A Girl And Her Gargoyle In Seattle

I've been a little busy in the past few months, so I haven't been posting on my blog as often. Mostly my time has been spent writing for other publications and working on my books, but I also recently took a trip to Seattle with my favorite gargoyle. Here are some of our highlights:

The Underground tour.
If you're not claustrophobic and can stay on your feet for about 90 minutes, this is a fun way to learn about Seattle's history and hear a few stories. The tour goes through some underground spaces to where the sidewalks were located before the great fire that burned the city down. He's a picture of Newton in the underground at the end of the tour:

The Chihuly Garden and Museum is not to be missed. The sculptures are incredible and walking through the garden is like being in wonderland. This was one of my favorite things in Seattle. Note: Gargoyles get in free.

Jimi Hendrix's grave is nearby, so Newton and I stopped there to pay our respects:

The wall of gum (near Pike Place) is one of those strange oddities that make you both want to look and also look away at the same time. Gross, but fascinating. Check out all the colors:

And let's not forget a Seattle classic: The Space Needle.
Newton may be the first gargoyle to visit it in person!

Newton refers to the Space Needle as a "Top Perch" and gives it 2 talons up!

What I learned From Poe

I recently toured the Edgar Allan Poe Museum in Richmond, Virginia. I’m working on a few articles based on the visit, but while these are still in progress I thought I’d share a few quick insights on what I learned from Poe.

1. If you’re going to die, be sure to do it in someone else’s clothing. It will get people talking. Some people will find it so odd that they will go out and buy your books to search for any clue on why you might have done this.

2. Choose your enemies wisely. Most people don’t know this, but much of what we’ve heard about Poe being a drunkard and person of questionable character was made up by one of his professional adversaries and published after Poe’s death. The lies were intended to discredit Poe and destroy his literary legacy. This attempt backfired and only drew more people to read Poe’s work, making him far more famous than the individual who wrote the lies. Score one for Poe!

3. Marry someone much younger. Poe's happiest relationship was with his wife, who was only 13 when she and Poe (who was 27 at the time) were married. However, she died of an illness at the age of 24 and Poe never did seem to find true love again.

4. It’s okay to be a literary whore. Even Poe took on writing assignments, such as writing a textbook on sea shells, in order to pay the bills. I think that if Poe had resort to turning literary tricks in order to make ends meet, then it’s certainly not beneath the rest of us to do likewise.

Hello, Sleepy Hollow and Greetings, Mr. Poe!

We wrapped up our visit to Book Expo America and headed out to see a few more literary tour spots outside of the city on the way home. Here are some of the highlights.

Less than an hour from NYC is the town of Sleepy Hollow. Of course, we had to visit the graveyard. It's a beautiful place. Here's a picture of the gate:

 I don't know anything about this grave, but I loved the statue under the red maple and had to snap a picture.

The highlight of Sleepy Hollow was visiting Washington Irving's grave. This is his family plot and his gravestone is the one with the red flowers in front. It's a beautiful cemetery and a great place to take a walk if you have the time.

Nearby the cemetery is Union Church of Pocantico Hills.  They wouldn't let us take pictures inside, but this place is extraordinary! The stained glass windows along the sides of this small chapel were made by Matisse and the rose window above the alter is the last work of art made by Chagall. Here;s the Chagall window from the outside:

Next, we drove a few hours to Baltimore, Maryland to gaze upon the grave of Edgar Allan Poe. It's a tradition to leave a penny on the grave because a school teacher started the "pennies for Poe" campaign that resulted in the building of the monument in the picture. Although he's buried under this monument now, he was originally buried with a small marker in the back of the churchyard. This monument was built because his fans left pennies. It just goes to show how little things can add up!

Just a few blocks from Poe's grave is his Baltimore house. It's also a museum, but it's currently closed for renovation. Nevertheless, we made the trek in the rain to see it. Here's the plaque on the front of the house marking it:

And here's what the house looks like:

And then we drove on into the night.

More Literary Tourism in NYC

Saw a lot of interesting things and met more great people at Book Expo America Yesterday. Too much for one post, so in this one I'll share more pictures of my literary tourism and write up the conference later.

Interesting place for dinner with some more classic New York Pizza. This restaurant was once a church and is worth visiting for both the food and architecture.

