Echo in Madison Square Park

If you're down in the Flatiron District, be sure to swing by Madison Square Park. After you get your burger at Shake Shack, have a seat and stare at the enormous sculpture they've just erected in the center of the park.

No, the picture is not stretched at all.

She's called Echo, designed by a Spanish artist named Jaume Plensa, from Barcelona. The idea, according to Madison Square Park's art page, was to build an elongated sculpture that represented the skyscrapers surrounding the park, but make the sculpture tranquil and serene to represent the peacefulness of the park.

I thought it was crazy when I first saw it, but I ate my pizza on a bench staring straight at her (apparently, it's the face of a 9 year-old daughter of one of the artist's friends) and it really added to the tranquility of the park. It's like a yoga-osmosis relaxation thing. I left the park feeling more relaxed than usual.

Just try it. You'll see. The sculpture is there through August 14.

Meet Rihanna Friday at Macy's

According to Ultimate-Rihanna.com, Rihanna will be taking pictures with fans* this Friday at 3pm at Macy's Herald Square.

*You are only considered a fan if you buy her perfume for $138.

Where: Macy's Herald Square at 34th Street (8th floor)
When: 3pm, Friday April 29 (although the line will probably be forming around noon)
How much: Nothing to see her from afar, $138 and a ridiculously long line if you want a picture with her.

Yankees Help Red Sox Family

That last story made me nauseous after writing about it, so I had to look up a more heart-warming story. And I found one.

And this is yet another reason why I LOVE THE YANKEES.

You can read the full story on the Wall Street Journal's page, and I highly recommend you do that, because it almost made me cry, but here's a summary:

Kevin Long, the hitting coach for the Yankees, is good friends with Ron Johnson, the 1st base coach for the Red Sox. Johnson was Long's manager in the 90's, and he also helped him get his first coaching job after his playing career ended. Last year, Johnson's daughter lost her leg in an accident, and the family couldn't keep up with the medical expenses, especially after her body rejected the reattached leg and it had to be removed permanently. Long, anxious to help his long-time Red Sox friend, gathered the Yankees together before spring training last year, and told them what had happened.

None of the Yankees knew Johnson. None had met his 11-year-old daughter, Bridgette. All they knew was that the family of a friend needed help, and it didn't matter if they were part of Red Sox Nation. One by one, many of the Yankees reached for their checkbooks and donated undisclosed amounts, but it was enough to bring Johnson's wife to tears when they opened the unexpected package from the Yankees.

Over this past year, the Yankees remembered Bridgette enough to ask Long how she's doing with her new prosthetic leg, and how her recovery is coming along.

So you may hate the Yankees. You may hate the Empire. You may hate the franchise. But the players are stand-up guys with good hearts. Rivalry or not, they're good people who know that baseball is just a game, and family and friends come first.

Props to the Yankees for being the shining examples we expect them to be.

Woman May Die for Saving a Parking Space

Stories like this make me sick to my stomach.

So this 25-year-old girl was saving a vacant spot for her boyfriend, when some guy (Oscar Fuller of Jamaica, Queens, if you want to find him and let him know how you feel about his actions) drives up and he wants the space. When she wouldn't move, he got out of his car and punched her in the face. This punch knocked her out, gave her permanent brain damage, put her in a coma, and may end up killing her. And now the schmuck's lawyer says he should get off with a misdemeanor assault. According to this random website, it's only a misdemeanor if he only intended to frighten her. Punching her in the face sounds like he wanted to injure her, which is aggravated assault. A felony.

And seriously, dude. Really? You got out of your car to punch a woman? In the face? Over a parking spot? There is no possible situation where ANY of that is ok. Ever. I just can't even wrap my head around that happening. This is New York. We're civilized here.

To me, getting out of your car would have been extreme. Yeah, yell at her from the driver's side window if you really want the spot, throw some expletives in there if you're crass and ignorant, but then drive off and find another spot. But you got out of your car? That's crazy. And I don't care what she may have said to you, you NEVER punch a woman.

