Two Tales in a City

- Are you available tomorrow for a Gowanus adventure/ food walk? K-Pants and I are looking for trouble.

One of my favourite free things to do in Brooklyn is grab my camera and go for a walk around Gowanus.  So, when I read this text message from my fellow foodie friend and blogger, Momsicle, I grinned…

The following afternoon, with homemade pumpkin cheesecake and fruit loaf in our bellies and cameras round our necks, we set off, each with a young creature in tow – a be-leashed Banjo for me and a stroller-bound K-Pants for Momsicle.

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Side note: Later that day, because Momsicle and I each have a blog and were feeling adventurous, we decided to do an experiment where we each blog about our lovely afternoon together and link to the other person’s version of events: here’s Momsicle’s Two Tales post.

Hence, with apologies to Dickens, the title of this post.

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Less than 10 minutes into our walk, we passed a junkyard patrolled by a bulky Rottweiler behind a chain-link fence.  He began to growl when he saw us – specifically at poor Banjo, who is so timid that he is outranked by outgoing 6-month-old puppies and is therefore usually picked on by aggressive dogs – but we paid him no mind.

That is until I heard M exclaim, That dog is right behind us! And before I even had time to turn around to see this 120-pound escaped guard dog silently (a very bad sign, as dogs don’t typically make a sound when they are about to attack) stalking us, I heard Momsicle roar, GO BACK! BACK!!

There she was, Lioness Momsicle in all her glory, protector of admiring Fizgig, cowering Banjo, and surprised K-Pants, stamping her foot, shaking her fist, and looking at this intimidating Rottie squarely in the eye.  The Rottie looked miffed and then promptly retreated!

Banjo has since welcomed his now-beloved Momsicle (aka Joan of Bark) and K-Pants as permanent members of his pack…

L-R: Fizgig, Banjo, Momsicle, & K-Pants

Although, it must be said, Banjo wasn’t quite sure what to make of his first close up encounter with a kitty.  He has always wanted to meet a cat, but has never managed to get close enough for a good whiff.  Here he is, meeting the Proteus Gowanus cat patrol:

How do you say "Woof!" in Cattish?

I wanted to point out Proteus Gowanus to M, because it’s a really cool little space.  As the name suggests, it chronicles the many changes of the Gowanus canal over the years and a billboard outside says Art, Artifacts & Books.

The outside of P.G. reminds me of the ground-level scenes at the beginning of Blade Runner.  Your eyes are drawn upwards, like you’re expecting to see mega-skyscrapers and neon lights towering above you.  There’s a kind of post-apocalyptic feel to the rusting fire escapes and corrugated metal-clad building that looks like a colourful shanty town on a film set:

Entering Proteus Gowanus

Once inside, you will see books galore, art and other objets that include a wide glass jar filled with rancid water taken from the canal, and other junk trawled up from its murky depths.

But I digress.

We continued westwards where on the other side of Union Street Bridge gourds lay in wait for us.  A cautious one spied on M from the safety of the sidewalk…

Hiking Boots & a Gourd

…but, bold as they may have been, others weren’t lucky crossing the road:

Splattered Pumpkin

Also in the gutter was something that caught M’s attention.  It doesn’t seem to be the fabulous vintage farmyard truck!

My Beloved Guttersnipe

(Who knows what she saw here – perhaps we’ll find out in her Two Tales post…)

We continued on to Bond Street, where we saw a stoop-less Stoop Sale.  Would that be called a Sidewalk Sale? An Urban Yard Sale? #AmericanEnglishFail

Anyway, there were a few weird paintings that I wouldn’t like on my wall but which have a certain charm in a photograph:

Brooklyn Folk Art

And across the road, something urban yet rustic: a deep muted purple wall, alongside which lay slabs of slate for sitting on, and a weathered bucket of red rocks to look at.  It made for a rather lovely juxtaposition:

Urban and Rustic

No time to sit down though – I wanted to head over to the main bend in the canal, over by Bond and 4th Street.  It’s a little pocket of a dead end road, where two tall poles atop which sit chartreuse boxes – houses for bats and small birds.

There, we saw some kind of photo shoot involving kids and skateboards.  I took a couple of photos, but I always feel uncomfortable snapping people without asking their permission.

But I did spot these rather fabulous signs propped up against a wall:

Signs to nowhere

I don’t know what a ‘road train’ is, but I’m pretty sure that ‘fotgjengere’ means ‘pedestrians’ in Norwegian.

Here are some more fotgjengere passing by one of my favourite buildings in Gowanus:

"Strollin', strollin', we could have fun just strollin' / Rockin', rollin', oh yeah..."

I suppose one day it will be snapped up and converted into swanky loft apartments – more than likely, considering the 2 acre plot behind me in this photo has been purchased by Whole Foods.

Anyway, I really like this building’s windows.  Here’s a close-up:

The graffiti dog on the right isn't finished - maybe the graffer had to make a run for it?

If you’re interested in street art, check out this Motion Painting from David Ellis and Blu or read this article on How to Become a Graffiti Artist.

With all this walking and talking, Momsicle and I were hungry again, and the ‘K’ in K-Pants now stood for Kranky… Solution: grab a slice at Tomato & Basil (read my Yelp review here) and eat it in Prospect Park where Kranky could run around, and Banjo could dog-watch.

Here they are in post-prandial, leg-stretched bliss:

Momsicle, K-Pants, and Banjo

(Yes, Banjo really is that tall.)

The long shadows told us is was time to start wending our way home. At the entrance to the grassy field in Prospect Park, there is a tunnel.  Most days, there is a homeless man who shelters there; some days, after the rain, it is filled with the debris of passing storms – twigs, branches, mud, and trapped rubbish.

But we lucked out: this day, there was a dance troupe being filmed.  Dreadful music, but good dancing!  This is why I love New York – there’s always something creative happening:

A dance troupe in the tunnel

We squeezed past the dolly tracks and headed to the subway – via the bagel shop because Momsicle had lox for Sunday morning, but no bagels.

As we walked up 6th Avenue to the subway, we passed a church.  It was almost twilight – the sky had darkened, but red hadn’t yet left the spectrum of light.  Another lovely juxtaposition of colour – I do like orange and blue together:

burnt orange and moody duck egg blue

And there we were, two good friends, a toddler, and a dog, happily worn out by walking, talking, laughter, and food.  There is no better way to spend a Saturday afternoon.

• Read Momsicle’s versions of events and follow her on Twitter.

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