Empire State Plaza
a meeting place for amorous adolescents - families with young children cavorting on modern art that you can touch and clamber on top of - state workers catching lunch - young girls in black skirts on a school outing playing hopscotch in the sun
it is a mountainous barrier between lower Albany and upper Albany with its glass & marble skyscrapers projecting out into space. the Little Italy section of the city was bulldozed in the mid-60's with great uproar and consternation to create it. The brainchild of Governor Nelson A. Rockefeller, who was embarrassed that the capital of New York State lacked grandness. The project was started in 1968 and completed in 1978 at a cost of $1.7 billiion. It was designed by William Harrison - chief architect of the Rockefeller Center in NYC.
a good place for introspection. the scale dwarfs human beings, but it is spacious rather than claustrophobic. the texture lends itself to meditation - I practice breathing exercises there in the Summer. in the Winter the reflecting pools are converted into a skating rink
water, glass, marble, modern art - my sister-in-law (an architect) likened its grand severity to soviet architecture - the footprint of New York State on Albany as totalitarian, and was put off. I think its severity soothing - but concede it looks like a modern fascist dreamscape.
a meeting place for amorous adolescents - families with young children cavorting on modern art that you can touch and clamber on top of - state workers catching lunch - young girls in black skirts on a school outing playing hopscotch in the sun
it is a mountainous barrier between lower Albany and upper Albany with its glass & marble skyscrapers projecting out into space. the Little Italy section of the city was bulldozed in the mid-60's with great uproar and consternation to create it. The brainchild of Governor Nelson A. Rockefeller, who was embarrassed that the capital of New York State lacked grandness. The project was started in 1968 and completed in 1978 at a cost of $1.7 billiion. It was designed by William Harrison - chief architect of the Rockefeller Center in NYC.
a good place for introspection. the scale dwarfs human beings, but it is spacious rather than claustrophobic. the texture lends itself to meditation - I practice breathing exercises there in the Summer. in the Winter the reflecting pools are converted into a skating rink
water, glass, marble, modern art - my sister-in-law (an architect) likened its grand severity to soviet architecture - the footprint of New York State on Albany as totalitarian, and was put off. I think its severity soothing - but concede it looks like a modern fascist dreamscape.
VIEW 17 of 17 COMMENTS
Your compliments are a balm to the bruised artist's soul.
*glow*
starisea's pacific rainforest risotto
8 oz fiddlehead ferns (roasted)
3 1/2 c chicken broth
4 T butter
6 baby shallots (chopped)
6-8 morels (chopped)
1 c arborio rice
1/4 c grated parmesan cheese
Pre-heat oven to 425 degrees. Wash & trim ferns. Toss with 1 T olive oil and pinch of salt. Spread evenly on a cookie sheet and roast for 10 minutes, stirring after 5 minutes. Remove from oven and set aside.
Pour broth into a small sauce pan and bring to a simmer over medium heat. Reduce heat to low.
Meanwhile, melt butter in a medium skillet over medium-high heat. Add shallots and morels and cook, stirring often, until soft. Add rice and stir until opaque and well coated with butter.
Add 1/2 c of the broth and cook, stirring until absorbed. Continue to cook, adding remaining broth 1/2 c at a time, until rice is just tender to bite but not starchy tasting (This process will take aproximately 20 minutes); after each addition , stir constantly until broth is absorbed. Remove from heat and stir in cheese; let stand, uncovered, for 2 minutes. Top with roasted ferns and serve.
I am soooooo foodcentric lately, but I blame the amazing abundance of the Pacific Northwest summer. I can't escape the wonderful fooooooods!!