New York Shitty Day Ender: Our Ladies of the Snow

December 31, 2009 ·
Filed under: 11222, Greenpoint, Greenpoint Brooklyn, Greenpoint Magic 

mary1

mary2

mary3

See you next year, folks!

Miss Heather

Greenpoint Street Art Du Jour: Polar Bear Love

December 31, 2009 ·
Filed under: 11222, Greenpoint, Greenpoint Brooklyn, Greenpoint Magic, Street Art 

bear

From Eagle Street.

Miss Heather

From The New York Shitty Photo Pool: Leaving

December 31, 2009 ·
Filed under: 11222, Crazy Cat Lady, Greenpoint, Greenpoint Brooklyn, Greenpoint Magic 

leavingGPTless

This image of someone who has had quite enough of 2009 comes courtesy of Greenpointless.

Miss Heather

New York Shitty Day Starter: Bushwick Inlet

bwickinlet

Taken December 30, 2009.

Miss Heather

New York Shitty Day Ender: Beauty in Plain Sight

December 30, 2009 ·
Filed under: 11222, Greenpoint, Greenpoint Brooklyn, Greenpoint Magic 

Main BuildingNYS

Ever had one of those things you were always meaning to do but somehow never got around to? Today I checked one such item off my list: visiting Greenpoint’s only operating synagogue, Congregation Ahavath Israel. This afternoon I met with its (newish) Rabbi, Maurice Appelbaum, and he took me on the grand tour. Don’t let the outward appearance of this building deceive you: it is absolutely breath-taking. Mr. Appelbaum is no slouch either: he’s an incredibly nice guy! Let’s get started, shall we?

Congregation Ahavath IsraelNYS

First things first: Congregation Ahavath Israel, which is Orthodox, convenes in the building to the right. The building on the left is also a synagogue, but we’ll get to that later.

CornerstoneNYS

As the corner stone indicates, this place of worship was founded in 1904 (albeit A.D.).

PlaqueNYS

This is the dedication plaque which graces the foyer. As you will notice one W. G. Miller was the builder. Here are a few items I dug up on Mr. Miller via the Brooklyn Daily Eagle online archives:

6171900BDE

Mr. Miller was a very active member of the community…

7271890BDE

…and he was a builder of some renown. The details of Mr. Miller’s life might be scant in print, but what he built at 108 Noble is a living testament to his craftsmanship.

View SouthNYS

Facing south.

Nave 2NYS

The nave (please pardon my decidedly goy terminology).

View North 2NYS

Facing north.

Light FixtureNYS

This lovely Art Nouveau light fixture has to be seen to truly be appreciated. While I am on the subject of things profane (or at least matters mundane)…

BomelsteinsNYS

In my excitement I totally botched this photo. Not only did its Art Deco design appeal to me, but the address for said clockmaker, Bomelstein’s, sounded vaguely familiar: 753 Manhattan Avenue. I did a little Googling and here’s what I found.

clocksdotorgBOMELSTEIN

Look familiar? If not, go to 733 Manhattan Avenue and see the restored version for yourself. It is one of a precious few clocks which have been land-marked in this city. Why not grab a doughnut from Peter Pan while you’re at it?  But I digress.

Fire BucketsNYS

Back in the days before the New York’s Bravest were what we know now, people took it upon themselves to to have some fire protection on hand.

Fire Buckets2NYS

Hence the multitude of buckets conveniently stored under the pews.

Reform PlaqueNYS

Remember what I wrote about the synagogue next door? Well, here’s my segue. This is the plaque which graced it. It belonged to a Reform congregation which donated the adjacent property, 110 Noble Street, to Ahvath Israel:

Sacredsites

Here’s conservancy in Greenpoint:

110 Noble StreetNYS

Abject neglect.

110 Noble ChairsNYS

Not that I blame Mr. Appelbaum for this: I don’t. He became this community’s Rabbi September, 2009.

110 Noble WindowsNYS

The above photograph does not do justice to how lovely these stained glass windows are— and why they should be saved. To close on a decidedly “up” note, something wonderful is going on behind this building…

Backyard 1NYS

a garden to contribute food to Greenpoint’s most needy. See those barrels and pipes? They are the beginning of a drainage and compost system. I have been told by Rabbi Appelbaum some vollies from Rooftop Farms have assisted in this effort. And yes, dear readers, the soil has been tested. It had some lead content but well below what it is considered to be hazardous. Nonetheless, they are taking measures to remediate it.

