Category Archives: Viva!

Watch Out: NYPD Starts 2-Week Bicyclist Crackdown Today!: Gothamist

Will the police knock bicyclists off their bikes to ticket them? Block the bike lane to ticket bicyclists? Hand out tickets for not wearing helmets (should be a field day with Citi Bike users)? Hand out pamphlets for “psycho cyclists”? Does Alec Baldwin know about this?!?

Anything could happen. Send your experiences to tips@gothamist.com.

via Watch Out: NYPD Starts 2-Week Bicyclist Crackdown Today!: Gothamist.

Party People on the Streets of Blackpool

Blackpool was never the Riviera. Twenty years ago, William E. Schmidt, a correspondent for The New York Times, wrote a travel article in which he said, “Even by the dreary standards of so many British beach resorts — foul water and worse weather — Blackpool is in a league of its own.”

via Party People on the Streets of Blackpool.

German Artists Say They Put White Flags on Brooklyn Bridge – NYTimes.com

the artists, Mischa Leinkauf and Matthias Wermke, say the flags had nothing to do with terrorism. They only wanted to celebrate “the beauty of public space” and the great American bridge whose German-born engineer, John Roebling, died in 1869 on July 22, the day the white flags appeared.

The artists decided recently to explain themselves, and provided slightly cryptic pictures and videos of the flags, seemingly shot at night from atop the bridge. They point to other such projects they’ve done in far-flung places that haven’t made waves, and they claimed to be somewhat taken aback by the reception here.

via German Artists Say They Put White Flags on Brooklyn Bridge – NYTimes.com.

Annie Lennox Responds To Gaza Blog Comments – Look to the Stars

The singer and activist has been blogging about the situation in Gaza over the last few weeks, but her thoughts have caused a stir among those who read them, with many choosing sides.

“Over the last few weeks my blogs have been mainly focused on the plight of thousands of innocent civilians trapped in Gaza (many of whom are young children) who have been the victims of bombing raids,” she wrote. “Whichever way you look at the arguments for and against on either side, it is abominable that any human being should have to suffer on such a scale.

“I have read most of the comments posted on my blogs. The entire spectrum of viewpoints has been well represented… from hate filled bigotry to more rational viewpoints, all passionately expressed. Somewhat predictably it is so often “There is only one side… and if you’re not with us, you’re against us.”

“For me, this kind of perspective only ever leads to destruction as the inevitable end game. The possibility for long term sustainable peace should be the only goal. But it seems that after decades of abuse, the situation is further away from a positive solution than it ever was. How many more innocent people must be slaughtered? How many lives shattered?

“Latest developments across the entire Middle East seem to be rapidly turning the region into an even bigger tinder keg of madness and extremism. What’s the end game? I personally don’t see how this can turn out well. I don’t know how other people are feeling, but I find this all deeply disquieting.”

via Annie Lennox Responds To Gaza Blog Comments – Look to the Stars.

Dahr Jamail | Open Source Farming: A Renaissance Man Tackles the Food Crisis

Breskin’s project has already increased the overall profitability of the farm where it is implemented. It has reduced total energy costs by 50 percent by running on around $2 per day; appears likely to have generated a 10-month growing season; has caused productivity increases per square foot and per plant – and appears likely to be expanding soon.

The entire project was built for $10,000, and it has already produced more than that amount in food alone.

But rather than aiming to make money on it, Breskin is more concerned about improving the system and getting it into the hands of more local farmers as quickly as possible.

“I’m open source,” he said. “The only reason to patent this is to keep someone else from patenting it in order to monetize it.”

via Dahr Jamail | Open Source Farming: A Renaissance Man Tackles the Food Crisis.

Covina man stays active at 101

Every morning, Gilbert Martinez wakes up does a set up pushups and sit-ups. Most days, he’ll go on a walk and play a game of chess with a friend.

The Covina resident’s daily schedule would be typical if it weren’t for his age — Martinez turned 101 Aug. 6.

The senior walks to Joslyn Senior Center at 815 N. Barranca Ave. in Covina many days of the week, insisting on an independent lifestyle, instead of using city transit.

via Covina man stays active at 101.

Incredible journey: one wolf’s migration across Europe | Henry Nicholls | Science | The Guardian

Slavc is a wolf. In 2011, he began an epic 2,000 kilometre migration across Europe from Slovenia to Italy via the Austrian Alps. Several months earlier, he had been fitted with a collar that allowed his movements to be tracked in incredible detail. I talked to Hubert Potočnik, the biologist whose work made this possible

via Incredible journey: one wolf’s migration across Europe | Henry Nicholls | Science | The Guardian.

10 Traits of the Bad Witch. | Rebelle Society

No matter how toned-down you allow yourself to be in dress or demeanor, you still make people nervous just by your very presence. There are things that can be done to mitigate this, but it’s probably unavoidable.

For folks who are looking to external authorities to tell them what’s good and beautiful and okay, the presence of you — someone who is wholly reliant on inner authority — is inherently disturbing.

Your presence is disturbing because others can sense there’s something about you that’s unpredictable and uncontrollable. You’re not being ruled by the conventional programs, so you’re not immediately legible to people who still allow themselves to be ruled.

via 10 Traits of the Bad Witch. | Rebelle Society.

From O’Connell Street to Instagram

Was once watching television with an ancient photo of my grandmother taken a year before she died in 1914. Nothing good on so I was surfing the TV. Stopped on a documentary on TB in New York City. They were talking about the first modern treatment center built Saranac Lake by a NYC doctor. Edison visited it and took an early film of it. When I heard Saranac Lake I paid closer attention, as the halting camera focused on a woman sitting on the veranda. There sat my grandmother, 80 years ago alive, and she sat next to me in a portrait photo taken in the same dress. Amazing photography along with drawing and painting – the original time machine!

matteringsofmind

No one is really sure on the numbers, but it was recently estimated that of all the pictures ever taken around the world over the last 200 years, fifty percent of them were shot last year. This is not so surprising when you consider that there are 1.5 billion smart phones in use today each with a digital camera built in. Over 200,000 pictures are uploaded to face book every minute of every day.

Standing on my desk is a silver frame that houses a small black and white grainy photograph that I took of my long departed mother on the beach in Tramore, Ireland nearly 40 years ago. Every day that I look at it the more distant, Scan0029the more faded it looks. I took the picture and presumably 11 others on a cheap box brownie camera, although what they were of and where those others are is lost…

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vintage everyday: Bertha Benz driving the Benz Patent-Motorwagen, c. 1886

Woman responsible for worldwide use of automobiles –

Bertha Benz driving the Benz Patent-Motorwagen, c. 1886

Bertha Benz (1849–1944) was the wife and business partner of automobile inventor Karl Benz. In 1888, she was the first person to drive an automobile over a long distance. In doing so, she brought the Benz Patent-Motorwagen worldwide attention and got the company its first sales.

via vintage everyday: Bertha Benz driving the Benz Patent-Motorwagen, c. 1886.