Waste Treatment Park Gets Some New Scenery

For all of its faults, one thing can be said about the park gracing the premises of our local waste treatment plant: it has a great view. This weekend I learned from a tipster that it received some new scenery, albeit of a less savory nature:

There’s a sunken barge across from the water steps of the Nature Walk. The barge was there for a while with wires and stuff on it. There’s also a string of barges further up. We contacted the Coast Guard and have to call back on Monday. It seems like someone’s using the Creek to store vessels that are being rehabbed. Or worse, dumped. I attached photos, but they don’t do the scene justice.

Who wouldn’t want to have a picnic while gazing upon three rusted out old barges?

It would appear that automobiles are not the only thing finding their way into the depths of Newtown Creek nowadays. Anyone care to guess who the commander of this U-boat is?

Miss Heather

Incredibly Disturbing Image of The Day

I am always amused by the items I find affixed to fences. Last weekend I found these toys awaiting new owners in Park Slope. Very cute, if you ask me. Which brings me to what I found affixed to a fence here in Greenpoint this morning.

My morning routine is as follows: get up, grab a cup of coffee, wander into the living room and stare out the window. This has been my “routine” for years— and although luxury condoville has pretty much obscured any semblance of a “view” my apartment once had— I continue to do it. Perhaps this is an act of masochism on my part, who knows?

In any case, my morning cup of joe was accompanied by a particularly festive vista today.

Looks like 143 Huron and 110 Green Street will sport scenic views of more than just Manhattan. I have no idea what this thing is. All I know is it appears to be some form of mammal and it hasn’t moved for the last hour. (Is it a dead gopher perhaps?)

Miss Heather

Mizz Greenpoint?!?

Yesterday I received an email from East Coast Aliens. Thinking it was merely a reminder that tonight they are featuring the movie “M” I paid it little mind. That is, until I noticed the subject line promised “a top secret message”. My curiosity aroused, I perused this missive to learn what this “top secret message” was. Here it is:

FYI fellow Greenpointers; the search for Mizz Greenpoint has now begun. Prospective candidates and more information about the upcoming event can be found at Brooklyn Glamour!

I followed their link but didn’t find any information about this “Mizz Greenpoint” competition. Exactly what qualifies one to be “Mizz Greenpoint”? I for one would like to suggest that it involve dressing up in a clown suit and cavorting around a barrel of toxic waste. Thoughts, anyone?

Miss Heather

Greenpoint Photo du Jour: Angst On Eagle

If anyone out there needs help:

1. getting out of credit hell
2. lowering his (or her) carbohydrates
3. learning how to win friends and influence people
4. boning up on Existentialist thought

head over to Eagle Street. They’ve got you covered.

Miss Heather

In Other News…

It would appear that the reports of the death of Shanghai Lee have been greatly exaggerated. As I learned earlier this week they have simply relocated to 157 Franklin Street. They did a lovely job renovating the space, but I am more interested to learn what the food is like. Anyone?

Miss Heather

95 Clay Street Is Ready To Rent!

Yesterday evening I received the following compelling comment regarding this post. Gary Floyd writes:

So I responded to an ad off CL for 95 Clay Street, listing 3 bedrooms for $1750 (should’ve know something was up right there) without knowing about the naughty history. This was two weeks ago, and me and my roommates spent the last two weeks trying to give the owner a check and all our application forms, thinking what a great deal it we were about to get. Then Friday, we finally found out the truth: the building is illegal, the ownership is unknown, there is no management company and the owner is a psycho. Inside, the apartments are nice and new, but after the broker found out about the shady dealings, he said he should definitely withdraw our application. So be warned: nothing in Greenpoint will ever cost below $2000 for a three bed, unless it’s a tainted dumpster.

Let this be a warning to anyone out there who is shopping for an apartment be it in Greenpoint or elsewhere. If the deal seems too good to be true, it probably is. While hardly fool-proof here are a few suggestions as to how to make a more informed decision when shopping for an apartment.

1. After viewing the apartment, Google the address and read what comes up.
2. ALWAYS check the records on HPD and the Department of Buildings. All buildings will have violations but if you see something like this, buyer beware!
3. Ask around. Talk to a neighbor or current tenant of the property in question. They are an invaluable source of information not only about any possible maintenance issues the apartment might have, but also the neighborhood in general.

Happy hunting!

Miss Heather

TODAY: Poetry At East Coast Aliens

Today from 3:00 through 8:00 p.m. East Coast Aliens will be hosting their third poetry event in partnership with Typo Magazine, Goose Up! Here’s the 411 per Typo’s press release:

Cannibal, Harp & Altar, Saltgrass, and Tight are pleased to announce Goose Up!, a poetry reading at East Coast Aliens. The 18 readers at Goose Up! represent the scope of four innovative independent literary journals of emerging prominence.

Headliners include Sarah Gridley (Weather Eye Open, University of California Press), Matthew Rohrer (Rise Up, Wave Books), Chris Martin (American Music, Copper Canyon), Shanxing Wang (Mad Science in Imperial City, Futurepoem Books), Timothy Liu (For Dust Thou Art, Crab Orchard Series in Poetry), Rebecca Wolff (founder/editor of Fence & Fence Books), and Kate Greenstreet (case sensitive, Ahsahta Press).  The reading will also feature poets with profound underground followings, such as John Coletti (co-editor of Open 24 Hours Press, editor of The Poetry Project Newsletter), Ana Bozicevic (Document, Octopus Books), Jess Mynes (editor of Fewer and Further Press), Joanna Sondheim (The Fit, Sona Books), and Frank Sherlock (Daybook of Perversities & Main Events, Cy Gist Press), as well as a selection of breakthrough poets Cate Peebles, Christopher Rizzo, Shannon Jonas, Jennifer Kronovet, Katy Henriksen, and Mark Lamoureux.  Intermissions will feature music by The Hadacol.

East Coast Aliens
216 Franklin Street
Brooklyn, New York 11222

Doors open at 2:30 p.m. and the recommended price admission is $6.00 per person.

Miss Heather

P.S.: Tomorrow night at 9:00 p.m. East Coast Aliens will be featuring the Fritz Lang film, M. Doors open at 8:30 p.m. and the price of admission us $6.00. Here’s a fact I learned about this film via IMDb:

The extras playing the members of the criminal gang were real life delinquents: before the end of the filming 24 of them were put into jail.