Pages

Saturday, June 13, 2009

Saturday Afternoon in Williamsburg: Crest Fest '09 at Macri Park


When we finally emerged out of the G train at Metropolitan and Union Avenues, exhausted after our long day at Rockstock & Barrels and elsewhere in the Rockaways, we saw flags, people, excitement, and heard some good music.

New York is a summer festival, and just a block and a half away from Dumbo Books HQ was Crest Fest '09, the celebration of the famous annual art show at fabulous Crest Hardware, where we are a constant customer, mostly for 15- and 20-volt fuses due to us forgetting that we can't microwave while the air conditioner or space heater is on or just because our appliances feel like it.

All the proceeds from selling food, drinks and whatnot were going to the refurbishment of dear old Macri Park - the public space we, like Mayor Bloomberg, have always called Macri Square (the other M.P., fellow teetotalers, is a bar).

On nice days when we don't feel like sitting on the stoop or hanging alone in our backyard and want to sit outside, we stroll down Conselyea Street and sit reading and drinking Coke Zero on one of the benches.

So, although we were a bit zonked, we hung out for longer than we expected, lured by the interesting vendors' tables, the excellent music from bands like Baby Brother, Twin Shadow and Chin Chin, and sets from DJs like Eriq Eq Tim Carter and of Subversive and Lucas Walters of Sweatshop Labor.

Our feet, back and brain were too tired to really take in the art show itself other than to marvel a little. It began to rain, and we went home to rest and eat and then returned after an hour or so.

Things started closing down around 7 p.m., just when we were getting our second wind.

We're sure others have a better take on Crest Fest '09 than we do. We're just blissing out from what we did experience and are grateful to have a store like Crest Hardware close by. Especially when the electricity goes off.

No comments: