9th Annual Pumpkin Carving Party

I can't believe it has been nine years since Mark and Mary first invited me over to their pad in Tribeca to carve pumpkins, feast on vegan chili and booze the night away.
Well now with Alistair and Emmet in the mix plus Mary with child encore, the scene has mellowed a bit! At least for the adults. Mary didnt even bother carving, nor did Michelle. I almost passed out after half a bottle of wine BUT the kids kept the party lively by performing a concert, throwing a glass of milk at the dog and singing along with Dora the Explorer.
A good time was had by all and my pumpkin was my favorite to date- A tribute to Beast, Rod's cat that passed away last Thursday.

Claw Money on Hintmag

Check out my post on Hintmag from last Thursdays party.
Here are some more pics from the event.
http://www.hintmag.com/blog/blog.php

Minya's Bridal Shower

I flew home early from Atlanta to host a surprise Bridal Shower for Minya and it went off without a hitch.
Luckily she lives right down the street so I told her I found her an amazing present in Atlanta and she had to come and see it.
Claw arranged the guest list and Fresh Direct order (hoorah!) I just had to open my doors, do a little set up and we were ready to roll.
I have never hosted such an event but I assure you with these rowdy bitches, I would host a thousand more. We drank our way through several games involving how well we knew Minya and then chowed down while I asked her the Proust Questionaire.

Im not too sure how it ended but I was saddened to wake up to no left overs, I hear I sent everyone packing with a box of cupcakes and chicken fingers. Happy Wedding Minya!

Fall in the dry dirt of Georgia

In a bit of a rush but wanted to post pictures of my leisurely weekend in Georgia.
The point of the trip was to go with Justin to do a trunk show at a tony shop in Buckhead called Belvedere but the dates were changed so I went solo.
Wonderful trip lounging at the lake, pontooning with the dawgs on our new boat (its like a living room with a motor, and came with its own blender!), riding at Cator's (we got lost in the woods again and had a wild time with vines, spiders and ravines!), spending time with Angela and mom in Little 5 Points (wow it sure isn’t as swank as I remember it when I was 18 and itchin' for a piercing) and I ended the weekend with dinner with friends and a couple of house parties before I woke up at the crack of dawn on Sunday to host a surprise Bridal Shower for Minya in Harlem.

Just so you know how severe the drought is, mother had delicate little notes on the toilets that read, "If its yellow let it mellow, if its brown flush it down."
Yikes.

Autumnal Splendor

Last weekend I had my first taste of fall.

Cleo bought a farmhouse upstate in Liberty, New York last May and it was the first weekend she could stay in the house without any dust and debris impending her R&R.

I have known Cleo for years through my friend Kevin. She is from a holler (really!) way deep in Kentucky and has the best damn accent you ever heard. I haven’t spent time with her in ages so it was nice to get a weekend away and catch up.

We headed up on Friday afternoon, the car piled high with bags, plants and a very excited Dachshund named Ruby.
By the time we arrived three hours later it was dark and the deer were out in full force.

From what I could see at night her farmhouse is just about the coziest place on God's green earth. She has decorated it kind of like a log cabin I saw at Dollywood, loads of deer heads, mink skins nailed to the wall and lots of great chandeliers! I couldn't see the property since it was so dark but I know she has 10 acres that I am looking forward to exploring tomorrow.

We opened up the place, killed all the flies that took over for the week and headed over to an Irish pub called Mullaly's for dinner where we met up with her friend Jesse. We martini'd and I chowed down on a full plate of ribs. YES!

We then rolled home, kept the drinkin' going and had pajama and chocolate time. I was in bed by 11:30 passed out with a cool country breeze lulling me to bed.

Saturday morning I woke up and my jaw dropped. Out the window I see rolling hills that go on for miles and a myriad of turning leaves out on the distant mountains. Well Lord have mercy I was just about to tear up from the beauty of it all.

We dressed and Cleo talked to some contractors while I read the paper and then took a little jog to explore the rural route. Then we hit the road for breakfast at the Liberty diner, antiquing in town and then tooled all around the hills and tiny quaint villages just lookin', admirin' and listening to Loretta Lynn.

A highlight included a romp at Wal-Mart where a retarded kid ran up on Cleo in the meat department and held her hand and started screaming. His father yelled out at Cleo, "Oh looky, Johnny's found a new lady friend!"
I thought Cleo was going to loose her mind, it was hysterical.
We then had a fashion show in the hunting and rifle section where I bought a good lookin' hoodie and matching belt in a leaf and tree print.

We then headed home, dodged more deer and whipped up a mean lasagna, popped open a bottle of champagne and had a 'lasagna and champanya' evening. Jesse swung by after he had been to a female strip club with one of his contractors (don't ask) and brought his Pit Bull named, 'Passions'. She thinks she is the size of Ruby so she jumped into my lap to snuggle and almost knocked the chair over.

Sunday morning we gowned around and cleaned Cleo's new chandelier and made Dunkin' Donuts coffee (which is the bomb!).
In the afternoon we went to Jesse's amazing home that used to be a cow barn and chicken coop. He sprinkled his fag magic over the place and the results are charming. We all headed to Mullaly's again for brunch and then Cleo and I stopped by Vita's Veggie Shack for pumpkins and autumnal gourds and squash before packing up and heading back to the big city.

Cleo, I can’t wait to get back on up there. Lord willin' and the creek don't rise!

Harriet Tubman has landed in Harlem!

Yesterday morning I get a call at 7am from Lucy who is bubbling over with excitement. "Cator I wanted our Block President to be the first to know that the Harriet Tubman statue is finally being hoisted into place! Go look!"

With that I bound out of bed with my camera and head to the corner of 122 St and Eighth Avenue (Frederick Douglas Martin Blvd). Sho’ nuff there is a crane and a flat bed truck with dear ole Harriet calmly waiting to be put in place. She has a hook on the top of her head and a massive crane begins lifting her up and in the direction of the platform on which she is to rest. I must say she was looking VERY Mary Poppins flying through the air with a cinched waist, billowing skirt and petticoat flapping in the wind. The boys set her down, screwed her in and voila! There she gallantly stands gazing down Eighth Avenue towards Central Park.

This is a momentous day for us on 122 Street. About four years ago that triangle (between St. Nicholas, Eighth and 122 St was made up of massive weeds, bushes and uneven sidewalks that caused many people to twist an ankle. One day I noticed them leveling it all and find out that it was to become a Harriet Tubman Memorial. FOUR YEARS LATER a tiny triangle has blossomed into a granite mini park where people sit and chat, stroll through and now can gave up at Harriet. She looks quite amazing in her wide billowing skirt with people’s faces replacing a floral print. Many of her quotes have been etched around the sides of the petite plaza, one of which you can see here.

I am so happy the memorial is finally complete although I am assuming better plants will be in the works for the spring. Dear Harriet never lived a happy life. An article about her in the NYT last week mentioned her horrid upbringing, and even after she helps hundreds of slaves to freedom she was still beaten and lived in poverty. Lucy and I plan of taking a bottle of wine over to the triangle soon and toasting to the life and times of one terrific Tubman.