Motown In The Kitchen

This past weekend, my girlfriends and I rented a cozy 1850’s farmhouse in the Catskills in upstate NY. When you live in NYC, sometimes you have to escape. Especially after a long winter. There’s also nothing better than a road trip. The subways are great for getting some reading in or being able to go out, drink, and have a ride home at the end of the night, but there is something so freeing about being in a car. So we were pretty obsessed with our minivan.

It was a recharge weekend, so we spent some quality time in the kitchen. We made amazing brunches of eggs, toast, bacon, pancakes, etc. every morning, but it was our Saturday night dinner that I think defined the weekend. We all had something to contribute, and we drank wine and danced to Motown in the kitchen as we prepared dinner. Which naturally led to a screening of the “Evolution of Mom Dancing” with Michelle Obama and Jimmy Fallon and then the “History of Rap” with Justin Timberlake and Fallon. You’d be impressed with how many rap songs a group of dec art & design grads can identify. Rappers in my kitchen: the white girl edition? We sat down to pumpkin-goat cheese pasta, fresh salad, and an apple crumble for dessert in a dining room that can only be described as farmhouse chic. I would say it was a perfect evening.

The highlight of the trip was our hike up Overlook Mountain. About halfway up, we discovered the snow hadn't fully melted. Considering our aversion to winter at this point, we almost turned around. But luckily we followed through. When NYC has beaten us down all winter, why wouldn't we choose to climb a mountain covered in snow and ice? It was the best decision we could have made though. At the top were ruins from a 19th Century hotel that had burned down. It was beautiful and eerie and amazing to explore. There was also a fire tower that we climbed for stunning views of the surrounding Catskills and Hudson River. The only thing that trumps the beauty of art is the beauty of nature.

It was hard to leave our farmhouse on Sunday. Back to a small Brooklyn apartment and far fewer stars, but with plans for many more weekend excursions. There’s a reason my girlfriends had High Voltage off of Paul’s new album stuck in their head this weekend. Illustrate knows what’s up. We’re all craving summertime.