Treats, Sleigh Bells' loud, cute debut, comes out as an actual physical CD on June 1. Of course, it's been out electronically since May 10, so we are unsure exactly who is eagerly awaiting this. If May were a long night out, we would have moved past the time of drunken dancing and on to the hour of cheap foods. We would now like our treats edible. For example: on Thursday, May 27, the Tenement Museum presents "Dumplings: the Ubiquitous Dough." A panel of dumpling authorities will gather to discuss a food that transcends cultural boundaries. Issues that we hope to see addressed include Do Gnocchi Count and What of the Non-Savory Dumpling, Is Dessert the Final Frontier. It is unclear to us whether actual dumplings will be provided, but at least we will be close to Vanessa's, where $7 buys a huge amount of food.
It is Fleet Week, the kind of event that we once assumed was made up. But no: There are sailors, and they come ashore. We suppose this presents a good opportunity to look upon New York as a land of endless possibility. Say things like "hit the town!" Wear a uniform! Get some tattoos and make out with strangers! Or cultivate a similar sense of excitement by aligning yourself with new college graduates as they arrive en masse. In this case, just get tattoos and make out. Be agonizingly self-serious when you explain the tattoos to your stranger.
But it's not just the sailors and 22-year-olds who arrive in New York this week. The city also plays host to publishing people from around the world as Book Expo America sets up camp in the Javits Center. Fewer tattoos and make-outs for this crowd, we expect, and more conversations about the next big young adult novel.
We hope that all of the aforementioned populations interact extensively and weirdly. What they will speak of, we do not know, but perhaps on the evening of the 28th, they can pause and look down the City's east-to-west streets. There they will witness Manhattanhenge, the annual sunset that aligns perfectly with the city's grid. Maybe it's all coming together.
