A strange encounter on an East 11th Street elevator

A reader told me about this incident shortly after it happened ... and asked if I had heard about any other such encounters with the man who will be described below. The reader waited until he had video from the building security before sharing this:

On Sunday, October 14 at approximately 8 pm, I was followed from between 11th and 12th Streets on Avenue A and into my building on E. 11th St between Ave A and B and ultimately into my elevator.

He didn't press a button once we entered the elevator, so I asked where he was going, and he said [totally deadpan] "Your apartment."

I asked him what he meant, but, before he could answer, I quickly exited the elevator ... and entered my apartment. I then called the police, who checked the stairwells, floors and roof.

The guy was white, late 20s/early 30's, about 6-3, skinny build, long black hair slightly past his shoulders, beard/goatee, red/black checkered flannel shirt, dark jeans, chain wallet and heavy black shoes (maybe boots). He didn't look too scary or disheveled. Just appeared like a normal, hungover hipster.

The video shows the man stepping out of the elevator on the reader's floor, and then back inside. His intentions unknown. He left the building.

And what did the police say in response to this report?

"They just said, 'Yeah, this neighborhood is getting sketchy again.'"

What you have to do sometimes to get back into your own locked apartment

Go to the deli on the corner, borrow that cherry-picker thing, and retrieve your keys through the open window. Starring artist-musician-all-around-folk-hero Paul Kostabi.

'Stop the noise!'

[Bobby Williams]

As the sign posted on East Ninth Street between Avenue B and Avenue C shows ... there is ample noise coming from ... somewhere.

If the person/people who left the put up the sign would like to expound on this in the comments ... Bar noise? Renovation noise? Rooftop BBQ woo?

Dead pigeon on East Sixth Street AC unit still dead

So, we did that post back in February titled "How long before this pigeon decomposes?"

Flashback!

Well, Suz on Sixth, who took the photo, has an update for us.

I thought that you may be interested to know that the dead pigeon is a) still dead, b) still outside of my window, and c) not at all pleased with the soaring temperatures — its feathers are all a-jumble! Of course, that could also be due to the exploding bacterial colony where its gut used to be and the oddly curious pigeon bretheren that visit, and preen, on occasion. But, I digress.

Mmmmm.

Efforts have been made to get the tenant across the shaftway to do something about the poor dead bird. But the tenant does nothing.

So how long before this pigeon decomposes?

Said tourist back in February: "Before full decomposition you will have three more Subway sandwich shops in your neighborhood."

Close!

How long before this pigeon decomposes?

And here we have a dead pigeon lying on an air conditioner behind a building somewhere on East Sixth Street.

Suz on Sixth, who took the photo, notes the pigeon has been there for months. There have been those across-the-air-shaft conversations with the tenant about disposing the bird. But, it remains.

"On our end, we're just curious how long it'll take to fully decompose; an urban memento mori, if you will," Suz on Sixth said. "It's only yet down to about a third of its original size."

The sum of all fears

Awful news yesterday, of course: An AC unit fell six stories from an apartment window, bouncing off an awning below and striking a 67-year-old man on Second Avenue.

While reading through the retweets about this story on Twitter, a theme quickly emerged: Many people said that getting hit in the head by a falling AC was their worst fear/nightmare. Well, sure — why not?

Life always hangs in the balance, particularly in an urban environment. So there's always something to put the fear in us, often driven by the media ... getting mugged ... worrying about terrorism ... falling cranes... exploding manhole covers... finding bedbugs... seeing your new neighbor move in with a drumkit...

As for falling objects, well, in a bit of gallows humor, I told @Eden_Brower that yesterday's incident took my mind off thinking about cars hurtling out of parking garages and landing on me. For awhile, anyway.

Perhaps this is a good reminder ... maybe you want to walk on the other side of Ninth Street where the parking garage is between Third Avenue and Second Avenue....

You know it's a recession when...

East Village resident Paige Ferrari, 26, was one of the 35 employees who lost their jobs when Radar abruptly folded a few weeks back. In a piece in the Times today, she talks about the layoffs and the future. Among the obnservations:

You picture the layoffs as “Oh, I worked at the plant for 10 years, and then they didn’t want me to make this certain wheel part anymore.” Not people in this sort of cushy industry — maybe it’s a trickle-up thing? It’s starting to affect the yuppies in the East Village. That’s when you know it’s a recession: when your yuppie neighbors are going on unemployment.

Later:

I came home one day and my roommate was trying to call unemployment. That’s when I still had a job, so I was very smug. He was trying to call unemployment to get his unemployment money, but he couldn’t get through the menu because he had just got a new iPhone. So he was trying to find the keypad on the new iPhone. I was like, “I don’t think the unemployment menu is set up for people with iPhones.