Archive for the ‘Brooklyn’ Category
Archives #038
Wednesday
– photo by Mitch Waxman
Here are the keys to the mausoleum, and all the liquor is inside.
That’s what my pal at Atlas Obscura said before disappearing for an hour to gather the crowd of paying guests at an event, leaving me all alone at the Whitney Mausoleum in Brooklyn’s Greenwood Cemetery. I did the only logical thing, which was to call Kevin Walsh from Forgotten-NY and tell him where I was, trying to make him jealous. You don’t get to make that guy jealous often, savor it when you can.
On November 27th in 2013, ‘fastened ajar’ arrived in subscriber’s inboxes, describing a nocturnal visit to Greenwood Cemetery in Brooklyn.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
The train thing isn’t really a new subject for me, it’s just that I used to be extremely limited in terms of what was on offer. Long Island Railroad often popped into focus here at Newtown Pentacle, as did several of their freight contractors.
In 2015, it was the LIRR which caught my attention in ‘continuous system.’
– photo by Mitch Waxman
The 7 Line is the most photogenic of NYC’s subways, which is a hill I’ll die on. Yes, Smith/9th street is quite comely, but for pure urban goodness, the 7 is the best.
These archive posts are reaching into Newtown Pentacle’s backups, and are pulling posts that went public on this date, in their respective years, going back to 2009. This practice will continue until I’m back on both feet full time, and new photos and stories can be gathered. For anyone who hasn’t heard the news, I broke my left ankle at the end of September.
In 2017, a ride on the 7 line was discussed in ‘cryptic formulae.’
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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 #018
Wednesday
– photo by Mitch Waxman
One of the hills that I stand on is that the NYC Subway system makes for an excellent photography workshop. Incredibly difficult conditions below – quite dark and very bright at the same time, with a large and reflective surfaced subject matter that’s moving at a pretty good speed through the frame… kind of difficult. I always had my camera out in NYC, instead of it riding around in a bag.
This 2014 post described the many precautions against ghostly and metaphysical invaders which HQ was being prepared with that year, in advance of Halloween’s ghostly assaults.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
That’s ‘Saw Lady’ Natalia Paruz in the shot above, performing in a tomb at a cemetery in Brooklyn, in the shot above. I ‘dragged the shutter’ to get that ghostly quality while Natalia suffered the ecstasies of her melody.
In 2015, October 30th saw this post published, describing a nighttime visit to Greenwood Cemetery in Brooklyn with Atlas Obscura.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
There is nothing as surreal as being on a subway all by yourself. It ain’t right to occupy this sort of liminal space all alone.
This post from 2017 is a bit of an odd duck, and I seem to recall wanting to write a post in ‘full Lovecraft’ – for old times’ sake – about the experience.
“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.
Archives #010
Friday
– photo by Mitch Waxman
Catching up with what’s going on here at Newtown Pentacle: about a month ago, your humble narrator suffered a severe ankle injury, called a ‘Trimalleolor Fracture with dislocation.’ Surgery was required to put me back together, which has kicked off an interval of painful recovery during which I’m quite disabled. As the healing process plays out, photowalk activities are obviously not happening, so archive posts are being offered here instead. The conceit is that all of these posts were published on this calendrical date, but that’s really all they have in common other than myself as author.
On October 18th in 2011, a ‘placeholder’ post was published which coincidentally carried the best shot of FDNY’s ‘Three Forty Three’ Fireboat that I ever captured (above).
– photo by Mitch Waxman
It’s been an interesting thing, being useless. Normally, I like to contribute as much effort as possible into life’s list of mundane tasks. Long suffering, Our Lady of the Pentacle has shouldered the entire household’s ‘to-do’ list unto herself and has been caring for my needs as well as those of our clinically insane dog Moe. To his credit, Moe adapted pretty quickly to ‘Daddy’s in a wheel chair.’
In 2016, a description of a nocturnal visit to Brooklyn’s Greenwood Cemetery was offered in this October 18th posting.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
I’ve got about two to three weeks worth of sitting around ahead of me, an interval that is bookmarked by my next appointment with the surgeon. My status will theoretically change after that meeting, and hopefully the healing process will have advanced to the point where I can use my left leg again. I miss walking around, and especially pacing back and forth while cooking up my plans.
I have no recollection of what it was that set me off while writing this 2019 post, but at this point in time I was already on the Community Board back in Astoria so… it was likely bike lane related. Those people…
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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.
things whispered
Friday
– photo by Mitch Waxman
So… this post is the one which I have been dreading, since it means that it’s all really done now. The last Newtown Creek Alliance meeting I would be attending at 520 Kingsland Avenue, situated amongst the concrete devastations of Brooklyn’s Greenpoint section, is when I shot these photos. This is an area one such as myself refers to as “DUGABO.”
There’s the Sewer Plant in Greenpoint, pictured above.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
This was the evening of Tuesday the 22nd of November, the same day as the last NYC Ferry ride and photo session on the East River which has been discussed in prior posts this week. My Pal Val had dropped me off in Astoria after the boat, whereupon I then jumped into my own automobile, and zipped off to Greenpoint.
