Photo by myself in Bryant Park, at 41st Street and Sixth Avenue, in Midtown.
The view of Bryant Park at night is a peaceful one.
Wednesday night we finally had nice weather. No icy winds. No rain. Hurrah!
At the East end of the park lies the main branch of the New York Public Library. A large fountain spouting water was all lit up.
Photo by myself at 42nd Street and Vanderbilt Avenue.
Believe it or not, above Houston Street there are a handful of streets that don't have numbers for names.
Vanderbilt Avenue is a tiny street that spans just a few blocks in Midtown. Grand Central Station, which was built by Cornelius Vanderbilt in the mid-1800s, is located at southmost end of the street.
Photo by myself around 68th Street and Lexington Avenue, on the Upper East Side.
I heard about this on the radio but seeing it in person made it real. Cell phone 'valets' on wheels.
Kids aren't allowed to have cellphones or other electronic devices in school, so they can 'park' their devices in a truck outside the school. This way, they can waste no time device-less.
Costs for such services vary from fifty cents to a dollar a day. Seriously.
For more about phone valets, read about it in USA Today here.
Related posts: Larger than Life Mural, in the East Village, School is in, at Parsons on 13th Street, and School's Out on the Upper East Side.
Photo by myself, around 77th Street and West End Avenue, on the Upper West Side.
West End Avenue seems to extend forever, or just about forever. The lights are well-timed, so it's one red light after the other.
There aren't any stores on West End Avenue, just the same as Park Avenue, on the East Side. Just one older apartment building after the next.
By the way, in Manhattan because of the street grid, 'up' means 'north, while 'down' means 'south'. In actuality, the north-south grid is slightly skewed.
Related posts: Looking North on the Upper West Side, The Rooftops on Central Park West, and All Lit Up, on the Upper West Side.
Photo by myself on 79th Street and Amsterdam, on the Upper West Side.
This photo from the stash looks like it was taken in England, but not so.
Manchester House is a large co-op building on the Upper West Side. Elaborate ironwork and stone adorns the entrance.
Random blocks of stone break up the brick areas above the first floor, as if the building were built over a long time. It was actually built in 1926 by Emery Roth, who designed many of the large, high end apartment buildings in Manhattan.
Little pointy hats sit on top of the lights. My guess is they are designed to look like gas lights, with openings for air to escape.
Related posts: A Dash of Charm, in the Village, 901 Broadway, in the Flatiron District, and Twilight, on West 4th Street.
Photo by myself at Great Jones and Lafayette Streets, in the East Village.
A photo from a sunnier day.
When sauntering around wearing infinity scarves and tall boots in the East Village, one cannot help but look around at all the older buildings.
The sidewalks are hollow in this area, like many downtown neighborhoods. These are not the typical poured concrete walkways. Basements and/or tunnels lie below.
Trucks are only allowed to park as far as the curb, for obvious reasons1
Related posts: 9:45am on the B Train, Below Ground, The Commute Home, on the D Train, and On the Subway Platform, Below 34th Street.
Photo by myself, below ground.
The morning commute is usually very quiet, with people tuning into the news on their devices or perhaps even a book, or catching the last bit of a nap.
Partially out of view, a man was reading his ipad. You can see the ghostly glow cast on his face.
There are periods in the winter, where you barely get a hint of sun. There is a five-minute walk to the subway, then tunnels, then a five-minute walk to the office. Some office workers stay in for lunch and eat at their desks.
I think this is why people are in their grumbly moods.
Related posts: 9:45am on the B Train, Below Ground, The Commute Home, on the D Train, and On the Subway Platform, Below 34th Street.
Photo by myself, on the subway platform at Times Square.
A musician caught me red-handed, taking his photo. He had been playing a keyboard and singing a jazzy tune into a microphone.
All was well a split second later, after I gave him a dollar donation.
Photo by myself in Bryant Park, in Midtown.
Monday night, the Empire State Building was all lit up in green and blue. This photo was taken in Bryant Park, about seven blocks north.
During the winter, there is a raised area for seating and an ice rink. People were out skating while 'Grease' was being shown on a giant movie screen.
