In the wake of 9/11 over 20 years ago, I started a blog called Three Good Things in which each post was — you guessed it — a list of three good things. With the world as bleak as it is in these early days of 2024, relaunching the project feels like a good idea. Read on for this week’s entry.
1. Anyone Comics / Everyone Comics
I’ve done a bunch of events at Anyone Comics in Brooklyn over the years, including my first comic book signing since the start of the pandemic, an outdoor deal on a glorious spring day on May 2022 that I will always remember as a moment of tremendous relief and optimism. That’s owner Dimitrios Fragiskatos in the photo above, shot on the day of that signing. (The store has since moved from that location to 831 Nostrand Ave – check ’em out here!)
Dimitirios and and his crew run an amazing store that nurtures a tremendous, diverse, accepting community, so I was particularly sad to hear that Anyone’s sister store, Everyone Comics in Long Island City, was burglarized the other day. And then I was thrilled to see that Dimitrios’s Gofundme to cover damage and expenses has already passed its goal! Any extra money they receive through the Gofundme will be invested back into the store — please do consider kicking in if you feel so inclined.
2. “People Get Ready,” The Chambers Brothers
The Chambers Brothers are best known for “Time Has Come Today,” but I freaking love every other song I’ve ever heard them record. This may be my favorite of all, a cover of Curtis Mayfield’s “People Get Ready.” I don’t really want to say too much. It just takes me somewhere, and I’m hugely grateful for it. I hope you’ll give it a listen.
3. This particular stew
I busted out the Instant Pot the other day and made a Dominican-influenced chicken stew I hadn’t made in a long time. I usually include potatoes and put the pinto beans directly in the stew. But my potatoes looked a little green and suspicious, so I just doubled up on carrots. And to keep the stew more like a stew and less like a chili, I mashed and cooked the beans on the side with olive oil and garlic powder. It was fantastic, particularly on a cold, wet winter night. That is all.
