St. Brigid's and Matt Dillon, together again?

Late yesterday afternoon, I took a stroll by St. Brigid's on Avenue B at Eighth Street... Just to check in on her...see what was what with the scaffolding. Nothing going on with the church. Across the street, though, Matt Dillon was standing there, borderline incognito in aviator sunglasses. He was talking on a cell phone.

I wouldn't usually note a sighting like this... but, as you know, Dillon supports the church... Maybe he was there to see St. Brigid's? Couldn't tell you. I didn't linger. I ran home as fast as I could to write this post! (Kidding! I didn't run.)



Dillon attended some Save St. Brigid's rallies in the past. The Villager had a story on it back in June 2007:

"After the rally, Dillon lingered for nearly an hour as he waxed on about St. Brigid’s uniqueness and 'minimalist' beauty, at one point throwing his arm around a Channel 2 news cameraman to show him the best angle to capture the cathedral.

'There’s a kind of spiritual energy that’s attached with this church. Something that’s very soulful,' offered Dillon. 'It’s more than any church that I’ve been around. Every time I come here, I’m more impressed by just how beautiful it is,' explained the actor, who also filmed 'The Saint of Fort Washington' in a squat around the corner from St. Brigid’s.

'There’s nothing ostentatious about this church. But there’s something very elegant,' Dillon continued. 'It was designed by a famous architect. It reflects the poor immigrants who came here. They built it the best they could. It should be preserved to tell that history, just like Ellis Island.'"

[Photo by William Alatriste, New York City Council]

Your chance to nab a piece of junk from Le Souk

As Down by the Hipster noted May 22, Le Souk had its liquor license reinstated ... before that, though, there was talk the longtime bane of lower Avenue B (as Eater aptly described it) was relocating to Bleecker and LaGuardia...

Meanwhile, Le Souk must be doing a little late spring cleaning. Which may explain why someone at Le Souk left a bunch of crap on the sidewalk last night... I call dibs on the empty keg!

Steve Cuozzo digs DBGB, the Bowery

From his review in the Post today... which had more to do with the neighborhood than the restaurant:

Most people still perceive the boulevard in discrete sections: the gentrified blocks north of Houston Street; kitchen supply and electrical fixture-heaven below Houston; and Chinatown, south of Delancey.

But there's a cheerful, disheveled continuity here, an exotic ramble not yet homogenized by Duane Reades and bank branches.

Much of the Bowery still looks as it must have 100 years ago: a procession of low-rise, utilitarian structures, keepers of secrets known only to the weathered bricks and mortar. Thanks to the street's unusual width and mostly low-rise scale, it opens up like a time capsule, especially on sunny days.

[Image via Curbed]

Dumpster of the day

On Suffolk near Delancey. Hmmm, residual waste!



The dumpster was there alongside the space for lease signs at 128 Delancey that BoweryBoogie discussed yesterday....

Speaking of the Lower East Side: A random photo from the EV Grieve archives

On Delancey. I think this sums up the current state of affairs quite nicely.

Noted

On the plywood at the former Love Saves the Day spot, Second Avenue and Seventh Street.

Spina opens

As I mentioned Monday, Spina, an Italian place on Avenue B and 11th Street, opened yesterday... This addition bring the empty Avenue B storefronts total down to, uh, 18. I think it's time for a recount. Lots of comings and goings in recent months...

Report: Bogus help wanted ads fill Hoboken with New Yorkers looking for election work

Since I posted this... I found the photo that I took of one of the ads... This ad is on St. Mark's Place and Avenue A... For some reason, people in the neighborhood looking for work were victims of bullshit political escapades in Hoboken...

A flyer touting $200 pay for election work in Hoboken between 3:30 and 8 p.m. caused prospective hired hands from Manhattan to flood the mile-square city of Hoboken Tuesday. A runoff election is being held for mayor today between councilpeople Peter Cammarano and Dawn Zimmer. The flyer, which did not contain any “paid for” language as required by law, was found hanging on the Lower East Side of Manhattan by several men and women who came to Hoboken today looking for work. (The Hudson Reporter)

EV Grieve Etc.: Mourning edition

Slum Goddess has photos from Ray's benefit at C-squat... so does The Biggest Pants....

Hep A scare at Momofuku Ssam Bar and Momofuku Milk Bar (Eater)

Mr. Moss takes in the new High Line (Jeremiah's Vanishing NY)

And check out Ken Mac's Walking the High Line site.

The EV during WWII (Hunter-Gatherer)

How to get yourself on a Times Square billboard (BoingBoing)

A stretch Hummer on Seventh Street for the wedding party (Esquared)

LES getting a quickie wedding chapel (Daily Intelligencer)

Loud, shitty music brings out the notes from the neighbors (Curbed)

Read about Karate Boogaloo's ephemera (Ephemera)

Sonic Youth's 16th studio album is out today... and this is allegedly the band's first network TV appearance:

Weather on the run

"Is Butter Lane turning into a bar?"

Upon hearing the news that Butter Lane Cupcakes is going for a beer and wine license... and that the store is now open to midnight...



...and there has been the recent appearance of a rather harmless looking bench, chair, table and umbrella...



... compelled a Seventh Street resident who lives nearby to ask a simple question via e-mail, "Is Butter Lane turning into a bar?"

When there's no more room in the trash for your trash

Another nice weekend, another sighting of overflowing FroYo cup-topped trash in front of St. Mark's Church in-the-Bowery.



Jeremiah has written about this...



...and I don't have anything to add to the discussion...



...but I was curious what people do when they need to discard their trash and there aren't any available trash cans...