Archive for July 2020
almost unassailably
Well, flippity floppity floop, it’s Friday again.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
Recent endeavor found a humble narrator scuttling through the humidity thickened July atmospherics typical of Western Queens and heading towards Newtown Creek for a session of waving the camera around. Pictured above is the 1848 vintage First Calvary Cemetery in Blissville, looking westwards from Laurel Hill Blvd.
What with all of this pandemic business and the new Kosciuszcko Bridge offering a pedestrian and bike path between Greenpoint in Brooklyn and Blissville here in the Long Island City section of Queens, there’s now a lot of people milling around. For years and years, it was just me wandering around this area. It’s taking a lot of “getting used to” seeing others in my happy place.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
The views from the Kosciuszcko Bridge are epic, and I timed my walk to put me Center span just as the burning thermonuclear eye of God itself was descending behind Manhattan and New Jersey. This point of view is 2.1 miles from the East River, for the morbidly curious. The right side of the shot is in Queens, the left is in Brooklyn.
Newtown Creek is a tributary of the East River which extends south/eastwards 3.8 miles from its junction with the larger waterway, eventually terminating in Brooklyn’s Bushwick neighborhood. There are multiple tributaries of Newtown Creek which snake off the main stem of the waterway.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
Luckily, for me, a tug and barge combination was navigating its way eastwards while I was set up and shooting. Once one fo the busiest maritime industrial waterways in these United States, Newtown Creek is still quite busy. While I was out shooting, I saw the Greenpoint Avenue Draw Bridge – roughly a mile to the west – open and close three times.
A recent meeting with the United States Army Corps of Engineers described the ideal depth of these waters as being 23 feet. The last time a proper navigational dredging of the entire Newtown Creek occurred (other than a minor channel maintenance operation performed at the behest of the NYC DEP a few years ago) was in the early 1970’s. Tug and barges, therefore, stick to the center of the channel where the water is deepest when navigating through.
Note: I’m writing this and several of the posts you’re going to see for the next week at the beginning of the week of Monday, July 27th. My plan is to continue doing my solo photo walks around LIC and the Newtown Creek in the dead of night as long as that’s feasible. If you continue to see regular updates here, that means everything is kosher as far as health and well being. If the blog stops updating, it means that things have gone badly for a humble narrator.
“follow” me on Twitter- @newtownpentacle
Buy a book!
“In the Shadows at Newtown Creek,” an 88 page softcover 8.5×11 magazine format photo book by Mitch Waxman, is now on sale at blurb.com for $30.
bygone penmanship
Terrific, it’s Thursday.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
One managed to shvitz his way out last night and there’s a fresh batch of photos I’m cooking up on my hard drive, but couldn’t quite get them finished by this afternoon so a few recent archive shots greet you today. “Recent” as in late spring and early summer of 2020, as a note.
Pictured above is an Amtrak maintenance barn at the Sunnyside Yards, captured via a newly discovered hole in the fences surrounding the place.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
Skillman Avenue in the Long Island City section of Queens is where you’ll notice the remains of the Montauk Cutoff trackage crossing the byway on an overhead viaduct.
For some reason, and despite the fact that the overpass truncates and is abandoned, the Long Island Railroad keeps their signal boards electrified.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
This one is from the Penny Bridge site found along my beloved Newtown Creek. Penny Bridge is at the extreme north end of Meeker Avenue in Greenpoint. My pal Will from Newtown Creek Alliance just installed a historical sign board at Penny Bridge describing the site, so if you pay it a visit, you’ll understand why it’s called Penny Bridge.
Back tomorrow with some fresh steaming photography.
Note: I’m writing this and several of the posts you’re going to see for the next week at the beginning of the week of Monday, July 27th. My plan is to continue doing my solo photo walks around LIC and the Newtown Creek in the dead of night as long as that’s feasible. If you continue to see regular updates here, that means everything is kosher as far as health and well being. If the blog stops updating, it means that things have gone badly for a humble narrator.
“follow” me on Twitter- @newtownpentacle
Buy a book!