The colors for the Empire State Building are scheduled well in advance, and the colors often have symbolic meaning. These are LED lights, so technically, the color selection is limitless.
According to the ESB website, Monday's green and blue symbolized 'the Committee Encouraging Corporate Philanthropy and International Corporate Philanthropy Day'.
Ha.
For the schedule of light colors, click here.
Related posts: The Empire State Building, Bathed in White, The View from Bryant Park, at Dusk, and Under the Canopies, in Bryant Park.
Photo by myself at the subway station of Atlantic/Pacific Street, in Brooklyn.
A woman named Maria sells homemade fried pastries on the subway platform in Brooklyn. She allowed me to take her photo, but for some reason, did not look at the camera.
I see Maria standing here often, during the evening rush hour. She also sells chocolate bars.
Photo by myself outside the Metropolitan Museum of Art, on the Upper East Side.
The steps of the Met are often crowded with people standing, taking photos or sitting during a break.
There are blocks of stone above the columns, for whatever reason. This was part of the original design, and have always struck me as looking unfinished. It might be a reference to archaeology, but I'm not sure.
Happy Friday, everyone!
Related posts: From the Rooftop of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, The Whitney Museum, on the Upper East Side, and The New York Historical Society, at Dusk.
Photo by myself at Bayard and Mott Streets, in Chinatown.
In the middle of Chinatown, you would never know you were in Manhattan.
Mott Street is a long street that runs north-south. Along its length you can find stores selling Chinese herbs, lichee ice cream, soup dumplings and roast pork buns.
Related posts: On Line for Cream Cakes, Outside, En Masse on Canal Street, and From Under the Banner, in Chinatown.
Photo by myself, below 59th Street, Columbus Circle.
A musician serenaded the subway platform, Tuesday night.
Sitting on a suitcase, with his guitar plugged into an amp, the singer also used his left foot to operate a drum. A one-man band!
Related posts: Drum Circle, in Tompkins Square Park, Busking, Below Union Square, and Folk Singers, in the Village.
Photo by myself, in Williamsburg, Brooklyn.
A snapshot from Williamsburg Brooklyn, land of fashion-conscious hipsters, graffiti and stickers.
Williamsburg has become very developed of late, with tons of new condominium buildings near the water. Prices are expensive, since the commute into the city is so quick. It's only one stop away on the L train.
It's President's Day today in the US. Banks are closed, and most people have the day off.
Related posts: Hipsters in their Natural Habitat, The Hipster Olympics, and The Three Pete's.
Photo by myself, below Times Square.
Spiderman had a talk with a man about the Bible, the other day.
For whatever reason, many superheroes are associated with New York. I guess because we've historically been riddled with crime? Spidey is no exception.
There have also been regular sightings of people with literature about the Bible in the larger subway stations. I see them almost every time I pass through Times Square.
Happy Friday everyone!!
Related posts: On the Sidewalk, in the Flatiron District, Ghoulish Greetings, on the R Train, and Green Man, in Washington Square Park.
Photo by myself on the FDR near the East River.
Above, the view of the Manhattan Bridge in the morning, from the FDR.
I was heading north on the FDR Expressway when I took this photo. In the background is the Brooklyn waterfront.
Photo by myself on Sixth Avenue, in Midtown.
Just a snapshot from a short walk down Sixth Avenue, in Midtown.
As you can see, all the snow has disappeared. First, it quickly turned to filthy slush, which was then washed away with rain.
Related posts: Evening, on Sixth Avenue, This Way to Subway, in Midtown, and Back to the Grind, in Midtown.
Photo by myself in Park Slope, Brooklyn.
We're climbing out from under a bunch of snow, in New York. Overnight, about 8 inches or so came down in our neighborhood. The entire northeast was snowed under and we escaped the worst of the storm.
You rarely see cabs parked overnight, since the medallions cost hundreds of thousands of dollars each. Recently, medallions have been sold for over a million dollars (!!). The cars are driven almost 24/7, as a result.
This cab is a hybrid. I've been told by cabbies that hybrids are better on fuel usage but the repair costs are very expensive. And since the cars are driven constantly, it's not a good thing to own a hybrid cab.
