[Pineapple Express]

On Monday we saw our first "summer blockbuster". The Dryden Theatre at the George Eastman House was holding a sneak preview of Pineapple Express. For $6 each (student rate) we saw this hilarious modern-day cheech and chong flick. Seth Rogen- the curly haired guy from Knocked Up- plays yet another lovable but irresponsible stoner and James Franco is his weed dealer. Danny R. McBride plays the character Red and steals quite a few scenes.

This movie, unlike other classic stoner movies, has tons of action packed fighting scenes, car chases, and good old American values like violence, blood, drugs, and oh yeah friendship. This movie moves quickly and is guaranteed to hold your interest even if you happen to be as baked as the main characters.

[Korean BBQ]

Some nights you're just not in the mood to cook. After a mini day trip to Penn Yan I had no desire to dice, sauté, or grill anything. We decided to try a new cuisine and go out for Korean BBQ. Though we prefer to support hood business (aka city business) we ventured out to Seoul Garden in Henrietta because we had heard it served the best Korean cuisine in town.

Seoul Garden offers an extensive menu and the servers are quite helpful in explaining different dishes to newcomers. For dinner we decided on the rice cake appetizer, the bbq chicken, and the kimchi stew with tuna. All of our dishes came out bubbling hot, spicy, and delicious. The kimchi stew is not only delicious but beautiful and fun to personalize with all the various ingredients such as tofu, kimchi, and daikon. Seoul Garden is well worth the drive to Henrietta and is a must try for those who love Asian food.

[B Boy BBQ '08]

As the 3rd annual B Boy BBQ was coming to a close a mutual friend looked around, gestured at the environment, and simply said, 'This is beautiful." The B Boy BBQ was a day that celebrated Hip Hop elements and the people who respect and love the culture. Picture yourself in the heart of the hood. You are surrounded by graffiti artists who are posted up on walls creating immaculate murals. B Boys are breaking on that trademark piece of the kitchen floor. All the while emcees are doing what they do to the sounds provided by an entourage of local DJ legends. The atmosphere oozed with creativity and positivity. Rochester is deemed the city of festivals, but events like this are few and far between. If only our city could be like this everyday- violence free and back to the basics of this culture we love.

[Goodbye Midtown]

In 1962, Midtown Plaza opened as the first urban indoor shopping mall in the US. The mall was built to entice suburban residents to shop and socialize in the core of the city. Midtown was the heart of downtown Rochester, NY and housed all sorts of retail businesses including a grocery store. As a twenty something Rochester native I have many incredible personal memories of Midtown Plaza. Shopping with my family, getting my ears pierced at the earring tree, school field trips, and of course the Christmas time celebrations that made Midtown a premier winter spot. Christmas included a visit up Magic Mountain to see Santa and a ride on the monorail. As a child Midtown was exciting- it was a bustling mall beautifully decorated with a towering totem pole, colorful flags, and what i believed to be a magical clock- the clock of nations. The clock was so much fun to watch as it opened every hour and dolls from around the world danced to music.

Midtown was a place that brought people from different socio-economical backgrounds together in one place. And as the suburbs of Rochester grew there were fewer and fewer places this type of community interaction occurred. Today Midtown is a far cry from what it once was- and the Rochester government has decided to demolish the structure to make way for a corporate headquarters. I, like many other city residents, am not pleased with this decision which will bring less than 1,000 jobs to the downtown area. Downtown still suffers terribly from a lack of retail and entertainment choices which would bring people and revenue downtown. Seems ironic that downtown is becoming more and more enticing for suburban residents who want to live in an "urban community", however, shopping will still be done primarily in the suburbs. Not exactly urban planning at it's best. I can only hope that even once Midtown is gone the city of Rochester will somehow foster the type of community interactions that made Midtown a Rochester landmark. Goodbye Midtown- you will be sorely missed.
-CleverGypsy

[Genesee Fever?]

[Soul Slinger Showdown]

Last Saturday real hip hop was represented to the fullest at Tim Tones' Soul Slinger Showdown. A highly skilled and creative dj/producer in his own right- Tim Tones crafted an incredibly passionate showcase of Rochester's most dedicated and hardworking hip hop artists. Each artist to grace the stage on Saturday gave the crowd an unsurpassed level of love and energy. In every performance it was clearly evident that these artists held a serious commitment to the art of hip hop. But of course it wasn't all seriousness that night- the music had us ladies shaking our asses and the fellas were most certainly head nodding and two stepping. Yes we were feeling that homegrown-585-Roc City music!

Pictures above are of Mdot Coop rocking the mic at the Soul Slinger Showdown. His cd "The Deli Days Ep" is available now. Hit us up for information on how to cop. Real hip-hop is alive and well!
-CleverGypsy

[Noodles!]

