This should be fun.

This is the map of open subways as of November 1st. Happy Halloween!

Sandy.

She's so uncivilized! We've all been preparing for or in the midst of dealing with 'Superstorm Sandy' for the last few days. I actually went food shopping on Saturday morning to avoid the crowds so I could get on with my weekend. The storm was suppose to arrive on Sunday evening. It didn't. Monday morning came. It was quiet. Everyone was saying it was a bust. Many people didn't evacuate even though Zone 1 had a mandatory evacuation order. Irene hadn't hit hard (in NYC at least) so, maybe Sandy wouldn't either? Irene's doppler is pictured below on the left, Sandy's on the right. The rain finally came but, it was intermittent. The wind was substantial and didn't stop throughout the evening. Once the storm got going, it moved faster towards land and caught many off guard who were expecting it much later in the evening. At around 9pm last night things got progressively worse, quickly. The wind and rain were at their worst, the storm surge was already way beyond Irene levels (by feet) and it was a full moon which caused tides to rise about 20% higher than they normally would. NYC had weather all day yesterday but, no one expected the flooding that inundated Chelsea, Lower East Side, East Village, Financial District, Red Hook, Williamsburg, Gowanus and other low lying areas in Manhattan, Brooklyn and Queens in a matter of minutes. Water was pouring into Manhattan's subways and tunnels in a way it never has before (so I hear). All had been closed down earlier in the day. Pictures emerged of the East Village with 5-6 feet of water rushing into the city streets-people tried to evacuate but, it was too dangerous. Con Edison, NYC biggest provider of electricity, experienced an explosion at their plant in Manhattan that caused the power to go out everywhere south of 39th Street in Manhattan. Area hospitals were evacuating hundreds in the dark at 1:00am. The power  in that area is still out and won't likely be back up for 4-5 days. This happens in Manhattan!?! I'm so lucky. I have power. I never lost it. As I was falling asleep last night I saw at least 4 bright green flashes--presumably transmitters blowing. Bizarre. 

Today we saw what the storm left behind. The Jersey Shore was hit hardest for sure. Many people were killed by falling trees and some just trapped in the rising water. On the other side of Prospect Park a couple was found dead, pinned by a fallen tree. 

I took a walk today to see Park Slope. There were many trees down like the ones in the picture below but, overall things looked just fine. I've been working from home the last few days since our office was in the flood zone, a 1/2 block from the Hudson River. We're not allowed back in yet. Even if we were, I don't know how I'd get there. The subway is shut down for the next 4-5 days for repair. LGA and JFK are closed. LGA indefinitely. Their runway is a lake. Battery Tunnel is full of water with maybe a foot of clearance between the water and the top of the tunnel. 

So, where to next? Romney can keep holding babies and Obama can do a great job reacting to the storms as they come but, somebody has to DO something to address climate change. These storms are going to keep coming if we don't change our behavior. No one has the money to continue subsidizing the clean up and rebuilding costs. 

Through all of this nonsense, I'm reminded of what a wonderful community I have around me. Thanks for reaching out. It was great to hear from you. A word of advice...stay out of the big puddles. You don't know how deep they go!  

HAHAHAHAHAHA!

39 kids. 2 birthdays to celebrate. 1 photographer. me.

Yeah, I'll take that challenge--I just wish I brought my roller skates. Holy crap can kids move fast! My friend Kayte shoots on the side. She was busy today so, she offered this job to me and I took it. I shot just shy of 600 pictures in 2.5 hours. It was insanity but, super fun-I mean...kids eating pizza and cake? Hilarious. I just delivered the edited pictures (only 148 in the end). I hope she likes them! Now I'm going for a walk to find a bottle of wine and then, feet up!!

Rocktober.

I think fall happened over night here or I've been sleep walking all week. Either is entirely possible.  I managed to get a few quick shots of the color over the past few days. And the last week? 

Two births. Two deaths. Tasmania Sea Trout and Shabu Shabu courtesy of En. A ride home in a car!!!  Yes, it's really that exciting. A debate. Completing my first still life shoot with a liquid. No, it's not that easy. Getting a $30K check in the mail that I earned but, can't use. Prepping to shoot a non work related event, solo. Passing a fresh human poop on the street, 2 days in a row--only in NYC. WTF! A haircut. A hangover that made me 2 hours late to work-my colleagues say it was worth it. Planning for visitors. Planning to be a visitor. Meeting Nadav Kander and heated discussions about very small and organized piles with MMM. I'm going to go take a nap and then get ready for dinner with Miss Kayte and C-Bird.  

PS. You look great today! 

