An Ass, in nyc

So there I was, minding my own business, finishing up the last bites of a slice of ultra thin crust pineapple and ham pizza when I looked up and saw a mule pulling a small wagon down Isham Street toward Inwood Hill Park.

Yes I was surprised, we don’t see large four legged animals up in my neck of the woods. Dogs, yes. Mules, no!

So I did what any self-respecting blogger would do, I hot-footed it home to grab my camera. (Perhaps I should start carrying a small point & shoot with me at all times. Of course that would necessitate me buying a point & shoot….)

Fortunately they stopped for a brief moment in the park, and I snagged this shot. Quite profound wouldn’t you say? The mule gazing off into the urban distance.



The mule & owners ended up spending the night at the Van Cortland Park stables in The Bronx.

It turns out that the couple (Bud & Kenny) are planning to travel the world on foot. You can read about their travels, gawk at their solar powered trailer, or donate to support their journey at http://www.usonfoot.com/.

Anyway, it’s just not something you see every day on the streets of New York.

-Bitter

Yankee Stadium, and the fourth of july

A couple of weeks ago, I was offered a pair of free tickets to a Yankee’s Game for the Fourth of July. Having wanted to go to a game for a while, I snatched the tickets up and made plans. I called up Colette, she said she was in, we were set.

Here’s a photo of Colette at the game, modeling her Canada hoodie. Being a Canadian, it was perfectly acceptable to wear that jacket to the game.



The tickets arrived the next Tuesday, and I immediately searched the Yankee’s website to see where the seats were. It took a moment, but I finally found the section labeled 63. It was tucked up at the top right side of the stadium, up high in the stratosphere. Being free seats, they were perfect.

My normal Fourth of July festivities include going to a parade in the morning, perhaps a barbeque in the afternoon, followed by fireworks in the evening. Being fairly new to the City, I didn’t know if any parades were going on, and it isn’t easy to barbeque in the City. Last year I only managed to catch the fireworks. This year, I thought a Yankee’s Game would be perfect.

Game day arrived, so I took the A train down to 125th where I met Colette, and then we took the B train from 125th to Yankee Stadium. We budget time for it to take about 30 minutes, somehow the subway becomes a giant time suck so we planned for extra time, it took 15.

We had planned for at least 15-20 minutes to navigate our way from the subway to the gates at Yankee Stadium. It took about 3.

Our gate was literally just steps from the subway. Since we were so early, the lines were not long, and we breezed right past the attendants who were checking and scanning tickets in no time at all.

We wove our way along the concourse and reached the first open gate, section numbers were proudly displayed along the top of the frame. Thinking it would lead to one of those never-ending ramps that would take us to the upper level and spotting our section number, we ducked to the left to follow the signs.

This is what we saw.



Quite a bit different than what we were expecting, wouldn’t you say? This is where we ended up sitting, right up front where we could see all the action.



The day was overcast, but the stadium lights were on and shining brightly. After about five minutes I wished that I had a pair of sunglasses to wear, or at the least, a stylish Canon sun-visor.



We sat around and watched the crowd as they filtered in, taking their seats. A young girl near us kept busy collecting signatures from the players as they walked by.



Everyone ate their favorite ballpark treats. Hot dogs and Cracker Jacks, what more could you want?



The game started not too much later.



This is the view we had for most of the game…



We had some nice half-time (can you use that word in baseball?...) entertainment, field maintenance workers dancing to the tune, YMCA.



Here’s hoping that Nancy and Charlie were facing the scoreboard!



A rowdy fan caused quite a ruckus on one of the upper levels and was evicted from the game. He was standing right behind the yellow pole, you can’t see him, but you can see the fans reactions around him. (Update: To get a closer look, click here and here.) Looking back through my photos, it appears that one of the fans caught it all on video, via his camera.





All in all, the day was great. Due to the rain I didn’t go to take photos of the fireworks, I still had a fun evening, but I’ll wait to tell you what I did until tomorrow. Hope you had a great Fourth!

-Bitter

Blackouts in the City, and so it begins

Only the second day of 90 degree weather here in the city and the blackouts have begun. This summer is going to be a long one.

This report from the NY Times blog, the City Room.

This one from MSN.

Bronx Week, part two

Photographer's note: Don't ever look through a camera lens when taking a photo of the sun, unless, that is, you want to permanently damage your eyesight.

It was a beautiful day, not a cloud in sight. Wait, I guess there were a few. Here's the view looking toward the inflatable trampoline. What a sight, clear blue skies, sunny, warm with just a touch of wind to keep you cool.

Booths were setup to share all sorts of information from a down and dirty how to compost, to the Red Cross and Ready NY.

They gave away free water and apples.

But the lines for the free flavored ices were the longest.

-Bitter

Reader poll: Which do you prefer? Large photos, or small?

Bronx Week Festivities, part one

The roses were calling me last Saturday, (they’re in full bloom right now) so I charged my camera battery, packed a couple of water bottles, and caught the #12 MTA Bus out to the New York Botanical Garden in The Bronx.

The Bus drops you off at the corner of East Fordam Road and Dr. Theodore Kazimiroff Blvd. so you get to walk a couple of blocks north to the garden entrance. So there I was walking along, minding my own business, when I hear this fabulous music wafting from the other side of the fence.

All I could think was, I wonder what’s going on and I hope it’s still playing by the time I get inside. I got my ticket and wandered back through the garden toward the roses and the music got louder. As I approached a tingle of excitement raced through me. The music was LIVE.

Don’t ask me how I know, I just do. Any musician can tell you, and most music aficionados can do the same. No, they hadn’t stopped to speak to the crowd, it just had that quality to it, a certain je ne sais quoi.

And they were good. No. More than good. They were fabulous!



And the place was packed!



I spoke to Danny Mendez, one of the leaders of the seven piece combo, El Projecto Caribe, and he said the combo was pulled from two larger combos. One called The Latin Project, the other Son Del Caribe. Both of them have albums you can buy, and can be booked for events. I myself will be strolling over in a moment to pick up a new CD or two.

It turned out that Saturday was the beginning of Bronx Week. If you live in The Bronx, or are interested in attending, here’s a link to the planned festivities.

Casito Maria an after-school organization that engages youth in the Arts was highlighted when one of their youth groups demonstrated the Salsa, they were great, and most of the kids looked like they were having fun.



Mind-Builders, also an organization for youth and the arts, had a group perform a few hip-hop routines. Quite the popping group of kids. :)




And did I mention there was dancing?



dancing,



and more dancing?



It was fun.

Wish you could have been there, if not, then there’s always next year. If next year’s too far away, then plan a party, book The Latin Project or Son Del Caribe, and dance the night away. Meringue and Salsa style of course.