The great outdoors

Hi Mom,

Cell phone's fixed. Went to the crowded but useful Verizon store and stood in the queue for awhile. They deemed my phone appropriately defective and swapped it out on the spot (that's how you know it was REALLY defective). Lost my pictures and text messages and for the next bit will have to dial all the numbers on my bill to ask "who is this," but at least we're back in business.

The new phone allegedly is still getting its sea legs--Sam, who sits next to me at work, says it goes right to voicemail frequently without even ringing through. He was calling me rapid-fire yesterday as my co-workers and I dovetailed our way down to a community garden in Alphabet City for a post-work event.

We ate cookies in a treehouse down between C and D on 4th, where one of the editors has a plot she tends. She's growing basil, tomatoes, etc.; a few chickens roam the place and ate half of her box. All part of being part of an ecosystem, I guess.

Community gardens are a random phenomenon in the city. They're usually rather unexpected-looking spots amidst building-filled city blocks. When I was in journalism school several of them were in vehement land wars with local churches or other institutions that somehow way back (or not so way back) owned the land and had other ideas for its most appropriate use.

Alphabet City used to be a pretty rough part of town, mostly bodegas and squatters and such, but over time, the way locals tell it, residents cleaned the place up. Now there are trendy restaurants and off-beat bars, new apartment buildings and Saturday night crowds edging their way in from the East Village. Translation: land's worth a swanky sum.

It's a long way from there back to the subway, so Soojung and I met up for Cambodian food. Lucky for us, there's also a fabulous chocolate bar on the way back to help break up the walk. Guess I'll go to the gym today.

Love,

Karen