The October “Zombie Apocalypse” Loot Crate

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October 2013 Loot Crate Contents
October 2013 Loot Crate Contents

Getting a monthly box of surprise goodies every month is always a lot of fun. Sometimes, the anticipation is better than what actually comes out of the box, but this month the guys at Loot Crate really outdid themselves. I really love zombie movies and zombie shows, so the theme of this month’s box (“Survive”) was great to start with, but they really picked a great set of items to include. I was really surprised to see a book in the box, but it fits the theme perfectly.

"I Love Your Guts" greeting card.
“I Love Your Guts” greeting card.
"I Love Your Guts" greeting card inside page.
“I Love Your Guts” greeting card inside page.

The shirt is awesome. I’ll be wearing that tomorrow. I filled out the card and gave it to my wife. She thought it was really awesome and stuck it on the fridge.

The Zombie Survival Guide and fake tattoos.
The Zombie Survival Guide and fake tattoos.

I’m not sure when I’ll have a chance to read The Zombie Survival Guide. It’s been on my reading list for a long time already, but I’m always bogged down with reading for classes. Maybe this winter. Maybe.

8-bit zombie survival game icon pins
8-bit zombie survival game icon pins

The Brooklyn Botanic Garden (Photo Galleries)

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Brooklyn Botanic Gardens Map
Brooklyn Botanic Gardens Map

Last month on the 29th my wife and I went to the Brooklyn Museum. Since we were there, we decided we should take a look at the Botanic Gardens, which are right next door. It wasn’t really the season for it. The place is supposed to be a lot nicer when all of the flowers and trees are all in bloom, but it was still a nice place to stop and look around. It’s quiet there. You can almost forget you’re in a city for a while. Some of the roses were still in bloom, which was nice, but I think my favorite part of the trip, which I unfortunately have no pictures of, is the Fragrance Garden. You get to walk around and touch different plants, each of which naturally produces strong fragrances like lemon and spearmint. The odor sticks to your fingers. It’s a great spot for kids and probably for blind people as well, and they had that in mind, because most of the signs in that area are in braille.

Grilled Squash and Zucchini Sandwich with Hummus
Grilled Squash and Zucchini Sandwich with Hummus
Butternut Squash Soup
Butternut Squash Soup

The food at the Botanic Garden was surprisingly good, even the butternut squash soup. It tasted real, if you know what I mean. Not that it necessarily was, but it was thick and was spiced just right. Expensive, though, just like all museum/park cafes. The next time we go, we want to take a picnic lunch to eat on the lawn under the trees. I’m not sure if it’s allowed, but this is one of those things where I don’t think I’d feel bad about it unless I got caught.

Now, for some photo galleries:

The Japanese Garden

The Cranford Rose Garden:

The Bonsai Trees:

Other parts of the Gardens:

The Brooklyn Museum Photo Gallery

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I never would have guessed there was another big museum out in Brooklyn on the north end of Prospect Park, but some friends of ours asked us if we wanted to meet up out there and take a look around there and the Botanic Gardens. It turned out to be a really good trip.

The museum is bizarrely light on displayed items, considering how much the Met has sitting in storage, collecting dust. You’d think they’d share their inventory and more effectively utilize the space available in the Brooklyn Museum, but what they do have there is definitely worth the time it takes to have a look around, especially if you don’t want to deal with the crowds that are usually shuffling through the Met. My only other complaint is the big glass monstrosity (aka the new lobby) that was attached to the front of the building. It destroyed the beauty of the original architecture.

My favorite photos of stuff from the museum’s incredibly diverse collection:

Something sexual about that statue and the extra leg and butt.
A mosaic from a 4th (6th?) century synagogue.
Old doll house.
Inside a Schenck house
A Schenck house, rebuilt inside the museum.
Inside a Schenck house.
Despair
Garbage collected in NYC, sorted by month.
Garbage collected in NYC, sorted by month.
Garbage collected in NYC, sorted by month.
The Death Wagon

The September 2013 Loot Crate

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September 2013 Loot Crate
September 2013 Loot Crate

The monthly loot crate was a welcome distraction from my homework. I can’t say I loved everything in the box this time around, but the Stimpy plushie, Simpsons keychain and Andy Warhol-esque Stormtrooper magnet are pretty cool.

