Rebuild the Towers ... Although the twin towers were really pretty ugly, except at sunset or in the mist, I personally think they should just rebuild the towers exactly the way they were, right way, except maybe correcting some of the burn flaws and aesthetic errors. That would make a better statement to the world than all this crapping around about the footprint, the bathtub, the towers of light, the memorial, the loved ones, the brave firemen, the cops, the grief struck iron mongers cutting the tangled girders on the building they spent 10 years putting up, the brave window washers that died doing their job, and all that etc. People think hat no one would want to work in replacement towers cause they are a 3x target, but I bet people would rent the space right away, I know I would. The more I hear about it, the more convinced i am they should just get on with it and rebuild them pretty much the way they were as fast as possible. That would be the best statement to the world, the terrorists, and the people that think we needed to be taught a lesson. Last month I took my bike downtown and was riding around in the park around the SI Ferry when i came upon this crushed up golden globe like statue thing. I stood there looking at this strange crumbled art wondering why does this thing look so familiar? It was never here in the Battery before... when I realized it was the arrogent gold globe sculpture that used to sit in the middle of the WTC plaza that got crushed when the towers fell. They have set it up in Battery Park with an eternal flame and a little plaque. I immediatly burst into tears. As far as I'm concerned that is enough memorial for me.
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Towers on 110th Street... Went to the neighborhood meeting Tuesday Night about what's happening on 110th Street. Now that we have spent 2 years living through the Columbia Construction on the corner of 110th and Broadway for the inappropriate Primary School and apartments, the moving of our bus stop to a mid-residential-block so sleepers can enjoy the heaving of the Number 4 bus starting around 4:30 am, we learned that the owner of the NE corner of the intersection has decided to put up a luxe condominium tower. What does the neighborhood lose? The best market in the neighborhood- The West Side Market with all its wierd Gourmet choices, bakery goods, and reasonable produce, Columbia Bagels, Mailboxes Etc. ( my place for cheap copies on my way to court) Dynasty Restauraunt, and the methadone clinic. Each of these amenities has a special place in the life of the neighborhood- even the clinic, which reminds us of how seedy the area was not that long ago. The biggest loss will be the West Side market, a source for cheap vegetables and fruit. It will have its biggest impact on the eating habits of all the people on fixed incomes who can't get to the used vegetable store down at 104 and Amsterdam. A head of lettuce at West Side is usually $1 a head- while the Dag's has it for $1.79 a pound. Baby Carrots are 1.29 at West Side, Dag's has them for 1.79 except for when they are on sale. And then theres the fact that it will no longer be possible to run down to the market at midnight for some fresh strawberries or ice cream before going to bed. People that come to dinner parties at my house wait until they get off the train to pick up fruit or some specialty to bring. We even rushed down there New years at 1 am to get some more cheese and some seltzer for drinks. Such convenience will be sorely missed. We still miss the Woolworth Store which was replaced with the Footlocker. Things that were avaiable in one trip to the Woolworths now take planning and 2 days of going to different stores out of the area to obtain. The older ladies that liked to crochet had to give it up, cause they can't buy crochet thread in the neighrbohood anymore. We also can't buy nice cheap cotton underwear, Parakeets, Canaries, Goldfish, inexpensive hardware, Lampshades, pots and pans, graters and all sorts of cheap little kitchen gadgets. They had bedroom slippers and cheap cotton sandles, nightgowns, pajamas, no run pantihose, rayon stockings, and half slips, stupid little novelties like the porcelin hen sitting in a basket nest, little starfighters and rubber duckies, board games, Ouija Boards and costumes for halloween, lots and lots of cheap garish cosmetics, dynel hairpieces, hair nets, and color rinses to fool around with. Woolworths was the place to go if you had a craft or sewing project, or just needed a quick fix for your clothing. They carried their own brand of sewing notions which were excellent, iron on tape for a quick hem, rick-rack , and quilting supplies different colored thread, needles and crochet hooks, yarn, fabric, and interfacing. In short, all the things for a full household in a civilized society. Now that Footlocker is finally closing, I wonder if the West Side market will move there.

Rudeness of Cars... Have you noticed that people coming out of cross streets on Broadway no longer bother using turn signals? It's a kind of guessing game here at 110th. Is he going to go straight, or turn? Does that wobble indicate he's going to turn? Is it safe to cross the street? I've got the signal, how about if I just go through the intersection on my bike? Will I get run over cause he's really going to turn? It's not possible any more to tell where cars are going. And with the double park situation right on top the intersection, double parked food trucks, Con Ed emergency vehicles, Moms dropping their kids off at the new school, and turning Number 4 buses, cars get impatient. They make these little agressive rushes when they think they have the light, honking their horns impatiently and going fast without using their turn signals. The situation has become nightmarish. The other new thing is cars honking their horns at you if you are not moving fast enough. They do this constantly - to pedestrians, bikes, and other cars. If I am driving on, for instance 89th street on the block where there is a school, I tend to poke along if there is a red light up at Amsterdam, cause I don't want to hit any kids that may pop out from between cars, and the light up ahead is red and I'll just have to wait anyway. This attitude drives SUVs crazy. They honk and honk, and try to sneak their huge vehicles around me, so they can rush up to a red light and slam on their brakes. Here on 110th a friend of mine had an accident last week after a rude SUV that kept blowing his horn at her, forcing her to move in a tight space created by double parked trucks. The sun was at just the wrong angle, blinding her, and she hit a traffic pole. The honking SUV just sped away. What we really need is a remote that mutes car horns. Some idiot is behind you blowing his horn for no reason, and you just press the remote button with a directional finder on your dash board and his horn goes silent. Pedestrians would carry a more conventional remote with them to shut up cars that are honking because they are not moving fast enough on their walkers. There could be a long distance remote and you could aim out the window at night to silence offending car alarms. Yeah.