Palm Springs Photo Festival

Yesterday, I was invited to participate (as a reviewer) in the Palm Springs Photo Festival taking place next week at the Javitz Center here in NYC! I'm super excited to have the opportunity to meet with some new photographers, one-on-one, to review their work and share thoughts about the commercial photography industry. 

Here's a bit about the festival...
The Official Portfolio Review Program at PhotoPlus Expo is the largest and most comprehensive portfolio review program for professional and emerging professional photographers in the United States, featuring over 150 influential professionals from both the commercial and fine art realms of contemporary photography. We’ll offer over 1300 reviews! Have your work reviewed and spend a day or two checking out all the latest gear from hundreds of exhibitors as well as attend your choices of over 100 important seminars. You select and prioritize the reviewers you want to meet with. 

I'll let you know how it goes!
:)

NYC livin'

This last week has been incredibly hectic but, lots of good things have happened...including Stephanie's visit to NYC for the weekend. She came in on Friday night at around 10pm. We grabbed dinner at Flatbush Farms and had a great catch up sesh! So good to have her in town.  

We woke up early on Saturday morning and headed to Central Park for brunch with the rest of our crew. The subway dropped us about 12 blocks away--we were late! So, we decided to grab a pedi-cab and cruised through the park, red-nosed from the cold wind and laughing. We arrived a few minutes later to find that our pedi-cab was probably going to be the most expensive thing we did all day! Oh well. Lesson learned. Don't take the pedi-cabs. They will screw you. We had a yummy brunch at the Central Park Boathouse, watched a man and his son catch a ginormous fish on the lake (paid actors?), sipped on mimosas and eventually headed out for a row boat ride. The weather was perrrrfect this weekend-cool and bluebird skies! We rowed around for an hour or so, saw a bunch of creatures, at least 3 weddings and a flock of crazy geese coming in for a full-speed landing near our boat. After our boat ride, we cruised through the park, grabbed some coffee and headed to our manicure appointment. The place turned out to be totally relaxed and very affordable. Afterwards, we headed back downtown, hit up a few shops along the way and eventually landed at The Amsterdam Ale House for nachos and beer. They tasted like heaven after an afternoon of walking around. We all headed back to our places for a bit to chill out before our 9:45p dinner at Palma. In the end we only left ourselves with about 20 minutes to nap in Brooklyn and then we were off again to the West Village. Stephanie and I arrived and met Jess who was already at the restaurant. We were immediately greeted by an older gentleman named Chuck who claimed to be Liz Taylor's hairstylist and best friend for 36 years.  He was crazy. He told Stephanie she was stunning but, had a terrible haircut. He told her how to wear her hair for her wedding and then offered to style it for free saying he didn't need money...he had $18M in the bank. Then, he told me to take my glasses off. I did. He ran his hands through my hair and found my bobby pin. He said, "What the hell is THIS??? Take that out." Ha. He told me to flip my hair over. He proceeded to completely mess it up saying,  "NOW it's fabulous." This crazy banter went on for the next 20 minutes while we waited for Jody and Shelly to arrive. Finally, I asked for his business card (below) so we could look him up later. The 5 of us proceeded to have a pretty amazing dinner at this tiny little hole-in-the-wall place. It was cozy and wonderful! After dinner we headed out down to the LES for a drink. We ended up at Beauty & Essex. We entered the bar through a door in the back of a pawn shop. This place was over the top and a total scene! We had one drink and then left because there wasn't one more foot of standing room available. Onto the next and then the next...and then, it was 3am and Stephanie and I headed home. Well, we tried to. Got into a fight with our first cab driver and got out after driving only 1 block. We hailed another cab quickly and finally made it home.

Fast forward to 10:30am this morning. Stephanie and I had a great, slow-paced morning. We visited a few shops, went to the farmer's market for pickles, had brunch at Juventino and then headed home so Stephanie could pack. OHH...there was also an open house across the street from me that we went to. There are 3 very nice units available. They are newly renovated and perfect for Stephanie and Mike (wishful thinking). The top and bottom floors go for $1,075,00.00 and the middle floor goes for $895,000. So, maybe they both get raises before buying. :) I'm so tired and sunburned. I'm going to bed. Hope you all had an amazing weekend. 

Old pic. Still killing it.

Woo WOO.

Someone got murdered in NYC. That happens here sometimes even though the crime rate has been on the decline in recent years. This one was a little different. The victim was a 31 year old coach who was walking to his car at 4:30am after a party. He got stabbed in the head, neck and chest. Someone passing by after the attack found him with his ear cut off. They haven't found the guy who did it. All of this isn't that out of the ordinary. It's the location that makes it different-just a 1/2 block from Union Square right in the middle of the city where there are always people around.  


