All right, stop, collaborate and listen: Vanilla Ice told the NY Times about real estate buying spree when he was "young and dumb" (and cash-flush), "I bought houses in L.A., in Laurel Canyon right next door to Michael J. Fox; on Star Island, next door to Don Johnson and Melanie Griffith; in Utah; and on Bleecker Street in New York City. Three years went by. I never used any of them, and I thought it was the worst investment of my life. So I said, 'Let’s sell everything, and I’ll have one primary house here in Miami.' When I sold them, I made, on each one of them, $300,000 to $400,000. I stopped in my tracks and said, 'It can’t be that easy.' But it was." [Via Curbed] more ›

Also, if you're having trouble getting the texture you like when you make ice cream, head over to read David Lebovitz's Tips For Making Homemade Ice Cream Softer. We wish he'd written that list years ago, back when we were first figuring out these tricks through trial and error ourselves.
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Who doesn't love the ice cream man? Not many people. Which is why Matt Allen is pretty popular, since he is, after all, THE Ice Cream Man. Allen drives around the country handing out free frozen treats - so far his travels have taken him (and his '69 Chevy ice cream truck affectionately named Bessie) from St. Jude Children's Hospital to Bonnaroo to McCarren Park Pool (where he'll be this Sunday). Recently, we asked him what life on the good ship ice cream truck is like... more ›

Savoy is bringing the beach to the city with their three course Summer Clam Bake. Enjoy littleneck clams on the half shell, a traditional boil with lobster, mussels, kielbasa, potatoes, and corn, and finish off with dessert, a peach and blueberry crumble topped with house made buttermilk ice cream. $40 per person, or an extra $15 will give you a bottomless glass of rose. Every evening during the month of July; 70 Prince Street, at Crosby, 212-219-8570. more ›

Have you ever wondered if you could transform your slightly overweight, very near-sighted, and extremely white self into Tupac Shakur? No, neither did we, but Brooklyn-based artist Tom Sanford (fellow Columbia University alum) is asking that question as well as documenting the answer his new blog, Thug4Life. The last we heard, Tom was in the Columbia alumni newsletter - word had it he was creating "rap star pietas." That is, paintings of rap stars in the guise of Jesus Christ on the cross. Yeah. Not surprisingly, the work sold very well in Japan, where Tom seems to enjoy a cult following. more ›

It had been a while, so Gothamist went to Tinkle on Sunday (we also needed a little comedy after Saturday night). Demetri Martin continued his use of visual aids: This time, he rocked out the overhead projector to excellent effect. Fred Armisen pulled up one of our friends to the stage for no real reason - we guess it's some sort of art comedy he's working on. Jessi Klein and Andy Blitz rounded out the comedy portion of the evening - but that doesn't include Jon Benjamin's in-depth investigation about girl band, Skye. The highlight, though, was David Garza, an Austin singer-songwriter, whose guitar playing was beautiful and witty lyrics were infectious. more ›