Weekly City Post

I’ve decided I am going to list some of the things in the city that really annoy me:
(Lame, I know, but it’s something right?)

- People with umbrellas that could easily fit 5 people under them. They take up the whole sidewalk, and drip rain on anyone else who isn’t underneath it (basically everyone). Its a waste of materials and space.

- People who sing to their headphones on the subway. I could understand if you were making a facial expression or a lip-synch, even a whisper… but really, out loud?

- The L train. The fucking hipster-magnet. D:<

- The people who don’t know you at all and yet tell you what to do with your stuff, thank you my bag is very happy where it is on my lap. This is a hint that I do not, I repeat DO NOT, want to put my shit on the floor.

- People who push religion on me, when I was obviously on my way to hell when they stopped me. They’re in it. Why try to save the damned?

Ugh, I don’t even know what I am complaining about anymore… I just had another weird Tuesday. I went to Magnolia Bakery, where one can buy the MOST AMAZING cupcakes EVER! and then I met with a client about a mural commission I might do… not really important right now.
The point about the bakery is this, I had 3 beautiful cupcakes, just waiting to be devoured… and of course, I am saving the best for last… a beautiful dark velvety devil’s food cupcake with mocha frosting and a little decorative daisy made of sugar. IT WAS FREAKING MEANT TO BE. I was meant to eat that delicious little cup-sized cake!
So I go to this new meditation class I registered for (to relieve the stress in my life, haha), and we have to make a promise: “the forbidden fruits are: alcohol, recreational drugs, caffeine, refined sugar, and anything with a mother.”

Wait, refined sugar? This includes cupcakes? So the last most favorite cupcake can’t even be eaten until next week?!? what a waste of a fresh cupcake…. So I gave it away… *sigh*

So yes, anyway. Now I’m depressed. I think I’ll go to bed.

Weekly Post (gotta start doing these more often)

Okay. Sorry for not posting a lot… I’ve been really unnecessarily neglecting my duties as a student. Anyway, I think I’ll talk about the fact that I had the most surreal morning in all of my days trudging through Manhattan for no good reason. On this fine Tuesday, I had to wake up extra early to show up to the Society of Illustrators to hang up the 50th Annual Members Awards Something Show (or whatever. You guys should check it out… very cool work this year.) That means getting up at 9:30 (on my day off no less) to get bitched at about uneven frames and bent nails. Oh, and to top it off, the reason I went was to claim my letter of recommendation from a person who never even turned up. Whatever, I’m used to it, and I get free lunch, free figure drawing, and an up-close and personal look at some of the works of the worlds finest illustrators… and all for the four dollar subway ride! Tedious and tiring, but a total win.

So yes, I am sleepy minded in the morning and I manage to take the wrong train.. for about… the whole way there (I’m lucky it was a close stop,) it wasn’t too bad, just took the E instead of the F… but it was so strange to me. It was like, this morning, the E train was a completely different dimension. I left New York City at around 10:00am this morning, and traveled to a distant land of understandable, friendly PA systems, and happy passengers with smiling faces… *sigh*

Well let me explain, I got onto this car, and found a seat. In fact, the usually busy E, was oddly deserted. Then as we went along our merry (but wrong, as I later discovered) way, every time the train let off passengers, the conductor would wish the departees a “nice day.” What the hell?! What is this place I have wandered into?!?! I thought.
That’s when this woman boarded our car. She looked like she used to be a hippy. I don’t know how to describe her, but she observed everybody. and when we made eye contact, she smiled??? It was very… happy inducing?. After she got off the train, I couldn’t stop smiling. partially because my past hour had been so ridiculous, partially because I realized that this woman, even though she may get rejected by many people and denounced as some sort of creepy person for smiling at them, will bring joy to peoples lives (even those who she doesn’t know) just because she is willing to smile (despite rejection.
As I pondered this, I heard the conductor proclaim our arrival at 53rd and Lexington. I thought, good only one stop left… just 63rd left. I took a look at the map, just to make sure my reasoning was flawless. It totally wasn’t. I had been riding the E the entire time I had to ride the F! and this was the last stop before Queens! I ran to the door, only to get slammed by it halfway through… ouch. I managed to escape with most of my body and personal belongings intact…. the only thing that had been left behind was my dignity… But I’m sure it’ll catch up and find me eventually.

