Summer Streets

First the fun stuff:  NYC's Department of Transportation has announced it's Summer Streets program, which closes Park Avenue on 3 Saturdays (August 2, 9 & 16) from 7a - 1p from the Brooklyn Bridge to 72nd Street for bicycle riding.  Free helmets will be given out @ 25th & Park Avenue, what's being called

the Midtown Rest Stop.  Plus, the DOT has scheduled Weekend Walks in all 5 boroughs.  For more info visit Summer Streets

Staying Cool

While you are enjoying all the outdoor activity, I have to share w/ you some of my low cost secrets for staying cool.  I've learned all about this because as most of you know I have MS and heat is not our friend.  So, short of staying inside in air conditioning all summer - which by the way is tax deductible for people w/ MS - here are some of my favorite ways to stay cool:

1. a parasol - I have had one for a while, but used it for the first time yesterday.  It was miraculous how much cooler I felt not being under direct sun. In a one block radius - walking the dog - no less than 3 people stopped to ask me where I got it.  Plus, it's kinda flirty!  $5 in Chinatown.
2. neck coolers - these lifesavers are filled w/ the same stuff used to absorb wetness in disposable diapers.  You soak them in cold water for 20 minutes and wrap it around your neck or other pulse point (forehead, wrist, etc.)  I'm feeling cooler just thinking about it.  Available in fashionable colors & designs. polarproducts.com
3. ice - I always have a half frozen bottle of water or 2 in my freezer.  When I go out, I fill it up w/ water or lemonade or fruit juice and it stays cold for a long time.
4. folding fan - in Catholic school the nuns used to tell us that it uses more energy to fan oneself than the coolness that energy produces.  I respectfully disagree!  People around the world have depended on this simple device to stay cool for centuries.  Don't go out without one.
5. misting fan - the battery operated one I bought at DisneyWorld a hundred years ago still works.
6. water - when I was first diagnosed w/ this wacky disease, they told me I shouldn't go to the beach.  I was crushed, and I avoided something I loved until I realized about a year later that before the invention of air conditioning people were going to the seashore to cool off for hundreds of years! If you get hot, take a quick dip!  Sit under an umbrella and enjoy the calming effect of the gentle waves. For inner and outer refreshment, nothing beats water.
7. cold food - crisp salad, ice pops, gazpacho, bananas, yogurt, grapes, smoothies, etc.  There's really no limit to the foods that can be frozen or at least chilled to make a refreshing and cooling meal or snack.
8. wet hair - I start unbearably hot, humid days with a shower and if my hair doesn't need a shampoo, I just soak it and leave it wet.  I twist and clip it.  A wet head is very cool!
9. walk on the shady side of the street - at the risk of questioning the old song (which I do love), if you have a choice during the summer, walk in the shade.  The skyscrapers in New York make it pretty easy and it makes a big difference.
10. a cold shower - it's too hot to have sex anyway!

Fireworks!       

I am thrilled that the Macy's 4th of July fireworks are coming back to the East Side!  You can line up w/ the crazy crowds along the FDR drive, or come to a little piece of heaven on the Extreme East Side - the Esplanade.  From 81st street up to Gracie Mansion and beyond, there is an esplanade along the East River.  Years ago we would bring chairs and a picnic around 7pm and socialize until the show at 9pm.

MayDay

My #1 son Alex (did I mention the Cornell graduate?!) is involved w/ a group that is trying to take back our government from the 1%.  He's produced a short video that I think explains the issue in terms we can all understand.  No degree in rocket science required!  I offered to put on my blog.  I'm a good mother(!) and a woman of my word, so here it is MayDay 

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Keep calm & carry on...Lori