This guy belongs in jail. Where he can be some other dude's woman. And they can take him to their favorite parking spot.

TSA Missed THREE Box Cutters at JFK?!!

If there's one reason I hate terrorists the most, it's because of the negative impact they've had on air travel (you know, besides the whole "killing of innocent people" thing). Remember the days when you could walk up to the jetway and hug your loved ones good-bye? The kids could sit by the window and wave to the plane as it took off? Not worrying if your toothpaste was more than 3 ounces? And you could keep your shoes on as you walked through the metal detector? Not to mention the fees we now have to pay, per leg of each trip, to support the TSA - the undertrained, latex glove-wearing collection of faux-security guards responsible for enforcing these ever tedious and ridiculous restrictions.

But I never complain (out-loud, at least) about the TSA, because I've flown well over a hundred times, both internationally and domestically, and I've yet to be on a hijacked plane. So all those restrictions must be deterring the would-be terrorists. So TSA became a necessary, albeit frustrating, part of air travel, and we accept their 3-1-1 guidelines (no matter how seemingly ludicrous) because we trust that they'll keep us safe.

But what happens if they fail? It's all over the news today that three TSA officers at JFK here in New York, including one supervisor (who let's hope, has received a little more training), failed to see THREE box cutters (you know, the weapon of choice for the 9/11 terrorists - the reason the TSA even exists today). I can't bring a water bottle on the plane, but this guy can bring three blades? I'm with the PAPD saying they were asleep on the job. Not literally, but completely zoned out.

And this isn't an isolated event. A friend of mine didn't realize a 9" hunting knife was in his bag on one of our trips. He got it through LAX and didn't realize it was in his bag until he was home and unpacking. I may or may not have had a Leatherman in my bag one time (I'm not indicting myself here). That's got a 3" blade on it.

And then there's the Honolulu debacle where 27 TSA agents are under investigation. Or the Buffalo drug trafficking fiasco. And do we really need to mention allegations of sexual assault?

Seriously TSA, get your act together. We know we can't fire you. You're necessary. Just do your job and do it well, or your incompetence will be the first thing terrorists plan on when plotting their next attack.

Columbus Day Parade

Pasta, Maseratis, and Pinocchio... I love Italy - Monday is Columbus Day, in case you weren't sure why you don't have to go to work, and here in New York, Columbus Day is more than just remembering the day old Christopher came to America the Bahamas. No, it's a day for Italian-Americans to celebrate how awesome we are. It starts with a parade, full of Italian dancing, Italian songs, and pretty much every Italian thing you can think of. This year, they've brought over Maseratis from the 1930's (and new ones too). And performances by actors in Pinocchio the Italian Musical (performing here in New York for one week only, next week at the Kaye Playhouse at Hunter College). But after the parade, the Italians take over Grand Central Terminal. For the past few years, Mario Andretti and five of his race-winning cars were there (they may show up again). And then my favorite part: we eat. Antipasto, pasta, chicken parmigiana, sausage and peppers, pastries, and lots of it. And then cap it off with a little Sinatra and Dino. Now THAT is a Columbus Day. Go Italy!

Parade: 5th Ave from 47th up to 72nd St, 11:30am to 3pm.
Grand Central: 42nd St and Park Ave, in the main Vanderbilt Hall.
Food: My Nana's house in the Bronx, but you can't come.

Meet Dylan from Dylan's Candy Bar

Dylan is not only real, but she's a girl - If you eat candy, you know about Dylan's Candy Bar. And if you don't, shame on you. It's 100 times better than FAO Schweetz (inside FAO Schwartz) and I think, maybe even possibly just a tad bit better than IT'SUGAR in Atlantic City. But this isn't an ad for Dylan's (although I fully expect you to go there), it's to tell you that Dylan (who I always assumed was a boy because, well, no real reason, it just made more sense in my head) is actually a girl. And she's awesome. Her name is Dylan Lauren, daughter of Ralph Lauren. And she just wrote a book. About candy and how to use it in decorations and how candy could (and should) be a central part of every home. And if you buy it at Macy's today or at her store tomorrow, she'll sign it for free. Yay!