“In the Shadows at Newtown Creek,” an 88 page softcover 8.5×11 magazine format photo book by Mitch Waxman, is now on sale at blurb.com for $30.
eccentric monomaniac
Woh, bro, it’s Wednesday, bro.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
Due to the oppressive July heat, one has been keeping close to HQ for the last few days and I wasn’t sure what I was going to be showing you today as late as midnight last night. Luckily, the NYC DEP arrived on my corner to perform some sort of repairs.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
One infers, from the sort of tools the laborers were using and the location of their attentions, that they were shoring up or repairing one of the street drains on Broadway. That’s what the NYC Department of Environmental Protection – DEP – calls the sewer grates. The bosses over there don’t like using plain english anymore. It’s not a sewer plant in Greenpoint, for instance, it’s a Waste Water treatment and Resource Recovery facility. At least that’s what it was a few months ago the last time I checked.
These aren’t photos you’re looking at, instead they’re photonic digitalizations of chronal disambiguations. I can make things up too.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
Tell you this – these cats showed up with a lot of gear, and a supervisor who had his own fancy truck. It was quite a tumult here in the ancient village of Astoria.
It’s really nice of the City people to bring the show right to my front door during these trying times, bro.
Note: I’m writing this and several of the posts you’re going to see for the next week at the beginning of the week of Monday, July 27th. My plan is to continue doing my solo photo walks around LIC and the Newtown Creek in the dead of night as long as that’s feasible. If you continue to see regular updates here, that means everything is kosher as far as health and well being. If the blog stops updating, it means that things have gone badly for a humble narrator.
“follow” me on Twitter- @newtownpentacle
Buy a book!
“In the Shadows at Newtown Creek,” an 88 page softcover 8.5×11 magazine format photo book by Mitch Waxman, is now on sale at blurb.com for $30.
expatriated counterpart
Not being crass here, but it’s Tuesday.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
Just the other day, a series of “No Parking” placards were discovered as having been affixed to every possible surface on my block here in the Astoria section of Queens. The every surface part included the street trees, which is a personal peeve of mine.
On the assigned day, a group of people arrived with heavy equipment. I think they might have been Antifa, since they started towing any cars in violation of the placard announced edict. Ubiquitous are they, those rascals.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
Antifa began cutting into the trees with power tools.
A great tumult was occurring up the block, but I couldn’t see what was happening past the bluish smoke likely emanating from a great bonfire of christian bibles which the leftist mobsters had brought. The smoke could have been coming from hot asphalt, but bible burning is far more likely. From the look of the atmospherics, Antifa had the books immolating. Organized, they are, these rascals.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
Antifa is a word which starts with an “A,” just like Al Qaeda does, so there you go. Additionally, I heard from a friend named “X” who has another friend whose name starts with a “Q” that Antifa is in league with the Reptilian Bilderbergers and cooperates with those shadowy internationalists in a secret plot to redefine all of the world’s amphibians as genderless and to force America into drinking Soy Milk so as to devalue Cow Milk and thereby embarrass the sitting President. Once again, “Big Soy” is at the root of all things. I swear I saw Nancy Pelosi poke her head up out of one of the sewers to check on the progress of her secret army here in Astoria.
Where Antifa got all of this heavy equipment, obviously, boils down to one core fact – corruption, gender neutral salamanders, and Soy Milk go hand in hand.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
Only an Antifa dump truck would bother to install a cover over its bin. What are they trying to hide? I’ll tell you what – they’re stealing our valuable asphalt and then air mailing it overseas to the Communists in China, using the Post Office. The reason they want you to wear a mask is that when everybody is masked, you’re anonymous, and just a number (of the beast). “Anonymous” is another leftie group which the TV tells me I’m supposed to be scared of, which also starts with an “A,” and so does the word “Asphalt.” You’re starting to see the connections now, huh? Suppose China is actually one huge guy, with the physical mass of half of the earth’s population. That’s scary too. When they say “China,” they mean him.
Have you heard about the other Antifa campaigns?
– photo by Mitch Waxman
Antifa stole the ocean and freed the fish. Antifa has established a socialist moon base. Antifa has started partnerships with the Mexican Drug Cartels, the Muslim Extremists, the Social Justice Warriors, the Achievement Awards Recipients, Hillary Clinton, the “Libs,” and even the Demon Rats. Antifa has torn down entire mountains which offend them. Antifa is gay married to the sister of the guy who runs CNN, who is cousins with the salesmen at PayLess who sells Michelle Obama’s publicist shoes.
