Wednesday's Word: Cookie Duster

cookie duster, noun

def: A full mustache capable of dusting the tops of cookies.

Source: Urban Dictionary


Image from CyberZoo

District 9? Fantastic! Regal Cinemas? Not!

Saw District 9 at a Monday matinee...

I loved it!

Lots of powerful & poignant messages here.

Not your usual Sci-Fi film, but Sci-Fi fans (like me) would love it!

Wasn't so crazy about the Regal Union Square Stadium 14 theater complex though...

Box office was insufficiently staffed, and bogged to a standstill with a couple of customer service issues.

No manager in sight to clear it up or to field complaints. Loooong line formed... Screaming customers... Ugly.

Upstairs? Ugly too... Place seems dirty... Has anyone looked at the popcorn butter dispenser lately? I was at the first show of the day and the place needed a vacuum... And a paint job... A MESS!

Air was stale and heavy. Took three requests to Snack bar staff to get some A/C in the stuffy theater #7.

The movie was good, yes. But quite frankly, I would have enjoyed it more on my own flat-screen HD TV at home!

A Monday Off

1. Blogging today's Twitter & Flickr post while awaiting Ralphie's homemade chili from microwave... He uses cloves and cinnamon in his recipe! less than a minute ago from web

2. Irish doorman just remarked: "Americans are the nicest people in the world". I said "some are nasty". "But, nasty in a nice way!", says he. 26 minutes ago

3. Just started raining. Fine. My fabulous day off is pretty well done anyway... Bring it on... LOL 30 minutes ago

4. T-shirt spotted: Way to go Shithead about 2 hours ago

5. Saw a sign in subway for new Kelsey Grammar show on ABC debuts tomorrow. Hank. Will set DVR to test drive it. about 2 hours ago

6. District 9 is terrific, BTW! about 2 hours ago

7. Avatar film preview looks tacky. I've made 3 requests 2 get A/C turned on. After the box ofc debacle, this Regal chain might be worst ever! about 4 hours ago

8. Smuggled a pc of fab Wildwood carrot cake to eat during the film... Will find some noisy sound effect segment to get it out of the bag. LOL about 5 hours ago

9. Made it to Regal Union Square Cinema Stadium 14 for District 9. Hateful adverts are on now. Sign sez "No texting"! How do they enforce that? about 5 hours ago

10. Strand had Gracie Mansion book, usually $40 for $10. Love Strandbooks! & they no longer make U check bags on way in. That was always a pain! about 5 hours ago

11. Just saw my 1st ever Don't Walk sign that counts a warning in seconds. Brilliant! about 5 hours ago

12. Crabcake lunch at City Crab was spectacular as ever... about 6 hours ago

13. At Madison Square Park admiring the Flatiron Bldg.about 6 hours ago

14. Stumbled upon the Ace Hotel on my walk. FABULOUS lobby! about 6 hours ago

15. Decided to stroll from Times Square to Union Square down the new Pedestrian Mall on Broadway... about 7 hours ago

16. Special Election tomorrow... Yes on Mark Green. Liu vs. Yassky? Undecided. Yassky voted for term limits? Liu sensationalizing Sweatshop angle about 8 hours ago

17. NYT review on Basil Twist's Petrouschka ("cute") was insightful on puppetry & piece on Streisand's tiny Village Vanguard concert was a hoot... about 8 hours ago

18. Congrats to the Yankees on clinching the A.L. East! I'm wearing my official Yankee's cap in tribute today! about 8 hours ago

19. That late William Safire's "How to Read a Column" reprinted in today's NYTimes is brilliant! R.I.P. about 8 hours ago

20. Stubborn Gov Paterson is unelectable. & his Blogovich style publicity campaign is embarassingly desperate. He was never even elected. Get Out! 8 hours ago

I Gotta Feeling...

.... Today's gonna be a good day!

Saturday on Mannahatta Island

Just in from a Hangar Steak Mexicana at El Centro after a pretty packed and beautiful Saturday...

Here are today's Tweets in reverse order...

With a coupla photos thrown in from my Flickr page...


