beXnlog

Aloe & Lavender Week

On Monday the 4th, a bunch of us headed out to Long Beach via the LIRR. It was a beautiful, breezy, sunny day made even more fun with Giant Pixie Stix, Razzles (first it's candy, then gum!), pita chips, popcorn, watermelon chunks and homemade limeade. Note if you head out there you should bring provisions if you aren't a fan of pizza, burgers and soda. Because there's no boardwalk you're limited to a handful of food establishments. The french fries we got were sorta nasty, but one place offered different kinds of knishes. Also note i'm now a firm believer in sunscreen - we spent 6 hours in the sun and all got mild to moderate sunburn*!

Back in Manhattan, we had dinner at Three of Cups on 1st Ave. I set aside my botulism fears and used the garlic-infused olive oil for my bread - so far i haven't died, and that bread sure was delicious! We got two big baskets of it! A quick stop at Panini for coffee and truffles, then we headed off to Queens for the Macy's fireworks show.

I read on queens.about.com that Gantry Plaza State Park in Long Island City is the best place to view the show. Even though we arrived at 9:00PM, there was still room and many unobstructed views of the sky. If we showed up earlier we might have made it onto one of the piers, right in front of the 4 main barges on the East River. I've also seen the Macy's show in Manhattan and Brooklyn; Queens by far offered the best view, plus it's tourist-free. Firework shapes that impressed me: dandelions, petaled flowers, UFOs, stars, apples and my overall favorite - CUBES. Yes, cubes just like you used to draw in school!

On a different note, O sent me an email about the:

Chowhound Potato Chip Cola Tasting at Tekserve

Hungry? Then drop by Tekserve (119 W. 23rd b/w 6th 7th in Manhattan) on Saturday, July 9th at 2pm for a free tasting of some amazing and totally obscure potato chips and colas, courtesy of Chowhound, New York City's web haven for those who live to eat. Jim Leff, Chowhound's alpha hound, will be on hand to lead the tasting, answer all your chow-related questions, and sign copies of The Chowhound's Guide to the New York Tristate Area, just published by Penguin, and available at Tekserve for just $15. As an added bonus, Tekserve will also be raffling off three 1GB iPod shuffles to attendees. 200 free tickets will be available at the door for the tasting and raffle. Please don't be late so we can start on time!

Good luck and let me know how the chips & soda were!

*Bonesli's Sunburn Remedies

1) Mix 4 T aloe vera (you can get this bottled or in a tube) with 10 drops of lavender essential oil. Apply generously to skin; the lavender helps heal burns.

2) If your skin is really dry, use 2 T of olive oil instead of aloe vera to 10 drops of lavender.

3) For babies, children and women who are pregnant, only use 5 drops of lavender instead of 10 for both remedies. No one will OD on lavender but since essential oils are so concentrated, using less is always better than more.

4) Lotions might be irritating to skin due to the perfumes and harsh chemicals. Additionally, mineral oil cannot be absorbed by the skin so avoid using it to moisturize.

posted by beXn @ 11:14 AM