The Stormtrooper magnet on our fridge.
The Stormtrooper magnet on our fridge.

Keeping Busy This Semester

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A page from Al-Kitaab, Part One, Lesson 6
A page from Al-Kitaab, Part One, Lesson 6

Fall Semester started and, as expected, the amount of free time I have available has dropped to next to nothing. Of course, that’s partly expected, and partly because I’m taking five classes again to get the most bang for my GI Bill buck.

This semester I’m taking:

  1. Arabic 3
  2. Hebrew 1
  3. Jesus the Jew: a course that looks at the historical situation surrounding the time of Jesus in first century Palestine.
  4. Historiography and Historical Methods: a graduate history course on how to examine and understand historical writing.
  5. Jewish Studies: Independent Study

So far, the classes are pretty good. Arabic 3 is difficult, but not impossible. Hebrew 1 is easy, because basic Hebrew is similar to basic Arabic. Jesus and first century Palestine are fascinating to me, so that’s probably my favorite class this semester. The independent study is just that, so the freedom to choose what to research and write about is outstanding.

The only class that’s not rocking my world this Fall is the graduate history course, and it’s not because the course is bad in any way. I just don’t know anything about American history beyond the rubbish I learned in highschool, so I feel like a fish out of water in the discussions. All of my studies have focused on Middle Eastern and South Asian history, with few exceptions. Nothing wrong with broadening one’s horizons though, and the professor is definitely excellent.

Chabad Succah in Union Square for Sukkot

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My wife and I were downtown last Thursday to get some supplies from Petco. After shopping, we were cutting across Union Square to get to a subway entrance that’s closer to the L train when we saw a booth set up. My first thought was that it was the beginnings of the Christmas market. I mean, it’s early, but why not? The month ends in a -ber, right? And it seems like stores start selling Christmas stuff earlier and earlier each year. But, when we got closer, I realized it was a booth for Sukkot. I thought the evergreen branches hanging off the roof were Christmas decorations, but nope. That’s part of the temporary structure. The roof is supposed to not be completely covered. The entire construction is supposed to be non-permanent, because it symbolizes the temporary dwellings of the Hebrews in the desert during the Mosaic diaspora period (between Egypt and Canaan / Israel).

Chabad Succot Booth 2013
Chabad Succot Booth 2013
Another view of the Chabad Succot booth for 2013.
Another view of the Chabad Succot booth for 2013.
Some guy painting over the decorations
Not sure who this guy is. Looked Japanese with a beard. He was painting over the words “Shabbat Shalom” on the door.

The decorations on the outside of the structure were nice. I didn’t realize how extravagant people can get with these things. If you’re wondering, “succah” is the name of the temporary dwelling. It’s just the Hebrew word for it, and during Sukkot Jewish people usually eat in their succah, unless it’s raining. For more info on Sukkot, click here.

Bus Breakdown

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Broken down M100 Bus in Manhattan
Broken down M100 Bus in Manhattan

NYC uses a mix of old and new buses in the city. A few days ago, I was on one of the older buses (the M100) when I started to smell something burning. At the next stop, the driver turned the bus off and told everyone to leave. I think the engine must have been overheating in a serious way for that much of an odor to enter the bus. I thought a building in the neighborhood was on fire. An overheating engine makes a lot more sense, since there weren’t any sirens.

It wasn’t really too big of a deal because we were able to board the following bus for free. New York City is pretty good about that sort of thing and often provides free shuttle buses during subway downtime as well. I felt bad for the guy in the wheelchair, though. With the engine screwed up, there was no way to get him off the bus. The engine usually revs pretty hard when the ramp is being extended, lowered and retracted. The newer buses are designed so that the floor of the bus is closer to the street level, which would make getting a guy in an electric, heavy wheelchair, out of a broken down bus much easier.

I hope everything turned out ok for the guy. He seemed pretty cool when I briefly spoke to him as I was getting off the bus. I thought about staying to help, but I figured I’d just get in the way. When we were pulling away on the following bus, three police officers were standing by the open rear doors, probably figuring out how to get the guy and his chair out. The bus driver was still talking on the bus phone, probably requesting help. I think the LCD said “Maintenance Call,” when I had walked by.