ABC Wednesday—Z is for "zombie love"

I cannot tell a lie—I've been planning this ABC post 
since I saw this couple on the subway last Halloween.

[To see more ABC posts, go here.]

Thursday Challenge—"good"

There are so many good things, it's
hard to choose just one—but for sheer
ooey-gooey sweet/salty deliciousness, I'd
have to put these macarons right up there.
They're caramel aux fleur de sel, the best,
from the new NYC shop of Ladurée, also the best.

[To see more of the Thursday Photo Challenge, go here.]

ABC Wednesday—A is for "atheists"

In NYC, atheists advertise—and some
of them are into good bluegrass music.
And they have a website. To each
his own, I say, but I did kind of want to
ask this guy if he ever says OMG.


[I'm starting my 4th round of ABC Wednesday,
and this is my 183rd ABC post.  If you
want to play along too, go here.]

Thursday Challenge — "green"

I was thinking about "green" as a photo challenge,
and wondering if I should head over to the park for
inspiration.  Then I passed by this window—and voilà. 


[To see more green things, go here.]

abc wednesday —G is for "grand opening"

Finally!  Ladurée (Parisian macaron mecca) opened a store here.
The opening kept getting delayed, but finally yesterday . . .
the windows were dressed and the folks were lined up in anticipation.
The woman next to me in line bought almost $90 worth of these treats,
among them a few gorgeous, pink 'pétale de rose'.  My choice: one flavor only—
caramel au fleur de sel.  The best (imho), and worth every single penny and calorie!
[To see more abc wednesday, go here.]

Shadow Shot Sunday

This is Madison Square Park, a nice place to
hang out in the Chelsea area and the site of
many great free summer performances. This
was also where part of the Statue of Liberty
lived before the base was completed—see here.
[And to see more shadows, go here.]

That's My World

In case these boys were wondering what they're supposed to be 
doing here . . .  On the other hand, they are from NYC's hardworking 
Chinese community and probably do need to be reminded.  We're
celebrating the Year of the Rabbit here too.  Gung Hay Fat Choy!
[See more of the world here.]

sneak peek

Last week I got to take a tour of the last section of the Hi-Line.  I was happy for
the opportunity to take this "before" shot.  They've completed the section
from Gansevoort Street in the West Village's meatpacking district to
20th Street in Chelsea. They're working on the stretch from 20th to 30th
(due to open next spring).  It will be a few years before this looks like this:

[This is part of That's My World Tuesday. See more of the world here.]

New York Then and Now

I found a cool new website that features

old pictures of New York (and other cities too, 

including Paris and London). When I

saw this shot of Union Square, taken in 1893, 

I remembered one I had taken from more or less 

the same vantage point (looking northeast) last summer

[This post is part of That's My World Tuesday. See more here.]

shadow Shot Sunday

Antonio Canova was a true romantic.

This is the plaster cast for his masterpiece

"Psyche Revived By Cupid's Kiss" (which

can be seen at the Metropolitan Museum of Art

here in NYC).  There are marble versions in

the Louvre and the Hermitage.

Happy Valentine's Day!

[See more Shadow Shots here.]

Shadow Shot Sunday

These adorned the table at Le Boeuf

à la Mode, where I've enjoyed several

great meals compliments of good (and

generous) friends who live right around

the corner (with this amazing view).

If you're looking for real French food on

the Upper East Side, this is the place.

And I'd like to offer this bouquet of

roses to my friend Lily Hydrangea,

whose birthday this is—Happy Birthday,

dear blogpal!

[And you can see more Shadow Shots here.]

photo Hunter — "average"

So is this the average cost of a 3-tiered cake?

Some 20 years ago, I had such a cake custom

made for a party I had for my parents' 

50th anniversary—mine was both tasteful and

tasty, and it cost exactly a tenth of this ugly 

concoction.  $650?  Seriously??  

That's 470 euros . . . 737 Australian dollars . . .

58,551 Japanese yen . . . 64,703 Albanian

leke . . . or 12,002,250 Vietnam dong!!

I don't think so.

[Find more "average" photos here.]

Bull!

This massive beast now resides in front

of 26 Broadway (where I worked 30 years

ago).   Do you suppose that if I rubbed

a certain part of his anatomy, then the

funds that used to be in my 401k 

would magically reappear?

who shops here?

There are stores like this one all over 

midtown and I always wonder

who buys this stuff. Oh, wait—maybe

that's why they're going out of business.

(Except that these places are always "going

out of business" but somehow never do.)

Mellow Yellow Monday

The Nom Wah Tea Parlor (opened in 1920) 

was the first dim sum restaurant

in Chinatown.  I have fond memories of coming

 here with my father when I was a kid. 

 He always made me figure out what the bill 

would be, since you pay by the plate.

Back in the fifties, it was 25 cents for a small

plate, 50 cents for a large one!

These days this place is constantly being shut down 

by the Dept. of Health. Hope they get

(and keep) their act together. Yes, it's a bit funky—

but you can't eat off my floors either

(except when my mom is coming for a visit).

Skywatch Friday

This is the Sherry Netherland Hotel, at 5th

and 59th. My high-school French teacher's

parents actually lived here. Wonder if they'd

be able to afford it now.

BTW, this place has pretty much the 

same view as Tuesday's terrace.

[Check out more Skywatch pix here.]

more terrace envy

Spotted this one recently. It's right on 5th

Avenue overlooking Central Park, and I might

ever be able to afford it (but just maybe)

if I won the lottery.

Shadow Shot Sunday

I've shown this to you before, but I came

by here recently; it was cold and the

 kids who usually climb on this statue were

probably in school. Still, there was 

quite a photo op going on—and 

I couldn't resist joining in!

[See more Shadow Shots here.]

Skywatch Friday

The sky's IN this photo, but I took it FROM the

sky too.  (Yes, I'm afraid I took a couple of photos when 

I wasn't exactly supposed to.)  That's New

Jersey, Ellis Island, the Statue of Liberty, Staten

Island on the right, and Manhattan, Brooklyn,

Governor's Island on the left—and right up the middle, the 

Hudson River, where Capt. Sullenberger

brought his plane down safely a year ago today.

[See more Skywatch here.]

abc wednesday - Z is for "zoo"

These are the charming sea lions that

put on a show for the folks at the

Central Park Zoo a couple of times a day. 

When I was a kid, for a long while

I wanted to be one of the keepers. Still

think that would be a really cool job.

[Wonder how many others chose "zoo"—

check it out here.]