JawsBlog

This year’s Super Bowl was quite a good game.
The commercials left a lot to be desired, but the game itself was a classic battle. Such a close game is much preferable to a rout in my opinion.

Needless to say, once the final Hail Mary pass fell in the end zone, the partying began on the avenue.

Here’s some videos of the local scene

(Sorry, the embed feature isn’t working)

An interesting piece from today’s Post on the history of NYC’s (stringent) gun control laws.

Politics aside–I found the history lesson to be of interest….

Word is Mayor Bloomberg wants to roll out a NYC bike share program for 2012.

It sounds fine in theory…but what is to prevent people from stealing the bikes?

Also–if there’s a bike share program, will there be a complementary bike helmet share program?
(This is what you get when you’re around Neurologists too often)

So apparently there was an East Coast Earthquake today.

It was odd.-at the office (on the ground floor)–no one felt anything. Nor did anyone know that an earthquake had taken place, had people not started calling/texting us that something took place.

Perhaps that’s for the better?

At the Kosher butcher shop:

Salt-phobe Lady: “Is all your meat salted”

Butcher shop guy: “Yes, of course”

Lady: “Oh, that’s no good then…too much sodium”

Lady to me: “That’s a kosher thing”.

Me: (nods head in acknowledgement)

(Note: All Kosher meat that you’ll find in a butcher is already soaked and salted)

It’s cloudy out now…which makes me optimistic that we could see some (much needed) rain here today.

In fact–I’m really rooting for it to rain.

Not just because it would cool things down overall–but because it makes me feel much less guilty about staying indoors on a weekend!

Fire Devastates Synagogue Under Repair in Manhattan

This is a nearby shul that I frequent. Architecturally speaking, the main sanctuary is simply beautiful. It is (was?) built in the architectural style of shuls from the turn of the century. Large stained glass windows and very well lit.

On the positive side, none of the sifrei torah were in the shul (secondary to renovations) In addition, no lives were lost in the fire.

This was an exhibit I’d seen a little over a year ago back in Holon at the Israeli Children’s Museum (Link is in English)

Now while reading the local paper here today, I find out that a similar exhibit is opening downtown at the South Street Seaport: Dialogue in the Dark

It’s definitely worth visiting! I can’t praise it highly enough!

While it’s not going to be able to compare to the Met or any of NYC’s other iconic museums, it still sounds really cool

One Math Museum, Many Variables

Since I like Math and Museums–this holds great promise….

This was the big surprise when I got home from work yesterday

Blaze Breaks Out in Basement of Second Avenue Building

There were a good 5-7 fire engines, countless fire chief cars, ambulances and more. Fortunately though, it appears no one was hurt. The building though is mostly boarded up now and smells of smoke (when you walk by)…

Today I decided to take advantage of the weather and finally visit the High Line

It”s a nice little walk on the city’s West Side. It’s nice, but narrow and small. Conceptually though, it’s a different way of thinking on what constitutes a “park”.

Personally, I like Central Park better….

Bonus: I mentioned my excursion to The Sister, only to find out that she’s never been!

This morning when returning from my weekly grocery run, in the Union Square station, I think I may have seen a dead body. I didn’t stand around, but in a yellow taped off corner, I saw three EMTs (Or were they from the ME’s office?) around a body, which was half covered with a white sheet.
(the sheet was pulled back to show the upper body). There was no stretcher present nor did the paramedics/ME officials seem to be doing much. Was it a dead person? If so, that’s both scary and sad.

So Tuesday night my sister arranged for a “surprise” Birthday dinner for me at Japanese Kosher eatery Prime KO

I put “surprise’in quotes, as the Little Brother indirectly tipped me off that something was up.

The attendees included Mr and Mrs. Curious Jew, Mr. Engineer w/ Mrs. 1L, Mrs. mother of the twins and her sister. (An assortment of cousins–I won’t use their real name here).

Though I’d had a rough day at work Tuesday (the reasons for which are not appropriate for this blog), it was fun to not only see everyone, but also to enjoy some really tasty food. While I’m not a sushi person, everyone who had sushi raved about the “freshness and flavor” of the fish.

