31 May 2013
    
Kaunas, Lithuania

This was my second-favorite devil in the Zmuidzinavicius Museum--the Devils' Museum. I can't tell you my first-favorite devil, for obvious reasons. I can tell you that I presumed "zmuidzinavicius" to be the Lithuanian word for "devil" and I practiced it (sort of "shmood-zee-NAV-i-choos") until I got pretty good. Turns out--it's the name of the guy who started the collection.


29 May 2013
    

Vilnius, Lithuania



Just outside the Vilnius Cathedral (where Lithuanian badass Vytautas is buried) you will find the STEBUKLAS or "miracle" tile. Close your eyes then spin around clockwise three times and your wish will come true. Standard wish protocol applies--I can't tell you what I wished for--but I will admit to some anxiety about staying inside the tile (jetlag).



28 May 2013
    





17 May 2013
    

Fire Island, New York



The Atlantic side of Fire Island is a balloon graveyard.



14 May 2013
    

Fire Island, New York



The Otis Park Fire Island High Dune Wilderness has a great name. It's also the only federally designated wilderness in the state of New York. If you're a fan of flotsam, I suggest bushwhacking up the center of the island--Hurricane Sandy has left behind bottles so old they use corks and stoppers, etc. The dune grass will make wind dials for you if you leave your watch behind. My second day out there I saw more foxes than people, which is to say: I saw a fox.



9 May 2013
    

NYC



The poets of the 2013 East Harlem School poetry slam at B.B. King's. I like coaching this group much more than judging them but there's something to be said for comparing pocket squares backstage with a quorum of sharp-dressed tweens. Go for a tour of the East Harlem campus sometime: an eighth-grader will lead it and every teacher is introduced with the formula "This is Ms. Dickinson. She teaches 5th grade humanities. She attended Cornell..."