On a very snowy day in early March Queen and I were craving noodles. And whenever we wanted noodles we went straight to Ming's on Monroe Ave. and ordered one of their vegetable and tofu dishes. But on this day there were no noodles to be had at Ming's because (much to our dismay) they had closed. We took a picture of the sad sign hung in the window (see above) and we trudged home noodle-less.

You can't imagine how happy I was when I heard the news that Ming's had reopened at the same location but under a different name- New Ming Restaurant. Mdot and I had lunch at New Ming last week and the noodles are still incredible. Welcome back Ming's! It's so good to have our noodle spot back.
-CleverGypsy

[Summer Catch-up]

Blogging is super hard in the summer. There's waaaay too many other things to do outside in the sunshine. And when you live in upstate ny you know how to take advantage of good weather. So please don't be alarmed by the delay in my posts just know i've been truly enjoying this summer.
Looking back at July- it's been a great month. I spent the 4th in Philly with my girl Queen and yes- we celebrated freedom, liberty, and justice- oh-8 style. If you haven't heard- the 4th is a BIG deal in philly. It becomes an 8-day event with several nights of fireworks, NBA events, music, food, fundraising and of course some history lessons thrown in for good measure. The musical acts this year included John Legend and Boyz II Men. Queen and I caught Boyz II Men and let me tell you they still got it- dance moves and all! I was instantly transported back to '95 as soon as they they started singing.
On the 4th we caught the fireworks from Fairmount St. and then headed to my favorite spot on Spring Garden- one of the streets I lived on in college. Silk City is a diner attached to a beautifully decorated lounge/bar. Cosmo Baker's dj set was the musical highlight of my 4th of july weekend. His hometown mix of Will Smith, Eve, Freeway, Beenie Siegel, Musiq SoulChild, and Jill Scott had everybody in the spot going crazy.Next up we headed to Denim on Walnut street. This spot stays open past 2 so it's become one of the places to be afterhours. Mind you this spot is pricey- minimum tab is $30- but who's thinking about that at 2:30 in the am? Denim is modern and a bit pretentious, but late night the vibe switches up. You never know who you will bump into and that's a beautiful thing.
-CleverGypsy

[Beach Wear Affair]

Okay, first and foremost, the Amory on E. Main St. is an amazing venue. Secondly, the fiesta last night was one to have been at. What more could you ask for, more DJ's under one room than a Guitar Center battle. It started off slow, but didn't finish in similar fashion. The tunes were good, and peeps were out stunting and fronting more than a little bit. You couldn't get a decent cup of whiskey, but you could definitely get a bottle of Moet or Dom P. In spite, of the over dramatic and at times obnoxious emcees of certain sound systems the party was pretty popping. You can't miss with a beach wear affair, everybody is trying to be out, even if you're not really on the beach.

[Diggin on...]

new summer favorites

1. pho- This Vietnamese soup is so good it makes you crave hot, steaming soup on a 98 degree day. Recently tried S.E.A. restaurant on Monroe Ave and fell in love with their enormous bowls of pho.

2. Lookin Boy by Hot Stylz feat. Yung Joc- Don't lie- you know this track makes you laugh- at least a little bit. Takes me back to the yo mama days.

3. Gas prices in New Jersey.

4. Thunderheist's Jerk It Video. watch it.

5. Summertime parties. inside, outside, beachside, on the porch, in the backyard, at the park. don't matter where ya party- as long as you got good beats and good people.

-CleverGypsy

[T-shirt and Sneakers]

A t-shirt and sneakers has always been the unofficial uniform symbolizing a laid-back American street style. Everybody's got their favorite T- could be that simple white Hanes that cost you 2.99 or an exquisitely hand painted or airbrushed masterpiece that set you back $100. This being an election year, and given the state of the American economy, political tees are wildly popular and highly visible. The choice of most political T-shirt wearers is clear- Obama is the man. Obama's face and message of change is being screen-printed onto shirts all over the country and they are selling like hotcakes from internet sites, corner stores, and bodegas alike. Artists like Shepard Farey and Van Taylor have designed images to adorn clothing and shoes supporting Obama. Regular vendors have jumped on the bandwagon too- bootleg Obama shirts are available in most hoods. Whatever version you rock- official issue, bootleg, or even homemade- there's no better way to show your support for Obama- except voting! -CleverGypsy

[Rochester MusicFest]

So, I've been fortunate enough to see The Roots twice in the month of June. I saw them in Philly and in Rochester for the Musicfest. If you were in the vicinity and didn't come through you missed out. But attendance had nothing to do with stage presence. The Roots rocked like they sold out Madison Square Garden. I know you seen the photo montage of what we could get before security came through. Things were definitely rising down, as the sun set and The Roots went to town.
-MdotCoop