It makes me wonder… since I took the wrong train, if I was ever meant to see that little sliver of Not-New York on the E Line, and if people are always happy there, and the conductor is always wishing people well on their way. And maybe there is a hidden side that I just never see, since I am so busy being stressed out and all around hating the parts of New York I deal with on an everyday basis.

Save a Horse, Ride a Cowboy… But Not a “For-Real” Cowboy.

Because he probably has STDs… >_<

So yes, I am reviewing/discussing Midnight Cowboy and its ties to city culture. Errr… we never got to see the end in class since Nobody showed up on Monday to play the movie for us. But I looked up the synopsis online… and I think I sort of understand the movie?
So some history… it was the first movie to be rated X for extremely pornographic images and blatant homosexual undertones. Well, for 1969 it was quite risqué… now you can see this material on any episode of nip/tuck.
the movie itself was captivating enough for me to pay attention to it… but it always frustrates me to watch movies about really naïve people. Or more to put it bluntly, plainly idiotic. This is about a guy who goes to New York City to be a male prostitute, and gets completely robbed of all of his money by the general city public. His inane statements and constant gum chewing annoyed me from the moment the movie started. He is also insanely tactless and pathetic, rarely being helpful or considerate to help offered, and being too willing to be taken advantage of…? Oh god… this movie just… frustrates me. The part when they were playing scribbage?!?! MONY??? I know it is probably symbolic, and I know he is supposed to be a moron… but it was so difficult for me to watch… It was like watching anything that Larry David is involved with. And the gum chewing! Sorry to mention it again, but it still aggravates me! Oh the horror! Open mouthed cud-like mastication signifies an ignorance that only similarly-feathered flocks could ever tolerate.

I think it describes the way NYC is in a way. I am constantly on the watch for being scammed. I am constantly clutching my bag. I am constantly looking behind me (I’m probably also paranoid too.) And it does get hellishly cold in the winter… I suppose that’s a shallow comparison though.

The artsy Warhol-esque party entertained me for the simple reason that is seems like people try to throw parties like that still… and good on them!
…As long as they invite those stupid pseudo-cowboy studs

Well I’m out~
~D

Reading Response :: Beating Beggars.

I must say, I adore Charles Baudelaire, he’s my kind of poet. He says a lot of things I would not think about, but fancy the idea of, once he mentions it. His poem, “Let’s Beat Up the Poor!” is a work of brilliance to me, first of all for its content. It was so unexpected for me how his views of the poor would be, and when he decides to raise a man to his former glory by beating it into him, well, it is a very captivating thought. I must say that I like this poem better than some of his others, his poems about the poor were much less self involved then those about “crowds” or “solitude.”
I very much enjoyed the words he uses to describe the writers of the books he speaks of in the beginning (such as “managers of public happiness” and “old wives”). His speech is so thought provoking, the words he uses bring about images that would not be expected from such a choice. I was very interested in the reference to Socrates and Lelut. Not knowing who Lelut was, I researched it, and came across this site (note, it can only be accessed in the Pratt network). There is a lot of really in-depth information about this poem, and the more philosophical things that Baudelaire was getting at through his description, including his juxtaposition (I hate that word… it sounds so snobby Y^Y) of the comical fight with the possible seriousness of his words. They also emphasize his insanity, saying that his surpasses that of Socrates and his violent attack seems almost unreasonable.
I very much suggest reading the site, as it explains the Physician-Philosopher type of Baudelaire, and his insanity much more effectively than I could ever.

To me, his reasons seem very reasonable. It is very clear that he is putting the man in a situation where he deserves his money. He shows a lot of thought behind what he does, even if it seems impulsive, he displays planning through his examination of his surroundings so as not to draw attention. Despite the fact that he is “born fragile,” he attacks the man who is larger and stronger than he, for a simple experiment. The idea definitely entertains me as I find myself thinking in that same vein quite often.

