Summer's here...

I spotted my first lightning bug of the year. To me, growing up in a place where there were nothing but swarms of lightning bugs as the hot summer nights paraded through town, this is a sure indication that summer has officially arrived. I don't know if lightning bugs (or fireflies) only come out when summer finally arrives.

The Museum Mile Festival was greeted with lovely summer skies, as well. And, damn, there are a lot of people at that thing. Lines around the block for the Guggenheim and the Neue something or other. Even the Cooper-Hewitt Design museum. I went there and to the Met before high-tailing it back to Brooklyn via bicycle.

And also, via Lexington Avenue. Let me say, if you're an urban cyclist, Lexington is as close to skydiving as I think I'd like to get. From 90th to 50th, you fight cabs all the way up the block, but if you go about 30 or so, you hit almost every light 10 blocks at a time. And you beat the cabs downtown, even. After 50th, Lexington gets very rutted and it's best to get away from there. The other thing I've noticed about biking in Manhattan (also in Brooklyn) is the grime factor. I stopped at one point to wipe some sweat from my brow to discover a thick layer of grit that had been kicked up and deposited on my forehead. I guess that's why they call it the gritty city. Or do they call it that?

It's been brought to my attention by the lovely comment board that Matt Nathanson is playing this Thursday. I first saw Matt about 2 years ago when he opened for one of my favorite performers, Dar Williams. Matt puts on a fantastic show with a lot of energy. And even though I wasn't familiar with his material the last time I saw him (January at the Bowery Ballroom), he once again delivered a fantastic show. Part of the highlights of any Nathanson show are the giddy in-between song stories that he shares and his inclination to start covering any song that comes to mind. Usually, he ends with a rousing sing-a-long to Bon Jovi. It's like karaoke with a few hundred of your closest friends. Highly recommended. Sadly, I slept on this particular ticket, so I will have to catch him another year. He's co-headlining with a band that I'm not all that interested in seeing, so maybe I'll hold out for a smaller venue and a single headlining situation.

Pictures from the festival coming soon...