Nose Candy

Quercus from Penhaligon

I LOVE this cologne.  It is a light refreshing scent with tones of citrus and oak (hence the quercus . . .).  It is great for everyday use or for special occasions.

Perfect for:  a cool summer day, brunch outside on a nice spring day, meeting a girl at chill lounge.

Affordability:  if you have $80 it's affordable

Olfactory Rating: 87

This week . . . more to come

Brooklyn, BABY! + MySpace 101

So what's been up with you guys? Hopefully enjoying this sometimes hot, sometimes cold weather! I myself, am just getting over a little (what seems) like bacterial tonsilitis (yuck!). That $#!% is NOT fun! >:-( Dude! I was out of commission ALL last week, but I did get my narcs from the doctor in time to feel better for my boy's wedding out in LI. Before I get into the "meat" of things let me start off with what I think has got to one of the best Office tributes I have ever seen. If you don't know already I am a HUGE Office fan. Although I have never seen the British version and I only started watching into the middle of the second season - whatever! DON'T JUDGE MY AUTHENTICITY! :-D Okay so hear it is - In the upcoming days there are some VERY nice events going on in the BK! Hopefully some of you don't still think you need a passport and a bulletproof vest to get into Brooklyn. Trust me, Brooklyn is a cool place. I was just going to spotlight one or two events going on in the BK, but there is so much to offer I think I will make this my "Brooklyn, BABY!" issue (hey if you have a better name let me know!) So today I think I will focus on my 'hood - Fort Greene. I have been here for about 3 years now, although I do remember being in Fort Greene during the early nineties, when there were no gourmet delis, or sidewalk restaurants. When BAM's Mark Morris Dance Theater used to be (i think) a hotel (for who? I don't know . . . but you can figure it out). BAM was just a big forgotten structure - not even close the stature it has in the community now. St. Felix street did not have all those new architectural design driven homes on them (and actually they are sprinkled all over Fort Greene - these brownstones on steroids, I call them.) Here are a couple of reasons to visit my hood in the coming days . . . 1. Dance! Africa at Brooklyn Academy of Music: 5\20 - 5\28 Celebrating 30 Years of this festival BAM is bringing a virtual army of dance, music, film, and art events to the 'Greene'. I am tempted to say that there is actually TOO much to do, but I won't :-) For a comprehensive list of events click here. But here are some of my personal picks a. Literally ANY of the DANCE events will do. If you have ever seen any of these performances you know that by the end you feel as though you could go home and summon the energy of those energy (except for the whole couch potato physiology thing!) b. DanceAfrica: Gokh-Bi System Sat, May 26 at 9:30pm "Founded in Senegal in 1995, Gokh-Bi (Go-Bee) System has shared the stage with Kanye West, Erykah Badu, and A Tribe Called Quest. Marrying politically minded western rap with the indigenous traditions of their home country, expect to hear the Ekonting, for example, a rare, three-stringed gourd instrument virtually extinct in Africa. Pair it with deft rhymes moving effortlessly between French, Arabic, and English and you have hip-hop as you've never heard it before." - BAM c. Bamako (2006) 115min Wed, May 23 & Thu, May 24 at 4:30, 6:50, 9:15pm "Directed by Abderrahmane SissakoSissako, whose last film Waiting for Happiness played at DanceAfrica in 2003, returns with Bamako. The film audaciously stages a trial against the IMF and World Bank in a small African village, contrasting the political arguments against economic imperialism with the goings-on around the small town, including a film crew making a Western starring Danny Glover, who was an executive producer on the film. " - BAM d. Bazaar Sat, May 26, 12noon—10pm Sun, May 27, 12noon—10pm Mon, May 28, 12noon—7pm "Over 300 vendors from around the world transform the streets around BAM into a global marketplace, offering African, Caribbean, and African-American food, crafts and fashion. Rain or shine!" - BAM There will be an outdoor stage Sat, May 26—Mon, May 28, 12noon—6pm. It will feature a live showcase of poets, dancers, musicians, and storytellers. 2. " The French Evolution: Race, Politics and the 2005 Riots" by Alexis Peskine - 5\25 - 9\9\07 Opening Reception - Friday, May 25th 6 - 9 pm Museum Of Contemporary African Diasporan Arts (MoCADA) 80 Hanson Place Brooklyn, NY 11201 718-230-0492 Click here to view the press release 3. Sundance at BAM - 5\31 - 6\10 "With films straight from the 2007 Sundance Film Festival, sneak peeks of new work being developed with Sundance Institute support, and programs that take you inside the creative process, Sundance Institute at BAM presents nine dramatic features, eight documentaries, a screenplay reading, and 27 shorts from some of the most exciting emerging filmmakers in the US and around the world." - BAM For a comprehensive list click here 4. GreenPoint Beer Works (YES a brewery!) 529 Waverly Avenue Brooklyn, NY 11238 (718) 398-2731 newyorkbeer@yahoo.com Okay okay, so it's really in Clinton Hill (so sue me, it's close enough!). This little find was originally supposed to be the producer to the brews at Heartland brewery. Now they produce Brooklyn's own Kelso Beer. Call them and set up a tour\tasting! Well that ends my little "tour" of Fort Greene (okay and a little Clinton Hill too). I hope you enjoyed it and I hope to see you at some of the events above. Next time stay tuned for D.U.M.B.O, Fulton Ferry Landing (this is new to me), and Vinegar Hill. ****************************************** So I was going through some of my favorite websites and found this article on Fashion Indie about how to promote yourself (as a designer) on MySpace. Now love it or hate it MySpace seems to be here for the long haul so we might as well make the best of it. As a recent myspace member myself (shout out to www.myspace.com/theonlyardenthatmatters), I have found that I can keep in touch with a lot people that I wouldn't normally see on a day to day basis. But that isn't the point of this article. Although the article is geared towards fashion designers promoting themselves via MySpace, I think that many of their ideas can be translated to your personal use or for your own business on MySpace. Alright, alright I'll shut up now . . . [Fashion 101] MySpace Tips for Emerging Designers - With over 100 million users it is no wonder that so many designers are in awe with the prospects of marketing their fashion brand on MySpace. Offering an easy to use interface and the ability to connect directly to customers, thousands of emerging designers have flocked to the popular social network to expand their customer base. The following are some well practiced tips and tricks Fashion Indie has used to build our MySpace and use it as a marketing tool that drives thousands of emerging artists and members to our site everyday. [1] Don’t Make It ‘Your’ Space. If you are using your MySpace profile to promote your fashion brand it must reflect your brand, not you. This means personal photos should be at a minimum, video and music should have some correlation to your clothing or jewelry line, and all text (about us, favorite movies, heroes, etc) should be about your fashion line. Your best bet is to keep your Fashion MySpace separate from your personal MySpace. [2] At the Same Time, Don’t Completely Remove Yourself. It is smart to have at least one picture of yourself on your MySpace page. The best pictures we’ve seen are of designers at fashion shows, working on their line, or simple face shots that are professionally done. These images elude a level of success and make it seem that fashion design isn’t only your hobby. Click here for the rest of the article Peace. A.

