Remembering Bob Arihood

Bob Arihood died last Sept. 30. One year later, his presence is still felt along Avenue A ... where an awning hangs at Ray's in his honor ...

... and a clipping about his death from The East Villager is taped to the front door of Lucy's.

I miss my email exchanges with Bob. His assessments of what was going on in, say, Tompkins Square Park. His theories. I'd occasionally ask for advice about a story. He'd offer wisdom. He sometimes seemed to be looking for some, mentioning that he was getting too old to be doing his site, Neither More Nor Less, and later, Nadie Se Conoce. (Both sites have been preserved, and are an invaluable resource about the East Village.)

Then I'd see him perched near the entrance to Tompkins Square Park at East Seventh Street and Avenue A talking to some regulars. Camera strapped around his neck. He would never be too old.

I miss his photos, his brand of journalism and the narratives that captured another side of the neighborhood. The side that has been on its way out, but still holds on despite the ongoing changes.

Every person who I talked to about Bob in the past few weeks leading up to this anniversary said how much they missed him. His best friend, Mike, said that he thinks about him every single day.

In recent weeks, a law office relocated from Avenue B to the storefront apartment that Bob lived in on East Fourth Street.

I hesitated to post the photo. This is a situation where I'd ask Bob what he thought.

For further reading:
Many people wrote tributes about Bob last year. Here are some of them.

Slum Goddess

Gothamist

Jeremiah's Vanishing New York

The Gog Log

Marty After Dark

Runnin' Scared

NY Through the Lens

East Village Corner

BoweryBoogie

Shawn Chittle

DNAinfo

The Villager

[Dave on 7th]