WTC1 Sunset and Waiting Spire
Tuesday, December 18th, 2012
I think that cylindrical object on the platform (top right of the photo) is the first part of the spire.
Downtown Clouds
Tuesday, December 11th, 2012
Dramatic clouds near sunset over Downtown Manhattan.
The steel on the tower reached its final height, 1,368 feet, in August. But a 408-foot spire has yet to be installed.
Spectacular Sunset
Thursday, November 8th, 2012
Downtown After the Storm
Monday, November 5th, 2012
Downtown Manhattan Tuesday, the morning after Sandy hit the coast.
120 Wall Street. Looks like they should have spent a dollar or two more on tape for the windows.
New York Stock Exchange
The leaves were thick on the stairs.
Preparing for Hurricane Sandy
Saturday, October 27th, 2012
I decided to organize my emergency supplies.
The Gothamist is talking about a possible preemptive power blackout by Con Ed to prevent damage in case of flooding in Lower Manhattan. This is a reasonable plan, a storm surge of salt water is very destructive of electrical infrastructure. The salt makes water conductive. Think of all the damage that snow melting salt does every year. Now imagine the downtown electrical grid soaking in salty conductive ocean water. I was pleased when last year, Irene didn’t require an electrical shut down. I think a total NYC blackout from hurricane Sandy unlikely, the areas of the city distant from the ocean and on higher ground (like midtown Manhattan) should not be badly affected. It all depends on how the weather behaves, but the forecasts look ominous, with that approaching cold front boxing in all the warm moist air and energy Sandy is bringing up from the South.
At least get batteries for your flashlights, and stockpile some water in pots and pans and your bathtub. As far as I know the NYC water supply is gravity fed for buildings below 6 stories. Higher than that an electrical pump is needed to pump it into a water tower. Tap water may become contaminated in a flood.
Charge your cell phones and whatever electronic devices you have while the power is still on. Cell towers require power, so cell phone communication will probably be crappy, or non-existent. The same goes for the internet. Land lines should fare better. Hopefully you have a battery-powered AM FM radio somewhere in your apartment.
You may find it necessary to use candles. Be very careful, never put a candle on a shelf where it can ignite the shelf above. Keep candles well away from any drapery or where anyone could brush up against them. Glass enclosed devotional candles are fairly safe if you make sure that they cannot tip over and are well away from anything flammable.
Your gas service may be unaffected, but your boiler probably requires an electrical pilot. So, no heat or hot water.
I recommend masking tape if you wish to tape your windows. Almost any other tape will be a nightmare to remove after you find out that you really didn’t need it.
During the first evening of the NE Blackout of 2003 the East Village turned into a massive party in the dark. Restaurants cooked up and gave away massive amounts of food before it spoiled from lack of refrigeration. Much drinking before the ice melts happened, but it was totally peaceful. See my video below. This year it may be wet cold and Halloween. It will be interesting for sure.
Northeast Blackout 2003 – NYC from GammaBlog on Vimeo.
This is my video about the massive 2003 Blackout and how it affected my East Village neighborhood.
Captain Ray Lewis – OWS Anniversary Update
Tuesday, September 18th, 2012
Retired Philadelphia Police Captain gives his opinion on the why and how of the police repression of Occupy Wall Street.
Occupy Wall Street – Almost One Year on
Sunday, September 16th, 2012
Jello Biafra, Michelle Shocked, Occupy the Hood, Lee Ranaldo of Sonic Youth perform in Thomas Paine Park, NYC, one day short of the Occupy Wall Street Anniversary.
You did not build that business.
The Tea Party is over.
Spectra Pipeline
Bust Big Banks – Code Pink
Michelle Shocked – 99 Ways to Loathe Your Lender.
Spectacular Clouds at Sunset
Sunday, September 9th, 2012
Downtown Skyline.
Mountain Village East
Figure Skating in Tompkins Sq
Saturday, May 19th, 2012
Ice skating on plastic cutting boards lubricated with glycerin, later today for the Dance Parade.
OWS at Six Months
Saturday, March 17th, 2012
Today marked a half-year of Occupy Wall Street, it was also St. Patrick’s Day. St. Patrick is known for driving the snakes out of Ireland.
There were arrests today.
May 1 is a proposed general strike.
This painting represents this woman’s childhood memory of sugar cane fields and workers being sprayed with DDT.
