U2/2U Karaoke's sidewalk show

On St. Mark's Place.

Previously on EV Grieve:
2U (or U2) Karaoke is now open on St. Mark's Place; Hanover Cafe coming soon

18th annual Tompkins Square Park holiday tree lighting is today

The lights have been placed on the tree....




And from 4-5 p.m. today...(via Greenwala)

The 18th annual Holiday Tree Lighting at Tompkins Square takes place Sunday, December 13 from 4:00 to 5:00 p.m. in Tompkins Square Park, near the southeast corner of the central lawn.

Over 30 caring people volunteer their efforts to make each year's Tree Lighting our biggest and happiest celebration yet. The musicians of the Mandel & Lydon Trio, sponsored by Third Street Music School Settlement, join carolers from Theater for the New City, donating their time and talent to help lead everyone in songs of the season.

A joyful crowd of neighborhood residents joins us as our audience, growing in size each year. The Tree Lighting has become a bright East Village tradition, touching more and more people every season.

Flashback to last year's tree lighting...

On this date in 1989 in Tompkins Square Park

Came across this photo at Corbis by Les Stone. Titled, "Homeless Man Burning Cardboard for Warmth" dated Dec. 13, 1989.

Lots of fire trucks but, thankfully, no fires

Seemed as if there were a lot of fire trucks responding to calls this weekend, such as here on 10th Street and Avenue B last night.




However, as far as I know, there were never any fires. Here on 10th and B, the firefighters left nearly as quickly as they arrived...

Lessons in frugality from the Times: And just never you mind about the women in bikinis sipping Veuve Clicquot in South Beach

Nice piece in the Times titled "A Lesson in Frugality, From the Tenements." And it starts at the Lower East Side Tenement Museum.

Writer Damon Darlin asks, "Can middle-class American consumers save like immigrants of more than a century ago? Can they change their mind-sets and lifestyles in order to accumulate capital and work down debt?"

Excellent discussion point, though I got sidetracked with the promo ad next to the article for a South Beach feature in the Times.

A walk along Second Avenue

Second Annual Rock and Roll Clothing sale at Manitoba's

Manitoba's @ 99 Avenue B between Seventh Street and Sixth Street.

SANTA! WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!

A little brisk, but a fine morning nonetheless to run some errands. It's rather peaceful out and...



WOOOOOOOOOOOO!

SANTA! SANTA! I followed a group of Santas up First Avenue who kept yelling at people a block ahead of them -- at 9:30 a.m. ... And someone asked my where the North Pole was -- two different times along Third Avenue. Can't wait till they all start drinking...

The Santas are congregating now at Lunasa.

Noted

Five starting points for Santacon this year. Around here, people are meeting at Lunasa on First Avenue at 10 a.m. And per the Santacon Web site:

It is NOT a bar crawl for assholes wearing a Santa hat!

And did some of the participants ever find any little people to tag along...?

Poems that we found on 13th Street

Warm regards

Hey, the Rattlers.

Dueling sandwich shops on Sixth Street?

Bahn Mi Zon, a Vietnamese sandwich shop on Sixth Street near Avenue A, opened last month.



Meanwhile, as we mentioned yesterday, a new Cuban eatery is opening on Avenue A and Sixth Street. And it looks as if the place — Cienfuegos — will use the storefront behind the restaurant as well...



EV Grieve reader Creature has a good idea of what that space will be used for...as he said yesterday in the comments:

If I'm right that back end will be the sandwich shop. I live upstairs and it will be interesting to watch the Cuban sandwich battle the Vietnamese sandwich on either side of my front door.

Well, at least these places don't/won't have mascots...