no singers
Thursday
– photo by Mitch Waxman
After another depressing visit to the collapsing bulkheads of Long Island City’s 29th street, one continued his lonely scuttle along the Dutch Kills tributary of Newtown Creek.
My toes pointed towards Borden Avenue, so I followed them.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
A strip club nearby Borden Avenue has reopened after its pandemic slumber, it seems. I’ve always been a Star Trek guy, and don’t enjoy this form of bawdy adult entertainment, but to each his own.
Life, as it were, finds a way.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
One decided to continue westwards along Borden Avenue, heading towards the East River where I would hang a right and begin scuttling back towards Astoria.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
Along the way, the enormous construction site which used to house the HQ of the online grocery “FreshDirect” was passed.
I just can’t pass up a view like this one.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
Long Island Railroad was operating at street grade, and two of their engines were heading towards the Sunnyside Yards. An absolutely terrific amount of FDNY traffic had been passing me by and heading west towards Hunters Point for about a half hour, a deployment which included that ambulance pictured above.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
At the Vernon Jackson stop, a gaggle of fire chiefs and multiple engine and ladder companies were turned out. It seems that some sort of metal debris and reports of “people on the tracks” had drawn their attention.
I hung around for a while, waving the camera around. Anything the FDNY does is interesting.
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verdant valleys
Wednesday
– photo by Mitch Waxman
On April 3rd, I went to Dutch Kills in LIC to confirm that New York City and State remained incompetent and uncaring, which was unsurprisingly confirmed.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
29th street is now permanently sagging, and never drains.
You can still park on top of the collapsing section of the street, just like the moving truck I was standing alongside.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
Shoreline dissection continues.
Bulkhead collapse underway.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
Just a block away, if you wanted to see it looks like when sewer solids pile up, you can. Go at low tide.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
Nothing matters, nobody cares.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
My little tree of paradise is all I have, an eidolon of hope.
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nimbus over
Tuesday
– photo by Mitch Waxman
Mentioned yesterday, the building pictured above sits on the site of the first large scale petroleum refinery in the United States. It later became known as the Standard Oil Queens County Oil Works, but the original 1854 facility and its founder are described in this post from 2014.
Truth be told, on this particular evening, I wasn’t in “history” mode, instead I was focused in on taking pretty pictures of ugly things.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
This shot looks north, across Newtown Creek and at Queens, along the line which the Brooklyn Queens Expressway travels along between LIC’s Blissville section on the left, and Maspeth’s “West Maspeth” section on the right.
The BQE is sited along what was formerly (1870-1898) the legal line between the municipality of Long Island City and Newtown’s Village of Maspeth. Maybe it was already the “Town of Maspeth” back in the late 19th and early 20th centuries… something I’m not sure of, speaking in a purely calendrical manner.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
Back on the walkway of the Kosciuszcko Bridge, and once again setup with the tripod and all the other gear, I got busy.
You have never ending vibration problems up there, due to the Brooklyn Queens Expressway traffic running behind you.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
You can really feel it when a heavy truck rolls by at speed up there, and mid span there’s a discernible flex when one shouts by. It’s not at all disconcerting, but it’s a factor if you’re doing a longish exposure up there as the vibration can transmit up the tripod and shake the camera.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
For some reason… ahem… the bridge’s fences offer apertures just big enough for me to slide my favorite lens through… ahem…
There’s a trick to shooting up here which revolves around making sure that neither the tripod legs nor the lens are making the slightest physical contact with the fence, as it transmits the traffic vibration.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
Satisfied that I had actually made it worth getting up that morning by doing something useful and fun, I packed up the bag and headed back to HQ.
More tomorrow.
“follow” me on Twitter- @newtownpentacle
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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.
glistening with
Monday
– photo by Mitch Waxman
On March 30th, a Wednesday which also happened to be the anniversary of the Queensboro Bridge opening in 1909, a humble narrator scuttled over to the Koscisuzcko Bridge from Astoria hoping to encounter a nice sunset over the fabulous Newtown Creek.
High clouds equal a fifty/fifty chance of a light show at sunset, so I decided to throw the dice.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
One had planned in a bit of buffer time for this effort, and I had a couple of hours to wander around and see what I could see.
Looking down from on high at the ragged coastline of the Borough of Queens, in the shot above.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
More of that ragged coastline, pictured is the Queens landing of the former Penny Bridge. There also used to be a Long Island Railroad stop down there.
Heading south on the K-bridge, one crossed the line into Brooklyn.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
There’s a couple of large waste transfer stations down there, and the managers of the one pictured above never fail to hassle me when I’m taking pictures of them on the street. Ever since the walkway on the bridge has been open, I now make it a point of cracking put a few exposures.
Humps.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
Down under the Kosciuszko Bridge Onramp in Brooklyn’s Greenpoint section, this burned out semi truck was noticed.
I thrive on other people’s misfortunes.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
At the newish “Under the K bridge park” in Greenpoint, and looking towards Queens at the site of the first large scale petroleum refinery in the entire country over in Queens’ Blissville section, and across the fabulous Newtown Creek.
When the sky started getting colorful, I got ready to head back to a point of elevation on the walkway above.
“follow” me on Twitter- @newtownpentacle
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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.
happier than
Friday
– photo by Mitch Waxman
Wandering home from a long walk, one pondered. I could have jumped onto a train several times, but chose to just keep on scuttling. Pondering and scuttling go together.
Filthy black raincoat fluttering about, camera in hand, friendless and alone. That’s me.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
I’m tired of tilting my lance at windmills. I’m exhausted by the ideological extremes I encounter. I’m tired of people who make personal statements using the pronoun “we.”
I’m at the end of my rope as far as enduring the malignancy and demands of the many narcissists whom I’m forced to interact with in my daily round. Vainglory makes me nauseous.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
Everybody wants, but nobody gives. All is frustration, hatred, and envy.
I’ve come to an impasse, lords and ladies. Something definitely needs to give, and you know what? It’s going to be me.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
Six months from now, and this is a plan that has been in the works for quite a while now, I will no longer be a New Yorker.
Ok, I’ll always be a New Yorker (I’m walking here), but I’m going to be doing that somewhere else where the volume is turned down a bit.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
What does that mean, though? I’m going to be leaving behind all that I ever was, all that I know, and starting over somewhere else in my mid 50’s – that’s what that means. Exciting, no? Terrifying, yes.
It also means that when I start announcing tours of Newtown Creek next month, if you’ve ever wanted to come on one – summer and fall of 2022 will your last chance. I’m not coming back.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
Where I’m going, and what I’m going to do next is still forming. I don’t think I want to be “involved” in anything anymore either, due to that sour taste in my mouth which has been developing in the last few years. The Community Board thing is just depressing, and since the primal lesson I’ve gleaned after 15 years on Newtown Creek is that “nothing matters and nobody cares”…
Go west, that’s what they used to say, yeah? Go west. I’m done, so stick a fork in me.
“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 