Antifa came to Astoria and stole my street. Now we have carnage, and rubble.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
Man, I have got to start my right wing blog sometime soon. Cannot tell you how much fun it is to pick a faceless enemy and just make shit up about them on the fly. Sounds crazy? Not crazy enough is the rule if you want to pull in the angry old people. I got to experience some of the Qanon world recently, which is just spectacular in its viewpoint. It presumes a near omnipotent level of capability and competence amongst Government employees. I spend a lot of time around these sort of people, Civil Servants, I mean – here’s what I’ve learned.
These folks couldn’t tie their own shoes, let alone pull off any of the stuff that the more paranoid elements of our society ascribe to them. The photos in today’s post, wherein a supremely well coordinated and practiced group of NYC DOT workers mill the surface of a street in Astoria, is really is the best you can hope for in the Civil Service category.
Also, I’ve met some people who identify as Antifa, and they are kind of giant hippies that have no real understanding of the historical roots they’re pulling on. As the song says, you don’t need a Weatherman to know which way the wind blows.
Note: I’m writing this and several of the posts you’re going to see for the next week at the beginning of the week of Monday, July 27th. My plan is to continue doing my solo photo walks around LIC and the Newtown Creek in the dead of night as long as that’s feasible. If you continue to see regular updates here, that means everything is kosher as far as health and well being. If the blog stops updating, it means that things have gone badly for a humble narrator.
“follow” me on Twitter- @newtownpentacle
Buy a book!
“In the Shadows at Newtown Creek,” an 88 page softcover 8.5×11 magazine format photo book by Mitch Waxman, is now on sale at blurb.com for $30.
under catechism
Once more, the breach is a Monday, so unto it.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
One week ago today did a humble narrator ride the subway for the first time in 140 days. An appointment for an inquisition about my homeostasis required a visit to the island of Manhattan, where a team of medical professionals awaited me with forms and needles. One was measured, weighed, scrutinized closely. At one point, a woman walked into the room and jabbed a barb into my left arm. Vials, she filled, with my blood. Test results were arrived at, and the Doctor intoned that one might just keep on living, for just a little while longer. One of the tests was for Covid, which confirmed my assertion that – so far – I’ve been lucky enough to avoid infection.
The subway ride was uneventful, but for the chin mask guy who alternated between grasping the subway pole and jamming his fingers into the various mucous membrane lined holes on his head.
Seriously, I’ve always wondered about the characters in Zombie movies who a) either pretend that what they’re seeing isn’t happening, b) hide the fact that they’ve been bitten and are infected, c) start fights over unrelated to the crisis issues which end up getting everybody killed. Then, along comes Covid, and…
– photo by Mitch Waxman
One wandered a short few blocks after being the subject of scientific scrutiny, and a decision to splurge a bit was arrived at. Instead of climbing back down into the sweating concrete bunkers of the MTA, with their piston driven clouds of disgust, one instead summoned a ride back to Astoria. Mask on, windows open, one rode back to Queens in the manner of a big fellow. The driver’s name was Mohammed, he hailed from Pakistan originally, and we had a long conversation about the relative virtues of several Halal Food Carts which we were both familiar with. I still recommend the guy in the food truck on Steinway and 34th for that particular fix.
I have not missed Manhattan at all, thought I.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
As is my habit, since I try to take advantage of the fact that I’m actually paying for the ride, the camera was busy as we exited the island of Manhattan and crossed over the spectacular Queensboro Bridge. As you can see, last Monday was one of the hot hazy and humid days which have plagued the Megalopolis for the last week or so. At least here in Queens, nobody grasps my arm and pops holes in it to draw out my blood.
Tomorrow, some shots from the City bringing the show directly to my front door.
Note: I’m writing this and several of the posts you’re going to see for the next week at the beginning of the week of Monday, July 27th. My plan is to continue doing my solo photo walks around LIC and the Newtown Creek in the dead of night as long as that’s feasible. If you continue to see regular updates here, that means everything is kosher as far as health and well being. If the blog stops updating, it means that things have gone badly for a humble narrator.
“follow” me on Twitter- @newtownpentacle
Buy a book!
“In the Shadows at Newtown Creek,” an 88 page softcover 8.5×11 magazine format photo book by Mitch Waxman, is now on sale at blurb.com for $30.
The Newtown Pentacle 