Tuesday, July 05, 2011

America's Weekend

What a New York weekend it was. In no particular order, here are the New York things I witnessed over the past 4 days:

- It was too hot to carry a camera and I missed a million great photos









- The Garden del Paraiso is so huge, it has millions of secret pathways, gardens, a pond, chickens, a treehouse, raspberry patch, and, I just found out, is on the footprint of 10 torn down buildings, hence its hugeness. Wandering around, you could easily think you were nowhere near Manhattan.

- My twenty-something nephew, visiting from his summer internship in Boston, stayed the weekend with 2 friends in Brooklyn. They were mugged at gunpoint for their iPhones outside a bar in Williamsburg. The thief  threatened to take the woman's purse if she didn't hand over the phone. Then he hopped in a waiting car and took off. How long have the two friends lived in New York? You got it - 2 weeks. The police told them they respond to calls of stolen iPhones every single day.



- Who knew there was still a Blockbuster on Houston Street. How quaint.

- The fireworks were pretty amazing this year. A ton of new shapes and chemical reactions with much less repeating. Stunning.

- I realized why I hate the new developments at Rockaway. I find the architecture actually pretty pleasing, and they look inviting and friendly. However, what irks me is that they fucked with the grid. There are 5 blocks at a time that restrict car and parking access to the beach, and they haven't put in any new parking that I can see. Not that I have a car, but if I did, I would be pissed off.

- The beach was really hot this weekend. Sitting on the sand was like being in an oven. I couldn't bear it. All that subway riding and I wanted to turn back right after we got there. This did not go over well with the husband. Mental note: next time bring a chair.


 - Mr. Hulot on the big screen in Tompkins Square Park. What fun. Mental note: next time bring a chair.

- The fireflies are out!

- A lady on the train was making baby faces in my direction. It took me a while to figure out that she was directing her baby faces to a little dog in a bag sitting next to me. I was expecting her to try peek a boo with the dog. Do goo goo faces have an effect on dogs?

- My favorite band and my high school have the same initials: BHS. Weird, huh.

- On A train to Rockaway a 14-ish girl sat down and immediately puked. She put her hand in front of her face causing a spray effect for a couple yards circumference. Her father cleaned her up with a towel from his beach bag. They did not get off the train. They did not go home. They proceeded on to the beach as though nothing had happened.

- Tyne Daly in Master Class. She's a wonder.

- They pack in the tourists in the pedestrian mall at Times Square so that they can be surrounded and engulfed by advertising, which is the only thing to look at when you are in that space.

- Neighborhood kid that I remember meeting when he was 5, was in charge of the July 4th barbeque. He's all growed up.

1 comment:

Laura Goggin Photography said...

Garden del Paraiso is one of my favorite places in the neighborhood. There's something for everyone there and the chickens are great! Somewhere, I saw some photos of the lot before the garden was built - a bombed-out landscape. I'll have to look those up as the before/after images are stunning.

Puke on the train - yuuuuck!