Holiday Open Thread

By on December 26, 2008 9:13 am in Brooklyn Heights
Flickr photo by brianwferry

Flickr photo by brianwferry

An all-purpose Open Thread to discuss anything you want this week. Comment away!

Share this Story:

←  Older Comments
 →
  • AEB

    Sorry to hear of your spill, nabeguy.

    I often feel that falling is something that only happens to the old(er) and /or infirm, even though I’m past sixty. (Ah, vanity!)

    But a year ago it happened to me; I’m not sure whether the greater pain was physical or to my sense of invulnerability.

  • James

    I would love it if some of my neighbors could help me solve a mystery. For the third winter in a row, I have been driven crazy by a loud, piercing, squeaking noise outside the window of my 5th floor apartment on Remsen St. facing Grace Court Alley. I am certain it is coming from one of the buildings on Grace Court Alley. Does anyone else hear this noise? It sounds vaguely like a broken swing going back and forth constantly. I hear it every year from November through April, so it obviously related to someone’s heater. I have done everything I can think of to get to the bottom of this. I have called my local elected representatives, Judy Stanton, spoken to neighbors, etc. We can all hear the noise, but no one can pinpoint it. Short of climbing people’s roofs, I’m not sure what else I can do. It truly drives me batty, to the point where I must close all my windows and turn music on to drown it out. Any clues would be appreciated.

  • Andrew Porter

    I went to the Christmas Eve Candlelight Service at Plymouth Church of the Pilgrims and had a wonderful time. But then I’m a sucker for Christmas music. Sorry, but “Dreidel Dreidel Dreidel” doesn’t cut it for me. And has anyone been listening to WKCR-FM’s annual Bach Festival, going on through the end of the year? The only problem I have with Christmas is the two months of rotten weather and short days that follows.

    I also want to add that through the wonders of global warming and erratic weather, all the ice has melted off all the sidewalks and most of the street crossings. So go out and perambulate on Christmas Day, boys and girls!

  • http://BrooklynHeightsBlog Karl

    James,

    I had the same sound outside my window near Middaugh. When I went to investigate I found that it was a vent on a roof that rotates when it is windy.

    If it only happens on windy days, this could be the cause.

  • http://deleted paul

    to andrew porter: What is it about “Dreidl Dreidl Dreidl” that doesn’t cut it? It was after all Hanukkah and it was in the spirit of peace on earth and good will to all men that the Plymouth Church decided to take this route. Remember that this was the home to the anti-abolishonist Henry Ward Beecher; it’s legacy is honorable and progressive. It might be a good idea to go to a more conservative church, which supports a more exclusive perspective. What I’m aiming at is that your comment was hurtful and perhaps should have been kept private to your own self and to those who feel the same way as you do.

  • Mike

    I just want to give a heartfelt Thank You to the people that stopped and helped me on Henry St across the street from Cranberry’s Wednesday morning. I took a nasty spill on the ice early morning and landed square on my head. I couldn’t move my arms or legs for 15-20 seconds.

    The guy from Cranberry’s came out and helped me and an Australian (I think) man from across the street brought me a blanket – THANK YOU FOR THAT. As it was one of the more stressful and less enjoyable times of my life, both of you being present and helpful (as well as the other people there) was of great comfort.

    I have lived in the neighborhood for a year and a half now and I always thought everyone here was nice. My ordeal on Wednesday only proved that to be exceedingly true.

    On that note, the doctor at LICH told me that there were about 25 other people in the emergency room with me who had all fallen on the ice. Just shows that you should always be careful. The ice was so bad one of the firefighters almost took a spill with my upon their arrival.

    Thanks again to all the good samaratins from Wednesday.

  • T.K. Small

    Sometimes it is helpful to put a little bit more “meat” on the bones when explaining the necessity of ice removal . For people that use wheelchairs, uncleared sidewalks basically make people prisoners indoors. Just the other night my girlfriend was headed home (she also is in a wheelchair) and she got stuck in the ice for almost 1/2 an hour, until someone rescued her. If no one had happened to walk that way, she might’ve been stuck there for many hours.

    Thankfully it has been warm and the streets are clear. Happy holidays everyone!

  • Monty

    @paul, as a Jew, I have to agree with Andrew that most Hannukah songs don’t hold a candle to most Christmas carols (no pun intended). I don’t think anyone can argue that the Jewish people are among the most prolific and celebrated song writers. Maybe instead of taking offense, we should recruit Neil Diamond, Carol King and Barry Manilow to put out a Hannukah album.

  • http://selfabsorbedboomer.blogspot.com Claude Scales

    How about this version of “Dreidel”?

  • Andrew Porter

    A belated comment: the Plymouth Church of Pilgrims service I attended did NOT include “DDD” in their service. Just my comment that there are thousands of Christmas carols and hymns, and one (count ’em, one) Chanukah song. Boorrring! And even at this late date the WKCR Bach Festival continues.

    (Me, Bar Mitzvahed in 1959 at Stephen Wise Free Synagogue, but non-religious due to 40 year exposure to Witness HQ on Columbia Hghts, and my own experiences.)

  • Yaakov

    Actually, there are a number of other songs traditionally sung at Hannukah (e.g. Maoz Tzur – Rock of Ages). But that’s kind of missing the point. Comparing Christmas and Hannukah makes no sense. One is a major religious holiday, the other is a minor observance with little to no religious significance.

←  Older Comments
 →