Will Winter never end? Three cultural events in four days: Twice at Carnegie Hall and an evening of jazz at Flushing Town Hall. More; an afternoon at The Museum of the Moving Image, a viewing of “The Woman in Gold.” (highly recommended as well as a trip to The Neue Galerie to see the original Klimt portrait.) Flushing Town Hall, NEA Jazz Masters, Jimmy Heath and orchestra
Continue reading →After a hard day looking at orchids and fighting crowds, a fresh fish dinner at City Island was in order … at Johnny’s. Get ready to beat back the crowds.
Continue reading →Here I am again in Tissue-Box City. There is “something going around” and it got me. Started with one innocent sneeze while at Bed, Bath and Beyond, and it went beyond, onward, upward, downward. But the good news is I am trying to catch up on some editing. I have so many photos to edit and it is always a job. In addition I am taking some on-line studies in iPhone photography and digital imaging. Spending a lot of time looking and trying to process and apply the information. And, the news is that the iPhone has become a … Continue reading →
It was the never-ending Winter. Outside was blue-cold, yet remained black and white. Very little color peeked through the blasts of white and ice. I dare you to find your car. Meanwhile, back in the house, there was Spring, and lots of it. I’ll show you, Winter.
Continue reading →Today is my mother’s 97th birthday. I never expected her to live this long or to be so intact. It is amazing. She has survived numerous bouts with pneumonia over the years, has battled life-long food allergies and has out-lived every member of her family. Her requests: the latest crossword puzzles Women’s Health Newsletter It’s been a long, lousy Winter. Let’s hope that Spring renews us all, and that the days continue to be kind to my mom. This blog is part of a series. The next installment is here: Part 81: Mother-Daughter Journey: The Opera Called “Truth” … Continue reading →
In honor of a new year, I present another little kitty that found me. Here I go again! (all iPhone photography) City streets on New Year’s Day. Visiting friends in the Columbia University area near Riverside Drive. Fabulous neighborhood. They live in a building that is 105 years old. Quick shot of Tom’s, aka Monk’s, the restaurant façade as seen on Seinfeld. A very Happy New Year to all. Here’s a card for you. .
Continue reading →This RCA television was a professional model and purchased in 1980 through a family member who was in the electronics business. I recall how he struggled to get it out of his car to “deliver” it. I had seen its brother in the art department of a nearby university when I was taking sabbatical studies. That was 2001. We saw “Tron.” Tron was a futuristic sci-fi movie that was released soon after I got that RCA television. Now they are both outdated. Thirty-four years later, the television is still in my living room. And still working. But here’s the … Continue reading →
Last Sunday emanated from a parallel Universe. Show tickets, the decision to drive to a specific train which had a stop near the theater. The transit website said, “no delays.” Arriving at the train proved otherwise, in fact it seems always to prove otherwise when the site indicates no problems. The platform was mobbed and a train was going out of service. As the clock ticks toward the curtain going up I have to calm myself down. It is either traffic or trains, in New York City you picks your poison. Finally an E train is rerouted around the … Continue reading →
A perfect evening began on the pre-Christmas streets of New York City where each block was punctuated by a parade of shopping bags. Throughout were LED globe-like light arrays in different colors: Everything was dressed in lights. This rarely happens: There was a parking spot in front of the restaurant. Andanada. Who knew that the restaurant near the Alice Tully Hall (show to follow dinner) was so superb and had one Michelin Star? Don’t want to sound like Anthony Bourdain, but I had no reservations; still got a table. Let me share this meal with you. On the house: … Continue reading →
Made it on the subway in a light snow. Nothing like Manhattan; streets are packed day and night. I’ll try to reconstruct the concert for you. This is not full of yuletide cheer, if anything it is downright sorrowful, depressing, and serious. Sometimes you need some of that. The 2oth Century was one helluva hundred years. Each composer was affected by war. May the century rest in peace. Ralph Vaughan Williams: Symphony No. 6 Excellent introduction. Listen for the saxophone solo. Gyorgy Ligeti: Requiem A most incredible choral piece. Think: you have heard it. … Continue reading →
The New-York Historical Society New-York Historical Society 170 Central Park West at Richard Gilder Way (77th Street) New York, NY 10024 Phone (212) 873-3400 I was able to catch several fascinating exhibits: A Brief History of New York: Selections from A History of New York in 101 Objects; Annie Leibovitz: Pilgrimage: “Annie Leibovitz: Pilgrimage charts a new direction for one of America’s best-known living photographers. Unlike her staged and carefully lit portraits made on assignment for magazines and advertising clients, the photographs in this exhibition were taken simply because Leibovitz was moved by the subject. The images … Continue reading →
