what about the plastic animals?

Heroic Tree

November 29th, 2010.  Two cabs collided.  One went into this tree.  Because it went into the tree it didn't hit Emilia Victoria or her mother.

A Rat At School

There's a labor dispute at the Manhattan School of Music.  According to the literature I was given the Precollege Division Teachers' Union was organized a couple of years ago and the administration has been stalling, mostly in regards to salaries, in their negotiations to agree on a first contract.

In other news, a few thousand Russian readers stopped by today to look at my Crack is Wack post.

One Year of Morningside Park

If you follow my Flickr account you may have noticed that I've been taking photos of the same spot, where the upper trail crosses the 120th street steps, in Morningside Park for some time.  I just passed the one year mark so it's time to look at the annual cycle.

At the beginning I didn't have a plan and I missed almost the entire month of April (and the green up of vegetation), but eventually I settled for taking a picture every 7-10 days.  Sometimes the photos were taken more frequently to catch things like the recent snow melt.  Almost all the pictures were taken around 7:45 a.m. when I was walking to the shuttle.

If you watch the slide show, or if you want to take your time pondering the individual photos, you'll see lots of white, brown and green, rain, fog, a few people walking, one person sleeping, the damage after Hurricane Irene and following the October snow.  Enjoy!

Actual Snow

I climbed these stairs today on my way to get the Sunday paper.  The temperature was 20 degrees when I left my apartment.

While paying for the paper I heard someone say "I don't want to walk anymore.  I'm cold and I don't want to walk anymore."  I looked up to see a well-dressed couple, presumably Columbia students on their way to church.  "Well-dressed" is probably the wrong descriptor.  The woman was wearing dressy heels to get around in the snow and slush.  She was also wearing a short dress.  No jacket, no sweater, no gloves, not even a scarf.  I did not know what to make of that.

Cabin Fever

On the side of Bank Street Bookstore in Morningside Heights.

Absolute Weekend Ritual

A long line outside of Absolute Bagels on Saturday.  Last time they were mentioned here Absolute only scored a 'B' on their health inspection.  Congrats on the 'A'!

The Confused Tree

The branches are pointing up and the leaves are pointing down.  I didn't understand this at all.  On 120th near Morningside Drive.

General Grant National Memorial

The General Grant National Memorial, aka Grant's Tomb, was decked out in Memorial Day finery this weekend.

The Overlook Pavillion, across Riverside Drive from the memorial, was re-opened just a couple of weeks ago.  It was opened as a comfort station for visitors a century ago but had long been in a decrepit state.  Long ago I took a peek inside the door marked as the men's room.  Judging from the smell, even though the building was closed it was still being used as a men's bathroom. The first floor now houses a modest visitor's center and gift shop.

Sorry for the angle on that second photo; that was the only way I could fit most of it in.

Inside the memorial Ulysses and Julia were in their usual spot.

A Busy Afternoon in the Heights

After brunch on the Upper West Side I took the train uptown this afternoon.  All was quiet in the 103rd Street subway station.

I wasn't hungry, otherwise I might have gotten a bagel at Absolute Bagels, perhaps the best in the city.  Then again, they only got a 'B' on their health inspection.  Did you know that "appetizing" on the awning is a noun?

This Five Guys burger place opened a couple of weeks ago.  I haven't tried it yet.  Probably won't either.  I went to the one at Bleecker and Carmine once and failed to see what all the hype is about.  They are way too expensive for the quality of the food.

After not going to Absolute Bagels and studiously avoiding Five Guys, I did go into Book Culture.  It is a very good bookstore with very few customers.  I don't see how they've stayed in business all these years.  They recently made free wifi available upstairs.  I checked my email and skimmed through a couple of books.

Finally, I got a ginger bubble tea at TMagic and sat on the steps of Hogan Hall to admire the spring flowers.  Jeff Sachs planted them himself!  Or not. 

The bubble tea was excellent.  Instead of, or in addition to, steeping the ginger, they blended candied ginger into the drink, giving it a crystally zing.

All my errands done, it is time to leave for a couple of weeks.  I regret that I won't be in town for the Hungarian Pastry Shop's 50th anniversary celebration.

Less Than Eight Months Until Halloween

I don't know why I took this picture or why I'm putting it up here.  This is one of the buildings on the St. John the Divine campus.