MetaChat - It's a beautiful day in New York.

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24 May 2007

It's a beautiful day in New York. ...and the livin' is eeeasy. (sorry). →[More:]But it is indeed nice in the Big Apple. There's a clear line of sight to the Empire State Building and it's supposed to get up to 80 degrees, so I'm in my cutofffs listening to The Band sing 'Don't Do It." My neighbors will probably grill later which makes the atmosphere even better. The other nighbor will play rembetika which will combine with my music to create a sound salad effect. Right now, I'm gonna just sit here and drink my coffee and hope the wireless holds out. Sometimes birds come and visit. They seem to like loud music, I hear the tap of them on the tin porch roof.

This slice of life has been brought to you from Astoria, New York.

post by: jonmc at: 07:26 | 45 comments

Now a reeeaally long friegt train is rolling by. I really wish I had a harmonica.

posted by jonmc 24 May | 07:40

combine with my music to create a sound salad effect

That's really a lovely image. Wish I could join you man.

posted by tr33hggr 24 May | 07:42

Now, the box is playing Angela Simpson's 'Lenox Ave.' Very atmospheric number. All The satellite dishes and ancient TV aerials on the roofs make a weird landscape. Theres also these two hyped up squirrels who like to play on the chimney of the building across the alley. Sometimes one will crawl in and just his tail will stick out. That always makes me chuckle.

posted by jonmc 24 May | 07:47

That was a nice slice of life. Thanks. Summer in the city...it can be beautiful.

posted by Miko 24 May | 08:10

Sounds like a dream, jonmc. Of which I had too few last night. It is indeed beautiful today, and I might be able to ditch work on the early side (pipe dream!) and visit the mighty porch. Keep a breeze warm for me.

Last night, at about ten thirty, the cleaning lady passed by to empty my shredder, and as she leaned past my ear, laugh-whispered in a tenderly sarcastic Russian voice, "So, you want to be like them?"

I went home and dreamed my apartment was on fire.

posted by Hugh Janus 24 May | 08:14

Cool, give a call bro.

posted by jonmc 24 May | 08:15

Whoa. Didn't Lorifla leave a comment here? Now it seems to be gone.

posted by tr33hggr 24 May | 08:57

Hi tr33, yes I did. But all of a sudden I got really paranoid about posting the city I work in. I asked taz to delete it.

It's silly I'm sure. But I envisioned people calling my workplace and ratting me out that I'm the computer or something. I think I need psychotropic drugs. :)

I'll post it again, without the city's name:

I wish I were in NY. Listening to music on the porch sounds like fun.

I'm working this morning. It's bright, sunny, and breezy outside. I drove to work early this morning while listening to NPR and drinking coffee. There were five patients waiting for me to unlock the door when I pulled up, ten minutes early. I took blood pressures and noted cardiac rhythms. I rowed for a while and walked two miles on the treadmill. Three men are drinking coffee and discussing annuities instead of exercising. A woman on oxygen is on the stationary bicycle.

This slice of cardiac rehab has been brought to you from beautiful east coast city, Florida.

:)

posted by LoriFLA 24 May | 09:13

Porches are awesome. What floor are you on?

Yesterday here was really nice - humidity was still low and a nice breeze. I bet that's what you guys got today. Enjoy!

posted by chewatadistance 24 May | 09:17

Third floor of a rowhouse above a dentist's office (it's one of those ones with a picture of a smiling anthropomorpic tooth in the window surrounded by the word 'dentist' in 20 languages. I believe they also do reflexology and possibly transmission repair.) The porch itself is huge and roofed so I can even hang out there in the rain. It's my favorite place.

posted by jonmc 24 May | 09:23

I can see why. We're looking at moving to a new place that has a porch. I can't wait to get ballisticated on it while watching the sky.

posted by chewatadistance 24 May | 09:27

Ballisticated, I like that. The box just played a 60's Quebecois cover of 'Purple Haze,' called (no shit) 'Vapeur Mauve.' Sweet. Somebody's cooking something spice intensive somewhere on this street and a large vehicle of some sort is idling. Maybe there'll be an argument on the street later where people will question eachothers family lineage and sexual practices in multiple languages. That's always fun. I also wonder if on some other porch somebody's typing 'That weirdo with the ballcaps is on his porch playing his damned music again...'