1. Got a residual check from Disney for the last SAG movie I worked on in 1999. $26. Not enough to quit my day job! LOL 3 minutes ago

2. T-shirt spotted: (a baby) Pinch your own damn cheeks about 2 hrs ago

3. Cat & kitten adoptions available outside Spoiled Brats pet shop on W. 49th now (8/9th) about 2 hrs ago

4. T-shirt spotted: Cold as life about 2 hours ago

5. T-shirt spotted: Never over the phone about 2 hrs ago

6. I *HATE* that Dunkin Donuts serves their delicious coffee in Styrofoam Cups... So environmentally unsound. about 2 hrs ago

7. I don't know if they are called Apple Orchard Doughnuts or Apple Cider Donuts.... They're gr8! Cinnamon delight! Oof! about 3 hrs ago

8. Some SERIOUS dignitary just rolled by West 57th near 8th in a tinted SUV. (SERIOUS: Judging from the amt of security posse & tense vibe). UN in town. Could B anybody about 6 hrs ago

9. Lovely walk west on West 57th. Cool and suitably early Fall-like. about 6 hrs ago

10. Fifth Avenue bus detouring to Lexington Ave because of the Mini-Marathon. Glad I'm in no hurry! about 6 hrs ago

11. Museum of the City of New York's "Timelines" exhibit should be a book or a DVD. They are missing a gr8 oppt for fundraising in the gift shop about 6 hrs ago

12. Did the whole Museum of the City of NY. I used to perform MCNY regularly in the early 1980's in ground flr auditorium. about 6 hrs ago

13. Waiting for "Timescapes" multimedia show to restart upstairs at the Museum of the City of NY. A gr8 complement to "Mannahatta" downstairs. about 7 hrs ago

14. Entering Museum of the City of New York about 8 hrs ago

15. Saxophonist @ Gray Wacke Arch. Oh, look, an Obelisk... Photo opp! Dial and Discover: 646.862.0997 press 26# about 8 hrs ago

16. Listening to Star Spangled Banner being heard at the start of some racing event on Fifth Ave in the East 70's. There went starting gun! about 8 hrs ago

17. Sign needed in Central Park: DANGER: A bed of acorns laying on a hilly lawn may act as ball bearings to dangerously expedite the pedestrian. about 9 hrs ago

18. Headache persists. But.... Hello to Balto the dog statue! about 9 hrs ago

19. Beautiful A.M. 4 my walk in Central Park. My goal is to be @ the front door of the Museum of the City of New York at 10am sharp b4 tourists. about 9 hrs ago

20. Load in 4 Ragtime going on @ Neil Simon Theater. No doubt the Obamas already have tix. When I saw original, Coretta & Fam were there. about 9 hrs ago

21. Why does NYTimes spell SAG in all caps, and Aftra w/o? Aren't they both CAPS worthy? about 11 hrs ago

22. It's still dark out! about 12 hrs ago

Over the Meadow and Through the Woods

Donner got me thinking about movement...

Manhattanites are always on the move.

My work day consists of constant movement from opening bell to the closing one... Including 4 flights of stairs in an 1890s construction, and 3-14 year old charges running hither and yon...

Add to that, the 30 block walk to work and home, too...

Donner presented two of his favorite movement videos...

Here's mine,  Jay Brannan's "My Very Best Moves" cuz it makes me happy. A veritable Happy Dance...:





Donner also got me thinking that I REALLY need to get over to see the Mannahatta exhibit at the Museum of the City of New York. It was on my list all summer, and I never got around to it... Will make it a priority this weekend...

And the weather should be suitably Autumnal to hike it across town. Through Central Park...

Over the meadow and through the woods...

Ahhh, "three day weekend" movement, too...!

A Schnozzy Thursday to You

Wednesday's Word: Mawkish

mawkish

PRONUNCIATION:
(MAW-kish)

MEANING:
adjective:
1. Excessively sentimental, especially in a false or childish manner.
2. Having a nauseating taste or smell.

