Posts Tagged ‘New York City’
dogged patience
Sector one, one, one, zero, one.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
An area which most refer to as Long Island City has been assigned the postal zip code of 11101. That translates from the binary to the decimal as the number 29.
Oddly enough, that’s the average number of days it takes earth’s moon to complete its cycle (actually 29.530589 days) and roughly the number of earth years it takes the planet Saturn to orbit the burning thermonuclear eye of god itself.
In the I’Ching, the number 29 is referred to as K’an / The Abysmal.
from wisdomportal.com
In man’s world K’an represents the heart, the soul locked up within the body, the principle of light inclosed in the dark— that is, reason. The name of the hexagram, because the trigram is doubled, has the additional meaning,
“repetition of danger.” Thus the hexagram is intended to designate an objective situation to which one must become accustomed, not a subjective attitude. For danger due to a subjective attitude means either foolhardiness or guile. Hence too a ravine is used to symbolize danger; it is a situation in which a man is in the same pass as the water in a ravine, and, like the water, he can escape if he behaves correctly
– photo by Mitch Waxman
The zip code of any community is somewhat arbitrary, the Post Office basically started the numeration of postal zones up in Massachusetts and worked their way down the East Coast and then moved west. The Zip Code system was introduced in 1963, and the way it works is that the first three digits describe a Sectional Center Facility (Mail Sorting Center) which handles a particular region. The last two digits are a bit more specific, referring mail sorters to a group of delivery addresses within a particular city or region. Midtown Manhattan, for instance is in 10001, which translates to 17 in binary. LIC’s 11101 indicates SCF 111, delivery area 01, and again- translates as 29 in binary.
Element 29 is Copper.
from wikipedia
Copper is a chemical element with the symbol Cu (from Latin: cuprum) and atomic number 29. It is a ductile metal with very high thermal and electrical conductivity. Pure copper is soft and malleable; a freshly exposed surface has a reddish-orange color. It is used as a conductor of heat and electricity, a building material, and a constituent of various metal alloys.
The metal and its alloys have been used for thousands of years. In the Roman era, copper was principally mined on Cyprus, hence the origin of the name of the metal as сyprium (metal of Cyprus), later shortened to сuprum. Its compounds are commonly encountered as copper(II) salts, which often impart blue or green colors to minerals such as azurite and turquoise and have been widely used historically as pigments. Architectural structures built with copper corrode to give green verdigris (or patina).
– photo by Mitch Waxman
Occultists believe in the symbolic power of numbers, although I believe this to be “twonk”, as my English father in law would say. Perhaps my prejudice against the viewpoint stems from a basic inability to perform simple mathematics accurately. I had the Chicken Pox in second grade when they taught long division and have never been able to catch up since. Cursory research on the way that those who ascribe to the occult worldview indicates that 29 is an ill omen, and associated with unlikely conspiracy theories centering around unholy bargains which the Rothschild and Rockefeller families are said to have entered into with extraterrestrials.
The number 29 has always terrified me personally, however, as it indicates that the rent is soon due.
“follow” me on Twitter- @newtownpentacle
Want to see something cool? Summer 2013 Walking Tours-
Kill Van Kull– Saturday, August 10, 2013
Staten Island walking tour with Mitch Waxman and Working Harbor Committee, tickets now on sale.
13 Steps around Dutch Kills– Saturday, August 17, 2013
Newtown Creek walking tour with Mitch Waxman and Newtown Creek Alliance, tickets now on sale.
strange cries
All we have to fear is fear itself.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
An infinite capacity for terror and hysteria grips one such as myself, who is just some flapping and flopping thing often observed alongside the road while it coruscates and pulsates and squeezes along and across the concretized devastations of the ageless borough of Queens. Layer upon layer of thwarted ambition is found hereabouts, a fitting locale for your humble narrator- amongst the battered, the bruised, the abandoned, and that which has seen better days. Existential crises abound, and the eternal road only stretches forward into a tunnel of darkness and despair.
As you may have guessed by now, I agree with and celebrate the song “I don’t like Mondays.”
from wikipedia
In psychology and psychiatry, anhedonia (/ˌænhiˈdoʊniə/ an-hee-doh-nee-ə; Greek: ἀν- an-, “without” + ἡδονή hēdonē, “pleasure”) is defined as the inability to experience pleasure from activities usually found enjoyable, e.g. exercise, hobbies, music, sexual activities or social interactions. While earlier definitions of anhedonia emphasized pleasurable experience, more recent models have highlighted the need to consider different aspects of enjoyable behavior, such as motivation or desire to engage in an activity (“motivational anhedonia”), as compared to the level of enjoyment of the activity itself (“consummatory anhedonia”).