I went to The Tibet House tonight, one block from where the murder took place. My colleagues and I have been trying to get there for the past 3 weeks to hear Sharon Salzberg teach. Tonight was her last class. None of us are very, "woo WOO" but, all of us are open to anything that might be enlightening and interesting. I know very little about Tibetan culture and I've never meditated but, free education is always welcome.


We took off our shoes and found a spot in the back of the class. Sharon did a quick intro to recap the practice of Mindfulness and Refinement of Concentration. Essentially, we closed our eyes and tried not to think about anything but our breath and maybe how our fingers felt. It's natural for the mind to wander. Mine did about every 5 seconds. It's amazing how hard it is to clear your thoughts when that's what you're suppose to be doing. I actually had some anxiety while sitting in the perfectly quiet room filled with strangers. What if...what if...I need to cough!? Finally, I felt myself relaxing while thinking of my breath and almost fell asleep at one point. The third part of Sharon's intro had to do with Love and Kindness. Hold your judgement. The wonderful thing about this class was that our teacher made everything so easy to digest and at some points very funny. I don't like traditional yoga because I don't want to chant. I'm not spiritual in that kind of way. Sharon isn't either. She immediately addressed the stigma around the two words love and kindness. She wasn't trying to blow sunshine up our asses. She simply wanted us to go easy on ourselves. While concentrating, the mind wanders. When you realize it's happened, accept it and work to keep the peace. Eventually, we all opened our eyes. 


The rest of the evening was Sharon speaking about the foundations of meditation. Meditation practice opens us up to the world, and allows us to realize fully what we are feeling as we encounter both suffering and joy. She also mentioned the doctrine of the “Middle Way,” a path that avoids extremes and remains centered in the reality of the present moment. 


Sharon shared her Meditation Phrases:

May I be free of danger. Live safely.

May I be free of mental pain. Live happily.

May I be free of physical pain. Live healthfully.

May I live with ease. Live well and without conflict.

A few other thoughts I want to remember...


"Everyone get's to play." We all exist. You don't have to like everyone. You don't have to invite them into your home, give them your money and "save" them but, everyone is a part of this life for better or worse. Having that sensibility (and in some cases empathy) can sometimes provide valuable perspective. I'll probably still get pushed or push someone trying to get off the train at Jay Street tomorrow but, maybe I'll remember this instead.

 

Our culture is competitive by nature. People are always trying to measure happiness--she must be happy because she has "X"--as if there is a limited amount of happiness to be had in the world. It's so much easier to be happy about other people's happiness than to be happy about another person's unhappiness.  So, let's get on with that. We're all vulnerable. Happiness isn't forever. Neither is unhappiness. It can change for anyone at anytime. This is a reality and something that should equalize us. 

That's all I can remember right now. Sharon shared a few antidotes about her learning along the way but, I wouldn't do them justice trying to recreate them here. I'm not converted or anything but, it was a pretty interesting 75 minutes. I'm glad I went. 

It is better to travel well than to arrive. Night.

A walk in the park...

Today was the coldest day I've experienced since moving to NY. I was using my AC just two days ago--bananas.  I ventured over to Prospect Park late this afternoon and decided to walk it's entire length so I could finally see the lake that's on the far end. This park ain't small people. The entire trip took about 2 hours. It was very peaceful and thankfully, the rain held off. If you've seen Prospect Park in the summer, you know how amazing this picture is. I was all alone in the uuuuurban jungle (minus some Dad's with kids and some Hasidic Jews, one of whom asked me if I was Jewish [a-hem, none of your business!]).

Prospect Park Lake

Arch in Prospect Park. Bonus: lonely saxophone player! 

The former home of J. Crew's Jenna Lyons. Sorry it's crooked, I was totally creeping!

sweet urban garden

 I've taken so many pictures of this one block in my neighborhood. I love the different colored brownstones, especially the green colored one in the middle. Anyway...here's another picture. 

Why are there fireworks going off in my neighborhood right now? Do NY'ers really get into Columbus Day? I'm not complaining. I have tomorrow off and some fun plans as long as it doesn't rain! OK, gotta run.

"The Grilliamz!"

Jody, Shelly and I took a day trip to Philadelphia today to toast our good friend Stephanie before she gets hitched in November. It was so great to see her smile, catch up on all things wedding and take a quick tour of the city before heading back home. It's going to be a very busy fall but, that's the way I like it! See you soon. 

Snoop Lion...saying it like it is.