Neighborhood Threat

I have been wanting to take pictures of “the ladies” (as I have come to refer to them) since earlier this fall. I had occasion to be out in this section of Bushwick almost every day for a month, and almost every day, I drove by this block of buildings (between Irving and Knickerbocker Avenues). I tried taking pictures with my little everyday Casio but it was like shooting a concert at MSG from the blue seats using an Instamatic.

Since I have gotten the new camera, it has then simply been a question of opportunity — when I have been out in that part of town, the light has sucked; when the light has been good, I have not been anywhere near that part of town. But earlier this week, the gods were smiling on me, and the light was perfect.

Here’s a closeup:

Notice the detail on the necklace and the hair.

Every building on this side of the block has her as ornamentation:

The first few times I saw these buildings, I referred to the ladies as Athena, and I am not sure I am incorrect — because at this distance, it almost looks like they are wearing helmets, doesn’t it?

Depending on the angle, she changes expression:

I would love to know the story behind this particular feature. It is not something I have noticed anywhere else around, and trust me I have been looking — on the other hand it is unlikely that it is that unique. Anyone have any other sightings or information?

I am making my way out to the Bushwick-Ridgewood border at the ungodly hour of 8:30 a.m. I am stopped at a traffic light in the middle of the industrial zone.
I realize that I hear amplified music.
I think it is the warehouse next to me, playing the radio over the loudspeaker.
After another few seconds I realize it is louder than that.
MUCH louder than that.
This is concert-level loud.

Hmmm.

I roll down the window and manage to discern that the music in question is Bon Jovi (I think. It’s not like I’ve ever owned any record he has ever made). So my first thought is: “Video shoot?”

(Ya know, the rugged industrial zones of Brooklyn could very well look like, um, New Jersey. Gimme a break, it was early.)

The light changes, and as I drive by, this is the scene across from Waste Management:

My immediate reaction: “Oh, a large blow-up rat! Must be a strike.”

(I don’t know if this is common anywhere else in the country, but in New York this tactic of playing offensive music at Guinness-Book-Of-World-Records-Volume is some new kind of strike innovation.)

Day TWO of water-cessation, parking-space-hogging, noise-generating, motherfucking-inconvenient, lengthy construction project #2, duration unknown (because they were two months off with the last one):

I had time to kill between appointments, and there were some angles and buildings I had been wanting to take pictures of since I moved across the river. Unfortunately, the annoying mist transformed into undeniable rain and cut the expedition short. Full size images on flickr so click through:

my favorites:

[it wasn't until I started shooting this that I realized that it reminded me of one of my favorite images from photography school, a staircase in Sicily taken by Rene Burri in 1956. I still have a postcard of it.]

you really need the full-size image to get the full impact.

I keep taking pictures of this entrance and keep not liking them, but this time I was halfway pleased with the light:

If you have a deli counter, serve sandwiches, are open until 11pm (or, in some cases, 24 hours a day), are on an arterial or other main thoroughfare, and perform a brisk business of workers, truck drivers, car service drivers, and others who require being on the street all day long — can you please explain how it is possible THAT YOU CAN RUN OUT OF BREAD ENTIRELY BY 3PM, thus disabling your ability to BE A DELI and provide sandwiches, as advertised?

Would that not be a sign that, perhaps, you need to order ADDITIONAL BREAD?

Just something to consider.

yr. faithful servant, etc.

What should have been a 10 minute drive over to Graham and Grand ended up taking 45, and the only reason it ended at 45 was because I stopped trying to find a shortcut, parked anywhere and walked. What I thought was a police action of some sort was simply a parade.

In January.

It took some creative Googling to find out what the parade was for (because, short of Philly, parading anywhere outside of California in January strikes me as insane.)

Feliz Día de Reyes Mago, or Three Kings Day, is celebrated on January 6 to commemorate the biblical story of the Three Wise Men, or Magi, who traveled to Bethlehem to give the baby Jesus gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh. The holiday is popular throughout Latin America and Hispanic communities in the United States . In many countries it is Three Kings Day, rather than Christmas Day, when gifts are exchanged. After the parade, the “Three Wise Men” distribute toys to local children.