Tuesday, October 31, 2006

The WWII Memorial




Dedicated to the servicemen who were killed in the war. Each branch of the armed forces has a large monolith with the names and service information of some of the casualities.

Battery Park






If you have ever wondered why Battery Park in lower Manhattan got its name, it is because it contains a battery of guns in a stone fort called Castle Clinton. This is the southernmost of a set of forts that the Dutch built to defend Manhattan. Those windows you see in the bottom picture are gun ports in the wall of the fort.

Friday, October 27, 2006

A fleet of Circle Liners returning to port




Just that :)

Wednesday, October 25, 2006

Trainblogging. On the EL I can get a signal on the Treo. Not much to say right now but the idea is cool.

More downtown stuff


The old U.S. Customs House. Now shared by the Museum of the American Indian and the U.S. Bankruptcy Court.



Bowling Green Park. America's first public park. Founded in 1733. It was here where Peter Minuit bought the island of Manhattan for the equivalent of $24 worth of beads. Talk about a real estate bargain. The fence around the park was built in 1773 and is still in service. As an added piece of trivia, the city had to pass an anit-graffiti statute because the colonists kept defacing the statue of King George that at one time was in the park. The statue was toppled on July 9, 1776 after the public reading of the Declaration of Independence. According to local legend, the statue was melted down and made into bullets for the American revolutionary army. Good stuff!


For all you Moby Dick fans out there :)



To give you an idea of the age of this place.

There is a lot of history down here. It seems that every time a construction project begins, some piece of the past is discovered. From what I heard, a pre-revolutionary wall, probably part of the city's early defenses, was just unearthed during the construction near battery park across the street. I love this sort of stuff. I think that it's important for us to know where we come from. See this site for details. Oh, I was right by the way. It is a new subway tunnel being dug across the street.

Tuesday, October 24, 2006

Manhattan-The End


Governor's Island Ferry


South Street


The Southern tip of Manhattan Island.


In the 41 years I have lived here I have never actually been at this spot. This is where NYC began. Not much to look at these days (kinda muddy actually) but here it is nonetheless.

A beautiful day in NYC today




Some sort of major construction going on outside in front of South Ferry. Not sure what's being built but the site is quite deep. Looks almost like a subway tunnel.


Speaking of the subway, I take the "el" (short for elevated train) to the new job. This one is quite old (the J, M, Z line) and runs through Brooklyn. Only one train though (no switching) and I usually get a seat both ways. Not a bad commute at all and the view, in the morning at least, is pretty nice. Those platforms are going to be cold in the winter though. Brrrr....

Monday, October 16, 2006

Spent Sunday in the city















with my wife and some friends of ours. Went to Alfredo, an Italian restaurant in Rockefeller Center. Possibly the best Italian food I've ever had, and that is saying something in this town. Perfect weather too. There was a street fair on 6th ave where we walked around for a while and did some shopping.

Friday, October 13, 2006

Finally getting some foliage in NYC

Sunday, October 08, 2006

The Three Village Inn











In Smithtown, Long Island. My wife and I were married here 15 years ago. We had lunch here before the game at Stony Brook with our kids. An old inn dating from 1751 I believe. The place is situated on the North Shore overlooking the water. Really a very charming place. Food was excellent and still quite affordable. Another wedding was starting while we were there.

Haven't been to a college football game...









in ages. We were there to see one of the players, Miguel Roxas, who plays for Stony Brook. His family has been friends of ours for many years. Great to see him. The Seawolves won big over U of Albany. Most fun I've had at a football game ever.

Saturday, October 07, 2006

At StonyBrook U for a Seawolves football game today. My friend's son is on the team. Good stuff!

Friday, October 06, 2006

Nothing happening here...



Yup, just a perfectly ordinary afternoon with forty police cars going by with lights and sirens blazing. Completely normal, move along now....

Wednesday, October 04, 2006

Now this is a raffle prize :)




New Lamborghini on display in Grand Central Station. Of course, at $1000 a ticket, I'll pass.

Monday, October 02, 2006

New grass for the backyard



My mother-in-law, the real gardener in the family, turned the soil in the yard and re-seeded it. Should look great.

Yom Kippur. Home from work today. I will be spending
most of the day in synagogue. This is the Jewish day
of Atonement, sort of our equivalent of a
confessional. The observance requires fasting, no
food or water for 24 hours. We are supposed to spend
the day thinking about the sins we have committed in
the past year and asking G-d for forgiveness. G-d can
only forgive us for sins committed against him though.
For those sins we have committed against other
people, we must ask forgiveness directly from the
person we have wronged.


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