¡¡¡¡Memorial Day Blowout!!!!

Eric Adams Watch! Very Long Braids!! ITEMS OF INTEREST!!!!!!!!

Anne Kadet

May 27, 2024

158

110

Hello everyone,

Happy Memorial Day and welcome to Issue #119 of CAFÉ ANNE!

So much to discuss!

First, in last week’s feature story, I recounted my recent experiment asking a random Goodwill thrift store clerk to pick me a random outfit—and then wearing it for (almost) a week. The gauzy peach rhinestone top and khaki pants were a big switch from my usual all-black uniform.

Many commented to say they loved seeing me in color. Others expressed their sympathy. “It’s hard to wear clothing you don’t connect with or doesn’t represent who you are,” wrote CK Steefel.

My favorite contribution was from Michelle S., who recounted a fantastic game from her university days, similar to my experiment:

“Twenty of us from our class once went to a thrift store. We each put our name and clothing sizes on a piece of paper and into a hat. We all drew names and then picked out and bought outfits for the name we drew. Then once all the outfits had been selected, tried on and paid for, we went out for dinner together in our new clothes. The outfits ranged from “full prom” to “80s rocker” and “pimp/artist.” Our cheeks ached from laughter. Highly recommend.”

Other readers, meanwhile, focused on my mention of the new line of coffee launched by former NYC mayor Rudy Giuliani. “I wait on bated breath for the Rudy Coffee taste test,” wrote Brian S.

Great idea! But which flavor should I test? At $30 a pop, I can only sample one.

Several joining the conversation voted for “Rudy Bold,” but Brian disagreed. “I’d go with Rudy Morning,” he wrote. “Subtle hints of something or other…”

This definitely calls for a CAFÉ ANNE poll!

In other news, today is the last day you can bid on this used Staten Island Ferry, put up for auction by the city. The 310-foot boat has room for 6,000 passengers. Minimum bid is $155,000. Did someone say CAFÉ ANNE party boat?

Moving on, in the latest issue of his always delightful The Art of Noticing newsletter, Rob Walker passed along a fantastic icebreaker for your next gathering. The conversational gambit: “Build” your dream strip mall, with five chain establishments — the strip mall of your heart.

I love this game so much! My fantasy strip mall? Starbucks, Barnes & Noble, Swatch, See’s Candies and of course a Cinnabon! Please describe yours in the comments.

Finally, huge NYC summer staycation shoutouts to new paid subscribers Kathy C. and Betsy B. That’s enough $$$ to pay all my library fines!

I am very excited for this week’s issue, of course. Because it’s a holiday, there’s no big feature story—this is sort of a mini edition. But it includes a new episode of Eric Adams Watch, my latest street style interview and—oh boy-fresh Items of Interest! Please enjoy.

Regards!

Anne

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ERIC ADAMS WATCH

On Prayers, Robocalls and, of Course, Rats!

I continue to enjoy the exploits of Eric Adams, whom my friend Aharon refers to as “New York City’s first AI-generated Mayor.” As a profile in Politico put it, “In a city of weird people and weird mayors, Adams is maybe the most idiosyncratic figure to ever hold the office.”

Here, round-up #23 of the mayor’s doings:

May 9: At a press conference, the Mayor declines to address pointed questions from NYC journalist Katie Honan, but assures her that in his upcoming tour of Italy, he will ask the Pope to pray for city reporters. “And in the Baptist church, we touch your head, so I’m touchin’ your head,” he adds, reaching over to give her a pat. “Lord, please save her!”

May 11: During his tour of Italy, the Mayor meets with Pope Francis at the Vatican. He later reports that the Pope made a request: “Eric, please pray for me.”

May 14: Hellgate and other news outlets reveal that the robocalls the Mayor has been sending to NYC residents in Spanish, Mandarin, Haitian Creole and Yiddish were actually generated by AI voice clone software. The Mayor quickly defends the practice of deep-faking his own voice: “I got one thing: I’ve got to run the city, and I have to be able to speak to people in the languages that they understand, and I’m happy to do so,” he says. “And so, to all, all I can say is a ‘ni hao.’”

May 15: Tackling two issues at once—the ongoing migrant crisis and city’s lifeguard shortage, Mayor Adams suggests an elegant solution—employ migrants as lifeguards! “Because they’re excellent swimmers,” he explains.

