The Gondola

 

So glad my husband and I took the gondola to Roosevelt Island. Check out these views of the East River and the Queensboro Bridge. . . all for the price of a subway ride!

Tomato Fest Again

 

So pretty, n'est pas?

My husband was somewhat fidgety as we watched The Best Man on Broadway last week. When we exited the theater, he pulled out a sock from his shirt! Ha ha ha ha ha ha!

TOMATO FEST IN NEW YORK CITY!

Tomato Fest is when several french restaurants in New York teem up to create the most amazing foods with all those August tomatoes from appetizers to desserts. Pictured here are two desserts, stuffed tomatoes, fish and mashed potatoes with tomato sauce, and a tomato burger.

 

Once again, I let my husband talk me into standing in line for food in New York. Ridiculous, right? The Shake Shack is located in the theatre district and very popular with tourists. I have to admit, it was the most delicious burger I've had next to the ones my dad would produce from his charcoal grill!

My son think's he's so smart: 216 points for "jitter".

 

This gigantic jackhammer is pounding a deep hole in the earth just outside my window this week. It shakes the entire apartment and makes for a lot of rumbling and dust. So much for sleeping in as long as he's my neighbor.

McSorley's Old Ale House

 

I read in Esquire Magazine that New York's McSorley's Ale House is one of the 10 must visit bars in the world. My husband and I searched it out one Saturday and squeezed in for a short time. We're not really into drinking our beer shoulder-to-shoulder standing up and unable to hear each other talking. So we left and found a place down the sidewalk and got a perfectly good beer there. But now we can say we've been to McSorleys. You can tell how crowded it was by the man in the blue shirt up against the window.  I will return when I can drink my beer in peace and take my time peering at the historic artifacts of the place.

 

This is how you might park a car in a city that has very few parking spaces.

DOCU Week--Missed it!

 

This poster for DOCU Weeks caught my eye back in July and I took this picture to remember to check it out. I missed it. That's kind of the way things go here. If you don't write it on your calendar, you'll get distracted by other things. Anyway, I think I'll check this theatre, IFC Center, out soon and watch a good independent film. It's near Washington Park in Manhattan. 

I love learning about new things through the documentaries. I'm a slow reader, and watching a film is more efficient for me, plus, I seem to remember what I've learned better than if I read a book. The thing I want to say about documentaries is this: How can you tell if the writer of a documentary is being honest or has a slanted point of view?

The Empire State Building lights up with different colors every night to represent an event or organization, etc. You can look up this information on their website. During the Olympics each side was lit differently to represent various countries' colors.

Reading Places

 

 If you find a good spot to read at your leisure in this town, you have to make note of it. This little shop called CommuniTea in Long Island City is one of those.

I took my newspaper (everyone else had laptops, but, hey, I'm old school) here yesterday. I was able to sit and eat my lunch (a mushroom "burger") for a good long while, and no one from the staff even glanced my way to indicate I'd been there too long. You may say, "How would you know, if you were reading your newspaper?" Good point. Let's just say that the place was busy, but I didn't feel rushed at any time. Mind you, I do not linger in restaurants or coffee shops if tables aren't available for new customers.

So, CommuniTea, I recommend you as a place to hang out. It's a good place to go and be around people, but still take your time. I'll be posting on more good places to read in the city.

Jehovah's Witness Founder a Fake

Here's some interesting information about the founder of the Jehovah's Witness cult from Catholics.com, in an article called History of the Jehovah's Witnesses.

"It was this diminished Adventism which influenced Russell, who took the title "Pastor" even though he never got through high school. In 1879, he began the Watch Tower—what would later be known as the Watchtower Bible and Tract Society, the teaching organ of the Jehovah’s Witnesses. In 1908 he moved its headquarters to Brooklyn, where it has remained ever since.

"Before he got his religious career well underway, Russell promoted what he called "miracle wheat," which he sold at sixty dollars per bushel. He claimed it would grow five times as well as regular wheat. In fact, it grew slightly less well than regular wheat, as was established in court when Russell was sued. Later he marketed a fake cancer cure and what he termed a 'millennial bean' (which a wag has said probably got that name because it took a thousand years to sprout)."

I wonder if Jehovah's Witnesses know this. 

