Cross Town Thoughts
Eyewitness early voting reports.
2 hours North Fork
2 1/2 hours UWS
1 hour LES
3 hours UES merging with 1 hour line for Citarella
TriBeCa line let an over-55 couple cut to the front
20 minutes Pound Ridge, Westchester
Too bad they aren’t all in Wisconsin or Ohio instead of New York.
Crisp and chilly air as NYC seems a bit more bustling. School buses and car horns. Better than masked silence. For now.
Golf is officially gone as a fan sport. No one will tune in to see Bryson deChambeau take thirty practice swings before his drive. Then. Check his book twenty times on each shot after he admonishes his caddie for choosing the wrong club. And. Finally line up and mark his putt a minimum of ten times before he hits it. How can anyone stand to play with him? Nevermind watch? So. Rant done.
Emmy’s got it mostly right. Kimmel kicked it off and kept it fresh. Schitt’s Creek and Succession best two shows on TV last year. And they won big.
Return to the City disappoints. Scaffolding, noise and toxic air from across the street endure with no end in sight. Outdoor dining is marred by a homeless guy sucker-punching a diner at Pappardella on Columbus Avenue a block away. Bikers meander up and down sidewalks past boarded-up storefronts as dog walkers return to dominate the streets. Many more pedestrians are maskless than in June. Note to Governor Cuomo. This is why rich people are not returning from their vacation homes. Some never will. Is it depressing? Yes. Sorry.
Maybe Tiger will do well at the PGA?
Stormy gusts knocking over anything not bolted down out there. Hurricane Isaías here and gone with the wind.
Journalism is also off-kilter as brave women speak out against the corrupt ratings-fueled media news outlets. Bari Weiss of The New York Times and Ariana Perkary of MSNBC did not leave their respective outlets quietly. Each railed against editorial decisions based only on what social media responses would be purely for profit. Rather than requiring balanced content as a core tenet.
Hope their voices will be a catalyst for a return to journalistic integrity.
Yes. Back to City reality. The good news is. Restaurants have become more and more creative in setting up barriers and making outside space as appealing as possible for diners. Plants, plexiglass dividers. Hope the weather holds through October so they can recover and stay in business.
So far. 3 favorite Taverns gone. Oxbow. Gramercy. On the Green.
Back to politics. Today Dem Veep candidates having their final auditions. Booked on Sunday news shows. Just hope it’s not Kamala. And. These days don’t think it can be a Karen. It will be a woman. That we know.
Helicopters. Once in a while. Airplanes. Still rare. Birds. Chirpier than ever. Subway rumble. Often. Some Ubers waiting out front lately. Dulcet tones of construction. A private garbage truck went by yesterday for the first time in months. Never thought that’d be a good thing.
As restaurants struggle to open. Using partitions including clear shower curtains between tables. This is ingenious. Little Inn at Washington.
Skins golf. Rory & Ricky. Little by little. Fingers crossed.
Sat in our parked car getting glorious sun through the roof, safely away from the crowds all over the UWS today.
As mAd Ben calls it our caranda. We even got a socially distanced visit from him!
It’s right in front of the brownstone that famously blooms with wisteria each Spring. At least that’s stayed the same. Felt almost human.
Kinda looks like it. Except about half the people are wearing masks. Social distancing? Not so much. Lots of bikes. And kids on scooters. And. Strollers. And. Dogs. And. Cars full of people with New Jersey plates. So. Yup. Pretty much like any nice Spring Sunday. Is that good?
Great to see mAd Ben & friend who did a drive-by below our window. And. Passersby informed us that Thai72 has re-opened for take-out.
Once Upon A Time in Hollywood. Brad Pitt. Perfect tonic.
As an agoraphobe for the past too many years, shopping or going to a busy restaurant or for a walk in the Park takes some courage. Yet. There was the glimmer of having a choice. Now that seclusion is mandatory, it seems silly to feel trapped. And. The scared shitless diet is no fun either.
Fiona Apple’s Fetch the Bolt Cutters – along the same theme.
Please! Last night at 7pm the neighborhood erupted as usual with cheering & clanging for the first responders & frontline workers. Then. Old Blue Eyes could be heard belting out his classic New York New York. Uplifting & wonderful. Couldn’t capture it but we heard it loud & clear.
New therapeutic drug on the cusp? Stock market green. We got steaks & potatoes from Fresh Direct! Have a few bottles of wine left. And. Corks on Columbus is re-opening. We’ll take it.
Side Trek . NYC 