The Newtown Pentacle

Thursday

– photo by Mitch Waxman

One of the many things that your gumbo narrator was desirous of doing, during his recent return to NYC for a four day trip, was walking the newly opened pedestrian only pathway on the Queensboro Bridge. I met up with an old friend at Queens Plaza, whom I used to wander about South east Brooklyn with back in Junior High and High School, and we leaned into it.

Kind of wish that it hadn’t been ninety degrees at ten in the morning, or that the humidity dew point wasn’t in the 70’s, but there you are.

– photo by Mitch Waxman

It was hot, I tell you, on the southern side of Queensboro – HOT.

One needed to take a few rest-break sit downs whenever a shadow appeared, cast by part of the structure. It had been hot all week, since I arrived in NYC, but this one was the ‘whopper’ that would lead to a thunderstorm front blowing into NYC and clearing out all the ozone and bad air. It’s that same front which delayed my flight, so I received no benefit whatsoever.

Due to all of the tumult and weather, I woke up tired on this fourth day.

– photo by Mitch Waxman

My friend lives in Manhattan, and I was going to head back into Queens, since walking over the Queensboro once on a ninety degree and high humidity day in direct sunlight just isn’t enough for me. He went his way, I went mine.

The first person I met up with here in NYC on this trip was My Pal Val, whom I rode the ferries with. She would not have enjoyed this walk one little bit, I thought to myself.

Come to think of it, I wasn’t enjoying it very much either, but that’s from a purely physical POV. I was lost in a sea of reminiscing.

Gridlock Sam and the Bridge Centennial Committee, the 2009 centennial event… the last time I spoke to my now deceased friend Bernie was also while walking over this bridge (on the ‘then’ shared bike and pedestrian lane found on the north side of the bridge.)

This trip dredged up a lot of memories, which I guess makes it a journey?

– photo by Mitch Waxman

I did a lot during my years in Western Queens, beyond the creek and the community board stuff.

The Queens Plaza Mill Stones survive in Dutch Kills Green Park. I rode on Queens Plaza elevators that I advocated for with MTA when I was the Chair of Astoria’s Community Board Transportation Committee. There is no deck over the Sunnyside Yards. I never demanded that my name be attached to anything, instead I always preferred to do things the ‘Queens way,’ in quiet and logical conversation within the offices of Elected Officialdom.

I’m not taking solo credit for any or all of those things, btw, I was never alone in my advocacy.

– photo by Mitch Waxman

A third friend was on the list for the afternoon, and I would soon be heading over to Sunnyside to have a coffee and catch up with her.

As I neared Queens Plaza, thereby, I shifted my attention to the most visually impressive of all of NYC’s subway lines – the Flushing Line, aka lucky number 7. That’s another caper I worked on, with Access Queens, when we produced an event with the NY Transit Museum to celebrate the expansion of the Flushing Line to its current terminus in 1917.

Seriously, everywhere I went, and it wasn’t entirely on purpose either.

– photo by Mitch Waxman

It was a genuine relief to be swallowed up by the shadows of Queens Plaza after walking back and forth in that blistering sun. On the path, tar was actually bubbling up out of the sidewalk.

Back tomorrow.

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