Letter to my council member

Dear council member:

Ever since 9/11 we have had to struggle to maintain our rights to free speech. New Laws have been passed to restrict our freedoms in the name of security.

In the New York Times Today on the front page of the Metro Section, there is an article on a new bill allowing more regulations on anybody with a camera.

I see photography as a valuable tool for recording history and for informing a larger audience visually.

Please help. I have a degree in photography, it is my hobby and my identity. Without my rights to express myself and display my love of New York City, I will find somewhere else to love.

thank you
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P.S. here is the link, City May Seek Permit and Insurance for Many Kinds of Public Photography Hopefully you won't have to log in.

ARE YOU OUTRAGED? Look up your council member and tell them if you live in New York City. If you don't live in New York City, pick a council member and write them anyway, and express to them your feelings about this.

Thanks Lee, for encouraging me to do more than just read the article.

6/23, 6/24 (pt 2)

Midtown, Manhattan

Upper East Side, Manhattan

Jackson Heights, Queens

Meatpacking District

Sunnyside, Queens

6/23, 6/24

Sunday:

Park Slope, Brooklyn

Hell's Kitchen / Times Square District, Manhattan

Ship Terminal, Hells Kitchen, Manhattan

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Saturday:

Jersey City, New Jersey

Lower East Side / Alphabet City / East Village, Manhattan

Sunday 6/17 (pt 3)

East Village, Manhattan

Inwood, Manhattan

Midtown, Manhattan

SoHo, Manhattan

Midtown, Manhattan

Midtown, Manhattan

Inwood Manhattan

sunday 6/17 (pt 2)

SoHo, Manhattan

Inwood, Manhattan


Washington Heights, Manhattan


NoHo, Manhattan

top 13 questions in this order

This is a lame post, oh well:

q1. Are you actually from New York?
a1. "Yes"

q2. You're American?
a2. Puzzled look on my face followed by a pause, and then "Yes."

q3. Why are you doing this job?
a3. "Cause it's fun."

q4. Were you here when the Trade Center fell down?
a4. "I saw it on TV, then I went for a walk. There was smoke for days. Some days smoke would blow to Jersey, some days it would blow to Brooklyn. We couldn't go downtown, it was closed."

q5. Are you new?
a5. "Uhh, yes. I've been driving for around 2 years off and on, only on weekends now."

q6. Can I smoke?
a6. "Yes if you roll down the windows, and make sure the smoke is blowing out of the cab." Or, "No." It's illegal, I have asthma, and it is unfair to later passengers.

q7. How old are you?
a7."26."

q8. Can you take me to Brooklyn?
a8. "Of course, do you know how to get there?" I use all modesty in case I get lost. Most people are very friendly as they know it is hard to get a ride out of Manhattan.

q9. Can you take me to Queens?
a9. Same as above.

q10. Where is the Lincoln Tunnel?
a10. "Go to 42nd Street and follow the traffic."

q11. Know of any good bars here?
a11. "I don't drink and drive, so I wouldn't know." There are thousands upon thousands of bars in the city. If I knew a good bar in every neighborhood I wouldn't have a job, I'd be an alcoholic.

q12. You get a lot of freaks in your cab?
a12. "No." I bet you're a freak.

q13. What is your other job, or what do you do with the rest of your time?
a13. You're reading it right now.

Sunday 6/17

Meatpacking District, Manhattan

Long Island City, Queens

Kingsbridge, The Bronx

Midtown, Manhattan

saturday 6/16

Houston Street (howston), Manhattan

East River

NoHo / East Village, Manhattan

Downtown, Manhattan

Chinatown, Manhattan

Upper East Side? Midtown?, Manhattan

Upper East Side, Manhattan

Far West Side, Manhattan

Far West Side, Manhattan

6/09, 6/10

Sunday:

Newark Airport, NJ

Downtown, Manhattan


Saturday:

Tribeca, Manhattan

Lower East Side/East Village, Manhattan

Bowery, Manhattan

The Good, The Bad, and Just Short of Ugly

Saturday I had the pleasure of being someone’s personal therapist. He first told me he didn't speak English too well. He handed me his cell phone so I could confirm how to arrive at his destination, he gets in: 


He: “Man I’m so wasted.”


Me: “You're okay though? You’re doing fine right? Are you okay?”


He: Yeah, uh yeah I’m okay.”


I rolled down some windows. As we headed towards the Brooklyn Bridge he started to unload his story.

He: “I met this other Japanese Girl. But fuck it man, fuck that, if she don’t want me, that’s her problem yo, right? Besides I ain’t got time for this, I gotta be real son.”

His arms were at my right shoulder illustrating his night, and his face was framed in my partition. His voice carried through the open windows, and the cabbie to my right looked at me, we both had a laugh.

I enquired deeper, which didn’t take much prodding, into his predicament.

His boss at the record store had introduced them that night at a party. He was very excited to meet another Japanese girl, as he was also Japanese. But he was feeling that this night hadn't gone so well, he thought maybe he wouldn't see her again. He was really quite emotional, yet at the same time he tried to mask his feelings with Machismo.

He: “I got better things to do, I gotta get on with my life. Though she had you know, she wasn’t just a beautiful girl, she had you know?-“

Me: “Brains?”

He: “Yeah! Brains”

Me: “She could think?”

He: “She was a thinking girl.”

Me: “She was smart, yeah?”

He: “I dunno if she’s ever going to see me again, I think I really screwed up. I think she likes the boss more than me. She said she was going to stop by the record store on Sunday, but what if she doesn’t?”

Me: “Does your boss like her too?”