Then The Sister had also Conspired to get me a birthday fruit bowl–as she knows how I feel about cake. It’s quite funny to see a bowl of fruit with a candle in it. Thankfully though my hair didn’t catch on fire (like at another table that evening).

In all a good time was had with family, and it helped me salvage myself from an otherwise rotten day.

Another 19″ of snow in the past 24 hours.

The largest amount of snow recorded in a January in the City ever.

As my father would tell me: “it builds character”

Okay, so the killer storm that was being forcast for NYC?

A few inches of snow…

In contrast Massachusetts got whalloped with a storm,

Though here some businesses did shut down for the day which hampered my work (damn you insurance companies)…

It’s winter time though people–what do you expect?

The forecast is for 6-16 inches of snow here in NYC (varies by source).

Last week we were supposed to get a lot of snow too…but it didn’t stick.

The big question is will the Department of Sanitation actually toe the line this time around.

Dear annoying Jets fans on Second Avenue–

I understand that you’re excited by your team’s last minute victory over Indianapolis. However, you’ve been standing outside the local dive-bar, drunk, chanting and hollering. Not only that but you’ve been dabbling in and out of the street, which leads to car horns being sounded.

I can both see and hear that you are are clearly drunk. While that is understandable, why can’t you keep your chanting to in the bar? That way people won’t be honking their horns, nor will it be as loud outside when I attempt to sleep this evening?

Speaking of which, since one of the local watering holes is named “Brady’s” and before the ’08 Super Bowl it changed its signage to “Maning’s”…will it be called “Sanchez’” this week?

The outrage over the NYC blizzard continues to grow. Now a Councilman is claiming a pre-planned slowdown

It’s just a bunch of epic local fail…

So my commute to The Work this morning–sucked. That’s being polite.

It was still snowing when I left The Apartment (5:20am ish). Most streets didn’t’appear to be plowed.The Avenues looked to have at least been plowed more recently. Even worse, plowing the avenues left sizable snow beams at the end of the blocks where the avenues and streets meet. Sidewalks for the most part were a completely lost cause at that hour. I decided to walk up to the cross-town street and walked in the road. There was a virtual absence of vehicular traffic. In fact, there were more people than cars!

Walking down the street, there was car partially spun diagonally in the middle of the road. It was unoccupied but had its hazard lights on. On the sides of the street there weer a few unoccupied taxis, also diagonal, covered in mounds of snow.

The Lexington Avenue train ran normally for me. When I got to 59th Street, to transfer to the N/Q/R [I get on whichever shows up first] I stood and waited. And waited. Then over the PA system comes the announcement that there will be no trains at that station.

Now I”m left with the puzzle of how to get across town to Hells Kitchen where I work.

I get out of the train station and take in Bloomingdale’s holiday windows (thankfully they’d snowblown their sidewalks). I walked down to E 57th street, where the M31 and M57 run across town. I stood with a few others in the road–as there was a sizable snow beam from the curb. It was also a good 2-3 feet in height no less!

And so I waited in the ocld for a while, and then after seeing no bus for what seemed like ages, said “screw it..I’m walking”.
There I was, strolling down a semi-lplowed 57th Street. Just as I’d seen on 86th street, there were spun our and abandoned cars in the middle and on the side of the road. The sidewalks were hit or miss around there, so it was easiest to stay on the road.

So in pure character building fashion, I hiked my way down the street, in the darkness, through the snow drifts Bags on both my shoulders (one with food the other my gym bag). And I walked and walked. Neither of the cross-town buses passed by. Eventually I made it to my destination, a bit winder, but psyched nonetheless.

After the gym, and fighting to find some warm water in the showers (it was a Monday after all) I google-mapped my trek. All 1.2 miles of it. Pretty cool–but it left me really tired for the rest of the day.

The commute home was thankfully easier. It’s now stopped snowing and the sidewalks were mostly shoveled. The snow prevented a majority of the office from even coming in today too!

When I went outside this AM (I don’t usually bother looking out the window)–there was snow on the ground! Finally!

Alas, it was what those of us from Cleveland would consider a mere “dusting”. Speaking of Cleveland, The Brother was off school for a second straight day due to wind-chills.

My instruction to him was simple: “Go shovel the walk…it builds character”

Alas, my words didn’t find the most receptive audience…