Humans of New York

Today we’re taking a break from our usual selection of awesome products to highlight an issue you may not be aware of.  Humans of New York is an amazing blog documenting the many characters of New York. It’s a photographic census of NYC, and along with the images are often short stories about the people featured. Since 2010, HONY, and it’s founder Brandon Stanton have provided us with daily snippets of the individuals that make up our city. Last year Mr. Stanton was approached by the DKNY fashion line to purchase a large number of his photographs for an ad campaign. The price was well below market value, and Stanton refused. This it was discovered they had been used anyway, without consent or compensation, in a window display in Bangkok  Thailand.  Instead of asking for personal compensation, Stanton asked DKNY (owned by the multi-national luxury goods conglomerate LYMH) to donate $100,000 to the Bedford-Stuyvesant YMCA to send kids in his Brooklyn neighborhood to summer camp. DKNY has offered to donate only $25,000, so Stanton is working to raise the remaining $75,000 through an Indie Gogo page and has already surpassed DKNY’s contribution. $100,000 means 300 kids will go to summer camp. It may seem like a small thing but having attending YMCA summer camp myself, I can’t overstate the value, particularly to urban kids. Please join us in supporting Brandon Stanton and Humans of New York in this worthy cause!

Brooklyn Tabernacle at INAUGURATION!!!

Picture from The Daily Beast

We were sooo excited to see (and better yet HEAR) The Brooklyn Tabernacle Choir at yesterday’s Inauguration. They are AMAZING and I have been lucky to hear them several times as they are just a few blocks from the shop. Very psyched that Brooklyn could represent in such a special way! Read more about them here…

CAUTION– love this sign! Cheers to a good week ahead…

A friend sent me this picture (taken by Dierdre Savage), taken on New Years Day. I love the Optimism, the Hope… and thought it was the perfect sign (literally) for the New Year. Cheers to a great week ahead, month, year…. I’m gearing up to watch Downtown Abbey, can’t wait!

It’s our FIFTH Anniversary today- We did it! WAHOOO!!!

Today is our FIFTH Anniversary- I can hardly believe it! I am so excited and proud of our success, and want to thank all our amazing customers and the community for all your wonderful support. You all give me inspiration and guidance every day. We truly couldn’t do it without you! Thank you, thank you, thank you!

Cheers to many more celebrations to come! xoxo, Annie

photo from American Legends Home Website

Bike on Over!

I love being part of a community- and we are lucky to be part of two, our online community and our local Brooklyn hood. I ran into one of my neighbors, Ellie (above) on the elevator the other day and we got to talking about the store, and she biked over to the shop this morning to get some fun gifts. How fun! She looked so cute in her sweet dress, on her bike- I had to snap a photo. We also got a call from our dear friend and neighbor (who is now out in Cali), Donna, for some more presents. Keep it coming everybody and thanks for all the support! Best, Annie

Happy Father’s Day!

Happy Father’s Day!! I hope everyone enjoys the day spending time with their families on this special day. Maybe the Papas are also enjoying their Father’s Day Gifts from Annie’s too (!!!). We sold a record amount of Father’s Day Cards this year, so I thought that was a good sign! Here is a pic of Coco & her Papa. We are waiting for our Big Gorilla to come back from a trip to Denver- we miss you Papa Bear!!

Atlas of Remote Islands

This wonderful book is for travelers, adventurers, lovers of esoteric facts, and anyone who’s ever contemplated the one album they would take with them to a desert island. (BTW, I’d take Van Morrison’s Astral Weeks.)  Subtitled “Fifty Islands I Have Never Set Food on and Never Will” – the Atlas of Remote Islands is filled with fascinating facts, astounding tales of survival and exploration, and beautiful maps (so beautiful in fact that it won a German prize for most beautiful book!). Get it while you can, and while you’re at it, let us know which album you’d take to a desert island! Atlas of Remote Islands – $30.00.

Bike Sharing Program coming to NYC (& maybe a city near you!)…

photo from NYC Bike Share Site

I fell in love with bike sharing on a visit to Washington, DC. last summer.  It’s such a great idea for city living where we don’t all have the space to store a bike. And now it’s coming to NYC! WAHOO!! As a (short term) casual member or (long term) registered member you simply pick up a bike from one of many docking stations throughout the city and return it when you’re done. It’s great for errands, visitors, getting to work or just day trips for fun. Check out NYC Bike Share for more information (you can read about the 10,000 bikes, 600 stations they are rolling out). The program launches in NYC this weekend (you can attend the open house to learn more) with bikes available later this summer and we’re chomping at the bit with some awesome bike accessories! We have everything you need to pimp your bike, from a gorgeous Nantucket Bike Basket for adults or children to Bike Lights in an array of colors to classic Bike Horns.

SF Excursion…

My Big Gorilla is on the West Coast for a month– he’s been in LA, SF, Reno, now Tahoe, Back to Reno, then HOME via LAX. I went out to visit him a few weeks ago while he was in San Fran for Valentine’s Day. I hadn’t spent any time on the West Coast in years, and hadn’t really been to SF since High School (a long time ago!) so it was soo fun to see the city. We went ALL OVER- parks, fun neighborhoods, cute shops, you name it. The Gorilla sent me this video yesterday on Huffington Post, via Vimeo from Robert McIntosh and thought it was such a lovely depiction of the city, I wanted to share! It’s shot with a remote control Helicam and captures breathtaking views of this amazing city.  Check it out…

State of the Union Bingo!

State of the Union Bingo- from The Atlantic

Tonight is The President’s State of the Union. The yearly address by the President involves a lot of pomp and circumstance, and is particularly vital this year with Obama’s re-election campaign heating up, but no matter if you’re red or blue- it’s important to watch. Heard about State of the Union Bingo this morning on NPR- and found this one from The Atlantic- hilarious. I’m going to play along while I watch! All sorts of interesting things to learn about here at The General Store’s Blog!