(oddly, nobody ever complains, (except for the time Hugh tried to start a fight with these two girls on the stoop across the alley) My landlady's deafer than a cinderblock.)

On second sniff, whatever my neighbor's cooking involves Mojo marinade, i think. Mmmm.

posted by jonmc 24 May | 09:35

Whew, at least I'm not going crazy. Today, anyway. :)

posted by tr33hggr 24 May | 09:37

I wasn't trying to start a fight, I was telling them to shut up.

posted by Hugh Janus 24 May | 09:38

I know, I'm just goofing.

posted by jonmc 24 May | 09:41

also, last night i dreamed that I ate a cigarette. That was weird.

posted by jonmc 24 May | 09:46

Heh, me too.

Check it out: this is gonna be me one day.

posted by Hugh Janus 24 May | 09:48

Speaking of dreams, I had my Marlboro Lights dream again last night. It makes me look so cool. I would smoke if it wasn't addictive or damaging.

posted by chewatadistance 24 May | 09:49

And at least you have a quick remedy for toothaches. Handy location. Our stupid teeny grocery store closed after a measly 6 months b/c the guy who started it was clueless and in millions of dollars in debt. So now we have to drive to get groceries again. And beer.

posted by chewatadistance 24 May | 09:51

Yeah, along with the addictiveness, one of the big things about smoking is that most of the coolest people (James Dean, Jimi Hendrix, Bogart, Kerouac, et al, although oddly not Springsteen or Elvis) were all smokers and they looked pretty cool doing it.

posted by jonmc 24 May | 09:52

I have a theory that part of the coolness of smoking is being able to see your lung power.

And I forgot to tell you I got that Once There Was a Village book. Not very far into it. Oh - and today, the population tipped. More of the world's population lives in urban areas than rural.

Hugh, you'd be way more colorful than that, I think.

posted by chewatadistance 24 May | 09:55

Damn I need to not be at work right now.

posted by gaspode 24 May | 09:58

Cool. I hope you enjoy it. I remember telling one of my Brooklyn-bred uncles that I had found a cool bar. 'Where?' he asked. 'Essex Street.' I answered. 'What the hell are you doing on the Lower East Side? You'll get killed!' I'm all 'Nah, there's baby boutiques and stuff there now.' Things have changed.

posted by jonmc 24 May | 09:59

Now, the rembetikas starting. I have a sudden urge to dance around breaking glasses.

posted by jonmc 24 May | 10:02

Having a porch in NY is without question a gift from the gods of chilldom.

It certainly is a beautiful day for porchage - the birds were going crazy in Brooklyn as well. But I finally got away from all that nature crap and am back doing what humans were meant to do - sitting in chairs looking at computer screens.

Still buzzing from a decent basketball night last night and an even better poker outting - I won $60! I'm thinking of buying the complete Mr. Show.

posted by Hellbient 24 May | 10:07

Boy, would I like to be on the porch right now. I tried to do three things at once in class today (remedial/Regents work for a few; Literature Subject Test prep. for others; and our current class novel, Catcher in the Rye for all) and it didn't quite work. What I really wanted to do was just Catcher. But they have these tests, dangnabbit. Such is the life of a teacher.

Did I hear company may be a comin'? Deeeelightful... Take out the chicken to defrost, love, just in case, and I'll make that, too. (Be sure to take it out of the bag it's wrapped in; it defrosts better that way.) Maybe we should get ourselves a grill...