Let’s go to DUMBO!

Hey there, a couple days ago I visited the most lovely place in all of New York City, wonderful DUMBO.

I usually refuse to rave about the City, but DUMBO is the biggest exception to this rule there could possibly be, let me descibe to you the beauty of this place: You take the A train to High St, exiting right across from the (I believe) Empire-Fulton Park(?), it was dedicated to the preservation of avian wildlife in the area. Walk through the park, right now its winter, so its a little drab and when you get to the end, make a left down the road and go under the small overpass. Soon you will see it, The Manhattan Bridge, through the buildings.

The area itself, keeps its original cobblestone streets, and many of the buildings remain from when they belonged to Fulton Landing, not DUMBO. Especially along the edge of the East river, you can see many of the warehouses, now turned into event galleries and boutique shops.

If you walk down the road leading in, until you hit Water St, turn right. a short walk will lead you to Jaques Torres, the best chocolate
shop in Brooklyn. There you can get their “wicked” hot chocolate, a potent chocolate drink enhances with hot chili peppers. Their Bon-Bon selection is fantastic, with flavors ranging from “champagne kiss” and “got milk?” to “love potion,” “menage a trois,” and “heart of passion.” This is the happiest gift to give anyone, really, everyone should love this place.
Next door is the Water St. Restaurant, their portabello polentas are to die for (I love food, it has to be mentioned)

If you go back to the corner of the street near where you turned, there is a wonderful book shop filled with the latest and greatest art books, and they often feature the work of famous photographers on their walls. Books I would suggest to look at are the Teddy Bear Book, The Magnus, the children’s coloring books (by the same author of Everyone Poops, and the Pop-up Book of Sex. After getting some hot cocoa, wandering around here is a pleasant way to spend time (other ways include the carousel, which has ever been open while i was there…)

If you make your way down to the water’s edge, you can experience Manhattan’s beautiful skyline without having to be in it. This little beach in the park is the location of at least five wedding photos on any given beautiful day, and perhaps two to three on the gloomy ones. Most of the famous shots of Manhattan come from DUMBO because of its impressive view of the city.
Quite often there are installations in the park, including glowing fiber-optic grass, and flashing wall lights on various building and objects.

The water side is what made Fulton Landing such a success way back when,when the ferry would ship people back and forth. When the bridges were built, the town was made desolate, and one can still feel that loneliness today. According to the Village Voice (best of NYC 2007) people named “Best Manhattan Neighborhood In Brooklyn – DUMBO” and while I dislike Manhattan, they continued with:

What DUMBO has that Manhattan doesn’t is a residual sense of the industrial picturesque, a nostalgic desolation (galleries and theaters notwithstanding), a main street called “Main Street,” and its own strip of East River beach. DUMBO also offers that most narcissistic of New York pleasures—a fantastic view of the skyline.”

Perfect description.
Sure it is now a happening art scene (Not quite sure if that is good or bad yet), but still not quite a snobby area yet. There are still ferries running from Fulton Slip, and you can always get there by bus, metro, or simply walking.

Currently reading…

Still… at three in the morning. once I post the assignments, this post will be deleted. so no posts please…

(not like there would be posts to this…)

Ignore “Hello World!” post. My computer lies, I didn’t write that

Yes, wordpress is a complete liar, I never made any such “Hello World!” post.

Either way, here I am, on wordpress, slowly making up a lot of missed homework. I guess I’ll talk about the things I might /plan?/ on posting here? I don’t know how active this sort of community is, but I figure since we all go to art school, I could use this place as a critique kind of resource at times…?
I’d like to, I guess, connect more with everyone from the class, I’m rather bitchy by 5pm so I might be a bit ornery in class and not very approachable… I’d like to post writing experiments? I’d like to try out other forms of writing… And also sites and articles/photos that I find interesting inspiring… And we must stay on topic right? Cool.

…what a lame post… Y^Y