Book Signings:

Today: Macy's Herald Square, 2-4pm in the Cellar (it's just like it sounds, go down to the basement)
Tomorrow: Dylan's Candy Bar, 1011 3rd Ave at 60th St, 1-3pm.

Then she starts a two month national book tour. She'll be in Hawaii next week if you want to go. She'll return to New York for a few other appearances, so if you can't make it today or tomorrow, hit up one of these:

Saturday, October 30: Neiman Marcus in Westchester, 5000 Northbrook Court, 1-3pm.
Monday, November 15: Lord & Taylor, 424 5th Ave at 38th St, 6-8pm.
Tuesday, November 16: BookSmart Chaplin Book Fair, 100 East End Avenue at 84th St, 6-8pm.
Tuesday, November 30: Lester's, 1534 2nd Ave at 80th St, 4-6pm.
Saturday, December 11: Dylan's Candy Bar, 1011 3rd Ave at 60th St, 1-3pm.

MTA is More Expensive than Buying a Car

This just isn't good news for anybody - Back in March, we heard the MTA had an $800 million budget gap they need to fill in, so in July they slashed service across the City and laid off/eliminated 3500 employees. Somehow, after all that, they STILL have an $800 million gap. How is that possible? What did they use all that money for? TV's in subways? Whatever the reason, they decided to pass the buck to us, approving another fare increase (that's three straight years now) with another increase scheduled for 2013. Mass transit has always been the cheapest way to go (I've been buying 30-day unlimited passes for years). But now that it's up in triple digits (it's $104 now if you hadn't heard), I started doing some math.

My wife and I both work and both buy the month-long pass. $104 x 2 = $208/mo x 12 months = $2496. And since they're charging $1 per new card, and you can't re-use an unlimited card, that's an extra $24/yr. So we're looking at more than $2500 per year for transportation now, for service that is sometimes painfully (and always annoyingly) slower than before.

I just checked Craigslist and we could buy a decent used car for under $1000. And assuming I use my dad's Westchester address to save on insurance (because hey, who doesn't?), after about two years, even with gas and parking, it's less expensive for us to drive ourselves around City than take mass transit. Seriously MTA, how did you manage to make that possible?

Now I'm not going to buy a car because I'm too lazy to search for one and shopping for car insurance doesn't take 15 minutes, no matter what Geico says. But if 2013's fare hike hits the monthly pass, I may have to reconsider. And maybe I won't be the only one.

According to the US Census, more than 54% of NYC's workforce commutes to work (and we all buy the monthly pass), AND we already have the longest average commute of any city in America (39 minutes, and that was before the cuts in July). If it becomes less expensive AND faster for us to just drive to work, don't expect us to have any loyalty to the MTA just because we've used you for years. Seriously MTA, don't mess with the monthly MetroCards any more. Screw with the tourists. Make the fare $5 per ride for all we care. I think your main concern should be the 54% of riders who come back month after month and make up the bulk of your revenue. Don't push us too far or you'll lose us all together.

Naked Cowboy for President

Not even Clinton got Naked - If you've ever been to Times Square in the summer, you've seen the Naked Cowboy. His real name is Robert Burck, and on Wednesday, October 6, he's officially announcing his bid to enter the race for the 2012 election for President of The United States of America. I always wondered what he did when the weather got too cold to walk around in his underwear. Apparently, according to his website, he spends his spare time reading ("no less than 50 books a year") and writing (you can download several of his books for free). I guess after reading Decision Points by George W. Bush, Mr. Cowboy thought to himself, 'Well if he can do it, I can do it.' What party do you think he's affiliated with, anyway? I never pegged him as a Republican and I don't think he can beat out Obama as the Democratic Party's candidate. Maybe there's a Keg Party or a newly formed Bachelorette Party I don't know about.