If I close my eyes, it's like I'm already there...

posted by Pips 24 May | 10:12

I already put the keilbasa in the fridge, but I get the boid out too.

posted by jonmc 24 May | 10:14

Look at BP's post above jonmc, be glad I'm not there (though I wish I were!) right now. Sounds so fun!

posted by WolfDaddy 24 May | 10:15

Yeah, any locals wanna hang, gimme a ring.

posted by jonmc 24 May | 10:17

≡ Click to see image ≡
(it's a grill)

posted by Hellbient 24 May | 10:17

Yeah, any locals wanna hang, gimme a ring.

Ugh, if only. Work all day then whorin' out my mad bridge skillz at a tournament tonight (client wants to get to life master status This! Year!)

posted by gaspode 24 May | 10:21

I would love to hang, but I've got a date tonight - wifey's heading out of town for the weekend.

posted by Hellbient 24 May | 10:25

Keilbasa thawed already? Impressive. Yeah, just leave the chicky on the counter... should defrost in time. Thanks, love...

And play a little Tom Waits or John Prine for me; Ize in the mood.

posted by Pips 24 May | 10:30

Damn, if it wasn't for the two surgeries I had this month, I'd be on a jet to join you for a week. heheh

posted by mischief 24 May | 10:34

Now listening to some acoustic Jorma Kaukonen blues (with harmonica).

Bein' a bum can be so fulfilling. ;-P

posted by mischief 24 May | 10:38

Maybe we should get ourselves a grill...

"Maybe?" "Maybe?" Come on, kids! A porch and no grill? Whaddaya thinking? Go get one! Make one! Buy one of those disposable tinfoil jobbies!

This from someone who grills outdoors year round, even in the snow.

posted by Miko 24 May | 10:41

Oh, wow! That reminds me, I brought some Sam Cooke to work today, live at the Harlem Square Club, can't fight the feeling, baby just feel it, just don't fight it, can't fight the feeling... time to make you feel good... I hear someone saying: Uh! Ahh! Uh! Ahh! That's the sound of the men working, Hah! Working on the chain gang, let's do it again!

posted by Hugh Janus 24 May | 10:48

As always, Miko's words are wise and noteworthy.

posted by mischief 24 May | 10:52

Wish I could hang today, but I'm stuck pet/housesitting for the boyfriend for the second weekend in a row. Thanks to the holiday (and airfare pricing, I'll bet) he had to leave Wednesday and is coming back on Tuesday.

Will you be firing up the grill (YES, YOU NEED TO BUY A GRILL!) sometime this weekend? I can give the cat extra food as long as I know in advance which day to overfeed him...

posted by TrishaLynn 24 May | 11:28

Hugh, check yer messages.

posted by jonmc 24 May | 12:06

mmm, somewhere on the block a grill has indeed been fired up.

*breathes deep*

posted by jonmc 24 May | 12:13

Sounds lovely. Any chance of getting a "today" pic of manhattan from your porch?

Either the drink or the skyline. I'm not that picky.

posted by danf 24 May | 12:38

Yes, thou art a wise woman, Miko. I was thinkin' one of those Webber kettles (or is it Weber, like the composer?). I favor charcoal to propane, generally. Plus, there's lighter fluid. My brother lost his eyebrows that way, but he makes a helluva tasty burger (Julia Child's recipe).

(Mischief! How I'd love to see you again, my friend. You don't know how many times I've priced airfare to Vegas; I have Caesar's and the Flamingo bookmarked and love to check their "hot deals." It's like my fantasy vacation... I do it with Royal Caribbean, too.)

posted by Pips 24 May | 14:06

Ah yes, enjoy the porch. Things are a bit steamy here today, but I'm not complaining. I'm just happy that this is distant memory. Might have to fire up the Silver Smoker tonight. Pips, no lighter fluid needed!

Anybody watch the Food Network show last night about Memphis in May? Those people are serious about their BBQ.

posted by Otis 24 May | 14:16

Hugh came over. we drandk beers. wuz fun.

posted by jonmc 24 May | 21:46

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