– photo by Mitch Waxman
“Monday’s child is fair of face” says the old rhyme, but the origins of the word in English actually mark it as “moons day,” or the day of the moon (that name goes all the back to Old English’s mōnandæg). Perhaps this is why a creature as unwholesome as myself– said unsavoriness should indicate an affinity for the moon day, incidentally- is so uncomfortable on what the Chinese would call xīngqīyī (星期一) which clinically translates to “day one of the week.”
In Britain, a recent study concluded that Monday is the statistically most likely day for suicides. Hecate, triple lobed goddess of the moon, seems to deserve her reputation as a harsh entity whom occultists call the “mother of angels.”
Angels have always scared the hell out of me.
from wikipedia
Dysthymia has a number of typical characteristics: low energy and drive, low self-esteem, and a low capacity for pleasure in everyday life. Mild degrees of dysthymia may result in people withdrawing from stress and avoiding opportunities for failure. In more severe cases of dysthymia, people may even withdraw from daily activities. They will usually find little pleasure in usual activities and pastimes. Diagnosis of dysthymia can be difficult because of the subtle nature of the symptoms and patients can often hide them in social situations making it challenging for others to detect symptoms. Additionally, dysthymia often occurs at the same time as other psychological disorders, which adds a level of complexity in determining the presence of dysthymia, particularly because there is often an overlap in the symptoms of disorders.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
It has been awhile since one has found himself overcome by panic and animalistic instinct, and been reduced to a shivering jelly slaking with greasy perspiration. The ministrations of a team of doctors, and their vials of tablets and potions, seems to have found an equilibrium in me but my greatest fear is a return to fear. I fear fear, fearing that fear might overcome me, rendering all about me fearful. I fear this, and if all we have to fear is fear itself, then I’d like to point out that Fear is hanging up there in the sky behind me as I write this and he’s brought his brother Terror with him.
Of course, I refer to the Martian moons Phobos and Deimos, after all Monday is the so called day of the moon.
from wikipedia
Phobophobia (from Greek: φόβος, phobos, “fear”) is a phobia defined as the fear of phobias, or the fear of fear, including intense anxiety and unrealistic and persistent fear of the somatic sensations and the feared phobia ensuing. Phobophobia can also be defined as the fear of phobias or fear of developing a phobia. Phobophobia is related to anxiety disorders and panic attacks directly linked to other types of phobias, such as agoraphobia. When a patient has developed phobophobia, their condition must be diagnosed and treated as part of anxiety disorders. This patient with this phobia is not afraid of this phobia thus preventing a paradox.
“follow” me on Twitter- @newtownpentacle
Want to see something cool? Summer 2013 Walking Tours-
Kill Van Kull– Saturday, August 10, 2013
Staten Island walking tour with Mitch Waxman and Working Harbor Committee, tickets now on sale.
13 Steps around Dutch Kills– Saturday, August 17, 2013
Newtown Creek walking tour with Mitch Waxman and Newtown Creek Alliance, tickets now on sale.
Project Firebox 82
An ongoing catalog of New York’s endangered Fireboxes.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
If a job description involved the term “Boulevard of Death,” the reticence of prospective employees toward accepting the position would be normal and natural. Such fears are no consideration for the Fireboxes, émigrés from a foreign and quite scarlet shore. They came here to raise their alarms, not to complain about their post. This guardian of the vibrant and diverse is found stationed along the aforementioned “Boulevard of Death,” better known as Sunnyside’s stretch of Queens Boulevard.
“follow” me on Twitter- @newtownpentacle
Want to see something cool? Summer 2013 Walking Tours-
Glittering Realms– Saturday, August 3rd, 2013
Newtown Creek walking tour with Mitch Waxman and Atlas Obscura, tickets now on sale.
Kill Van Kull– Saturday, August 10, 2013
Staten Island walking tour with Mitch Waxman and Working Harbor Committee, tickets now on sale.
13 Steps around Dutch Kills– Saturday, August 17, 2013
Newtown Creek walking tour with Mitch Waxman and Newtown Creek Alliance, tickets now on sale.
goaded into
The floating fuzz.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
Harbor Launch No. 451 was christened with the name PO Edward Byrne when it was launched in 2010, and just the other night, it was literally running circles around the Working Harbor Committee. We were onboard the Zephyr, an excursion vessel, and the cops came roaring up alongside and began to circle us. Doesn’t matter what you’re driving, when a bunch of cops pull up next to you, you stiffen up and try to present overt signs of wholesomeness in an effort to avoid their attentions.
from nyc.gov
“This new launch will enable us to be even more vigilant in keeping the city safe from crime and terrorism,” Commissioner Kelly said. “It is a tangible symbol of Eddie Byrne’s legacy. All who see it will be reminded of his courage and his sacrifice.”
