All that’s required is that you take over the cost part (minimal, maybe 20$/year?), retain the existing content (easy) and keep working on it (actually the hardest part!).

Get in touch!

There were some sourpusses in the office though. People who said “what’s the big deal? They’re just bagels.” But a good bagel is not so easy to find in Philly! There’s South Street, with their recent Best of Philly win, and there’s some place north of Rittenhouse which is pretty mediocre. That’s all that comes to mind. Except for…

The Philadelphia Bagel Co.
The place is in a strip mall at the intersection of Washington Ave. and Delaware. You’ve probably seen it a million times but never stopped in. Next time you’re driving by in the morning do yourself a favor and check it out. Not only do they supply Whole Foods and most of the better hotels in the city, it also has a really nice selection of bagels, their own cream cheese blends, bagel pizzas and even my favorite, the bialy!

Their best feature though is their genuinely friendly and helpful attitude. If you ask for a bialy with cream cheese you may have a concerned bagelier (that belongs in the dictionary, btw) asking you if you’d like the top half placed upside-down, so the garlicky-oniony goodness doesn’t all fall off. There may also be a “hon” or “sweetie” thrown in for good measure if you’re a lady, and I can practically guarantee some heartfelt good wishes for the rest of your day. You canNOT walk out of there without feeling like you made a new friend. Plus they have salt bagels, which I love. And pumpkin cream cheese!

You can find an in-depth discussion of Philly’s bagel scene on Chowhound if you want. I’ll admit I have yet to check out South Street, so I’ll update this post when I do. But apparently I’m not the only one who thinks that Philly suffers from a lack of bagel options. Consider this piece from a bit on phoodie.info

As a Jewish boy raised on really good bagels growing up in D.C. of all places (not exactly a deli/baglery hotbed), I’ve been shocked since moving here twenty years ago Philly doesn’t have good bagels. Just about the only exception I’ve found is the bagel maker on Delaware Ave. in the strip mall where American Applicances used to be. There bagels are definitely the real deal, hot out of the oven after being wonderfully boiled. Good commitment to the basics with some allowance made for those weirdos who like things other than sesame or poppy seeds on their bagels. Don’t know the name, it might just go by “Bagels”…

That place is, without a doubt, Philadelphia Bagel Co.
1100 S Columbus Blvd
Philadelphia, PA 19147-5513
(215) 336-7211

8-bit and Beyond

First we have an 8-bit art show.  If you don’t know what that means think fine art crossed with Mario, Q-bert, Zelda, etc. I’ve been reading about shows like this out on the left coast for a while and I’m glad we’ve got something to compete.  This is the kind of art that uh…speaks to me.

(Totally unrelated circuit-bent Speak and Spell video below)

The show is going to be in Old City at Brave New Worlds, one of our fine city’s finest comical book shops.
Friday, August 7th
6-10 PM
45 N. 2nd Street Philadelphia, Pa.
The Autumn Society Of Philadelphia: 8 bit and beyond.

Sneaker Pimps

Next we have the infamous Sneaker Pimps touring sneaker festival. From their site:

Sneaker Pimps is the worlds largest touring sneaker hip-hop lifestyle exhibition featuring over 1500 pairs of rare, limited edition, vintage, celebrity signed, artists collaborated sneakers and a collection of sneaker inspired artwork, fashion and photography. The tour also features live street art installations, live skateboarding demonstrations, street basketball competitions and live hip-hop and rock performances by some of the world’s foremost recording artists.

The Sneaker Pimps Tour was founded in Sydney, Australia by Peter Fahey and has traveled to more than 60 cities world-wide and put on over 200 shows since 2003.

(Totally related video from the NYC show below)

Starlight Ballroom
460 N 9th Street
Philadelphia, PA 19123
Sneaker Pimps.

Star Trek Exhibit at the Franklin

Finally there’s the Star Trek exhibit at the Franklin. Not much I can say about this other than I feel obligated to go because of my sister and Karen’s brother. But I can be a man and admit that I like TNG and the movies. I’m just mad that my sis taped over my VHS tapes of Pee-Wee’s Playhouse with TNG. Here’s another blockquote for you because I’m lazy:

STAR TREK: THE EXHIBITION features the world’s most comprehensive collection of authentic Star Trek objects and transports visitors into parallel universes of the future and past. This 12,500 foot exhibition, an amalgamation of all five television and ten film series spanning over 40 years, is the ultimate opportunity to connect with iconic Star Trek moments and characters, while celebrating the creative spirit of science fiction and science that gave rise to many of today’s modern marvels. From the Next Generation Bridge, to the Engine Room, to sitting in Kirk’s original captain’s chair, STAR TREK: THE EXHIBITION not only relives the legacy but invites you to be a part of the Enterprise!

(Somewhat related Shatner on the Mount video below)

Franklin Institute
20 Philadelphia St
Philadelphia, PA 19103
Star Trek at The Franklin Institute.

Electronic Jewelry Workshop – Saturday Aug 22 | The Hacktory.

They’re located at 1524 Brandywine Street, just a block above Fairmount at 15th. My buddy, an electrical engineer by trade, was visiting Philly and we drove there right after a long morning spent hunting down disc golf discs on the course in Fairmount Park. We were tired and hungry and covered in dirt but nobody seemed to notice. We were handed our kits and we forgot about food for the next hour as we started soddering away.

So what is the Drawdio? I think I first found out about the class from this citypaper link. Then I found

It’s a musical pencil! Long story short, we came, we saw, we soddered. It was a lot of fun. Check out my Drawdio below:

Ours didn’t work as well as it does in the video above, but that was probably due to the new circuitboards/speakers they were using untested for this 2nd workshop. We still had a lot of fun and are looking forward to more classes as they come up. I think the next one is going to be electro-jewelry; I hope Karen likes blinky-necklaces…

Make Philly
The Hacktory
1524 Brandywine Street, Philadelphia PA 19130

12 miles by bike doesn’t seem all that tough at first glance. But when you put that 12 miles through center city Philly and add in an 80 degree day and make the last few miles uphill while lost and well…it still doesn’t seem as desperate as we felt by the end of that ride. The chafing, sunburn and sore butts melted away after a few minutes and a couple of beers at Tom and Peggy Baker’s Earth, Bread and Brewery. Pics in the extended!

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