ETYMOLOGY:
From Middle English mawke (maggot). Are maggots sentimental? We don't know, but the secondary sense of the word mawkish derives from the disgust we feel at the sight of the insect. By extension the word began to refer to something sickeningly sentimental.

USAGE:
"Diana's passing prompted a months-long orgy of mawkish and histrionic media coverage centering on the accomplishments of a woman best known for her romantic troubles and fashion prowess."
Colleen Carroll Campbell; Michael Jackson Fatigue Syndrome; St. Louis Post-Dispatch; Jul 9, 2009.

Source: Wordsmith

First Day of Autumn

Random thoughts... Late season corn and tomatoes from GreenMarket have been brilliant this year... Toys R Us having a Buy-2-Get-1-free-sale on books and Leapfrog toys, "Just in time for teacher shopping", he says, $160 later... Humid right now. More humid tomorrow. Ew... Doggy doesn't like my back-to-work schedule very much... He's not the only one... I heart Firefox... Obama was around the corner last night to do Letterman show... Saw it on DVR this AM and POTUS was brilliant!... Too many flashing police cars with limos full of fat rich diplomats tying up traffic everywhere... U.N. in session!... Pizza for lunch is a poor choice as the energy crash is noticeable on work days... The new fountain at Lincoln Center is very different from the old one and pretty cool. I saw it for the first time today and snapped it... Apparently the fountain is more popular than the production of Tosca behind the banner, where the opening Met audience booed it at the finale! Tra-La!... Sorry I missed Bill Clinton on Larry King Live last night. I woulda DVR'd it... NYTimes did a great explanatory piece on salt and blood pressure today... Gotta eat... Leftover chili with all those fresh late season veggies I was talking about...

Post Weekend Blues

It was such a glorious weekend... Weather wise...

Really, after a five day work week, it's ALL about chores and catching up on shopping, laundry, errands, sleep, and fresh air...

Still, there were diversions... Thank God for diversions...

As I head into yet another five day work week, I'm already looking forward to the three day weekend at the other end...

Here are some weekend photos to hold me over...

Tiny Tim Sunday

Was a gorgeous Sunday to Tiptoe through the Tulips...

Homage to Hell's Kitchen

http://homagetohellskitchen.com/


Check it Out... Particularly the Ironworker's pics...

Peter, Paul, & Mary Friday

Call for Hell's Kitchen Artists & Sponsors

Hell's Kitchen Artist Studio Tour 09!

November 6th - 8th, 2009

Call for Artists & Sponsors!

Hell's Kitchen artists will open their studios and venues will host local performers for a three day event showcasing the creativity of artists living and working in this dynamic and historic community in the heart of Manhattan.

Participation is open to artists and performers of all types and local businesses are invited to be a part of the weekend by hosting art shows and/or performances as well as sponsoring the event.

For more information, go to ArtistsInTheKitchen.org.

Wednesday's Word: Serena

Serena, noun, a severe temper tantrum, that defies character and reason. Going off on an authority figure as Serena Williams did at the US Open 2009.

Usage: "Don't get her riled, or she may pull a Serena!"

Primary Election Day

It's Primary Election Day in New York City...


Here are my picks:

Bill Thompson for Mayor
Mark Green for Public Advocate
David Yassky for Comptroller
Cyrus Vance for Manhattan District Attorney
Yetta Kurland for City Council (Hell's Kitchen Neighborhood)

Is FaceBook Envious of Twitter?

The New York Times' Facebook Is Going for Some Twitter Sensibility by Claire Cain Miller reports on the merging of styles of the Internet's top two social networks...

Last week, Facebook added two new, Twitter-like features. Users can now “tag” friends or companies that they mention in status updates, and they can use a pared-down version of the site called Facebook Lite that resembles Twitter’s stream of status updates...

...To tag another Facebook member in a status update, users type the @ symbol before the friend’s name. The @ symbol is a convention that Twitter users started. In response, Twitter added a section on its site where people can see any tweets that mention them. The mentions are hyperlinked so others could click on them to see the subject’s profile page...

The second new feature, Facebook Lite, is meant for people with very slow Internet connections or new users who want an introduction to the core features of the site,Ms. Chin said. But it might also appeal to veteran Facebook users who like the simplicity of Twitter...

