thrill Kill Jill, Little Jimmy, The Great Fredini, and the Penguin Boy (who still works at the Sideshow).

I finally managed to get over to the Lola Staar gift shop when it was open, and had some great tacos & conversation about Coney and our projects. Since it was freezing, she closed her store early and went home to warm up and I went to back to wandering Coney in search of fun.

Skee-ball was calling, so I got in my regular practice and scored a bunch of tickets - trophy of champions.

Then it was time for an old Coney favorite - pistachio ice cream. The best place for it now is Denny's right next to the Museum, so I bought one and snapped a photo of it. Damn, thinking about it is making me want more.

Anyhow, I also took some other cool shots, including the Grandma's Predictions machine where Grandma is getting visions of the Lovers. ConeyLovers, perhaps? Hmmm...

Derby Girls Know How to Party

Went to the Gotham Girls Roller Derby season opener at LIU last night, after walking there from Union Square (crossing the bridge was awesome with the nice weather). Being an LIU grad (and mischievous) I decided not to wait on line with the others waiting to get in and just snuck into the campus so I could check out my old stomping ground. Saw the artwork in the LLC building, relaxed outside the Honors Lounge, and sucked up some fresh air while checking out the warm-ups.

Then I headed inside, assisted by Regina Dentata of the GGRD's Manhattan Mayhem, who allowed me to hide behind her as I ninja'd my way in. The Gotham Girls killed both visiting teams, but they get respect for trying. Awesome matches and a great start to the season.

Afterwards a bunch of us partied until the early hours of the morning, and a lot of fun was had by all. Thank you to everyone who made it such an awesome night.

It's a good thing the only thing I had to do today was go have a giant Italian meal with my Brother, his girlfriend Lizzie, and our families. We always joke that when they get married, her side of the church will look like Italy and our side will look like the U.N.

SHOWBIZ!

Last night I went out for dinner and drinks with some friends and family, and afterwards we went to the late night show of "This is Burlesque" at Corio, 337 West Broadway and Canal Street in Manhattan. Between Murray Hill and the World Famous Pontani Sisters, they put on a hell of a show, with comedy, dancing, and always something for everyone. So go check them out!

Coney Photos

Went to the Bond Street Gallery today, where they're showing Coney Island photographs by Harold Feinstein, Bruce Davidson, Bruce Gilden, Sid Grossman, Harold Roth, and Henri Silberman. I was entranced, especially by the emotion we all share as human beings, that shines brightly in Coney Island.

Check it out... The show runs March 27th to May 8th at the Bond Street Gallery, 297 Bond Street, Brooklyn - (7i8)858.2297 - http://www.bondstreetgallery.com/

There's also a cool exhibit at the Brooklyn Historical Society called "Lost in Transition: South Brooklyn, Williamsburg & Coney Island", which are photographs done by High School students to capture and document what the ongoing changes in Brooklyn mean to them. Although the Coney Island portion is small, it's still worth checking out. And while you're there, check out the other great items on view. http://www.brooklynhistory.org/

Pink Party, Roller-Rink Rampage in Coney!

Amazing party thrown by Dianna / Lola Staar yesterday at the Dreamland Roller Rink grand opening in the Child's building. In case you somehow managed not to hear about it, she won a contest run by Glamour magazine and Tommy Hilfiger. Her dream, the roller rink in Coney Island, was made true yesterday and we helped to celebrate it with her.

Continuing the whirlwind of Love being thrown at Coney Island right now, Dianna put on an extraordinary event with roller-skating, cotton candy, popcorn, dancers, stilt-walkers, hula-hoop girls, stars, politicians, legends, and the best part of Coney Island - people who enjoy having fun.

After hanging out with some of my favorite people (especially Marie Roberts) at the Coney Island Museum and the Sideshow, I went over and got in line to enter the party. I met a lot of great people online, especially Big Bob and all of his great friends from the roller-skating world. When Channel 12 Brooklyn news came by, we got them to interview him, and he tried to hide behind me and pretend I was Big Bob. I'm a big guy, but I'm not the famous "Big Bob." Nice try though!

I wore my equalizer T-shirt, which attracted a lot of attention, and even though I didn't end up skating (they ran out of large men's sizes - I'm a size 13) I had a great time. I met a lot of awesome people and got to spend some amazing time with others I already had the pleasure of meeting. After the party I walked with Norman (Blake, of course) over to Cha Cha's and we had a couple of drinks with the guys over there - awesome conversations with Norman, Tommy, Fisherman, Donny Vomit, Jodi, Jen, and a bunch of others. And today I was helping the Coney Island Museum stay warm so poor Marie wouldn't freeze too badly, and Dianna came by so we all talked about how great the party was and the plans for the future.


Hopefully like much that has been going on in Coney Island, this will be the foot in the door to adding more positive energy and fun to the area. And maybe in the meantime I can learn to skate!

Philip's Candy, My Addiction

Yes, today was yet another great day in Coney, my friends. I went there with my partner-in-crime and cousin, Jacqueline. We made the rounds, talking to some of my favorite Coney Islanders, like Norman Blake, Rob Leddy, Serpentina (who has a new beer coming out soon) and of course, Miss Cyclone herself, Angie Pontani - who I believe is the hardest working woman in Coney Island.

Oh, the skee-ball! If it's not a sport, it should be. Jacqueline and I played skee-ball, the crane game (we got robbed) and many other things. Eventually, of course, we took a ride on the Cyclone, and after two of the workers jumping on the security-bar to lock me in, I was secured. Yes, I'm almost too big for the Cyclone (6'3").

Anyhow, awesome day. The Great Fredini was in the Museum at one point with his son Kostya who was practicing his magic act, and it was great to see the two of them together, Father and Son performers of Coney Island. We also spied Donny Vomit, who always reminds me of a much cooler Coney Island version of comedian David Cross.

The icing on the cake, other than riding the Cyclone on opening day, was that when I went to my parents' house on Staten Island I had the pleasure of talking to Philip of Philip's Candy Store fame, and he's as great today as ever. I wish he was still in Coney Island, but talking to him in his store on Staten made me smile.

And oh, the candy... Mmm....

Hanging Out With Dick, Charlie & Terry

Today I pulled a bunch of new articles to put on the site, and then I headed over to Coney to see what was going on. On the way there I took some good video of the trip in to the Stillwell Avenue stop.

I ran into Charlie Denson again and we talked for a while about the lighthouse and researching Coney. Then I headed up to the Museum and properly introduced myself to Dick Zigun, since he had known my as the bouncer from the party at Southpaw. We talked about his past work and the Museum, and the lighthouse, and he asked me to speak at the Museum about our family growing up at the light, which I agreed to. So that should be awesome, although I have to set up the event with them.

For a late lunch, of course - Nathan's.

Later on I headed over to the Child's building and checked out where Diana's new roller-rink will be. That's where I met Terry, who I spoke with for a long while about the neighborhood and everything that's going on. That is, until we both started to freeze, when it was time to go!