Saturday's parting shot

Photo by Derek Berg 

A moment this evening with Twisted Wrist in front of the Bowery Mural Wall...

Remembering when it snowed (part 3)

The high on this Feb. 10, under mostly cloudy skies, will reach 60, according to the Weather Channel and a look out the window. 

Meanwhile, EVG reader Terry Howell shared the above photo, taken in January 2011 from the NE corner of Third Avenue and St. Mark's Place... looking at 51 Astor Place, the old Cooper Union engineering building and the Film Academy Cafe. 

The cafe had a short life, closing in 2011, a year after replacing the somewhat redundant Starbucks in 2010. All this was demolished to make way for this — (the new) 51 Astor Place/the IBM Watson Building/the Death Star/CVS.

A smash & grab at the Grab & Go on Avenue B

Photos and reporting by Stacie Joy 

It was more like Smash & Grab at the newish (and unlicensed) Grab & Go Convenience at 23 Avenue B. 

Last Sunday morning, someone smashed the front door here between Second Street and Third Street...

A store employee told me the thief stole some weed (mostly prerolls) and "not too much stuff" but was "caught already." 

Meanwhile, there's plywood treatment at the space, now with a rolldown gate in place as of Wednesday.

Saturday's opening shots

Day 8 of Sophie's being obscured by these oil-processing trucks on Fifth Street just east of Avenue A... part of the never-ending transformer work at the Con Ed substation along Avenue A between Fifth Street and Sixth Street. 

The sidewalk also remains closed on the north side of the street (just past Sophie's at No. 507). Con Ed security hires helpfully tell pedestrians to walk in the street.

And Sophie's opens at 3 p.m. daily.

Today in enormous cluster of sunspots

Felton Davis of the Second Avenue Star Watchers shared this dispatch today...

After a long month of almost non-stop clouds and rain, the crowds came out for this afternoon's stupendous 120,000-mile wide cluster of sunspots. Lucky for us, it was not pointing directly at the U.S. when the coronal mass ejection (CME) erupted. Stay tuned for an almost-total eclipse of the Sun on April 8, and lets hope for another clear day!

In the 'Mood'

 

The Chicago-based Dehd has a new record due out May 10 on Fat Possum. 

Ahead of that, they released this video-single "Mood Ring." (If you want to skip the setup, the song starts at the 2:25 mark. And this Dehd video is still my fave.)

Today in notes for traffic enforcement

Photo by Stacie Joy 

Spotted on Ninth Street near First Avenue... "Pregnant with morning sickness. :(  I'm sorry I had to leave the car..."

Lions for Lula at 132 St. 1st Ave.

The Lions Bar & Grill is slated to open this month at 132 First Ave. on the SE corner of St. Mark's Place.

The folks at Endless Hospitality Group (The Wayland, Goodnight Sonny, Madeline's Martini, etc.) are behind this straightforward concept with food from Chef/partner Luigi Petrocelli. 

Per the EVG inbox: 

The Lions is a back-to-basics American bar and grill. We serve classic cocktails, frosty mugs of beer, and all-night food centered around a house-ground burger, a fun and thoughtful bar menu, and weekly specials. 

More details to follow. 

The Lions takes over the space from Endless Hospitality Group's Bar Lula, which had a two-plus year run here and closed after service on New Year's Eve.

Tree rescued from concrete on Houston

Photos by Salim

A quick follow-up to a post from a few weeks back, when we noted the new sidewalk bridge along 280 E. Houston St. between Avenue A and Avenue B, the site of an incoming 12-floor mixed-use building. 

In creating this, the workers entombed a tree near Avenue B in concrete. 

However, as these photos (thanks, Salim!) show, the construction crew drilled out the concrete that filled the tree well... allowing it to take in water now...

As for the new development, it will contain 224,809 square feet of space — for residential, commercial and community use. The residential portion will total 211,028 square feet for 157 apartments, per DOB records. The retail section will feature 12,000 square feet, while the community facility is 1,300 square feet.

Thursday's parting shot

EVG reader Ms. Wildflower share this photo from Fourth Street between Avenue B and Avenue C, noting: "Our block is notoriously disgusting. Looks like someone finally had enough!"