Must love dogs....

Saturday, September 16

On Saturday, went for a nice run in Riverside Park, almost just beside the apartment, and there were lots of people running, cycling and hanging out as the weather was summer-like and in the mid 20s. Also we finished two days of rain, which always makes NYC super chaotic. The park is very long and goes along the water. There are lots of dogs with their owners and in enclosed dog runs along the park, complete with dog-level watering stations and annoucements of get togethers for doggie owners, without their dogs. At some parks, I've seen separate areas for large dogs from smaller dogs. At one of the busier dog runs, there were a mix of large and small dogs and one particular small dog in a small baby blue t-shirt who was running around and teasing large and small dogs to follow her. Sort of the Gene Simmons of the dog park. This was entertainment in itself.

Then I walked up the Upper West Side. Ate some yummy pizza at a pizzeria called Cafe Viva (2578 Broadway at 97th), which services natural, gourmet pizzas that are mostly organic, and picked up some bagels at Absolute Bagel that is supposed to be one of the best bagel places in NY. Ran into an interesting street fair on Broadway near Columbia U with lots of ethnic food stands and discounted clothing. I had a bbq corn with lemon juice, salt and some sort of paprika ... yummy... and then bought some discounted clothing including American Apparel seconds at $2.00 a t-shirt. You never know what you're going to get at a fair like this or on the street corners so you have to take advantage of it while it lasts.

In the evening, I went to the East Village, which is filled with life and colour, with rows of small funky and ethnic restaurants, bars, take-aways and stores. It definitely seems like the place to be if you're looking for more of the bohemian, creative, and out of the box area in NYC. You'll probably find it here.

I went with my classmate from Germany to Bluestockings Radical Books (172 Allen), focusing on books for social activists, to a reading and discussion by an author called Ken Foster who has written several books on his encounters with rescuing dogs and what dogs teach us. I started reading his latest called "The Dogs Who Found Me"and it's fun. Also, it was a fund raiser night for Socialtees, which is an organization that creates tees with activist sayings and designs and is also an animal rescue organization. The author wrote in the book for me... "for Caroline and the dog who found her."

Then we went to a post event reception closeby at Mooshoes (152 Allen), which sells vegan/non-leather and ethical footwear and purses (no sweat shops, supportive of unions), and say they sell "high fashion with a conscience". Actually, their purse line is mostly from a Montreal designer who I love called Matt and Natt. I bought one of their purses in the Market before leaving so it was cool to see how popular their line is. Their were dog-shaped treats for humans and a % of the proceeds from the sale of products and donations going toward the Social tees animal rescue operations in town. It was fun to be in quite the unique event. Afterwards, we walked the crowded streets of East Village and went for a drink in an outside patio. Still very summer-like and beautiful here.