HAPPY MAY DAY!
I can’t figure out whether May snuck up on me, or if the pandemic time warp makes it feel like March was eight months ago. Either way, Flowers by Yasmine has lily of the valley coming in this Saturday for local delivery and that’s some good news.

EXTRAFLORAL DELIVERING STRAIGHT FROM HOLLAND
In other floral news, Extrafloral (on Jay) is launching contactless deliveries within NYC on a weekly basis as of Mother’s Day, May 10. The company is working with local farms and the Dutch market in hopes of also supporting them in this time when events are non-existent. All arrangements will be made in a sterile environment, to the safety standards currently being used by the restaurant industry. Because of the massive disruption in the supply chain, they are taking a limited number of deliveries and pre-ordering is strongly encouraged.

They are also launching a nationwide floral box with a virtual workshop. Flowers will ship directly from Holland via FedEx and Extrafloral will then send out instructional design videos. One idea: coordinate deliveries with friends and design together over a virtual cocktail hour.

HOW TO DRESS AN EGG
Desperate diners who can’t get to Houseman can instead get some recipes from owner Ned Baldwin in his book, “How To Dress an Egg.” And he made this great offer: “if you want pointers on a specific recipe or just want to ask me how to make whatever you’re cooking nice, DM me on Instagram and we’ll find a time to talk.”

He added: “I’m busy working to ensure that Houseman can, in fact, re-open when the time comes. One thing you can do to help is to reach out to your lawmaker to make sure that we and our fellow neighborhood restaurants get the industry-specific assistance we need. The Independent Restaurant Coalition has created this link to make it very easy to do that.”

SIGN UP TODAY FOR PET CARICATURES
This Saturday, May 2, Best Friends Animal Society is hosting an online “Sip and Sketch” fundraiser with Ashley Turcheck of @jonathans.journal. Ashley will sketch donators’ pets LIVE on Zoom at 7p while viewers sip their preferred drink on the other side of the screen. (The drawing on the right is from the last session.) To submit for a live sketch, supporters can donate $25 or more to Best Friends in New York, and then send proof of donation and the picture of the pet they want sketched. With a gift of $25 or more, you’ll also receive six bimonthly issues of Best Friends magazine. Sign up here. Donations and pictures must be submitted before 5p TODAY.