His announcement is for "Members of the Press Only" and is supposedly closed to the public, but it's in the middle of Times Square on Wednesday at noon. So yeah, it's not really closed to the public.

ps: If you think this will amount to anything more than a publicity stunt, just remember that he also tried to run for NYC mayor but dropped out a few months into the race because there was "too much red tape." That's right, Cowboy, running for President is probably easier. Good luck.

$27.6 Million for Street Signs?

I thought this was a joke - Remember that time you were trying to read a street sign but you couldn't do it in time so you coasted into the middle of the intersection and got into an accident that cost you thousands of dollars in repairs and hospital bills? If only the sign had said "Stop" instead of "STOP." What? That never happened to you? You must have at least a 1st-grade reading level! Wow. You're so smart. I'm jealous of your mad reading skills.

The government is making NYC (and everyone else too) change its uppercase street signs into upper and lowercase. At $110/sign, with a quarter of a million signs in the City, NYC tax payers get to shell out over $27M for the change. I first read this on FOX News, so I assumed it was factually incorrect, but it turned out to be true. Apparently, a recent study has confirmed that people can read Upper and Lower case faster than JUST UPPERCASE. See how you slowed down there at the end of the sentence? Crazy, huh? One tmie I got an eaiml taht siad as lnog as the frsit and lsat lrettes are crorcet, you culod siltl raed ecah wrod fnie. But somehow, it's harder to read BROADWAY than Broadway. Really? Anybody driving in the City that needs extra time to read street signs SHOULDN'T BE DRIVING IN THE CITY!! Take a cab. They can drive with their eyes closed. And I think some of them do.

How did this idea pass anyway? Aren't there better things to spend our money on? Wouldn't changing the font of street signs be somewhere near the bottom of the priorities list? Our national debt is at $13 Trillion, and I don't know what New York City's debt is but I know the MTA would love a check for $27.6M. Maybe that would stave off another fare hike for a while.

NYC School Grades are Slipping

Last year, 84% got A's. This year, 25% got A's - Even the kids in "F" schools know that 25% is lower than 84%. A lot lower. NYC's Department of Education just released this year's progress report which grades each school (how smart their kids are, how is the learning environment, etc) and compares them to other similar schools elsewhere in the City (like is the average 4th-grader in Queens smarter than a 4th-grader in Staten Island? The answer is yes, even though I could have told you that without knowing the results). They claim that the schools are not performing worse than last year, just that the grading criteria used by the Department of Education changed this year and that is why they received lower grades. Apparently, last year they asked each school what grade they felt they deserved, and they all said A. This year, the schools were actually graded. And just to prove to each school how dumb they actually are, they put the progress report results on a completely unintelligible Excel sheet, with the instructions, "If you can't read this, just assume you failed."

ps: If your school failed, don't worry. I failed too. I couldn't make sense of the progress report either. I got my info from the Wall Street Journal. They're smart enough to understand it. :)

March on Washington with Jon Stewart for Free!

All the Cool People are Doing It - If you haven't heard of Jon Stewart or Stephen Colbert, then stop reading this post. But if you're as excited about Stewart's "Rally to Restore Sanity" or Colbert's "March to Keep Fear Alive" as I am, or the other 175,000 people that have already committed to attending are, then read on. Arianna Huffington (as in Huffington Post, who knew Huffington was an actual person?) promised on the Daily Show that she would provide free bus transportation for anybody who wants to go (from NYC to DC). The bus will pick you up at the HuffPost's Soho headquarters (560 Broadway at Prince Street). More details will come, follow the HuffPostBus on Twitter for the latest info or click this link to reserve your spot. The event takes place October 30, from noon to 3pm. I'm assuming Huffington will also bring us back from DC, but they haven't said anything about that yet.

