A Year In New York

As someone who regularly commutes on a bicycle, I eagerly awaited May 24, the day cars would be banished from Times Square. No more dodging around panicked rental-car tourists or taxis that swerve across three lanes for a fare; now the street would belong to me, the cyclist. At least I thought so until I [...]

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The crags of Mordor? A visit by Martians? No, the subject of this photo is Manhattan from Roosevelt Island in the midafternoon (not bad for a squinty iPhone shot).  Yesterday I saddled up the bicycle and visited the island for the first time.
The Roosevelt Island Tram lifts off silently from 59th Street and Second Avenue [...]

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I knew something was up when I biked by The Lake in Central Park and saw no fewer than ten rowboats afloat, each carrying exactly one man and one woman. And all the lovers were white. How strange. Also, what sort of romantic spark causes people to paddle out on a chilly, overcast Monday at [...]

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In winter the New York streets are a gray asphalt tundra. Then one day in April…Daffodils! They nod at you on the sidewalk, bright as sunlight, gentle as Easter. Surrounding them is a tiny, valiant iron fence.
I saw a woman on 65th Street reach past the fence with one hand – the other held a [...]

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Early this morning a congregation of about 150 Jews stood by the United Nations building and did something that seemed almost pagan: They blessed the rising sun.

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The other night I attended a fundraiser at Greenhouse, the SoHo club that claims to be New York’s first eco-disco. The rumors said Stevie Nicks would be there. Even more than her purring vocals, I sought a bigger hit:  Can a hipster nightclub really be “sustainable,” or is it an illusion?

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In March the Union Square farmer’s market is a meager proposition: onions, potatoes, and some apples. I spent a more fruitful time having a guy write me a poem.
“What do you want your poem to be about?” Benyomin Spaner asked.

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This man’s name is Charlie and the cat’s name is Nicolas. Some Union Square panhandlers just ask for change, but the more enterprising ones have a value-add. Charlie created value by adding Nicholas to the top of his head.
The combination coaxed three dollars out of me. I think Charlie is on to something.

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In the frigid air of March, in the gloom of a deep recession, Manhattan’s clothing merchandisers have announced the dawn of a new, happy age in which everyone wears lime-colored golf shirts and bright peach polos. New Yorkers pull up their collars and seem unmoved.

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It still hurts to take a deep breath after the snowboarding injury I got a few weeks ago. Joo thinks I bruised or even broke a rib. No treatment is available but rest, so I resort to only exercise that doesn’t hurt. I walk to work.
I’ve experimented with different routes and today I walked down [...]

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