🍬 Sugary Scoop: Friendship - A Bittersweet Symphony

Welcome to the Sugary Scoop, my free biweekly newsletter where we help you see and experience the magic of NYC that I love so much through curated events, experiences, artists, and community stories.

Let’s get to this week’s Scoop!

🍬The Scoop 🍬

• UPCOMING EVENTS

• WHAT'S NEW

• THE SUGARY EFFECT

• PAST EVENTS

• AND DON’T SAY I DIDN’T TELL YOU ABOUT…

  • NOTABLE NYC EVENTS THIS WEEK FROM OUR FRIENDS

August 15th @6:00pm (Midtown West): Sugary x Tradisyon: A Kamayan Feast - ​Come and enjoy a special evening of incredible eats as Chef Anton discusses the incredible world of Filipino cuisine and why he is among those leading the charge to bring it to the forefront of NYC’s dining scene! For those wondering what a Kamayan consists of, we have a wide variety of dishes including grilled pork belly, crispy pata (pork knuckle), whole fish, shrimp, veggies, fruits, individual dipping sauces, and more - on top of freshly made white rice! _{(Social Battery Level: Medium Ambivert - Crowd Size 10-20)}

August 20th @5:30pm (Tribeca): Sugary Community Town Hall II - Our Second Town Hall for our Community! ​Come join us to learn about what we are working on for the months ahead, offer your feedback, suggest programing ideas/collaborations & bring a guest to meet the members and enjoy an early evening of good vibes. _{(Social Battery Level: Low Ambivert - Crowd Size 20-30)}

August 22nd @5:30pm (Tribeca): Unsent Letter Project Presents: The Write to Read Salon - Our incredible salon series continues celebrating the power of anonymous writing and storytelling. Come check it out and see why folks are calling this series, “deeply thoughtful, immensely therapeutic and simply beautiful”. RSVP HERE _{(Social Battery Level: Low Ambivert - Crowd Size 20-30)}

_{(Space is very limited for each of these events so if you’d like to attend to any of these events, please hit the RSVP button below sooner than later!)}

I’m off to VeeCon

So in about one week's time DK and I will be heading to LA as a guest of Vayner Media to attend Vee-Con which is a conference for the creator economy founded by the legendary Gary Vaynerchuk.

Should be a very interesting trip and I told DK that I would make an earnest attempt to “live that influencer life” and embrace posting regularly on socials and sharing more of my day-to-day with everyone during this week-long period and particularly during the conference which occurs August 9-11.

I’ve been resistant to it up until now because I have never really been comfortable with the idea and it all seemed just a little bit silly to me if I’m being honest.

While there may be some truth to that as an overall commentary on where we are heading as a society, it is ALSO a convenient excuse for me to avoid doing the thing that I need to be doing as part of my role fostering a connection with my community.

I recognize these truths equally now.

And while I am still not quite comfortable with the prospect of broadcasting so much of my day-to-day business, I suppose this is no different than when I started working out…or when I decided to start a newsletter… or when I decided to launch a membership program within the community.

None of it was comfortable, and none of it was easy, and I was never ready for it. Truth be told, there is a real possibility I’d never be ready for it if I didn’t just…start.

Some of you have seen in recent times I’ve stepped up my posting especially around the release of my newsletter and my new intense fitness journey (more on that later).

It’s been a long time coming and I can’t say it’s been a smooth process. I am trying, though, and I suppose that is at least in some sense part of the point, to do the thing that needs to be done.

And so this conference will be a perfect time to throw myself into the deep end and give this part of my “business” some well-deserved attention and focus.

It’s all an experiment and for me it’s all awkward baby steps with inconsistent, pacing and real issues with balance. However, I suppose I am fulfilling all of your parental dreams, allowing you to see this infant stumble across his first steps into a lot of different areas.

So enjoy and please feel free to reach out whenever…I’ll be happy to hear from you! ❤️🍬

Like Gary V. says, “Stop whining, start hustling”.

I’ll see you at Vee Con!

Friendship: A bittersweet symphony

It was noon on a warm Sunday in June and I was about to have a fascinating brunch.

I had forecast this outcome because I was breaking bread with the most unique couple I’d had the pleasure of meeting a few months back.

From the moment I met them, I knew it would easily be the most thrilling conversation I would have that evening. Their openness and curiosity overcame the urge for fleeting small talk and instead we waxed poetic on philosophy and life perspectives.

Our initial parlay transitioned quite seamlessly into living out the intention of “to be continued…” in an alleyway restaurant chock-full of character and cuisine.

Our subject for this break fast…the expectation of friendships.

You see, the gentleman of this dynamic duo came from an ultra orthodox Jewish upbringing. And while there were many aspects that he did not agree with, which ultimately led to a painful distancing of close friends and family, there was an element of stability and sustained presence from core friends and family that he did miss.

