Laura Raquel

I was thinking about how fast summer was going by a few days ago. And I had this crazy notion I wasn’t living up to my full summer potential. Like I had been sitting in my apartment listlessly watching the hours drag by…and I knew that wasn’t true. I wanted to write down some things to do before summer ended, and also highlight the things I had already done. So this is my summer done/to do list. This summer has already been spectacular and I feel incredibly blessed to be living in such a fantastic city with a great community of friends.

Summer DONE list:

1. Hung out with out of town friends. I love having people visit me and my city.
2. Gone to the beach. Riis beach to be exact, which leads to my next item…
3. Fulfilled my odd and freakishly stalker-like ambition of eating at all of the Ample Hills locations. I would freely describe myself as an Ample Hills addict. Hands down my favorite ice cream in the city.
4. Waited in line and scored awesome seats for Shakespeare in the Park. I had never done this before.
5. Did a crazy two-nights-sleeping-on-the-streets-experience to buy cancelation line tickets to HAMILTON. Was it worth it? YES. Have I been listening to the soundtrack nonstop since I was in the room where it happened? DOUBLE YES.
6. Lounged in Governor’s Island hammock grove. Seriously, what’s better than a hammock?
7. Scored tickets to the Brooklyn Pop Up Dinner. Second year in a row attending, and I’m still just as mesmerized by the sea of white and glorious table decorations.
8. Attended a summer outdoor wedding. (Congrats again, Erin & Jon.)
9. Camped out in Brooklyn Bridge Park for the 4th of July fireworks. My #1 favorite park in NYC.
10. Went to multiple summer BBQs. Prospect Park is so close, and we’re definitely taking advantage of that.
11. Learned new things at the Secret Science Club. Like how did I not realize there were FEASTING black holes and FASTING black holes? #terrifying.
12. Gotten crafty with my community group. I have been so blessed by Liberty Church.
13. Painted a mural in Bay Ridge. This one happened at the very start of summer, but I’m including it because I’m all about volunteering.
14. Rode Jane’s Carrousel. Have wanted to do this ever since I moved here and just hadn’t gotten around to doing it.
15. Gone on a city wide scavenger hunt. Sponsored by Open House New York. We didn’t get anywhere close to the top three teams, but we had a ton of fun.

Rest of Summer to-do list

1. Visit two new beaches. I’ve got my eyes on you, Fire Island.
2. Go to the Museum of Ice Cream. I mean, could I really NOT go to this??
3. Go on some actual rides at Coney Island. I hear some roller coasters calling my name.
4. Try two new ice cream places. You may have sensed that I really like ice cream. I haven’t been to Odd Fellows or that new Magnum NYC pop-up.
5. Find a new summer jam. I’ve been looking forward to Relient K’s new release: Air For Free, as well as NEEDTOBREATHE’s Hard Love.
6. Attend one of the BRIC Celebrate Brooklyn! summer concerts. Again, located in my backyard, Prospect Park.
7. Catch one of the Broadway in Bryant Park series. Free broadway? Yes, duh.
8. Visit the Mo Willems exhibit at the New York Historical Society. I love his picture books. And so many of them are set in the city!
9. Visit the Cooper Hewitt and see their pixar exhibit. Haven’t been to this museum yet, and it looks amazing.

This isn’t everything, but it’s a start. What about you? What exciting things have you already done this summer? Any ice cream recommendations?