Facebook Lite is essentially a stream of updates, like Twitter. It includes photos and comments, which are not available on Twitter, but disposes of other distracting sections that clutter the traditional Facebook homepage... 

Reminds me of when one gas station opens on a corner a competitor opens on the other corner...


Will be interesting to see how it all shakes down, of course...

And in two years who will be left standing??


Or will there be a NEXT next big thing by then?

Sunday Tour of Gracie Mansion

Our current Billionaire Mayor prefers his own Billionaire digs elsewhere on the Upper East Side.

Lucky for NYC taxpayers, as it saves us the revenue it takes to operate the Mayor's Official Residence at Gracie Mansion as a *real* residence.

And also lucky for us, the upstairs bedrooms, baths, and guest rooms are open in public tours (by appointment), like the one I took today with a large group of friends... Whereas, if the current boss was living there, it would have been unavailable for inspection...

Lots of history at Gracie Mansion...

Saw the room where Eleanor Roosevelt stayed, and the Rudy Guiliani and Donna Hanover love nest... No photos allowed upstairs, of course. In fact, photos are only allowed in one public room... (I hate when that happens!)

Ahhh, if those walls could talk...

Every Mayor since Fiorello LaGuardia has lived there. Except Mike Bloomberg, of course...

One bookcase on the first floor had a great many relevant books... including several by former mayor Edward I. Koch. Funnily enough Koch's notable, Guiliani: Nasty Man was nowhere to be found... Damn!

Go here, if you you want to arrange a tour for yourself!

Here are all of my Gracie Mansion Pics from today...

The Weekend Chillax Effect

Have had a full 24 hours off, so far and I feel like I'm still de-stressing...

Was an eventful first week at work...

... But I still, at this point, have a whole lot more questions than I have answers...

... Will be weeks before I feel like I'm in the groove and hitting stride.... As there is much to learn and do... And organize, and ....????

Anyway... Today was definitely a de-stress day.

To Chill...

To Relax...

To Chillax...

Rainy, too, which helped the Chillax factor...

A Rainy Friday

... Just sayin

A Mrs Miller Thursday

Naked Cowboy Gives It All Up!

While Michael Bloomberg continues to decimate the slightest bit of coverage to any of his opponents through ghastly and grotesque campaign spending...

One guy got defeated from the red tape...

I speak of The Naked Cowboy drops out... in yesterday's New York Times.

Conflict-of-interest rules. Financial-disclosure forms. Fines and threats of imprisonment...

It was all enough to send a singing cowboy back to Times Square, where he daily strums for his supper with a strategically positioned guitar draped over his white skivvies. 

... The culmination of his struggle was a sharply worded letter he got Thursday from the New York City Conflicts of Interest Board, an agency he said he had never fathomed existed until the letter arrived, notifying him that he had failed to file the financial disclosure form as required.
   
He had to correct the deficiency or risk being charged with a misdemeanor punishable by up to a year in prison and a $10,000 civil penalty. The letter told him he was being assessed a $250 fine, which had to be hand-delivered to the board or sent by certified mail.
  
So Friday, traveling without entourage, he appeared at the board’s downtown headquarters, in his briefs and a skimpy white fur with a mink collar, to hand over a completed disclosure and a $250 fine. The form lists no trusts, loans or outside affiliations. It describes his occupation as “traveling entertainer” and reports gross income of between $100,00 and $250,000 last year. 

Let's start a write-in campaign! Write-in: Robert Burck, The Naked Cowboy for Mayor.

Wednesday's Word: Mocus

Mocus

Noun, A state of unconscious, consciousness. Conducting business on auto pilot. Especially related to detoxification and the resulting state of mind.

After years of drunken clarity, John Doe now finds himself in the occasional sober haze. Said John Doe, "I was so mocus today, I thanked the Snapple machine for dispensing the bottle of seltzer."

Source: Urban Dictionary

It's the Day After Labor Day

Waaaaaaa. I Don't Wanna.....!