The new boat will be used for various police emergencies and operations in New York Harbor , including search and rescue and recovery and proactive counterterrorism patrol. The 45-foot vessel is custom equipped with a thermal camera and advanced navigation system, enabling police officers to better conduct search and rescue operations in low-visibility conditions. It can travel up to 48 knots, or 53 m.p.h.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
The vessel in today’s shots is a SAFE Boat, which is a pretty sophisticated little craft that can take on a variety of utility and security functions depending on who its customized for. There’s a Coast Guard variant, and an FDNY one, and every agency that has any jurisdiction on the water seems to have at least one of these increasingly ubiquitous vessels bobbing around NY Harbor.
from wikipedia
Commanding Officer of Harbor Unit – Deputy Inspector David Driscoll
On March 15, 1858, five members of the New York City Police Department rowed out into New York Harbor to combat piracy aboard merchant ships lying at anchor. The NYPD Harbor Unit has existed ever since, protecting life and property. With hundreds of miles of inland waterways to cover, the unit operates 27 boats from three bases.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
Harbor Patrol actually predates the Civil War, but in the beginning, they were all about fighting River Pirates. Back in the heyday of NY Harbor, pirates would launch from shore in rowboats with felt wrapped oars. They would sneak onboard anchored ships in the maritime equivalent of a modern “home invasion” and grab whatever they could carry. The problem was so rampant that the Harbor Patrol was formed. Today, the piracy problem is under control, and the unit largely works the Homeland Security beat instead.
from policeny.com
The Metropolitan Police’s Harbor Police were established on Feb. 15, 1858 as the 24th Precinct. When established the command consisted of 2 sergeants and 25 patrolmen. Harbor’s first station house was located at 21 State Street, near the corner of Whitehall Street in lower Manhattan.
“follow” me on Twitter- @newtownpentacle
Want to see something cool? Summer 2013 Walking Tours-
Glittering Realms– Saturday, August 3rd, 2013
Newtown Creek walking tour with Mitch Waxman and Atlas Obscura, tickets now on sale.
Kill Van Kull– Saturday, August 10, 2013
Staten Island walking tour with Mitch Waxman and Working Harbor Committee, tickets now on sale.
13 Steps around Dutch Kills– Saturday, August 17, 2013
Newtown Creek walking tour with Mitch Waxman and Newtown Creek Alliance, tickets now on sale.
obstructing surface
Astoria, land that I love, stand beside her…
– photo by Mitch Waxman
Generally speaking, your humble narrator is a misanthrope, avoiding the company of other people. When I say I’m a street photographer, I mean that I literally like taking pictures of unpopulated streets. People tend to clutter up my shots and are best avoided. Other people who describe themselves as “street photographer” focus in on the humans as they scurry about the hive and make trouble for themselves, whereas I’m a bit more interested in the hive itself. Still, in the name of breaking things up and “doing the opposite,” every now and then I wave the camera around at folks to see what I might get.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
Pictured above is the bland homogeneity of a street fair imposed on the vibrant diversity of Astoria the other day. These street fairs are traveling corporate circuses, selling foodstuffs which the Mayor would probably attempt to outlaw for the amount of fat and salt they distribute to the unsuspecting Astorians who so desperately need the dietary guidance of the oligarchs and elites of Manhattan. I remember when the current form of these events took shape back in the 1990’s- with the “as seen on TV” products, sunglass vendors, and mozzarepa stalls. It always seems to be the same players, who noisily sweep in and suppress sales for local shop owners for a day, all the while running gasoline powered generators to power refrigerators and lights. The worst are the DJ booths, with throbbing club music broadcast to a neighborhood which had its fill the night before.
– photo by Mitch Waxman
The fellow pictured above is one of our local “Crows,” a metal collector who scours the streets for anything shiny which might be salable to the scrap metal industry, and he opted for an al fresco lunch directly beneath my vantage. He’s a tragic and scorned figure in the neighborhood, part of a huge immigrant population of single men who arrived in Queens from foreign quarters looking for work, often witnessed lying prone on the sidewalk after a bout of drinking. Latino, the neighborhood refers to all of these characters as “the Mexicans,” although there is no guarantee that this is where he’s from. I could ask, of course, but that would get in the way of my general misanthropy.
“follow” me on Twitter- @newtownpentacle
Want to see something cool? Summer 2013 Walking Tours-
Glittering Realms– Saturday, August 3rd, 2013
Newtown Creek walking tour with Mitch Waxman and Atlas Obscura, tickets now on sale.
Kill Van Kull– Saturday, August 10, 2013
Staten Island walking tour with Mitch Waxman and Working Harbor Committee, tickets now on sale.
13 Steps around Dutch Kills– Saturday, August 17, 2013
Newtown Creek walking tour with Mitch Waxman and Newtown Creek Alliance, tickets now on sale.
The Newtown Pentacle 