downtown

(with apologies to petula clark)

when i'm alone
and heat is making me woozy
i can always go...downtown

actually i live downtown
but a mile further south
and it's cool and breezy
in the shade
at battery park city.

and in the crystal palace
of the world financial center
it's downright chilly.


facing east toward the hudson


facing west toward ground zero

and from the very end of the island
the ferry to staten island
is free





there's a wonderful tibetan museum
on staten island
that isn't open on mondays.

stay tuned. it's on my list

aaaand ...it's summer again

another set of
90 degree days begins,
lulling us with low humidity
and clear skies...





nothing for it but
the high line with
the sunday times,
lots of caffeine
a walk along the hudson







and through the west village
and relaxing in the garden out back
behind my apartment building...







(if anyone can tell me
what this white flower,
aromatic and
enamored of bumblebees is
do, please)

rain and october

it was actually chilly
on wednesday. felt like
october. drizzled all morning.
in the afternoon three of us
showed up for life drawing.
(sometimes there are 40!)



squirrels peppered us with nutshells
and rain from their trees.
i wasn't especially focused
but i do like the effect of
the arbitrary drops on the paper

governors island

governor's island is a
seven minute ferry ride from
battery park.
the public is welcome on
fridays staurdays and sundays.
lots of activities and art
and for me lots of abstraction.

wednesday sketches

big bambu

to climb the starn brothers 'big bambu' -
the ongoing rooftop installation
at the metropolitan museum -
there are guidelines

the most frustrating: carry nothing.
no cameras, no cellphones.
so no shots from on high, from the
platform fifty feet above the roof where
the breeze ruffles the bamboo leaves.

the view from above is a joy, the construction a marvel.
rock climbers are lashing, tying, weaving the bamboo together with
miles of colorful nylon rope in a tangle of organized chaos.

the construction is ongoing
and will continue until october 31,
the last day of the exhibition.

these were shot from the roof itself.

dreams

chelsea afternoon

until the rain came
i lounged on the high line.
then i visited some galleries.
with dilated pupils some things looked
more interesting than they are.
as usual
what i saw on the street
interested me more than
what i saw
on the walls