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Jay Zimmerman

@jay_max_zim

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All things considered I know very little, but I am absolutely sure about this…my time on this planet (however long it is) is better with you in it. Happy 14th anniversary, Joey. I am infinitely grateful you chose me. taken in Pistoia, Italy by @jay_max_zim

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17 days ago

I love that your birthday bi-sects the year. It gives me a day after winter and spring have run their course and before summer and fall really kick into gear to take a deep breath, sit still and reflect on you. To look back on the year that was (lots of daddy/daughter days while mom CRUSHED grad school) and what is to come (world travel!) and bask in gratitude of being your father, best friend and guide. You are my true north, Anto. I’m so proud of who you are and who you are becoming.

ANTONIA IS 4 LIFE! by @jay_max_zim

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3 months ago

Mother is just a word that tries (unsuccessfully) to encapsulate the galaxy of things Joann is to Antonia, Me, you. I can only pray she feels the warmth of our gratitude for her every day, not just when it comes into sharp focus today. Happy Mother’s Day, Joey! You are a masterclass in this. taken in Magic Kingdom by @jay_max_zim

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5 months ago

It’s peculiar how a date on a calendar can mean absolutely nothing to you until you meet just the right person then suddenly it becomes one of your favorite days of the year.

This is the 20th time I’ve been able to celebrate March 9 and my favorite… and I hope you’ll join me…HAPPY BIRTHDAY JO! taken in New York, New York by @jay_max_zim

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7 months ago

taken in Brooklyn, New York by @jay_max_zim

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a year ago

Three.

There’s an old Virginia oak in Brooklyn—not much to look at, a little lopsided, got its start in a sidewalk crack—but it’s still there 20 years on (this week actually). And right next to it is a small, precocious, beautiful acorn with big ideas and zero patience. The tree knows a few things: how to make dinner out of almost nothing, how to tell a decent story, and how to keep the acorn safe without letting her know she’s being protected. The acorn knows everything else—especially the stuff that matters. She’s got big questions, fast feet, and a talent for turning any situation into a full-blown adventure.

Every morning, they walk to school together, hand in hand—sometimes talking about dogs, sometimes about the moon, sometimes just arguing over who gets the last fig bar. The oak doesn’t have all the answers, but he’s good at blocking the rain, softening the sun, and making sure the acorn knows she’s never alone out there. They don’t always know where they’re headed, but they’re doing just fine. Root and seed. Old and new.

Happy birthday, my sweet Antonia. The world’s messy and loud and sometimes unfair, but we’ve got each other. And that’s more than enough. taken in Brooklyn, New York by @jay_max_zim

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a year ago

Not fade away. taken in Ba'sik by @jay_max_zim

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a year ago

Antonia, you’re just about the only thing in the world I trust and holding your hand is, without question, my favorite thing on this earth to do. Thank you for giving me another day to celebrate. taken in Brooklyn, New York by @jay_max_zim

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a year ago

You can miss me with any patriarchal, toxic masculinity bullshit. Mothers make the world go round. taken in Washington D. C. by @jay_max_zim

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a year ago

There is this classically beautiful house in Brooklyn, standing as if it has always known how to withstand the weight of the world. New York is its yard; within this home are many rooms—teacher, friend, wife, sister, mother, and daughter (the one with the most brilliant skylight, where the sun never stops knocking). Each space is a refuge, each wall does not confine but embraces. When the nights are longest and the air is heavy with life’s complications, she glows—her lights never flicker, her door never locks. The welcome mat speaks in every language. And for those who have known the cold, who have wandered, she is proof that this house, this home is not a place—it is a person.

Happy Birthday, Joey. Thanks for letting me live in my dream home all these years. taken in Brooklyn, New York by @jay_max_zim

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2 years ago

10 days ago a 4-Alarm fire engulfed our block. I was out of town, helpless, doing everything I could to help Joann from 300 miles away.

We got “lucky” and by lucky I mean my entire life was saved by the swift heroism of the FDNY. They stopped the blaze roughly 50 ft from where my daughter silently dreamt in her crib.

Today, Antonia and I ran into the very squad that was inside the inferno, holding the water hoses; real, actual superheroes. I was able to earnestly thank them and introduce them to the little girl they spared from disaster. I hadn’t intended to tear up in front of them, but they saved my daughter, my dog, everything I own, my wife. The simple act of saying thank you was all I had, and it looked like it was something that doesn’t happen often enough to them. Highly suggest if you ever NEED emergency services that you seek them out and thank them after; it was a nice moment for all of us.

(Last pictures because Antonia stayed home from school today and there were no adults around to tell us how to dress). by @jay_max_zim

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2 years ago

I believe in Queens, the world fits within a few square miles here. I believe in Astoria, where cultures blend, where the scent of souvlaki meets the aroma of Italian espresso, where the glow of our QUEENS sign was beacon, and every block tells a story of those who came, stayed, and thrived.

I believe in the people who built it and the people who breathe life into it every day. Our late-night bartenders who know your drink, the bakers whose ovens never rest, the families who’ve kept roots here for generations, and those who just unpacked their broadway dreams yesterday. I believe in the hum of Steinway Street, the calm of Astoria Park at dusk, and the meat on a stick guy on 32nd and Broadway.

This place is more than a neighborhood; it’s a community stitched together by heritage.

It’s saddens me that I had not discovered this part of New York City before we opened sekend sun 10 years ago… And I hope that we have contributed to its vibrant, breathing streets in the decade since. We’ve chosen to close Sekend Sun on December 9 after a great decade run. I’m proud of what we did there. I love Astoria, I love queens. how could you not? And so my life in bars and my (tiny) attempt to dent the history of New York City nightlife comes to a close. I hope you remember these places, and the times we had…please tell my daughter I was cool once. by @jay_max_zim

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2 years ago