Favorite Summer Art Wrap-Up, Part 7

Ya gotta love an exhibition that includes all the stuff inside a home...
Eh?

... Or not.

MoMA' Song Dong evoked an eery funereal feel.

... And a call for environmental initiatives especially regarding
plastics...

... And a sense of awe as you walk through the sprawl and just wonder...

Quite a powerful collection of reactions from a hunk o junk...

Even if you are revolted, like some...

Since You Asked...

Someone on Twitter asked me what did I get at Trader Joe's this morning that cost me $196.63 plus worth a $12 cab ride home??

The short answer is : I stock up!

Here's the long answer...

4 organic oatmeal tubs, 1 bottle of Vitamin C, 4 lbs 72% Dark Chocolate, 2 bottles of hand sanitizer (who knew?); 4 bags each of unsalted: Almonds, Cashews, Walnuts, Peanuts, Raisins; 2 bags frozen shrimp, frozen bing cherries, 2 jars unsalted peanut butter, 2 jars low sugar fruit spread , 2 bags frozen peas, 2 packs organic beef hot dogs, 2 lowfat cottage cheese, 2 blocks of extra sharp cheddar, 2 boxes stone ground wheat crackers, two lbs Hummus, 2 big jars of green olives, 2 doz cage-free, organic, omega 3 brown eggs, Parmesan-Romano Cheese Blend, 2 small pomegranate juices, two large vanilla soy milks, 2 cans organic black bean soup, agave natural sweetener, 2 cans organic baked beans.

Much of this is breakfast and lunch foods, as the doctor gave your blogger some untidy news about his blood pressure and cholesterol counts... So the daily summer bacon & eggs routine, and Pork Belly Szechuan lunches must stop abruptly!

Needless to say this morning's booty did NOT even fit into the pictured hand baskets, but overflowed into one of their pushcarts on wheels...

Another good thing? There was NO LINE this morning... Another perk of spending a holiday weekend like Labor Day in Manhattan... Everyone else leaves town!

And on the Lighter Side

NYC Local Politics

Local primary elections are in high gear if you can manage to filter through all the expensive noise generated by Billionaire Mike Bloomberg and his massive media buys...

He's even throwing himself a Massive Victory Party on Primary Night (He's uncontested for the Republican nod) so as to drown out any attention whatsoever to the victor over on the Democratic Primary... Bloomberg's a pompous rich bully.

This is the best case against a third term for Mayor Mike.

And City Council Speaker  Christine Quinn who finagled the term limit maneuver, (which benefits her too, BTW), has got to go, too.

No doubt if Quinn is defeated she will find a nice job nestled somewhere in the bosom of the Bloomberg Communication empire... Like former Deputy Mayor Daniel L. Doctoroff. (Chancellor Joel Klein will someday be there too...)

Throw the bums out...!

Here's who I'm clear about supporting:

William C. Thompson, Jr. for Mayor.

Yetta Kurland for City Council.

David Yassky for Comptroller

Cyrus R. Vance for Manhattan District Attorney

Am still undecided for Public Advocate.

Stay tuned...

Life is a Wonder Wheel

Whack job Spambots have found my blog and are trying to leave vast amounts of comments with Asian characters... And while Comment Moderation seems to be doing the trick to keep them off my site, I'm gonna put up the Word Verification feature at least through the holiday weekend... They DO seem to step it up on the weekends...

Tis a gorgeous Friday in Hell's Kitchen. I'm back from an hour of sun at Pier 96.

City seems quiet... Perfectly fine with me.

Thinking about Wondee Siam's Mieng Ka Na for lunch... Why not?

Taking Danny for a birthday dinner later if he can get out of work in time.

Still many chores on my To-Do List despite all the zillions already accomplished over this delightfully long summer break...

But still (adapted from the words of the immortal Gilda Radnor): It's always sumpin'!

Wednesday's Word: Mascary

mascary

when a person wears a scary amount of mascara

Although Tammy Faye Bakker thought her mascara application was flawless, her eyelashes really looked like scary spiderlegs

Adapted from: Urban Dictionary

Start Your September with the Merm