From http://frankwinters.wordpress.com
The Martha Stewart Show today was a rerun from November where she and a friend visited the Brooklyn Flea Market. They wandered to the artisanal craft booths, the organic ice cream cart, the ASIADOG stand and the pupusa makers, only making me feel homesick. I’ve never used “homesick” to refer to New York before. Now there’s a lump in my lung where the breathing is supposed to be.
What always amazed me about New York was the drive people had to create niche businesses and pursue their art in a way that made the goliath city feel like it had secret farms, old-world artisans and that sneeze-and-your-neighbor-knows-mentality. Or at least the first two. A village feeling while being the center of the business and entertainment universes. Home cooking adjacent to glass and metal. People who do pickling at home and others who actually appreciate it and buy it. I know Chicago must have lovely small-batch foods and unique wares on every scale, but all the strip malls are obstructing my view. If anyone has ideas of great neighborhoods to walk around or places I must stop by knowing what I like, your walking tour ideas are welcome.
If you’re curious about the flea market’s wares or other reasons why this Brooklyn episode was great/made me hungry, you can watch clips or the whole thing here. There’s also a pupusa-making demonstration, mmm.
