Saturday, October 8, 2011

I'm moving...

Hello dear friends of Morta Di Fame! I have some exciting news. You know I moved to Greenpoint, Brooklyn, from my old boro of Queens. And the blog waned. I realize why. I didn't have the same material I had when I lived there. By material I mean my crazy Sicilian family, but in particular the stars of the show Nonna and Rocco! My Mom Marcy, the only normal one, is keeping me abreast on the craziness going on there.
A new woman moved into the downstairs apartment below Nonna. The poor woman is very scared and regretful because not only does she have Nonna, the self-titled Commander of the House throwing her weight around but she has Nonna's second in command, Josephine (her caretaker) trying to steer the ship.
Normally the two are at odds about ridiculous Italian court TV shows but this time they are teaming up, and its getting ugly. When the new woman tried to pay her first months rent with a money order, they scoffed. "We don't accept those here," they told her. As if they are running a convenience store.
"I don't like her," Nonna says.
"But why?" Marcy asks.
"She has ripped jeans."
Ripped Jeans? This coming from the old woman who knitted sleeves onto a my dad's 70s maroon puffer vest and who use to make me scrunchies. Style is apparently very important to Nonna.
I promise to keep you posted on these stories but my focus has shifted to a new and bigger endeavor that I am inviting you to be a part of.
While walking around my gorgeous new McGorlick Park in Greenpoint, I wished I had a blog where I talk about all the amazing goings on and rad people in my neighborhood.
Serendipitously, I received an email from Justine, the founder and owner of the beloved Greenpointers blog. She was putting it up for sale because she was moving to Harlem. Its not like I don't have a million other projects going on but I bid and I got it!
What impressed me about Justine, aside from her kick-ass Brooklyn accent, is that she wasn't interested in the highest bidder but someone who would continue to develop the blog, which is my new job! That's top of my photography position at Polo and my art organization Ugly Art Room.
The welcome from my new neighbors and readers has been amazing and I hope you can be a part of it. Please check in: www.thegreenpointers.com
A post you may really enjoy is the Greenpointers Espresso Tour in which three other judges plus myself toured Greenpoint and tasted over 19 espressos to find THE BEST ESPRESSO in Greenpoint.
Even if you are not from Greenpoint, there is a lot on there you will enjoy, including recipes, reviews, art and music, funny stories, great photos, and not just from me but from a slew of other talented writers and photographers from a variety of backgrounds.
Morta Di Fame will now be reserved for my crazy writing plus a sounding board for the new blog, which has been so far a really interesting experience, like the debate among original Greenpointers on who is a "real" Greenpointer. Am I still in Queens? So stay tuned...

4 comments:

Gloria said...

I'm a born and bred Greenpointer, but I think if you live in Greenpoint, from the first day you move in, you are officially a Greenpointer and should be proud of it. Even though I'm not there anymore, I still miss it and will always be a Brooklyn-er at heart. I miss 'the Avenue' (Manhattan Avenue) so much! I wonder if people still call it that... i.e., "I'm gonna go up the avenue, I have to get something."
Best,
Gloria

Jennifer Galatioto said...

Thanks Gloria. I always say the same about New Yorkers. It takes like 6 mo. tops. I am so proud and happy to live there. I haven't heard anyone say the avenue. But that's what we friends call Metropolitan Ave when I was growing up in Middle Village. I called it Metro. I am going to bring back Winthrop Park and The Avenue! Thanks for commenting!

Anonymous said...

You're so sweet Jen. You're doing such an awesome job, better than I could've ever hoped or dreamed for. :)

@Gloria - Going up the avenue is still what the people who grew up in Greenpoint say!

Underground Dining said...

congrats jen-- that's tremendous!!!