As he was trying to cobble together a new community from the potluck nature of this diverse metropolis, he was often frustrated that he could not seem to recreate some mirroring semblance of this sensation he had once felt within his orthodox upbringing.

While I did not share his kind of experience growing up, I had managed to find a contentment in friendships that would be simultaneously supportive yet forever be in flux.

My friend was taken a bit aback by this statement as it sat in stark contrast to his own notion of what he felt a friendship needed to be for him. His posture notably stiffened and his fingers started fidgeting a bit.

I placed my hand on his arm and in an act of assurance offered him an alternative vision to consider.

I said, “Would you like me to share how I think our friendship will go?”

Intrigued at this bold attempt at soothsaying, he invited me to divine our future.

Here’s what I told them as a couple…

I have a feeling we will have many more fascinating conversations ahead of us and that alone will only draw us closer.

We’ll share more experiences together and we’ll find ourselves naturally gravitating towards each other. But gravity is not the only force in this world.

Your love for each other will continue to grow and that will literally and figuratively bring us further apart. God willing, when you start a family that will be your focus, not me.

What was once seeing each other all the time will become seeing each other once in awhile to perhaps barely seeing each other at all.

And yet…I’ll try to be there to wish you a happy birthday, to celebrate your victories, to acknowledge your losses and most importantly to support you in times of need. I suspect you will do the same.

It is in those exact moments you will be reminded and appreciate why we entered each other’s orbits in the first place.

If we can manage to sustain that regard, I’ll say we will have had a fantastic friendship.

My friend asked me how I could just accept the idea of friends just falling out of my life. I guess I just didn’t see it that way.

My perspective was that I could find joy in the knowledge that my friends are living their best lives and the friendship doesn’t source exclusively on what direct benefit it would have on my life.

Having already experienced this and certain I will experience it again in my life, my soul is prepared even if the process can hurt. But such is life.

I’m often reminded of Shawshank Redemption, where Morgan Freeman’s character Red offers a poignant thought shortly following Andy Dufrain’s escape from prison saying, “I have to remind myself that some birds aren't meant to be caged. Their feathers are just too bright. And when they fly away, the part of you that knows it was a sin to lock them up does rejoice...”

Take care your expectations of your friendships don’t become an unintentional prison, resenting people for living out their best life instead of being in service to yours.

Life is an open sea and we are all out in it staying afloat in our own way. But as long as we’re in earshot of each other, we’re not so alone after all. I am at peace with that.

Marco…POLO!!

July 21st: Zombie Tag IV - Nearly 150 of you came out to participate in some harmless shenanigans as we took the Met by storm and played our largest game to date! Congrats to our champion Henry Wang for claiming the top spot and becoming our sole survivor!

July 30th: Unsent Letter Write to Read Salon - Our followup salon was another huge success. Nearly 30 of you joined us at Fabrik to hear and contribute to this continued testament to the power of anonymous storytelling. It was magical and the evening was capped off by a wonderful music performance by Gabrielle Marlena.

ARTIST SPOTLIGHT

Zeshan B.

A change is in the air and these winds steer towards soulful crooner Zeshan B. whose vintage tenor draws out deep renditions of yesteryear nostalgic sentiment set against the backdrop of a contemporary thematic urgency.

Zeshan’s latest album “O, Say Can You See” is a stunning exhibition of this modern juxtaposition.

As with much of his previous work, it is commonplace to experience a non-linear progression to the track list. A jazz-like standard, is followed by a folk song performed in the Urdu language, flowing into an anthemic song of protest straight out of our nation’s past.

However this eclectic tasting menu is deceptively arbitrary.

At its core lies an immigrant heritage paired with rigorous classical training and a deep veneration for the traditions of blues, jazz and soul that lend towards an uncommon sonic offering.

Zeshan’s uplifting artistry serves as an acute commentary of our times while also seeking to lift us collectively beyond the veil of disenfranchisement affecting us all.

O say can you see?…o yes we can.

Cryin’ in The Streets (most popular song)

Dream On (lesser known song)

On My Own (newest song)

NOTABLE NYC EVENTS THIS WEEK FROM OUR FRIENDS

8/1 @ 6pm - Art & Wellness - A Sunset Soundscape Journey RSVP HERE

8/2 @ 6pm - Rise & Connect Networking Mixer RSVP HERE

8/3 @ 1-5pm - Unsent Letter Mailbox Popup (McCarren Park)- Follow @unsentlettermailbox for exact location

8/4 @ 10am - Olive Tree Writing Club Season 3: Part 2 RSVP HERE

8/17-18 @ 1-5pm - Unsent Letter Mailbox Popup (Central Park)- Follow @unsentlettermailbox for exact location