Will & Jimi

Will & Jimi, originally uploaded by ronntaylor

Met up with Jimi & Will for the first time since the 1st of the year. (Can't believe it's been more than five months since we last hung out.) Had dinner at The Olive Tree Cafe, then walked over to Rice To Riches. OMG!! Extravagant rice puddings with various flavors and delightful toppings.

The pic: Jimi and I took pics of each other, fooling around with our digicams. Here's Jimi's pic of me and the hubby:

Brooklyn Comfort Food

Brooklyn Comfort Food, originally uploaded by ronntaylor

We enjoyed a late breakfast at Tom's Restaurant in Prospect Heights, Brooklyn. I use to share an apartment with my twin a few blocks away. This was our first visit in several months.

The usual for me: waffles with turkey sausage. Besides the standard cinnamon and citrus butter, they've introduced a peach and walnut butter.

My baby's usual: Pancakes (this time, Apple, although he likes to order Banana Walnut most times, and Lemon Ricotta once or twice a year) with a cup of grits.

781 Washington Avenue

781 Washington Avenue, originally uploaded by ronntaylor

A community mural in Prospect Heights, Brooklyn. This is just a small detail as the mural extends further along Washington Avenue towards Lincoln Place.

'Unknown Weegee' At ICP

I love this picture, because although it somewhat surprises me, it's typical Weegee. From the New York Times:

'Unknown Weegee,' on Photographer Who Made the Night Noir

Arthur Fellig, better known, and very well known, as Weegee (1899-1968). From the 1930's into the 1950's, he was a photographer for New York tabloids, the kind of papers Ralph Kramden might have read. Tireless, loquacious, invasive, he cruised the wee hours. For him the city was a 24-hour emergency room, an amphetamine drip.

There's no excuse for me not to make this show-

"Unknown Weegee" remains through Aug. 27 at the International Center of Photography, 1133 Avenue of the Americas, at 43rd Street, (212) 857-0000.

And enjoy the slideshows of some of the photographs at the above NY Times link.

Black Gay and Lesbian Archive At The Schomburg

I already have a prior engagement, but would mos def attend this if I could (pardon such a late notice):

Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture Programs Calendar

The first of two programs co-sponsored by the Schomburg Center's Black Gay and Lesbian Archive will focus on political activity within the black same gender loving community over the past 30 years. Currently, politically active LGBT/SGL activists of African descent are a mix of seasoned and new thinkers, engaging a range of issues including marriage equality, homophobia in the black church, and hate crimes, among other issues. Panelists include Samiya Bashir (The Right to Marry Campaign), Larry D. Lyons, II (Rashawn Brazell Memorial Fund), Kevin McGruder (Gay Men of African Descent), and others. For more information on LGBT programs throughout the month of June see the Art & Activism website.

This free event will begin at 6:00pm tomorrow night. More info--

Langston Hughes Auditorium, Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, 515 Malcolm X Boulevard, (Enter at 103 West 135th Street), New York, NY 10037-1801. (directions)

...Next They'll Burn The Faggots & Niggers

You're telling me in 2006 'phobes are still burning books! I also like how the article barely mentions the burning of books in the African American section.

Link via Republic of T.:

Gay/Lesbian Books Burned In Lakeview Library

'...[S]omeone is believed to have set fire to books with a cigarette lighter and that about 90 gay and lesbian books were destroyed, and that about 10 books destroyed in the African American literature section.

Why the local police department isn't investigating this as a hate crime is beyond me.

Black LGBT/SGL Publishers Speak Out

On vacation, so that explains my very belated posting of the following:

Black LGBT/SGL programs at the Schomburg Center
Tuesday, June 27, 2006, 6:00 PM to 8:00 PM

The second of two programs co-sponsored by the Schomburg Center's Black Gay and Lesbian Archive will focus on cultural publications produced by non-heterosexual people of African descent in the United States. It is a little known fact that the majority of black LGBT/SGL books and periodicals have been produced by small presses or self-published. This panel will discuss the complicated history of the black LGBT/SGL press, and the challenges independent and self-publishing pose historically and currently. Panelists include Lisa C. Moore (RedBone Press), Charlene Cothran (Venus Magazine), Colin Robinson (Other Countries), and others. Steven G. Fullwood, project director for the Black Gay and Lesbian Archive, will moderate the panel.

For more information on LGBT programs throughout the month of June see the Art & Activism website.

Parachute Jump

Parachute Jump, originally uploaded by ronntaylor

Me and my baby paid a visit to the New York Aquarium. It was the first time for the both of us. It doesn't compare to the Baltimore Aquarium, but it was a fun and pleasant visit. There were several school groups and plenty of adults enjoying themselves as well.

We also visited the Coney Island area to eat (a couple of dogs from Nathan's Famous, of course!) and walk on the boardwalk. Here's a shot of the Parachute Jump at old Steeplechase Park.

(more info after the jump)

The Parachute Jump is a no-longer-operational amusement ride in Coney Island, Brooklyn, New York, whose iconic open-frame steel structure remains a Brooklyn landmark. Eighty meters (262 feet) tall and weighing 170 tons (150 tonnes), it has been called the "Eiffel Tower of Brooklyn".[1] It was built for the 1939 New York World's Fair in Flushing Meadows Park, Queens, and moved to its current site, then part of the Steeplechase Park amusement park, in 1941. It is the only portion of Steeplechase Park still standing today. The ride ceased operations in the 1960s.