New Green City Fair 2010

Because You're Not as Green as You Want to Be - GrowNYC - Let's face it. Being green is not just a fad. This term is sticking around for the long haul, baby. So if you're not already on board, this is your chance to jump on the bandwagon. GrowNYC is putting on their 2nd annual "New Green City" event on tomorrow at Union Square and they're expecting more than 100,000 people to show up. It's completely free, and besides all the educational things you can learn there (there will be booths set up by government agencies, non-profit organizations, and green entrepreneurs), there are interactive exhibits, do-it-yourself tutorials, art exhibits and even a scavenger hunt. And if that's not enough, two green super-powers will grace us with their presence: The Green Man (he's... interesting) and Super Earth. (Click that link. It will be the best 37 seconds you waste today.) So don't miss this event. Union Square South Plaza, Wed. Sept 29, 10am to 6pm.

M.I.A. Free Concert in Brooklyn

Free Paper Planes for Everyone - M.I.A. just announced that she'll be doing a free show in the Brooklyn Bowl on October 6 at 9pm. Back in July, when her fans went all the way down to Governors Island only to be entertained by crappy sound and half a set due to lightning and a torrential downpour, she promised to make it up to them by putting on another free show. Unfortunately, not everybody can get in. The Brooklyn Bowl can only fit 600 people, so first-come-first-serve. Also, they're supposedly not letting anybody line up until 7pm. Yeah right. They're gonna have 1000 people walking in 3' circles on the sidewalk in front of the building so they're not "standing" in line, just loitering. If you wanna see this show, I suggest you get there by 5pm at the latest. Doors open at 9pm. 61 Wythe Avenue b/t N. 11th & 12th streets, Williamsburg, Brooklyn. 718-963-3369

Katy Perry has Unprotected something

The California Gurl is Available - Katy Perry (you know her, she's too hot for Sesame Street) and her fiancé Russell Brand just bought an apartment on North Moore Street in Tribeca (which is only 3 1/2 blocks long, so it can't be that hard to find a $2.7 million penthouse). The crazy thing is that the building (here's another hint) doesn't have a doorman so stalkers and paparazzi can just walk right in. At first I thought that was crazy, but then I remembered what Brand did to the last paparazzi dude that got too close. So maybe Katy just wants to see her fiancé defend her at home by beating up some more people. I'm pretty sure it's legal to kick the crap out of somebody if they're trespassing in your building. So if you're planning on stalking Katy, proceed at your own risk.

And yes I did follow the Muslim Mosque post with a Katy Perry story. I'm that versatile. Booyah.

**UPDATE**
Some UK website just released pictures of the apartment. It's ridiculous. I didn't even know they made apartments like that.

Oh, Come On Muslims! Just Give it Up!

Ground Zero Mosque - Quinnipiac just released a poll that surveyed not just NYC residents, but voters throughout New York state, and everyone agrees on the same things (Republicans, Democrats, and even the Tea Party):

1. We know you have the right to build it there. (Well, at least 80% of us know it. The other 20% didn't understand the question.) Nobody's arguing with you. We've all read the Bill of Rights.

2. Only 21% of people think you actually should build it there. Most, 67%, think you should voluntarily move the plans somewhere else. Don't you already own property in Tribeca? So you outgrew the space and you need a bigger building. Why not stay in Tribeca? Renovate your building. Why not blow it up and build a bigger one? I'm sure you can find construction workers in New York willing to destroy your mosque for you. Probably for free. Which is great because they definitely won't help build the Park51 center.

Even the Muslim former Miss USA, Rima Fakih, thinks it's a bad idea to build it there. And she's pretty. So you should listen to her.

So let's recap.

You have the right to build it, but you don't have construction workers. Try building something in Lower Manhattan without the support of the workers unions. Good luck.

You have a 21% approval rating. Did you know that no U.S. President has ever had that low of an approval rating? Ever. Not Bush. Not the other Bush. Not even Truman (the lowest at 23%). You know what Nixon did when his approval rating dropped to 24%? He resigned.

