Greenpoint
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Culture on the Cheap
Williamsburg Photos Du Jour: Berry Street
Filed under: Williamsburg
Trespassing is not allowed. All trespassers will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.
Public urination, however, is perfectly acceptable. Is it just me or is Williamsburg becoming more and more like Park Slope with each and every passing day?
Miss Heather
Some Advice For The Workers At 110 Green Street
I would like to humbly suggest that you refrain from making kissing and hissing noises at female passersby (as two of your colleagues saw fit to do today). Saying “Hey Baby” and (after being ignored by said female) pushing the matter by continuing to verbally harass said woman will (as two of you learned today) not only net you being called an “asshole” in return, but the object of your misguided affection might have a camera…
and happen to be a blogger.
Oh yeah, and if you and yours make any more lewd comments to my upstairs neighbor’s teenage daughter her mother is calling the police.
Hugs,
Miss Heather
The Vargasmobile
Filed under: Greenpoint Magic
Those of you who didn’t follow the election in the Dominican Republic last month might be interested to know Lionel Fernandez, the incumbent, was elected to a third term.
I for one don’t really keep track of these things, but this van on Java Street reminded me.
The man whose face is plastered all over this motor vehicle is Miguel Vargas Maldonado. He was Mr. Fernandez’s opponent.
Mr. Vargas may have lost, but this great attempt at grassroots advertising makes him a winner in my book. This ride kicks the shit out of that Leviticus dude’s ride on Bedford Avenue. At first I found him amusing, now I think he just tries too hard.
Miss Heather
Mr. Heather’s Amazing Discovery
Yesterday we learned that there is a minuscule island in the East River dedicated to U Thant, the third Secretary General of the United Nations. Today, dear readers I wish to share with you whose visage graces the northern-most end of Governor’s Island.
The above mural reads “To The Struggle Against World Terrorism”. I’m not too sure who the gent to the left is, but the one to right was easy enough to identify.
Granted, the above image sucks (Mr. Heather has my old camera, which has seen much better days) but one can nonetheless discern who this chap is. It is none other than our fearless leader: George W. Bush. And he is keeping a taciturn eye on lower Manhattan.
Miss Heather
Home Sweet Home
Filed under: Area 51
After being tossed about on a boat for five hours last Sunday I did what any respectable mariner would do on shore leave: proceed directly to an establishment which serves margaritas by the pitcher. This entailed going Maryann’s D.F. on Second Avenue. Not only are their margaritas quite tasty, but it is a short distance from the L. It has been my experience that self-medicating before subjecting one’s person to the capricious nature of the G train makes the commute go by faster.
But there are other ways to seek bliss. Someone at the intersection of East 8th Street and Third Avenue advocates happiness via self-medication, albeit in powdered form.
Further down the block at 13th Street, “Core Emotional Release Work” saves the day.
I suppose it is easy to feel one’s aliveness when he (or she) is not dependent on the Crosstown Local to get home. I swear I have seen Dante and Virgil milling about the platform at Metropolitan Street on more than one occasion.
Miss Heather
Kill Devil Hill Revisited
Filed under: Greenpoint Magic
Yesterday I was able to check out the wares at Greenpoint’s newly opened Kill Devil Hill. I was amused and confounded by the incredibly eclectic variety of goods they have for sale. Trashy old novels, a pair of 19th century shackles, old tin types, “Music to Strip By” and a lovely pair of earrings made to look like Chinese lanterns are among the many curiosities to be found at this establishment. You can see more by clicking here— or better yet, go down in person and see for yourself.
That said, if any of you out there have been searching for a stuffed muskrat and have $400 to burn (and you know who you are) I have very good news.
Kill Devil Hill’s got you covered.
Miss Heather
From Bay Ridge To The Bronx
As promised here is a slide show of my cruise up the East River from Bay Ridge, Brooklyn to Hunt’s Point, Bronx. There’s a little something for everybody but I’d be remiss if I didn’t say that all you Red Hookers, Greenpointers, Roosevelt Islanders and Riker’s Island curiosity seekers out there will not be disappointed.
Enjoy!
Miss Heather
P.S.: You can see my complete Flickr set of South/Central Brooklyn by clicking here. Everything else (from the Brooklyn Navy Yard north to the Bronx) can be seen by clicking here. Scenic vistas of Manhattan and New Jersey (though incomplete as of the writing of this post) can be found here.
Greenpoint Photo du Jour: Partying On Franklin Street
Filed under: Greenpoint Magic
It has been awhile since I have checked in on what I liked to call the House of the Ravaged Lemur. So against my better judgment, I trudged through yesterday’s infernal weather to see what’s shaking. I was not disappointed.
His wife Hill might have thrown in the towel, but as you can see that doesn’t keep Bill from having a good time. The party can and will go on.
Miss Heather
Subway Photo du Jour: Sean Bell
Filed under: Area 51
From the Brooklyn-bound platform of the L train at First Avenue.
Miss Heather
Meet U Thant Island
Filed under: Queens
One of the really neat things about taking a cruise along New York City’s waterfront is it enables one to (re)discover many hidden treasures* that cannot be appreciated from dry land. Such is the case with the above little island nestled between Roosevelt Island, Long Island City and the U.N. in Manhattan.
It is unofficially named after the third Secretary General of the United Nations, U Thant. Here’s a little information about it courtesy of Wikipedia:
The island has its origins in the 1890s as a side-effect of William Steinway‘s construction of trolley tunnels under the river to link bustling Manhattan to his eponymous company town in Steinway, Queens. The island was built up on the existing granite outcrop Man-o’-War Reef using excess landfill from a shaft dug down the reef to the tunnels. Steinway died before his tunnels’ completion, and it was financier August Belmont, Jr. who finished the project in 1907, leaving the finished islet as a bonus.
The Steinway Tunnels are still in use as part of the 7–Flushing line in the New York Subway, and trains still pass directly beneath the island many times a day. Belmont Island, named after the financier, became the legal name of the island.
The small inconvenient island was unused and almost forgotten for nearly a century, until in 1977 it was adopted by employees at nearby UN headquarters following the guru Sri Chinmoy, who served as an interfaith chaplain there. The group, called Sri Chinmoy: The Peace Meditation at the United Nations, leased the islet from New York State, greened its surface and unofficially renamed it after Burmese Buddhist United Nations Secretary General U Thant, a friend of Chinmoy. Although unofficial, U Thant Island has stuck as the common name for the island. The islet is now the site of a thirty-foot “oneness arch” preserving personal items of the island’s namesake
Be sure to check out Mr. Thant’s biography as well. It is fascinating, especially given the troubled state of Burma nowadays. Not only was he an adept peace maker and a Buddhist, but U Thant was a U.F.O. buff to boot!
Miss Heather
*Including a giant portrait of George W. Bush. As you will see.
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