A kiss before dying

On the Bowery.

The Bowery, 5:29 p.m., Oct. 8

Here kitty kitty

Killer Pussy with "Pocket Pool." 1982.

Powerful new Twitter account rolls into the East Village

Oh, you remember our orange Lamborghini post from earlier? Yes, it now has a Twitter account.



Per @EVLambo:

"Orange Lamborghini" is the new "90's Range Rover" in the EV. For serious.

Fuckin' A, baby! Let's do it!!!

[Updated] False alarm at the Mystery Lot

An EV Grieve reader and fellow Mystery Lot aficionado sent along this e-mail earlier today:

There's something going on there this morning. Looks like some wooden platforms have created a path from the base of the large building under construction on the corner of 14th and 3rd. And some dirty metal things (scaffolding parts?) are being placed on them. I hope this leads to some sort of haunted house installation. Likely not.

Then! Before EV Grieve could scramble onto the scene for a photo... the reader wrote back:

Well...it's gone now.

(The platform, not the Mystery Lot)

[Cursing at sky]

UPDATED!

A Curbed reader got a photo of the mystery structure....


[Via Curbed]

EV Grieve Etc.: Mourning Edition

On that quaint old town of NYC (The Grumbler)

Amy is selling brownies at Ray's (Slum Goddess)

About Eric Drooker’s illustrated edition of Ginsberg’s Howl (Patell and Waterman’s History of New York)

St. Mark's Place circa 1967 (Flaming Pablum)

Random musical interlude...



Another Bowery storefront on the market (Bowery Boogie)

The hidden graffiti of Chinatown (NYC the Blog)

Rust never sleeps (The Gog Log)

Pee-Wee Herman visits Katz's (Cat Sitter in the City)

Have fun trying to figure out the L train this weekend (Runnin' Scared)

Why a woman dressed as a knish will be walking on Second Avenue Sunday (The Lo-Down)

More on yesterday's downed tree/light pole on St. Mark's Place: East Village Feed ... NearSay ... The Local EV ... Neighborhoodr ...

A Blondie promo poster (Stupefaction)

Good Beer NYC coming soon on East Ninth Street (Fork in the Road)

And for Northern Spy fans, via the EV Grieve inbox:

Northern Spy Food Co. has recently introduced delivery service and to celebrate the new addition, they’re offering a sweet deal for the rest of the month:

With every delivery order, Northern Spy will include complimentary sweets for dessert. For now, each order will come with a free bag featuring a variety of Liddabit Sweets’ — seasonal and fresh, responsibly made sweets.

Finally ... and talking about nice cars...

Headline of the day: 'Show-Tune-Singing NYU Pukers Make Neighbor's Life a Living Hell'

That comes courtesy of Curbed, who has a piece on an Eighth Street apartment owner near NYU. Oh, the regret of picking this spot!

Not all New Yorkers have to deal with drunken drama students screaming show tunes at the top of their lungs at 4 a.m. ... And then there’s the vomit. It’s more of a weekend phenomenon, especially around the bars in Washington Square.

Show tunes? I'll sing show tunes!

And now, visual confirmation of the orange Lamborghini

Yesterday, Foursquare's Dennis Crowley tweeted: There's nothing more out of place than an orange Lamborghini in the East Village.

And now, thanks to EV Grieve reader Joe, we have visual confirmation of said car:



On Seventh Street between First Avenue and Second Avenue...

New tenant making move on southwest corner of 14th and Third

After sitting dormant for nearly 22 months, the prime patch of real estate on the southwest corner of 14th Street and Third Avenue apparently has an incoming tenant... workers just put up the freshly painted green plywood...





Robin Raj moved a few hundred feet away on Third Avenue in early 2009... At the time, Curbed heard from the RR guys that the new landlord wanted $60,000 a month in rent. (Heh, oh boy...)

I quickly looked at the DOB records... nothing too alarming afoot... nothing like, a mate for 123 Third Ave. ... Per the DOB:

Application is filed to combine two buildings. General construction, plumbing structural work, install new storefront, install temporary wood fence to be removed upon completion of work...

Even with three Duane Reades and one Walgreens within a block or two of here ... I have to go with a Duane Reade...

Previously on EV Grieve:
All your Robin Raj news here.

Papa John's shows off its big, green awning; plus, reader reaction!