Check out the ceiling and stained glass. Beautiful.

We went to Old Town Bar, a place where literary types such as Frank McCourt and Nick Hornby have been in the past.

Note to women - the ladies room is upstairs. While it seems like an inconvenience, I enjoyed the trip and the scenery in the upstairs room, which was not in use on this busy Friday night. Here's a shot of the room.

And the trip back down with all the creakiness of well-traveled stairs.

We ended the night by going to one of the most imaginative theatrical productions I've seen. I don't want to spoil it for anyone who hasn't seen it, but it's a very creative interpretation of MacBeth called "Sleep No More" and it takes place here:

Check it out if you're in New York. It was worth staying up until 3:15 AM to see it, and I'm a "morning person."

Book Expo America - Day 1

We've been on our feet for days and we're not about to stop. Yesterday was the first day of the conference and we had a lot of really nice people stop by our booth to chat. I love being around book lovers. Here's a picture of our booth. Love the artwork and the cutouts we had made.

I played hooky from the conference and left to go have lunch at the Algonquin Hotel with an old friend. I can see why Dorothy Parker loved the place. Great food and a nice atmosphere.

After the conference we stumbled upon another movie set and managed to ask a crew member about the film. It's called "Birdman" and stars Zack Galifinakas and Emma Stone. Here's the scene we saw being filmed.

I went to visit my friend and artist Michael from Michael Curry Mosaics.  Here's a picture of us on his balcony. Awesome view.

The Empire State Building in early evening.Apparently, there's an app that tells you what color the lights will be each evening. How cool is that?

Today will be another long be extremely fun day. Who wouldn't have fun when surrounded by so many books and book people!

Pre Book Expo America Fun in NYC

Yesterday we were still playing the tourist when teh group I was with continued to explore the city on foot. Whether it rains or not,  NYC is a beautiful city. Check out this view of Washington Square Park:

While Nashville appears to best every other city I've visited in terms of quantity of churches, New York has some of the most beautiful cathedrals. We went inside St. Thomas and here's the view looking down the center aisle:

Spent part of the afternoon at MOMA and, in addition to the paintings and sculpture, saw some great photography.  Enjoyed the special exhibit Bill Brandt: Shadow and Light. I could post pictures of the art. Instead, here's my favorite sign inside the museum:

I finally made it to McSorely's. Great place for beer drinkers or anyone else looking for inspiration in a  glass of ale. Particularly interesting to me, since I recently started making my own beer.

Finally, here's a picture I took in Times Square while walking back to the hotel last night. The billboards stretch for a full block and the effect is dramatic. Something to think about for publicizing my next book ...

Yes, we also did some work that morning and we will be at BEA all day today discussing books - but we're also having fun while we're here, and I'm finally getting to see the city.

NYC Day 1

 

Yesterday we drove through 6 states and arrived in New York City for Book Expo America 2013. We arrived in early afternoon, so we stretched our legs by taking a little walking tour in the rain. Here are some highlights. 

I finally made it INSIDE Central Park! On previous trips I only saw it through the cab window as I drove by.

Nice view of one of the streets inside Central Park.

 Walking inside of Central Park and looking out at The Dakota building.

 Made it to White Horse Tavern and had dinner there. No whiskey for me.

Love the sign. I prefer to believe that it was related to Dylan Thomas and not current customers, whom I'm sure know their limits and how to behave well in public.

What I Saw in Virginia

I'm on my way to Book Expo America and passed through Virginia yesterday. You know what I saw? Cows. I kept thinking about that travel slogan: "Virginia is for Lovers" and thought it should have been "Virginia is for Lovers of Cows." Don't get me wrong. These were very industrious cows. Grass doesn't eat itself, you know. Someone has to chomp it down all day and that's what the cows are for.

I tried to snap a few pictures. I passed Hurt Lane on the way to get coffee. I wondered what happened on that street to give it that name or who lives there and how the street name impacts property values. This is the stuff I think about.

We passed "Famous Anthony's Restaurant." What is he famous for? It's better that you don't know. Especially if you're planning to eat there. (Actually I don't know anything about it, but thought the name was ironic since the owner was virutally unknown).

I also saw a store called "Super Shoes." I figure that this is where super heroes go to buy their work shoes.

Travel is always interesting. I learn new things all the time. Back on the road today ...