This is not an attack on Islam. It never has been. If all of the hijackers on 9/11 were Mormon, do you think we'd let a Mormon temple near ground zero? Or if they were all gay or black or women or any other random group that had 1 thing in common, do you think we'd allow a community center for that 1 thing anywhere near ground zero? It sucks that all the hijackers were Muslim. It really does. I'm sorry there are some bad apples in your religion. Every group has them and it's sad that so many of your members, great people and wonderful New Yorkers, have to deal with the ignorant slander, hatred, and stupidity of so many people. But this is not about that. New Yorkers love muslims. I wish there were more of you here. Because I think that would get us more Rafiqi's. And that's a better New York for everyone.

Just give up the mosque at ground zero. Do you think your congregation cares where they meet? Is the Park51 location crucial? Will you lose membership if you moved it up by Canal or over to South Street? Or just stay in Tribeca. If De Niro is cool with you there, I'm cool with you there.

Free FitFlop Stuff

Have you Microwobbled yet? - FitFlop Foot Patrol - You've seen the ads on the subways. I'm sure those models got those perfectly toned long legs from wearing fitflops for an hour-long shoot. But who knows? Maybe. If you want to see if they'll work fitness magic on you, now's your chance. Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, the FitFlop Foot Patrol is hitting up 3 different locations from 11am to 6pm and letting you try out their stuff, spin a wheel for prizes, and win free shwag. Their website makes it sound pretty enticing. I'm headed over to the Apple store now after I finish this post to see what it's all about. Enjoy!

Friday - Apple Store at 5th and 59th
Saturday - Corner of Prince and Mercer in Soho
Sunday - Union Square (at 14th Street, where all the events are)

Undie Party

Look good naked? - Desigual down in Soho is a funky little shop with a unique approach to marketing: Get people to show up almost naked and you'll make a lot of noise for your store. Mission Accomplished. The first 100 people to show up tomorrow morning in their underwear get to pick out a free (2-piece) outfit. Everyone else (if you don't get in line at 7am) gets 50% off. The store opens at 9am. If you're into graphic tees, patchwork denim, and "I can wear this because I'm cooler than you" clothes, this is the place for you. But if you do this, just know you'll not only get a free outfit, you'll probably be on the next viral video on YouTube. 594 Broadway at Houston.

TV on the Subway

Mindless Entertainment for your Mindless Commute - Somebody took a candid picture of me one day while riding the subway. I looked like a zombie. I'm a pretty happy person by default, but apparently I shut down into hibernation mode on the train. Which makes sense. I just zone out for 30 minutes until I switch to the local. It's probably the same look that people have when they zone out in front of the tv for 4 hours a day. So it makes sense that they would put tv's on the subway. And I think it's great. I don't even have tv in my house (I watch everything on Hulu), so seeing baseball highlights would be great. And why are other articles I read so upset? Do they hate baseball? Only terrorists hate baseball. The tv's don't even affect commuters. They're on the Shuttle. What actual New Yorker EVER rides the shuttle? If you really need to get to Times Square (or if Gawker really wants to avoid the tv's), take the 7, it's so much faster.

And seriously, if putting tv's on subways keeps the fare at $89, I'm in. Even when it goes systemwide.

Madonna at Macy's

The Material Girl Lost Her Magic - Last week, Macy's launched their new "Find Your Magic" campaign with fireworks, musical performances, and Jessica Simpson. Afterward, she met people (if you bought $50 worth of her stuff). Apparently, it did well for her and Madonna was jealous. So Madonna and her daughter Lola AND Taylor Momsen (from Gossip Girl) are showing up this evening to promote their stuff, but Madonna is one-upping Jessica. To meet Madge, you'll have to spend $75 on the Material Girl collection. The shindig starts at 6:30, but based on the line for Jessica Simpson, you'll have to start shopping around 4 to see Madonna (only the first 350 get the VIP passes). Macy's at Herald Square, 4th Floor.