I've been in a hybrid cab before and immediately knew it was a hybrid because it didn't vibrate when we stopped for a red light. At slower speeds, hybrid vehicles run on electric energy generated by their own movement, rather than gasoline.
Happy Sunday, everyone!
Related posts: Portrait of a Cab Driver, on Fifth Avenue, The View, from the Back of a Cab, and Cabs Galore, on Lexington.
Photo by myself, somewhere in the East Village.
A dog in a hand-painted mural declared it was a 'ruff ride' to his owner.
Get it? Ruff. A ruff ride.
I think this was the side of a painted van? You can see the wheel below.
Related posts: Graffiti, Soho, Graff Attack, in the Meatpacking District, and Paste-Ups, on the Lower East Side.
Photo by myself at the Park Avenue Armory, on the Upper East Side.
This weekend, we went to the Amory on the Upper East Side to the annual winter Antiques Show.
There were loads of booths showing furniture, artwork, tapestries and even autographs. This was our second year seeing the show. It was a treat.
I'm not sure whether it's because I love older American art and furnishings, or whether there were lots of booths showing Americana?
I came away from the show thinking there is tons of American art out there. And that they all use the color red.
If you have a chance to see this show, I'd say, try it out. Many of the items are much too expensive for the regular person. Mark fell in love with a painting with a $900k price tag (!). But it was just fun to walk around and ooh and aah at it all.
Related posts: Now on Display at the Annual Winter Antiques Show, Handcrafted Objects at the Architectural Digest Design Show, and Store Closing, on Fifth Avenue.
Photo by myself, somewhere on Mott Street, in Chinatown.
Despite the chilly winds, it was all a-bustle on Mott Street, in Chinatown.
Stalls were up selling festive decorations for Chinese New Year. This year, the New Year falls on February 10th, next weekend.
Photo by myself, near Bowery Street in the East Village.
A glimpse of Bowery Street.
Actually, you rarely hear New Yorkers say 'Bowery Street'. We usually just say 'Bowery', as in, 'It's south, just beyond Bowery'.
The street is a little rough around the edges, with restaurant supply stores, graffiti, some restaurants and bars. Several years ago, the New Museum opened on this street, near Prince Street, making the area more of a destination.
Bowery is a wide street with a divider in the middle. It is a continuation of Third Avenue, which stops at Astor Place.
Related posts: Mark of the Quel Beast, near Bowery Street, New Museum, the Bowery, and Outside 190 Bowery, Soho.
Photo by myself, on the Times Square subway platform.
A man played a steel drum at the Times Square subway stop, Tuesday night. It made for a lot of clanging. Meanwhile, trains were pulling up and the announcers were making their announcements.
As usual, there were tons of people about. If you live long enough in New York, you know exactly where along the platform to stand, so you're next to the exit at your destination.
Photo by myself around 14th Street and First Avenue, in the East Village.
A photo from the stash, at a slightly warmer time.
Older storefronts are more hodge podge than new ones, usually just a huge number of different signs. Obviously this store has an ATM!
Related posts: Holy Smokes, in the East Village, Signs of Old Times, on the Lower East Side, and A Glimpse of 42nd Street, Times Square.
Photo by myself around 42nd Street and Lexington Avenue.
Ah yes, rounding the bend at Grand Central, you get a cool glimpse of the Chrysler Building, only a block away.
This was taken from Park Avenue South, where it ramps up at Pershing Square. I've taken a lot of photos of this area, but not quite this view.
Happy Friday everyone!
Related posts: The Chrysler Building, at Night, The View Down 42nd Street, in Midtown, and On the Pershing Square Cafe and Paper Portraits.
Photo by myself, somewhere in Soho.
Some of the most beautiful buildings are in Soho, and were originally used as warehouse buildings.
Nowadays to live in that neighborhood, you have to spend a small fortune. Or have moved in long ago, when it was not glamorous and rents were cheap.
By the way, one of the articles in the Times from last weekend grabbed everyone's attention - who can be labeled 'middle class', in Manhattan?
Around the lunch table, we pondered the fact that the average Manhattan apartment is a one-bedroom for $3,973 per month (!)
