You may be as surprised that I am recommending something called The Natural History of the Chicken this week as Jim was when I said I wanted to spend the evening watching it, but perhaps you won't be quite as surprised when you learn it was made by Mark Lewis, the same documentarian behind the cult hit Cane Toads. While the film was made in 2001, it feels older in a good way. Rather than adopting the inane tone of most “educational” shows about food (think Unwrapped and Diners, Drive Ins and Dives) it has the look and feel of an older Errol Morris film.

The story of chickens is not told through obnoxious narration but by real people that love the animals. One one lady gave her chicken mouth the beak resuscitation, another writes poetry to her pet chicken after taking a few laps with him in her pool. Lewis has the wisdom (the sadly so many current documentarians have lost) to just let these people talk while offering fun recreations and imagery to go with their stories.

It calls to mind the annual Thanksgiving Poultry Slam on This American Life, and unlike the age old question of what came first, the chicken or the egg, we know that it was Ira Glass and team that first appreciated the many stories to be told about our favorite white meat. PBS, whether inspired by the radio show or not, have made a surprisingly touching, hilarious and memorable program. Lucky us, it's available on Netflix on demand, so you can watch it tonight.

See more: TV Shows 2000s Documentary

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Posted on June 1, 2009

The Richard Avedon show at ICP will inspire you to add some glamor into your life with the parade of enviable cinched waists, hats by Paulette and Lilly Dache, arm candy like Gardner McKay and Mike Nichols, and of course gowns, suits, and coats by decades of the worlds best designers like Dior, Gres, Fath, Balmain, Patou, Carnegie, Cardin, and Galliano.

The photos of familiar names like Audrey Hepburn, Suzy Parker – who poses on one of my favorite photos with Chanel, and Lauren Hutton – also in a favorite shot, smoking a joint on the beaches of the Bahamas – sit next to a long list of new names, at least to me that I have had tons of fun researching since: China Machado (our first non-Caucasian covergirl), Sunny Harnett (a statuesque blond that managed to look high class 1980s in 1954), Henrietta Tiarks (one of “the best known debutantes of the 50s”), and Emilien Bouglione (the beginning of a long line of circus performers).

Also on view are neat wire miniatures in costumes photographed by David Seidner, it was in this corner that we saw gray haired grand dame (who we all fell in love with in Unzipped) Polly Mellen, who disappeared as quickly and surely as she came.

A gorgeous, huge book accompanies the show and includes more photos but has a hefty price tag ($85). Sarafina and I settled instead for the $2 winking eye of Jean Shrimpton button.

See more: Spend a Couple Hours Artists Galleries/Museums Midtown East Midtown West

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Posted on June 1, 2009

The Adore deserves it's name because:

a. the space – with natural wood and giant airy windows is adorable, and

b. as it was packed even after peak lunch hours, it seems to be universally adored by those who know about it. And it's little wonder with their large selection of fresh sandwiches, salads and soups at comparatively reasonable prices.

I was taken with the inclusion of a warm anchovy sandwich – simple and yummy like everything we tried, that I paired with a potato leek soup. Unlike most creamy, heavy versions, this one is with a clear broth that's salty but not too much and chock full of chopped up fresh veggies. Fresh and home made really were the words for the day. Shaun's mustard dressing was also not heavy, but clearly made from scratch with ground up mustard seeds.

We sat upstairs where views of green trees outside add to the strikingly pleasant atmosphere. Even though it's fairly square in the middle of NYU and Union Square bustle, once you're inside you feel transported. Where exactly to is up in the air. The place is Japanese owned and run, (and therefore has rules that drive some Americans crazy if you read all the yelp and menu pages complaints) but they serve solid French sandwiches in a farm house/ loft setting. Truly a gem to anyone that discovers it and if you're in a rush, they have pastries and coffee to go downstairs but you'd miss out on the peace the inside offers.

See more: Restaurants French Japanese Sandwiches West Village

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Posted on June 1, 2009

They say that the music you listen to in the womb is most influential on your tastes as an adult. It was no bug surprise then to learn that my mom used to by Erik Satie before I was born. His most famous pieces Three Gymnopedies and Gnossiennes are performed here by Pascal Roge, a french classical musician whose website asks you to “dream with me”.

I used to listen to this soothing and unique album as a kid and have fond memories of the pink cover and the whimsical Joan Miro painting. Like Miro, Satie was a revolutionary artist. According to Wikipedia, “Over the years Satie would be described as a precursor of movements and styles as varied as Impressionism, neo-classicism, Dada, Surrealism, atonalism, minimalism, conceptual art, the Theatre of the Absurd, muzak, ambient music, multimedia art, etc.”

The other piano works are equally beautiful and interesting and the album is a soothing journey with one of France's finest composers and my favorite of his century.

See more: Albums Classical Pre 1900

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Posted on June 1, 2009

While Lovin' You has become a bit of a shorthand joke in movies and TV shows to represent a kind of cheesy, schmaltzy romance that no one seems to believe in with such a hazy soft focus any more, I find it so simple both lyrically “loving you is easy because you're beautiful” and pretty that it still fills me with a sweet feeling.

As sweet as the baby's breath that halos Minnie Riperton's afro and the fact that she used to sing this to her baby daughter, comedienne Maya Rudolph.

See more: Songs 1970s AM Gold Romance

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Posted on June 1, 2009