Just following up on my Worldwide Exclusive™ from last week... the incoming Papa John's on First Avenue between 12th Street and 13th Street has unveiled its awning.... Meanwhile, readers had some pointed comments about the incoming PJ. Among them!

Anonymous said...
Not sure what's worse that it's opening or that people will actually order from them.

Anonymous said...
It's the natural progression, kids, beer, pizza.....

So let me see... do I want Motorino ?, Artichoke ?, Papa Johns ????

Anonymous said...
ugh. Aren't there laws against this sort of thing?

Bowery Boogie said...
don't forget the sole domino's down on allen street. still boggles me who orders from there. haven't seen the noid on delivery in some time.

Jen said...
I happen to like the taste of Papa John's- the price is better than getting Motorino or Artichoke. Just because something is a chain doesn't automatically mean it's bad.

EV Heave said...
This will keep me busy.

Anonymous said...
You mean it will keep you EV Heave-y.

And please, don't blame people under 30 for this. I can't think of one person I know who would order this crap.

But alas, under 30, living in the east village and not a hipster . . . by all accounts of commenters on this blog, I must be a . . . yuppie?

Amanda said...
Papa John's and Domino's have their uses, but I don't think of them as pizza. Sometimes you're in the mood for pizza, sometimes you're in the mood for some crappy fake cheese. Just because people live in NYC, where there is better food available, doesn't mean they don't still like to eat lesser food on occasion.

Anonymous said...
@Jen: "I happen to like the taste of Papa John's"

Papa John's ships in dough and sauce from factories that mass produce thousands of pounds of generic, low quality, garbage.

The reason it's cheaper is because of these economies of scale. I don't mind those economies being applied to my computers or technologies, but not my f'ing pizza.

Jen, grow up, get some taste, and put up that extra $1 or $2 for some real food made by a person in a kitchen, not a machine in a factory.

Rmom said...
Um, when I feel urge for pizza on 1st ave I go to Vinny Vincentz. I've never had Dominos or Papa John's, so I don't know if they are any cheaper than Vinny's, but I guess I can eat them when I move somewhere else. So for now, I'm totally happy with my neighborhood pizza (and I don't have to wait in line like Artichoke's!)

Anonymous said...
@Anonymous: "Jen, grow up, get some taste, and put up that extra $1 or $2 for some real food made by a person in a kitchen, not a machine in a factory". Wow, some rude f*cking people here, and Anon is so courageous by speaking his mind (of course not with his own voice).

Yeah, yeah, yeah - you're all too cool for us. Thanks for reaffirming the douchyness of the downtown hipsters. Like we all want to spend $20 on a lunch.

Jen,you know about Motorino and can make your own choices. Just eat what you want and dump this place, and let blogs like this one die.

Welcome to the machine(s)

In preparation for Sunday's Select Bus service debut on the M15, an MTA crew worked on Second Avenue near 14th Street on the artificially intelligent machines that will seek to exterminate what is left of the human race.




And, well, maybe this is just me... but why are the machines this far away from the actual bus stop...? I'm sure there's a good reason for this that I'm just not processing at the moment... anyone?

'30 Years Hanging on the Edge'

Brooklyn-based artist Peter J. Ketchum has a new exhibit now showing at the New City Gallery 155 First Ave. (at 10th Street) through Oct. 24 titled "30 Years Hanging on the Edge."

He told me a little more about his work.

"Over the years, critics have labeled my work Retropop, Grandpop and Folkpop Art. Whatever POP, it is derived from actual images and words found in printed ephemera — snapshots, ads, postcards, comics, coloring books etc. from 1867 - 1950s. Every word in the mixed-media work appeared in print somewhere. I invented none of it. That is the horror of it."

Ketchum, who says his "family has been on this Island since the 1630s when there was a wall separating the Lower East Side from the dangers of bears," collected the ephemera from around the world, mostly flea markets and tag sales.

"I am interested in subjects ranging from the origin and perpetuation of stereotypes to the death of civility. My work looks at the impermanence of individuals and the long afterlife of their prejudices and foibles."

Here's a look at some of his work.





The gallery is open daily from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m.

New ad campaign preys on our worst fears: terrorism, body odor

On the 4 train.

Downed light pole on St. Mark's Place

Thanks to EV Grieve reader Steven Matthews for sending along these shots from earlier this evening... here on St. Mark's Place between Second Avenue and Third Avenue... it appears a light pole fell ... no word on any injuries...