That is average. Though to most human beings, $3,973 is awfully expensive for a single person without a trust fund. And somehow still have money left over to eat dinner. And commute to work.
How to get by in this city is a constant question for everyone. Do you move further away from the city for larger space? Do you stay in the same tiny apartment for decades? It's not an easy decision.
For the Times article about the middle class in Manhattan, click here.
Related posts: Looking North, on the Upper West Side, Looking Up, at 240 Centre Street, and Looking Down, from Midtown Comics.
Photo by myself on Sixth Avenue, in Midtown.
It's suddenly cold here, as if it's actually winter! Egad. People stumbled about with scarves wrapped around their heads, Tuesday morning.
Monday we woke up to a frigid 9 degrees Fahrenheit (minus 13, Celsius). The winds made it feel much, much colder!
Related posts: On a Winter Day, at the Plaza Hotel, It's Chilly in Midtown and Prospect Park, and All A-Shiver, on the Streets.
Photo by myself in Midtown.
A photo from the stash, when it was much warmer.
Just a snapshot from daily life - a delivery guy schlepping a lunch order, a woman checking her phone, and visitors looking a little lost.
Apologies for the sporadic posts once again. It's been crazy busy and I've been under the weather.
Related posts: Street Crossing, on Fifth Avenue, Brrrr, in Midtown, and Stampede, in Midtown.
Photo by myself at Greene Street and Prince Street, in Soho.
Just behind the Prada store in SoHo is a giant, gorgeous billboard.
Its saturated colors work well with the buildings it fronts.
Related posts: On the New York Dress Code - Outerwear 101, All Wrapped up, in Soho, and Pretty in Pink, Downtown.
Photo by myself, somewhere on Second Avenue, heading downtown.
Parts of the city seem quaint, with twisty streets and smaller buildings. But then other parts resemble a highway.
Above, you'll see everyone on the streets, from motorcycles to skateboarders to cyclists to pedicabs.
Photo by myself, on the subway ride home.
A man played the trumpet for donations, the other night. On a strap hung a boombox that played background music.
As you can see, it hasn't been super duper cold here. Usually January is frigid. Temps have been fluctuating in the high 40s and low 50s (!).
Happy Monday, everyone!
Related posts: Jazz Players on the Subway Platform, Doo Wop, on Friday Morning, and Morning Serenade.
Photo by myself, somewhere in Williamsburg, Brooklyn.
A guy checked his phone during a smoke break, in Williamsburg.
Behind him, one of the many, many paste-ups bearing the words 'Cost was here' that were in the neighborhood.
Apparently Cost was a prolific graffiti artist in the 90s. He must have had a resurgence, since I hadn't seen his work until recently in Brooklyn and Manhattan.
Mark tells me that the artists' tags don't really mean anything literal. The artists simply like the composition of the letters next to each other, and spray paint them over and over (and over) again.
Related posts: Graffiti, Soho, Growing up Among Graffiti, Downtown, and Cereal Killers Mural, in Williamsburg.
Photo by myself, around Fifth Avenue and 43rd Street, in Midtown.
Large signs announced the closing of an antiques store, in Midtown.
This photo is from the stash. It's not uncommon, however, to see stores shutting down and new ones emerging.
New York City has generally been lucky during the whole crisis. Real estate prices are back on the rise, and I believe vacancies for storefronts have been low.
Related posts: Now on Sale, in Midtown, Women in Black, Against War, and Free Massages, in Union Square.
Photo by myself on Sixth Avenue, around 35th Street in Midtown.
A typical view down a typical avenue, during the day.
I would say this is a typical 'non-rush hour' view, meaning that you can see spaces to either side of people. People wearing their wintry gear and ear buds. People of all different ethnicities and ages.
People, people, people.
As usual, there is scaffolding in the background. Rush hour crowds are easily 3x more crowded than the photo above.
Happy Friday, everyone!
Related posts: The Crowds on Lower Broadway, Across the Crowded Sidewalk, in Midtown, and The Daily Madness, Outside Madison Square Garden.
Photo by myself on Broadway and Prince Street, in Soho.
A couple showed their affection on the street.
Ah...l'amour, l'amour.
