IN PRAISE OF NEW YORK

NEW YORK BEFORE SANDY

On the Tuesday night of Sandy there were no howling winds in Madison, no high tides, and no surges of water from Mother Nature. We shared a full moon with the east coast; ours spread a beautiful creamy white glow over our northern landscape, theirs was hidden under massive swirling clouds and horizontal rain. We weren't a tenth of the way through unpacking our boxes from our move from our apartment to our house. I found a corner of the sofa where I could curl up. It was the only space where there weren't piles of unhung clothes or heaps of packing blankets. The light from my computer lit up my face and paired with the light from the moon were the only illumination I could find. It was a comforting warm glow just the opposite of the darkness facing so many of our New York and New Jersey friends. With New York in my thoughts I started clicking through some of the old photos I had taken of New York and pulling out the ones that made me smile. So here's a reminder of some of the things that make New York not only the city that doesn't sleep but the city that will always take my breath away and keep my heart beating a tad faster.

I've heard New York has gone to the dogs. I'm not sure what that means. I don't know if that homily is meant to be a bad thing or a good thing.

In New York there seems to be no shortage of available jobs where the application description reads: Must be able to walk on four legs, the hairier the better and under language must be able to speak barkinese. We saw this dog parked on Bleecker in the West Village. I thought it was just someone trying to be cute but this is a serious organization that trains dogs as companions for the elderly or those with health problems. These dogs really do work but on top of a car they also make us smile.

We ran across this dog out walking the streets around the Museum of Natural History. A dog walking the streets in a polka dot dress isn't all that unusual for New York but it was the cross-dressing that caught our eye. He had us completely fooled, you go girl.

Laughing out loud in the environs of a Noho atelier is usually not tolerated. This time it was not only tolerated but encouraged. This alphabet by Brooklyn artist, Mark McGinnis, made me laugh until I snorted.

When "Q" stands for quaalude and "C" stands for camel toe who is going maintain a straight face.

Even Paul Ryan's Eddie Munster frown would change to the Joker's smile with a clandestine peek at these letters from "A" to "Z".

From provocative to inspiring this window display at an upper eastside establishment had me totally joyous. Comprised of a bunch of Barbies and Ken set in a tableau to promote breast cancer awareness the photographic trompe l'oeil wasn't as evident in person as it was once I saw the pictures I had taken.

I had to do a double take when I saw the first image. It almost had me fooled; and that also made me smile.

Anytime I'm in Soho I find myself pulled down Broadway farther than I had intended and sucked into Pearl River. This Asian mercantile has everything and most everything is on the cheap. I've contemplated buying a kimono jacket that looked beautiful on the hanger at less than $30 but would have been totally ridiculous on my growing frame at any event other than perhaps Halloween. And these masks were almost too much to resist. The thought of a row of these pudgy cheeked cherubs setting on a shelf in an urban loft is a design idea I'm dying to bring to fruition.

The last time we were in New York, less than a month before Sandy made her visit, I forced Rick into a sports bar so I could cheer on my beloved Packers on their way to another victory. He wasn't interested, he was almost resistent but he gave in. We found this bar on Amsterdam with what looked like a reasonable bar menu with a decent hamburger. Rick wanted a hamburger so it made the sports bar less a battle. Now I expected to find a room filled with Giants fans but sitting at the biggest table was a huge group of Packer backers all wearing Packer jerseys. I was at home and loving it. Best of all the Packers did win and that always puts a huge smile on my face.

New York has so much to smile about even under five inches of new snow. The electricity will come back on, the snow will melt and the joy of this magnificent city will continue as it always has. You go New York. Where else can you find a man who makes his living selling vintage toasters. I know I'd buy one



SMALL BUSINESS SATURDAY

We will once again participate in Small Business Saturday, the Saturday between Black Friday and Cyber Monday. If you want to participate go to American Express' website: https://www.americanexpress.com/us/small-business/Shop-Small/
and register for your $25 discount card. They are opening up their giveaway registration on November 18th and the amount of cards they will give out is limited. Give it a try and bring in your card to receive a $25 reduction on purchases of $25 or more. We'll also be running a special discount on that Saturday. Hope to see all of you.

THE GALLERY

Chrysler Building, NYC, 1988
Marilyn Bridges, photographer
Represented by Yancey Richardson Gallery, NYC