Noted

From the EV Grieve inbox...

Hi Friend-

I am in touch with an Australian Ugg Company that has contacted me about doing some blogger seeding. I would love to add your site to the list of bloggers that will be receiving free Uggs. Please respond with your blog URL, I will forward your info along to the company and upon being selected they will send you a link to drop ship the boots. It's that simple, only because we love you so much!

Remembering Michael Shenker

As you may know, Michael Shenker, a longtime squatter and community activist, passed away last Saturday morning. Colin Moynihan wrote a feature on Shenker's life and death earlier this week for the Times:

Mr. Shenker was perhaps best known in the neighborhood as a tactician who thought up ways to protect appropriated buildings and community gardens that were subject to eviction or bulldozing. Some of the projects he started ended up with narratives as dramatic any of the operas he loved.

Meanwhile, there are several gatherings scheduled to celebrate his life.

Friday
Musical program in honor of Michael
7 p.m.; music starts around 8 p.m.
At 5C Cafe, Fifth Street at Avenue C
Burt Ekoff, Michael's piano teacher, and friends will be performing.

Sunday, October 10
Time's Up Garden Party
3:30 p.m. at El Jardin Del Paraiso
Located on Fourth-Fifth Streets between Avenues C and D
Michael was a co-founder of the More Gardens Coalition and a force behind saving NYC gardens. Reverend Billy and the choir will be at this event.

Saturday, October 16
March Around the Neighborhood
Meet in the middle of Tompkins Square Park at 5 p.m.
Friends will march around the neighborhood and arrive at his funeral.

Funeral for Michael at Mary House (Catholic Worker)
7 p.m. at 55 E. Third St.

Sunday, October 24
Celebration of Michael with Eric Drooker and Eden and John's East River Strong Band.
6-10 p.m. Location TBA



Previously on EV Grieve:
Michael Shenker, 1955-2010

Noise wars: Bowery resident sues the eatery down below

A resident at 344 Bowery is suing her downstairs neighbor, the Spanish tapas joint Sala. The New York Law Journal wrote about the case yesterday:

New York City has a reputation as the city that never sleeps. As a recent decision by Supreme Court, New York County Justice Joan M. Kenney in Kahona Beach LLC v. Santa Ana Restaurant Corp. demonstrates, balancing that 24/7 vitality against competing quality of life concerns can sometimes be problematic and require court intervention. In Kahona Beach, the limited liability company owning a condominium apartment in Manhattan, and the individual residing there, sued a restaurant/lounge located directly below the apartment, the principal of the restaurant/lounge and the restaurant/lounge’s landlord. The suit sought damages and permanent injunctive relief based on defendants’ allegedly having created a private nuisance by playing music too loudly.

You need a "premium subscription" to access the article ... However, I'm thankful that the lawyer behind the blog NonConformingUse passed along the link with a quickie explanation:

Feel free to read through the whole article (which is just a jargony rehash of the decision). Basically, this case is cleared to go to trial — there are issues of fact that a jury needs to decide.

Also, as I reported back in August, Sala is for sale.

[Updated: Eater is reporting that Sala was victorious in the lawsuit.]

First resale at Village Green?

At the Village Green on 11th Street, everyone's favorite eco-indulgent condo, a one-bedroom apartment is back on the market — listed at $1.05 million....

Here's the Corcoran listing:

Great south facing one-bed one-bath with an office. This 880 square foot apartment provides room for generous room proportions, office, and a washer/dryer. Floor-to-ceiling windows add to the feeling of spaciousness. There are solid FSC certified 4-inch wide white oak floors throughout. There is also a shallow balcony off the living room for those who enjoy growing their own herbs or just some beautiful flowers in the gorgeous southern light!The master bath features Persian green marble countertops, glass tiled walls, Zuma tub/shower and advanced water conservation Toto toilet and fixtures.

According to StreetEasy, this unit was sold last December for $1,041,280. It was recently relisted for $1,170 million... and, last week, the priced was shaved 10 percent to 1,050 million. See if for yourself during open houses on Sunday and Wednesday. As far as I can tell, only one other unit — the $1.9 million penthouse — remains on the market ... with 34 of the 36 homes taken...

An early look at Duane Reade's 2010 Halloween costume collection

Preview No. 1:

Salt water daffy

The latest from the Pretzel Crisps folks.... And here's a little background on the previous Pretzel Crisps campaigns....