What’s more, they’re finding some really cool stuff. Pottery shards and shells mostly. I couldn’t help but pick a few while I talked to Maurice.

Shards from the gardenNYS

It’s in my junkwoman/urban anthropologist nature. I cannot help myself.

In conclusion: this is my humble opinion one of the unsung gems in the Garden Spot of the Universe. As with most things in Greenpoint, beauty does not run skin deep: it’s found in the heart. Hence why I feel both these synagogues deserve preserving and why I want to give a big thank-you to Rabbi Appelbaum, for taking the time to give me a tour— he has a lot of heart. And Seth (the cat rescuer and reluctant Greenpoint celebrity) for helping to make this happen. Follows is a slide show of my tour of Greenpoint’s only Shul. Enjoy!

Miss Heather

Photo Credits: The Bomelstein Street clock comes courtesy of

P.S.: Ahavas Israel also offers N.A. meetings every Tuesday night 7:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m.

108 Noble Street (downstairs)
Brooklyn, NY 11222

For more deets contact Maurice at: rabbi (at) greenpointshul (dot) org.

Greenpoint Aluminum Siding Watch: 155 Calyer Street

December 30, 2009 ·
Filed under: 11222, Greenpoint, Greenpoint Brooklyn, Greenpoint Magic, Vinyl Siding 

After C raised the alarm about the work going on at 155 Calyer I simply had to behold it for myself. So this afternoon I swung by to get a look-see.

155calyer

By all appearances they are gutting the interiors of both storefronts in order to rewire them. Do they have permits to do this? No, they don’t.

siding

So far they have not touched the exterior. This is encouraging because:

  1. Under landmarking they cannot modify it. At least not excessively.
  2. It sports the only example in Greenpoint— and very possibly all of Brooklyn— of purple aluminum siding. Like it or hate it folks (and for the record, I like it), this IS in keeping with the character of our neighborhood!

Miss Heather

Greenpoint Photos Du Jour: Stray Cat Strut

December 30, 2009 ·
Filed under: 11222, Crazy Cat Lady, Greenpoint, Greenpoint Brooklyn, Greenpoint Magic 

lefteye

A swollen eye here.

sniff

A sniffle there.

tipear

An imploring look.

goopyeye

This little one came up to me panting and crying. If I had to hazard a guess I’d say he (or she) has an upper respiratory infection.

This breaks my heart. As I have mentioned before, these cats are available for adoption. If you can, please open your heart and home to one of these lovely felines. It may very well mean the difference between life and death.

Miss Heather

Southside Photo Du Jour: Forman

December 30, 2009 ·
Filed under: 11211, Williamsburg, Williamsburg Brooklyn 

forman

This, arguably one of my favorite buildings in north Brooklyn, hails from Broadway.

Miss Heather

Quicklink: Leonard Street Slice

December 30, 2009 ·
Filed under: 11222, Greenpoint, Greenpoint Brooklyn, Greenpoint Magic 

sliceTHUMBThis week my buddy Kevin at Forgotten New York regales us with a slice from none other than the Garden Spot of the Universe! He writes:

When Christmas comes around, my thoughts sometimes wander toward Greenpoint. I have many memories from when I was in my twenties concerning the Garden Spot of the Universe. I once accepted the keys for but never lived in an apartment on Green Street that was outfitted with a single electrical outlet and a bath tub in the kitchen…

Of particular interest to Mr. Walsh is the building you see at left: the Polish Legion of American Veterans. The following should give you, dear readers, some indication why.

plavNYS

Of this establishment my buddy Laura Hofmann reminisces:

This is the old American Legion. The first time it was located on Leonard St. Then it moved to McGuinness Blvd and now is back again on Leonard a few doors away from their old address…The American Legion parade used to start here, on Leonard St. in front of the post with the 21 gun salute.

amercianlegion

You can read Kevin’s slice in its entirety by clicking here. Check it out!

Miss Heather

Photo Credits: the old images of P.L.A.V. courtesy of yours truly. The news come from Kevin Walsh!

New York Shitty Day Starter: Window

December 30, 2009 ·
Filed under: 11211, Williamsburg, Williamsburg Brooklyn 

fillmore

From Fillmore Place.

Miss Heather

  • NYS Flickr Pool

    The One CrewSnowy SeagullsWalking the Dog in the Snow
  • Ads