Archive for October 2024
Archives #009
Thursday
– photo by Mitch Waxman
Another broken ankle archive post today. Good news is that I’m sleeping through the night, or at least I have been for the last week or so. It’s still difficult finding a comfortable position for the affected leg, but there we are. I’m just glad not to be on painkillers, to be honest. Nasty stuff.
Back in 2012, which was the year that the Mayan Apocalypse took the form of Hurricane Sandy, this post was offered which offered a description of my visit to the historic Onderdonk House, in Ridgewood on the Brooklyn/Queens border.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
Wish I could say that I’ve made some good use of all of this time, but agony keeps getting in the way. The skin of my left foot received a great deal of damage during the surgery, which has been the causal agent of a lot of the pain I’m experiencing. Feels like a burn.
I normally like to experiment with the camera, when at home and under controlled conditions, and I suspect that when this post arrived in your inboxes back in 2016 there was likely a weather related reason that I was doing a series of ‘macro tabletop shots’ of oil and water.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
Annoyingly, I had planned on being in NYC and at Newtown Creek as you’re reading this. I had plane tickets and everything. Disappointed, me. I was actually looking forward to standing on Brooklyn again, whereas right now I’m just looking forward to being able to stand on anything again.
Finally, here’s this archive post in from 2018, which laments that LIC is no longer the deserted post industrial wasteland that it used to be.
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Archives #008
Wednesday
– photo by Mitch Waxman
I’ve mentioned this show to a few friends, but I’ve been loving watching a Turkish TV series – about the Ottoman Sultans – which I happened across on YouTube called “Magnificent Century.” There’s a sequel series called “Magnificent Century: Khosem,” which presents the Sultan Murad as having been something of a medieval John Wick who often went undercover to fight crime. Good stuff, and it’s helped to pass a bunch of my empty time, as the broken ankle heals.
Back in 2009, this post described what I saw in NYC’s Chinatown when I was lucky enough to stumble across a group of Lion Dancers.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
It’s interesting for me to comb through the archives and see all of these early Newtown Pentacle posts again. The way I do things here hasn’t changed all that much since the start, from a technology point of view, but the way I slam posts together has. Experience, I guess. Do something often enough, eventually it’ll get a bit easier.
In 2018, this post was offered, and it’s focused in on DSNY’s toys.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
I’m hoping that this week I can make it down the stairs and out the back door, to get to the car. For too long has the Mobile Oppression Platform sat idle. Also, I need to pick up a prescription at CVS. The plan includes Our Lady of the Pentacle coming along, and doing the actual ‘picking up.’ Long suffering, Our Lady.
From 2020, and a post that was part of the Pandemic series of night time walks.
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“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.
Archives #007
Tuesday
– photo by Mitch Waxman
It’s the little things… like crossing your legs when sitting… that you miss when orthopedically challenged. The cast on my busted ankle is made of those fiberglass bandages which the Doctors like, and it’s both heavy and omnipresent. Even when asleep, you’re aware of it. Existential comfort is dearly wished for, even as the pain levels off.
This 2014 post details the existential dread I always experience while waiting for something interesting to happen, or for a subject to just pass in front of my lens.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
The busted ankle event occurred roughly a month ago, which kicked off an interval of some of the most challenging weeks I’ve ever experienced. Pain, painkillers, the annihilation of personal dignity, and the loss of ability to take care of all the little needs which pop up during the course of your day. I’ll never take being able to use the bathroom freely for granted again, for instance, nor drop a pen on the floor without worrying about causing a dog related crisis.
In 2019, this post discussed the fact that I had grown jaded as far as all the cool stuff I used to see, on the regular, back at Newtown Creek and NY Harbor in general.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
Your humble narrator is crunched up in a sitting position, and aching to get some exercise. My phone’s health app just informed me that I’ve taken 3,495% fewer steps than usual in the last month. Yesterday, my step count was 45. I miss taking photos and moving around big and interesting landscapes. Hell, I miss standing.
Another series of shots from a 2021 Amtrak trip, which were captured in Washington D.C., are contained therein this post from October 15th.
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“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.
Archives #006
Monday
– photo by Mitch Waxman
It’s been an interesting thing, pulling these prior offerings out of deep backup for the archives posts. Workflow and all that has evolved over the years, and seeing the posts where I figured that evolution out has been fascinating. All of the call backs today were published on October 14th in their respective years, which is the main criteria for their choice. Also, for those of you who think that the ‘train thing’ is something I’ve only gotten into since moving to Pittsburgh… LIC and the LIRR wants to have a word with you.
A 2011 post ruminated on how banal the 21st century had become, and asks ‘where’s my jet pack’?
– photo by Mitch Waxman
The ankle situation continues, with lots of random pain and swelling. I really could use a jet pack, just to get to the toilet. I’ve got another three weeks to go before I’m invited back to the surgeon’s office to undergo whatever comes next, but there probably won’t be any sort of future tech on the table for that. Ostensibly, I’m going to be moving from a cast to a ‘boot’ at some point and starting a course of physical therapy, but I’m still in the dark on the schedule. Guess it all depends on what the X-Rays reveal, when I go in.
People actually got offended by this post, which was offered in a strictly tongue in cheek fashion, back in 2013. Can’t take me anywhere, I tell’s ya.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
All of this sitting around has been absolutely devastating for me. My leg muscles feel like wet noodles. One misses getting around and seeing interesting things which beg for a photo. I was meant to be in NYC this week as well, and had planned on spending a day riding on boats, followed by a long walk around Newtown Creek. Bah!
In 2021, this post was offered, which described part of a photowalk on the National Mall in Washington D.C.
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“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.
Archives #005
Friday
– photo by Mitch Waxman
The broken ankle kept me up half the night yesterday, which I guess is good as that’s related to healing. Yeah? Hope so. Things get a little better every day around HQ, as I’m getting my strength back and Our Lady of the Pentacle continues the heroic level of care she’s providing for both me and Moe the Dog.
This 2016 post discussed NYC’S DEP in a positive manner, which is a rare event in the Newtown Pentacle archives. They solved an Astoria problem lickety split.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
A couple of times a day I need to lie down just to stretch a bit. The ankle situation has me in a wheelchair, and I’m spending all day sitting. Hunched over in a chair gets super uncomfortable, with the abdominal organs compressed down under the ribs. Ugh. I really need to take a walk, but that’s not possible.
This 2020 post discusses a walk through industrial Maspeth, which I always called my happy place. I like post apocalyptic landscapes.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
As mentioned the other day, the only blessing in this situation is that I’m not living in NYC anymore. All of this would have been so much more difficult to deal with back home.
This 2023 post is from Pittsburgh, and describes a short walk back to the light rail which I took, after having a beer and photographing trains.
Back next week, I hope.
“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 