Jehovah's Witness Worldwide Headquarters

Photo by Dan Nguyen

The worldwide Jehovah's Witness headquarters is located in Downtown Brooklyn. At least for the past century is has been. It is moving upstate because more space was needed for their printing operations.

An April, 2012 news article from WABC TV, states, "In the next few years, Brooklyn could see one of the largest turnovers in real estate, all thanks to one seller. The Jehovah's Witnesses are planning to sell all 34 of its buildings as they move their operations upstate. The scope of the church's holdings is massive, 3.2 million square feet, more than the Empire State Building. It's being valued at more than $1 billion, and once the properties are turned over to private owners, the tax dollars will be flowing."

I'm going to read more about this sect -- or is it a cult? 

Standing In Line

 

My husband and I were in Downtown Brooklyn (Dumbo) Sunday to stand in line for this much-talked-about pizza place. It was 503 degrees that day. The pizza was delicious, but why stand in line for pizza in New York? I think people stand in line here just to say they did it. That's Brooklyn Bridge in the photo.

Distant Clickers

Apparently a number of people from all over the world accidentally or on purpose click through this blog. Isn't that crazy?

Pretty!

 

The bread and my mom!

South Street Seaport Museum

 

When my brother and mother came to visit last week, we went to the South Street Seaport Museum near Wall Street. 

This is a picture of one of the displays: tools associated with the history of the port. My brother loved looking at the old tools, but the way they were displayed is what excited me. They were laid out on a flat piece of wood that took up the entire room then tilted slightly. So creative and much better then looking at them hanging on a wall or behind glass cases!

New Lens, Part 2

 

Our place through my new fish-eye lens.

New Camera Lens

 

When you come across places like this in the city, you have to take minute and appreciate the fact that someone cared enough to create a park instead of a high-rise. This is a picture of a small oasis of birch trees in Long Island City. (My kids gave me a new fish-eye lens for my iPhone!)

More Anthropology Display Art

 

All of these are simple paper mache. LOVE THEM! If they go on sale next month, do you think I will be able to resist?

Cacti in New York

In Rockefeller Center there is an Anthropology Store, and it is absolutely beautiful! It's like a painting everywhere you look. I was there a month ago when they had decorated the place with paper mache cacti. Oh, how I wanted them for my very own!

So, I decided to try to make them. That didn't work out so well.

Last week I went into the Anthropology Store again just to enjoy the decor, and the cacti were gone! I asked an employee about them, and she said, "Oh! They're right over here." I learned that this particular store has its own in-house design team of 12 artists who come to work and make art for displays every day, and they sometimes sell them when they're done.

Here are the ones I brought home. They were filled with sand, so I barely made it without collapsing. (Yes, I took the subway.) I got lots of strange looks and some smiles. . . a rare thing in the subway. If you're wondering, $20 each! They are BIG, the largest one is 3 feet tall.

You're Out of Here!

 

I did a double-take when I passed this pile of clothes, mostly men's suits, on the sidewalk today. At first I thought someone really trusted their dry cleaner, but there was no dry cleaner on the block. This was a pile of stuff dumped there by an unhappy roommate, don't cha think?

1000 Time Out Things to do in New York -- SOHO Nails

 

My kids gave me a book called 1000 Time Out Things to do in New York, and every now and then I'm going to try some things out and let you know how it went. Yesterday I went into SOHO to "Get a cheap Manhattan manicure (item #719)." After emerging from the subway, I walked three blocks to the address, 458 W. Broadway. There was no sign whatsoever pointing to the salon other than the name taped to the address plate. It took me a while to find it in-between all the other shops with storefronts and fancy signage.

 

As I was standing there wondering how I was supposed to get in the locked door, someone came up and was buzzed in, so I followed him. The narrow stairwell lead to the third floor salon. Here is what the front door looked like:

 

But sure enough, there was a lot of nail painting going on. I would have had my fingernails polished there, but I had already had them done by a salon on the street nearby for $12 after I thought I'd never find this place. Soooo, I got a pedicure. Tee hee.

 

By the way, have I written about manicures here? While you're getting your nails done, someone slips up behind you and begins rubbing your shoulders! OMG! It's heavenly. This woman began my massage gratis for 2 minutes, then asked if I wanted to continue for 10-15 minutes. How could I say no? Why would I say no? $15 for 15 minutes. Yep, I'll buy that.