May 15: Following a brief hiatus from his war on enemy #1, the city’s rat population, the Mayor resumes his battle by announcing the inaugural National Urban Rat Summit coming to NYC this fall. “New Yorkers may not know this about me,” says the Mayor, “but I hate rats!”

CAFÉ ANNE STYLE BLOG

The Look: Purity and Power!

In NYC, you see many people sporting styles that pique one's curiosity. If only you had an excuse to stop them and ask questions! But when you write a newsletter about NYC, you do!

My latest was a lady I recently spotted at the Trader Joe's on Court Street. She was dressed entirely in white, including an enormous head wrap adorning her crown, and her thick dreadlocks were styled in twin braids hanging to her knees.

I stood by the supermarket exit waiting in ambush. When she came out, burdened by three grocery bags, a backpack and a suitcase full of food, she agreed to sit for a spell and discuss her look.

A native New Yorker who grew up in Brooklyn and now lives in Harlem, she told me she's an "international gourmet chef" who teaches "transitional cooking classes" for folks going vegan. The singer, dancer and clothing designer has two grown sons, loves Donald Trump and uses Dr. Bronner’s in lieu of shampoo. Her name, she said, is Amumprubia Bellatuel.

"Wow!" I said. "What does your name mean?"

"It means 'hidden high priestess,'" she said.

"And that's what your parents named you?"

"Oh no," she said. "That's what my ex-husband named me."

The following Q&A has been edited and condensed.

Tell me about your braids, please!

What do you want to know? I've had it 30 years, and I love it! I really do. It's basically easy to maintain. Though the longer it gets, it gets harder. I take three hours to wash it.

How often do you wash it?

Sometimes once a week, sometimes twice a week. It depends on how much energy I have. I have to take baths—it's easier for me to wash in the bathtub. I've washed it in the shower, but it takes longer. I actually have a lot of my hair tied up now, in a knot.

You mean in your head wrap?

If I take them out, they're dragging on the floor.

How long are they when they’re not tied up?

I never measured. I have not even a clue. And I cut two-and-a-half feet off! I was in Georgia and a sister that I knew from New York, she cut it. She gave me a silk cloth to wrap them in, but I lost them.

Oh no!

I was going to donate them to somebody who had cancer.

You must get a lot of comments on the street.

Sometime I don't wear my head wrap. A lady at the Park Slope Food Coop said, "I love your hat." I said, "It's not a hat, it's my hair."

When they're braided, they’re easier to maintain. It keeps them in order. I can keep people from sitting on them or stepping on them on the train. One day I had them in a ponytail, and the train doors closed on them. I wasn't paying attention.

I hope you were inside the train!

Yes, I just had to stand by the doors and be patient.

Do you think you'll ever cut them off?

I really can't think of a reason that I'd cut them. They're part of me. I used to cover them more, but people don’t recognize me without my hair.

Also, for many years, I just wore white, white, white. I kind of got out of that, but I want to get back to it.

Why do you wear white?

People misconstrue white. They think I'm Yoruba. I know about Yoruba. It's a West African culture that deals with ancestors and rituals, but I'm not Yoruba. Part of my father's family was Yoruba. Yoruba people don't marry. But they did, in my family.

Lucky for you!

I know! I am on the path of purification, that's it. That's that why I wear white. People say, "How do you keep your whites so white?" I say, "I wash it!"

How long have you been wearing white?

Maybe 20 years. It's about purification of the spirit. Keeping mentally focused. White gets dirty if you don't pay attention.

That is brilliant! So you have to be very mindful. That's one reason I always wear black—I spill everything! But if I wore white, I'd have to be more careful. I'd have to slow down. That is really smart. Maybe I'll switch teams!

This man was on my stoop, he was sleeping. I said, "Excuse me, sir, can I get by?" He said, "I must have died and went to heaven, cuz you sho' look like an angel!" I said "Well, I'm not an angel, and this isn't heaven, I just want to get in my place."

Last question, do your braids have any spiritual meaning for you?

Yes, I feel connected with the universe—as far as these are antennae.

I've read about that—that long hair gives you power. Not as in a Sampson type of thing, but American Indians, for example, had a punishment where they'd cut someone's hair to cut their connection with a higher power.

Wow. See? That's what I felt happened when I cut the two-and-a half feet. I got disconnected in a way. A lot of crazy stuff happened to me.

You need every foot. Every foot counts!

Every foot counts! Every inch!