Related posts: A Kiss, in Brooklyn Bridge Park, A Hug, in Washington Square Park, and More Free Hugs, in Union Square.
Photo by myself on Bond Street and Bowery, in the East Village.
Two large and cryptic illustrations of a skull and an eyeball adorned what looked like garage doors.
Bond Street is also known as Second Street, for whatever reason.
Photo by myself, around Lafayette and East Fourth Street, in NoHo.
A homeless man decided to pick up his dog, the other day, piggyback. I'm not sure what was going on here.
With the cold weather, the homeless are more noticeable on the streets and in the subways. Usually they camp out in front of churches and empty buildings.
Above, a couple homeless people and their dog camped out in front of a restaurant that was under renovation.
Related posts: Man and Companion, on the Sidewalk, Sitting in Herald Square, and The World Walks By, on Fifth Avenue.
Photo by myself at Broadway and Houston Streets, in SoHo.
A man was selling toys that made bubbles, in SoHo.
The bubbles could be seen from a block away. They were a fun and surprising addition to the cityscape.
Happy Monday, everyone!
Related posts: Graffiti, in SoHo, Twilight, in SoHo, and After the Snow, in SoHo.
Photo by myself around Houston and Mercer Streets, in NoHo.
I've seen this truck a couple times before. Sitting on top of it is a sculpture by Sergio Furnare, a New York artist, depicting a well known photograph of iron workers on their lunch break.
The original black and white photo was taken in 1932 of ironworkers working at Rockefeller Center. They were sitting on the 69th floor and you could see the city below them. The truck is Furnare's traveling billboard.
We had a gorgeous day in the city, Saturday. It felt like Spring, on the cool side with sunshine.
In the background left is a sculpture by the minimalist artist Forrest Myers. It's comprised of a grid of beams cantilevering out from a building.
For the original 1932 photo of the iron workers, click here.
For the artist's website, click here.
Related posts: Flaming Cactus, in Astor Place, Giant Head, in Madison Square Park, and Big Wampum Poster, on Houston Street.
Photo by myself at Broadway and Canal Street, near Chinatown.
A photo from a warmer time.
Canal Street is a street busy with car and pedestrian traffic. The on ramp to the Manhattan Bridge is on the eastern end of this street, and the sidewalks are lined with vendors selling perfume, jewelry and clothing.
Photo by myself at 32nd Street and Seventh Avenue, in Midtown.
A traffic cop helped to direct traffic on Seventh Avenue.
This is a very busy part of town, just a block away from Macy's. Ahead, a copper-clad bridge connects two buildings, high above the street.
You see some of these pedestrian bridges on the west side, for whatever reason, usually connecting warehouses together.
Related posts: Warehousing Art, in Chelsea, Cold Reality, and Gone Fishin', Along the East River.
Photo by myself, on the Q train.
The first day back to work took a lot out of everyone. Oy.
On the commute home, folks slept or sat or stood quietly. The party was decidedly over. Boo.
Photo by myself in Prospect Park, Brooklyn.
I met this little french bulldog in Prospect Park, the other day. She was dressed for the holiday season, and looked as if she were reflecting on holidays past. There was a very thin dusting of snow on the ground.
Mark and I spent most of the week in Brooklyn, far away from the crowds that have swarmed into Manhattan. We had a very relaxing time off work.
It's suddenly very cold, here, which shouldn't be much of a surprise since it is January. We had virtually no snow in 2012, just the very light dusting here and there.
Oh yes, I feel the same way. Must we go back to the grind??!
Related posts: A Bit of Nature, in New York, All Ears, in Park Slope, Brooklyn, and Out in the Cold, on the Upper East Side.
Photo by myself at Fifth Avenue and 48th Street, in Midtown.
Happy New Year, Everyone!
Just a snapshot from Fifth Avenue from a little while ago. The 'Unhate' ad campaign by Benneton caused a stir, showing various political leaders kissing one another.
Above, a two-story high Obama is shown with Chinese President Hu Jintao.
It's hard to believe it's 2013. Wowee. I wish everyone a happy and healthy new year!
Related posts: Bikini-Clad, on Prince Street, Our Commander and Chief, Above 7th Avenue, and It All Ends, Above Chelsea.
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