Following Rabbits Blog — do it

MillionTreesNYC has planted over 375,000 trees, with the goal of reaching 1 million by 2017. Planting 1 million trees will increase our urban forest-- "our most valuable environmental asset made up of street trees, park trees, and trees on public, private and commercial land"-- by 20%! To reach their goal, they need New Yorkers to volunteer and get involved in the initiative. I signed up for their newsletter to receive updates on group planting days, when you can volunteer your time to plant trees at parks and housing developments across the 5 boroughs. (It's a great way to meet new people, too!) You can also plant a tree of your own and get it counted towards the goal of 1 million.

Once all these trees are planted, though, someone needs to look after them. Young trees are especially susceptible to extreme heat-- and it's been hella hot out there! I volunteered for the MillionTreesNYC Stewardship Corps-- which is a fancy way of saying I adopted a few trees in my neighborhood. There are three young pine oak trees on my street that were looking a little worse for wear that I've taken into my care. Simple things like watering them, and cleaning the weeds and trash out of their beds will help them thrive. 

my trees!

When you login to the Stewardship Corps website, you can search for trees in your neighborhood and add them to your page. There's a library of information on tree care, and you can keep track of your activities on your page. It's a commitment, but shouldn't take more than a half hour a week. And I found trees on my street (there were 19 to choose from!) so chances are, you don't even have to go far. The way I see it, if the city is planting all these trees for us, we should try to keep 'em growing so future generations of New Yorkers can enjoy them!

Last week I won a great set of moleskine journals from sfgirlbybay. She had a giveaway on her blog asking for people's favorite quotes, and awarded journals to her favorite three. Here's my quote: 

"I believe that everything happens for a reason. People change so that you can learn to let go, things go wrong so that you appreciate them when they're right, you believe lies so you eventually learn to trust no one but yourself, and sometimes things fall apart so better things can fall together." - Marilyn Monroe

This quote was my mantra this spring as I went through a transitional phase and was dealing with a lot of changes and upset. Writing has always been my outlet of choice; I've been keeping a journal since I was in 5th grade. I keep favorite quotes, photos, letters, my day to day, and of course some secrets and stories about boys. I've got my most recent 7 journals here in NYC (3 years worth); the rest are in boxes at my mum's house.

I really enjoy going back and reading them, reliving old memories and moments in my life. Plus they're such a legacy to leave behind (assuming my children and grandchildren will be interested in reading them). I would be really amped to get a peek at my gram's diary from her youth! 

Here are some of my fave journals available on the web:

NYC Notebook - $12, Pink Paris Notebook - $10, Quotable Journal - $14.95 (these are the ones I use! I get a different quote each time), White Rabbit Journal - $19

Over the weekend I did a lot of exploring downtown-- checking out stores, restaurants and spa treatments for upcoming blog posts. The highlight (and splurge!) of the weekend was a couple's massage treatment and lunch down at Go Green Organic Spa. They offer regular promos that got us each an hour massage and complimentary lunch across the street at Wild Ginger vegan cafe for a very good price. Livin' on a city budget, I can't afford to regularly pamper myself, and this massage was so fabulous!

Go Green uses all organic products, using organic champagne and apricot oil for their massages. Their staff are all very professional and courteous, and we felt welcome and comfortable from the moment we stepped in the door. Stalks of bamboo, strategically placed crystals, and new age music set a relaxing tone. We were shown to our room and made comfortable; the tiki-vibe and dim lighting was very relaxing. We both opted for deep tissue massages to help our tight necks and backs versus a more relaxing massage treatment. I've never had such a comprehensive massage, and could tell that the massage therapist was knowledgeable and experienced as she zeroed in on my sore spots without me telling her or pointing them out.

After our hour was up, we sleepily trudged across the street to Wild Ginger with our free lunch vouchers that came with the spa package. After an hour of intense massage we were both mostly just very thirsty, but we had a light lunch of miso soup, tofu, veggies and rice. The dining area was cozy, seating just 26 people. Service was great, the vegetables were fresh, and the overall flavor of everything was good. I would absolutely recommend this spa/lunch package! There is a similar package for individuals, with an added bonus of a facial and eye treatment along with massage and lunch. It's well worth the splurge, and priced very reasonably for what you get.

Located at 365 Broome Street, Go Green is open daily from 11a-8p. They offer a wide variety of organic waxing and body treatments at great prices. Wild Ginger is located across the street at 380 Broome Street. Click here for their hours and menu.

 photo I took of Friday night's sunset from my apartment window

I had a really great 4th of July weekend-- complete with sunsets, sunrises, fireworks, bike rides, and our own little BBQ. Aside from my trip to Governors Island on Saturday, I stuck close to home-- wandering around the city in 95+ degrees didn't seem like a good time to me. Most of Sunday was spent lounging around in my air conditioned bedroom watching netflix. We skipped the crowds and stifling subway ride and took advantage of my fabulous view of the Manhattan skyline, and watched the Macy's fireworks display from my fire escape:

After a mid-afternoon nap on Sunday, we weren't very sleepy after the fireworks. We wound up staying up all night, and watched the sunrise sitting out on the fire escape in our skivvies... silliness.

Monday we hit the grocery store and stocked up on all the essentials: burgers, pineapple, cheddar, corn on the cob, tater tots (at my insistence), pina colada mix, and fixins for s'mores. We came home, whipped out the George Foreman, mixed up some frozen cocktails and had ourselves a BBQ!

We followed up our pineapple cheeseburgers with gooey s'mores toasted over the gas stovetop... classic!

I have an extra long weekend for the 4th of July holiday and wanted to get out of the house today before the temps hit the 90s and I'm glued to my A/C. I had never been to Governors Island and have been itching for a bike ride, so I packed a sammy and a bottle of water, my camera, sunglasses and map and headed for the ferry.

The ferry is free and took about 10 minutes. I got there around 2:30p, and the line to bring your own bikes on the ferry was enormously long! If you're gonna bring your own wheels, I'd suggest getting there for one of the first trips over in the morning. It was a gorgeous afternoon, lots of sailboats out on the water.

The island is very pedestrian and kid friendly. The only motor vehicles I saw on the island were golf carts driven by staff and an FDNY truck. Other than that, bikers and walkers rule. I rented a bike first thing, and was pleased to see that I hadn't forgotten how to ride in the 10+ years its been since I last rode a bike.

There is a main path around the perimeter of the island with plenty of room for everyone to check out the views of Manhattan, Brooklyn, New Jersey, and Liberty and Ellis Islands.

Governors Island is the closest land to the face of the Statue of Liberty. I took tons of pictures of everything!

Picnic Point has food stands, picnic tables, and plenty of shady patches of grass for taking a break from all the biking. There are even a few hammocks!

After lunch I waited in an uber long line for a Blue Marble ice cream cone... 

...and me and my bike took a little 30 minute siesta in the shade before finishing our tour de GI.

I'll definitely be going back (hopefully when it's cooler outside!) to check out the forts and historical aspects of the island. It's a beautiful place, and a great budget-friendly way to spend the afternoon!