Weekend Warriors . . . Can you dig it?

As I sit here at work (ssssshhhhh), it look like the sun is trying to make a comeback and it gives me hope . . . hope for a GOOD weekend.
Yesterday wifey and I went to this fundraiser for this new non-profit African Health Now. They help address health care issues for Africans here and abroad. It was a very good event and we met some great people. I'll have to let you guys know about their next event.

Anyways here your list . . .

1.

Tribeca Film Fest is having their Free Drive-IN Screening weekend starting today . . .yeah yeah it's raining - whatever.
Myself, I am going to check out Planet B-Boy (click for the trailer). There has been quite some buzz about this one.
And not to mention, on some level, I feel like I was a b-boy in my past life (although I'm not sure how that would work out considering (a) I was born in 1979 and (b) I don't believe in reincarnation) This movie looks GOOD! and i mean GOOD!

2.

The Coffee and Tea Festival hits NYC again this weekend.
Saturday April 28th - 11am - 6pm
Sunday April 29th - 10am - 5pm
@
Metropolitan Pavilion
125 West 18th Street
$20 gets you a slew of tastings and seminars (yes I said slew)

3.

Sunday ( IS supposed to be the nicest day so the 9th Annual Blakkat May Day Celebration should be a good time. Live music in a park, etc, etc.
Disclaimer 1: They are in the process of changing location and time so you will need to check their site for updates
Disclaimer 2: I have actually never been to this event but I have heard that it was cool. Also judging from the video on the website it was a pretty ECELECTIC crowd, but I did notice a lot of hippies - not that there's anything wrong with hippies. Hippies can have fun too. Just letting you know . . .

4.

UNTITLED
An Exhibition Of Original Skateboard Art
April 12 - May 5th
@
Eyejammie
516 W. 25th St.
This art show looks pretty interesting . . .

"Eyejammie & Consolidated Skateboards have linked up to present a group exhibition of painters, photographers, illustrators, clothing designers, graff writers, vinyl toy designers, skaters, musicians, graphic designers, moms, dads, cats and dogs. For Untitled, each artist was given a blank skateboard deck to create - with no instructions or time limitations."

HUMAN GIANT

These guys are great! If you never seen any of their stuff here in NYC or on the web they have a show on VH1 now called . . . Human Giant. This one a spoof on Chris Angel's MindFreak. Teleport!

First there's today, then there's tomorrow . . .