I’m really enjoying this whole mobility thing.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
NCA had a board meeting, and we talked about several items and points of NCA business and policy, and at the end I submitted my resignation.
And that’s how the whole Newtown Creek thing ends. For now.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
After the meeting ended, I dropped one friend off at the G train, and then took two others back with me to Queens and dropped them off. Upon returning to Astoria, I found a parking spot directly across the street from my house – which alternate side parking rules wouldn’t affect for two whole days – and the third day was Thanksgiving! I thereby exclaimed “ZaZa!”
Everything was coming up Mitchhouse.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
Back at HQ, we packed and packed. We edited down our possessions and then discarded more. We were within a few days of our escape plan finally playing out.
But there was still so much to do…
– photo by Mitch Waxman
We made it, in the end, but this was a mountain that was moved.
Things wouldn’t be approaching “settled down” for a couple of weeks, though, and a humble narrator in particular still had a lot of “have-to’s” and “necessary’s” to handle. I’d be back and forth to Pittsburgh twice, for a start…
More next week.
“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.
alarmed envy
Tuesday
– photo by Mitch Waxman
It’s important to acknowledge, when viewing a place or person for the final time, the gravity of the moment. I don’t plan on coming back to NYC anytime soon, and by soon I possibly mean “ever.” People have asked – is it the politics? Are you leaving because of rising crime, or the unaffordable cost of living, or what? It’s all of those things, and none of those things. It’s about “Act 3” and wanting something better for Our Lady of the Pentacle and myself in our declining years.
I would mention that this is the second version of this post you’re reading. Version 1 strayed into exactly the sort of soliloquy about NYC that I’ve sworn I wouldn’t write or publish. Suffice to say that New York is a City for the young and wealthy to enjoy and that I’m neither of those things.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
Speaking of not being young, all of the exertions of the move to Pittsburgh have taken a toll. Shortly after arriving in Pennsylvania after my twice back and forth 1,600 miles of driving, one contracted a wicked cold with a productive cough (not Covid), and one of the many small wounds on my hands (from carrying boxes, packing boxes, unpacking boxes etc.) has developed a sweet infection. An actual Google search I conducted this morning was “What is Pus”? This led to an interesting internet rabbit hole which included medieval medical thought and theory.
Turns out the stuff is composed of white blood cells and other immune system bits. According to the medical consensus from the days before the germ theory of disease became generally accepted – if it’s white pus, you’re probably going to be ok. Yellow, or green, or god forbid black pus, you likely want to get your self bled by a doctor and do it quick. That’s what the Google tells me, anyway. Luckily, I already unpacked the box that had the Duane Reade triple antibiotic topical goo in it.
Overall, I feel like I got into a bar fight at the moment, and have lost badly to several large and sadistic men. That’s officially the end of me whining about how tired and depleted I feel right now. It’ll be ok in a couple of days. I need a whole lot of regular sleep coupled with proper meals.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
On the way to Pittsburgh, one drove the Mobile Oppression Platform (my pet name for the car) through some extremely rural areas wherein fealty to a former President – you know, the orange one who tried to overthrow the Government – runs strong. I saw a hand painted sign on a decaying barn along route 28 south that read “Biden bad, he spend you earn, no socialism.” I’m not sure what these people think “socialism” means, nor where they learned basic grammar. Personally, I roll with what the dictionary says words mean, rather than what some bloke with a busted down barn which he’s doing voluntary advertising for a NYC landlord on, alongside a highway in rural Pennsylvania, thinks.
I actually blame the school system’s cowardice, in terms of discussing modern day political issues, for this era we live in. When I was in public school in the 70’s and 80’s, history officially ended at World War 2 since they didn’t want to tread into all of the “controversial Civil Rights or Cold War stuff.” You get the same thing on the other side of the political fence, with a misunderstanding or misrepresentation of the word “socialism” means in particular, but also with popular usage of “progressive” or “liberal.”
Bah!
– photo by Mitch Waxman
At any rate, back on the NYC Ferry, which is where I was before I started rambling on about how beat up I am and the weird things I’ve seen here in Pennsylvania – which I’m still working on being able to reliably spell…
My pal Val and I rode the Astoria line of the service to the Pier 11 Wall Street stop over in Lower Manhattan. We had a brief lay over while waiting for the Soundview line boat to arrive. Soundview is a great ride, heading up the west side of the East River towards 34th street, and then past Roosevelt Island where it makes a stop nearby Gracie Mansion at East 90th street. From there it proceeds north through Hells Gate to Bowery Bay and ultimately to Soundview in the Bronx, which is where the footings of the Whitestone and Throgs Neck Bridges sit.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
One had timed the trip for late afternoon, hoping to catch some orange and gold light for this – my last ferry ride.
For the journey north, I deployed a long lens which allowed a 70-300 mm zoom range. It’s not my best piece of glass, this unit, but it does allow for a great deal of reach. On the way south, I had used a wider 24-105 mm zoom lens.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
The hoped for light show started just as the Soundview bound ferry debarked from Pier 11, as predicted. We were heading north, and this ended up being the last time I’d be seeing or taking a photo of the Manhattan Bridge. Bwah!
More tomorrow, at your Newtown Pentacle.
“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 