Ralph Fasanella September 2, 1914 – December 16, 1997 My favorite museum visit this month was to the American Folk Art Museum, 2 Lincoln Square Columbus Ave. between 65th and 66th Streets New York City, across from Lincoln Center. A few photos taken outside, unfortunately no photos are permitted inside. I stumbled across the art of Ralph Fasanella in the 1970s and he has since been my favorite primitive artist. He was self-taught, untrained, has the eye of a genius and the soul of a saint. He was a union man and a champion of the worker who slaved … Continue reading →
Looks like I have been missing in action, hasn’t it? It’s been a busy month: celebrations of good things, museum visits, meals out, cultural events, mother issues, the daily migraine … and yes, I got lazy. Most museum exhibits cannot be photographed if there are copyright issues and the material isn’t owned by the museum; this makes it difficult to construct a post with my own work. There are some things I’d like to share but it looks like I will have to rely on internet material. I’ll let you know what is mine and what isn’t. So, … Continue reading →
Joe’s Pub is a nightclub/bar/theater venue for New Yorkers of all ages. Halloween night is special: out come the theremins for a little spookiness to add to your dinner. Meanwhile, outside, and a few blocks down, you have the world renown Halloween parade, and chances are while walking the streets you’ll see a lot of fake blood and some very interesting costumes. If they are costumes. After all, this is the Village. (Greenwich Village) Meanwhile, inside, the usually great burgers are being served (it was a busy night and many orders were incorrect), but (cousin) Rob Schwimmer and Dorit … Continue reading →
Lost Lake, a play by David Auburn (Proof, The Columnist) is currently playing at Manhattan Theater Club, and a splendid production it is. It is perfectly cast: two lost souls meet unexpectedly, both trying to get by, both struggling, and it is not until the end that the single black mother who has lost her husband to a terrible accident leaving her with two small children, recognizes her own failings in the man who rented his cabin to her. She saw him as a loser, she had failings, herself, but perhaps there was more to him than was initially obvious. … Continue reading →
One of my favorite New York City museums is the lovely gem: The Neue Gallerie/Museum for German and Austrian Art. The museum is in a former townhouse; the museum is located at the Southeast corner of Fifth Avenue and East 86th Street, across from Central Park. But in order to look at and appreciate fine art, one must fill one’s stomach, so on the line one goes for about thirty minutes to get a table at Café Sabarsky on the first floor (my preference) or Café Fledermaus in the basement, where one can soak up the Austrian atmosphere … Continue reading →
This was the twelfth annual Open House New York weekend, where New Yorkers get to prowl around, crawl through and visit places in the city that are normally closed to the public. It’s a great way to see the behind the scenes operations of the city, see architects’ and artists’ studios and offices, tour incredible architecture, learn about history, see entrepreneurship in action. I spend a lot of time in Brooklyn and Saturday provided me with entré to: 1. The Brooklyn Navy Yard. Here we learned about some young folks who got together and started a distillary in a beautiful old … Continue reading →
A pre-theater dinner on the Lower East Side of Manhattan, not far where I grew up and where I went to High School. This is where poor immigrants once lived and climbed five flights of stairs. The Ukrainians, Poles, Jews, Germans, Italians. Now the cool and trendy are live where the poor once lived, at magnificent, unaffordable rents. The old store fronts now house trendy restaurants, shops and theaters. The old Yiddish theaters have long-been taken over by the present. This area has joined the other gentrified, high-rent Manhattan neighborhoods. Dinner at Ballaro 77 2nd Avenue between 4th and … Continue reading →
Peppers were not the only things that were hot; meanwhile, next door at The Brooklyn Museum it’s time for the most incredible shoe exhibit ever. Last year I reported on the Gaultier exhibit. Now for shoes: the history of high heels. Not only did they elevate the rich and aristocracy, they were a necessity to keep their shoes and feet clean and dry. Initially they worn by male royals, then the ladies adopted them from Europe to Asia. The exhibit covered the most incredible specimens: if you ever dreamed of a pair of Manolo Blahniks or Christian Laboutins … Continue reading →
Everything about yesterday was hot: the weather was redolent of August, the one that never really came, the fiery chile peppers, the music, the tasting. The annual Chile Pepper festival is a fun event. There was a massive crowd this year, forming lines, tasting the wares and hanging out on the lawns. First some local color: Brooklyn, New York, one of the five boroughs of New York City has evidenced that more and more people want organic, healthy food; rooftop city farms are sprouting all over. I believe this is the wave of the future. … Continue reading →