TODAY

Spank Rock @ Virgin Mega Union Sq
Apr 24th, 2007
@
Virgin MEGA Union Sq. NYC
Cover: FREE
SPANK ROCK 2 Hour DJ set!
Tuesday April 24th 7pm-9pm
FREE!
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BAILE FUNK

Apr 24, 2007

@

APT

DJ Sujinho & DJ Cassiano

Cover: FREE

10 - until

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TOMORROW

RAZA @ CIELO (This looks good!)
For more information:
www.myspace.com/razanyc
www.myspace.com/yaesta
Wednesday, April 25th, 2007
6 - 11pm
$5 before 7pm
$10 with flyer or RSVP to muzikbutrfly@earthlink.net
$15 at the door

Cielo
18 Little West 12th Street Between Washington & 9th Avenue
A,C,E,1,2,3;L to 14th Street
www.cieloclub.com

"To bring in the spring season RAZA, the newest Latin party in the Meat Packing District, returns with a celebration of cultural heritage... featuring Bryan Vargas & ¡Ya Está! on the live music tip. Juan Valentín will provide ‘la música’ on the turntables that will be sure to keep the dance floor ‘the place to be’. And, for those of you that may be lacking in Latin dance moves, Rodney Lopez (the famed dance instructor in the film MAD HOT BALLROOM) will give a one-hour dance class to begin the evening. "

"One of New York's underground more prolific djs/musical programmers, Juan Valentín is a veritable old-schooler whose musical programming promises to elevate RAZA's revelers and take them on a musical journey from the Old World streets of Latin American ancestral homelands to the pavement of ‘El Barrio’, NYC in the mid-seventies. He bestly combines the new and throw-back sounds that have been the result of musical fusions of the multi-cultural people that make up Nuyoricans; salsa, rumba, deep house, boogaloo, soul, Afro-Latin, Bossa Nova, folkloric, Latin jazz, just to begin..."

Hungry? + For the Philanthropist in You

What's good folks? I hope everyone has been enjoying this fluctuating spring weather we've been having lately. So what have I been up to? Let's see . . . I'll give you some highlights :-)

I went to an art exhibit by Alexander Reyna with lots of tall German people (i felt short, everybodywas over 6' 5" - crazy!). Note to self art exhibits are great for free fermented beverages and random convo. So I went to this exhibit with my boy James a.k.a the Birdman (you can check his blog in my links section). Man, we ended up talking to a random dude about astrology, how to test which eye is your dominant eye, a new type of book called smartbook that hovers over you while you lay down you don't have to hold it (i still don't get it . . . it's not digital or holographic ???), and a bunch of other stuff that I don't normally talk about with somebody I wouldn't normall talk to (not you James!). Anyway, point being it was actually an interesting conversation. I learned a lot a kind of forced myself out of being in a familiar situation. I gotta tell you you'd be surprised how much stuff you can have a conversation about if you just start talking about stuff - and you don't even need a segue!

You can just start talking about something else - kind of like this . . . I also went to the NY Times Travel Show @ Jacob Javits (and I DID post it . . . i think) which was amazing! If any of you want to go travelling through Europe, I went to this seminar by this guy Rick Steves - http://www.ricksteves.com/ that was GREAT! I learned so many things about how to save money and time when travelling through Europe.

I went skiing up in the Berkshires with wifey and oh yeah! - fractured my wrist on my last run of the night. aaaaaaaaaand then I had to drive for 1 hour in a blizzard (insert literary license here) with a PAINFULLY throbbing wrist to the nearest hospital . . . and drive back another hour to my timeshare. Needless to say . . . that sucked. oh yeah and it was my left wrist, and i'm left handed >:- So because of this stupid injury I can't cook or dj or ytpe (that was a joke) or go to the gym. Man I am bored!

Alright so to get back on track - I have a couple great food events for you to check out (thanks to Laura Dee for the info . . .)

4-26-07 -- TASTE OF THE LOWER EAST SIDE @ The Altman Building (135 W. 18thSt.)
7-11pm
See preview invitation here
"A sampling of the food and spirit from New York's most dynamic neighborhood. 37 of the Manhattan's hottest Lower East Side and East Village restaurants offer tastings, and a full open bar.
Featuring a silent auction and DJ. Business card raffle drawing to win a Sub-Zero 46-bottle Freestanding wine storage unit"
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Every Tuesday - VINO-VERSITY
@ Divine Bar West (236 W. 54th St. b\w B'way and 8th Ave.)
$35 in advance - go to their website for ticket info
$45 at the door, if available
call 212-265-WINE for more info
"Walk-Around Classes" with 24-36 wines.
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4-26-07 - African Health Now Launch Reception
@ Sun West Studios (450 W. 31st Street, 10th floor between 9th & 10th aves.)
7-10 pm
Please RSVP by April 10th to neyeson@africanhealthnow.org
The evening will include A cocktail reception, open bar and silent auction
Dress: Business Casual
AFRICAN HEALTH NOW is a non-profit organization whose mission is to promote the health and health care of Africans by providing community education, accessibility to resources and by strengthening social networks.
And this IS a Fundraiser, so bring your checkbooks.
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5-3-07 - "HUSTLERS 4 A CURE" CINCO de MAYO AIDS WALK BENEFIT
@ Sante Fe Grill (244 E. 79th St. b\w 2nd and 3rd Aves.)
5-9pm
$5 (which includes 1 free raffle ticket)
extra raffles are $2 ea. or 3 for $ 5!
A LOT of margarita (THEY'RE GOOOOOD!!!!), sangria, wine and beer specials!
There will be raffle prizes including, free private dance classes @ Arthur Murray Dance Studios, free wine giveaways, dinner giveaways and more!
Come out and support team "Hustlers 4 A Cure" on 5\3\07 as they raise money for AIDS WALK NEW YORK which is on Sunday, 5\20\07