He: “Nah man, he introduced me to her. They know each other, she doesn't know me. I wasn’t respectful, I really screwed up.” He cradled his head in his hands, and then receded into the back seat releasing a breath. Soon he was back at the Plexiglas, New York’s confession booth.

Me: “If she’s a smart girl, she’ll come back, and if she likes the record store she’ll come back.”

He: “Uhh, I hope so.” His voice was trembling.

It was as if she was his entire life, and he felt that he’d thrown it all away. I wondered if the alcohol made him feel so hopelessly romantic, or if he really felt such an attachment to a girl he just met.

Me: “But if she never comes back, you got other weekends and other parties, and one girl shouldn’t be worth worrying so much over. Do you party?”

He: “Nah, not so much. This was a work party… But it is not so important; I have to live my life. I have to move on, I’m 25.”

Me: “Awesome I’m 26!”

He: ”I was born in December.”

It turns out he was born 363 days after me. I told him that us Sagittarians were philosophical; I stole that from JIm Morrison who stole it from somewhere else. It was really cool making somebody feel better and actually relating to them for a change. 


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And then the next day quite the opposite fare: 

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A couple I picked up in the Lower East Side (Ludlow Street between Stanton and Rivington Streets) requested 9th Avenue and 30th Street. I found Allen Street from Rivington, and proceeded up 1st Avenue. They were kissing every 2 minutes, but then she would interrupt each time:

“No”

“I gotta pee.”

I checked the rearview mirror to check for consensual behavior, and it was apparent to me that both were just drunk and in a state of mind somewhere in between logic and desire.

I was thinking for a long while about which street to take west. Should I take 29th street? Why don’t I just take 31st Street? 9th Avenue goes south and so to get to 9th and 30th would require driving north to go south. I had a brain fart and forgot that 31st Street doesn’t meet up with 1st Avenue. So I had to go up 33rd Street, and I would later take 31st Street to 9th Avenue. It was no issue I figured since they were so busy with each other.

The man took notice that we were at 33rd and 2nd Avenue.

“Hey why are we at 33rd and 2nd? We asked for-" yada yada

I stumbled over my words: “Yeah sorry I should have taken 29th but this complex cuts off 31st.

Problem solved so I thought, but the girl really had to pee. At Broadway and 31st Street the girl repeatedly asks to go to 9th and 30th, my answers each time: 


“That’s where I’m going


That’s where I’m going


That’s where I’m going”


Rightfully so this was interpreted as: Shut up bitch and I’ll take you there.

Guy says: “Well you sure are taking the longest way possible.”

Both say: “Yeah we’re only at Broadway, we’re still downtown” Dumb asses.

So I kick them out:

Guy says: “You don’t expect us to pay do you?” the fare was 9.80

Me: “Fine, just get the fuck out.”

I almost crash into the cab next to me, because in my discomfort, I forget to check my blind spot. Just before I was given the cab that morning, the dispatcher told me that he trusted me, and that I need to take it easy with this one. It had 7,445 miles on it, and you could smell the fresh upholstery.

I apologized to the cabbie that almost drove into my side: “My customers are being assholes, I’m sorry.” It was miraculous that he didn’t hit me.

I hope she peed herself walking those four blocks home, and then broke up with him. I may walk by 9th and 30th, and check for the swankiest douche bag apartment building.

Sunday: Pissing in Midtown

Something we rarely think of as priority is our need to piss. Quickly I think two thoughts; Just where would it be easiest to park, and which places have the easiest to access bathrooms? Every once in a while I think I may need to take a number two. There are few toilets I designate as clean enough to sit on. We taxi drivers love to talk about good fares and traffic, but bathrooms are never mentioned. There was this one particular cabbie whom often started his shift at the same time as me. He always wore a smile on his face, so we often would talk. He gave me two things to remember:

lesson 1) Sometimes JFK airport is worth waiting at, and I should learn how it works, depsite how complicated it is. He once made 50 bucks going there, and 20 to 30 minutes later, made 60 going back.

lesson 2) Keep a bottle and piss in it.

So far I have yet to do either. I asked him if perhaps this is why taxis smell bad, I of course was joking. Taxis smell more like tobacco then piss. They used to smell of curry, but that is rare now.

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It was early in the morning and I had to go just a bit. I keep a scale of 1-20 on how bad I gotta go, this was a 4. At 6:45 in the morning, the most profitable strategy would be to wait at a hotel, the lines were more then 10 cars deep, maybe 20. So now was a good time to piss. I thought about the Apple Store which is open 24 hours. Despite midtown looking like a ghost town, I still had to find a parking spot about two blocks away, but I enjoyed the walk, and felt really high class.

There is a lot less to think about on sundays



I just had to get the shot of the parking sign here. You can click on all my pictures to get a larger window. I felt the sign needed context so I got the Trump Tower and the Gucci ad.

About a half a minute later a man walks by and stares at the ad. I took a look back and did a double take.

(trip sheet photo soon to come too) --- later --- screw it, no more trip sheet photos

Saturday

Saturday was full of unusual sites, but I didn't write anything yet

It is relatively unusual for me to visit the car wash, but the car had a layer of dirt. There are two car wash places that the garage re-imburses me for. If the taxi is too dirty, I can get a ticket from the Taxi and Limousine Commision who have their own patrol officers.

6/02, 6/03

Times Square, Manhattan

Javits Center, Manhattan

West Village, Manhattan

Hell's Kitchen, Manhattan

Rego Park, Queens

Manhattan Bridge, Downtown, Brooklyn

Times Square, Manhattan

Chinatown, Manhattan

Fort Greene, Brooklyn

Sunnyside, Queens