Ben Popken at Gothamist did some additional sleuthing on my e-commerce woes with the Gift Assistant . Ben even managed to track down the cell phones of the proprietors of the business, who he said would refund me the $130 if I called. Well it’s been three weeks since I’ve called and no luck. Back…
Category: General
September 11: five years ago, only yesterday
After a very long day I headed out at around midnight with my roommate to check out what was going on at Ground Zero, which is only a couple of blocks from my house. It was a circus of humanity, a riot of emotions and colors and noise that looked like it was going to…
We will never forget.
How to build a tiki bar (1999 Atomic photo-essay)
The killer tiki website Humu Kon Tiki has scanned and re-posted one of the most entertaining and informative articles in the retro-style magazine Atomic, edited by my old friend Leslie Rosenberg. Entitled "Build a Real Tiki Bar" the article ran in the Fall 1999 issue. Balancing helpful advice on how to construct one of these…
Remembering the “Greatest Bar on Earth”
As the fifth anniversary of the September 11 attack approaches, I am feeling nostalgic and sad about the loss of the “Greatest Bar on Earth” on the 107th Floor of Tower 1 of the World Trade Center. It was my most direct connection to the WTC, my regular Saturday night hangout for awhile. The “Greatest…
I < heart > Beirut / Israel
Cindy spotted this bumper sticker interchange on the corner of 23rd St and 2nd Avenue, Manhattan.
Idlewild, SYTYCD and the problem with dance on TV & Film
Thanks to a reporter friend (you rock, Alligator!), I saw an advanced screening of the Outkast vanity project "Idlewild" on Wednesday. (This is not a movie review, but if you are dying to know, the movie was just okay.) As an amateur lindy hopper and hip hop dancer, I was excited about the prospects of…
Gift Assistant provides no gift and no assistance
I don’t know why I haven’t blogged about this earlier. I guess I was waiting for the slow wheels of justice to grind. But the Better Business Bureau has just told me I’m SOL, so I’m resorting to complaining about it here. Don’t shop at the Gift Assistant . Last Christmas, I decided, instead of…
Scam Artists – real and virtual
I was just the potential victim of a classic New York scam. I was walking back to my office from a visit to the Mac Store on 59th Street and 5th Avenue at 3pm. On 53rd Street between 6th and 7th avenues, I brush against another pedestrian walking very slowly to my right. I literally…
Preservation Hall Band brings Bourbon Street to Manhattan
New York is always a great place to hear live jazz, from Julliard student trios in divey bars to full jazz orchestras at Jazz at Lincoln Center. But New Orleans kicks our ass in the jazz department (and blues, and zydeco, etc.). I had the enormous pleasure of seeing the legendary Preservation Hall Jazz Band…