Whistling in the dark » NY

Do you know someone who has made New York a better place? and NY Newspapers online

Yaffa — Sun, 16 Aug 2009 04:15:39 +0000

NY Post screengrab - Click on the image and click on all sizes to view it larger for yourself.

This screengrab is from today. A story about an ex-professor getting prison time for possessing child porn ends with, “Some of the photos found on the 62-year-old’s computer depicted infants being sexually abused.” It is followed by the question: “Do you know someone who has made New York a better place? Nominate your hero for the 8th Annual New York Post Liberty Medals.” [link to story here]

The New York Post has sometimes been known for fun wordplay Headless Body in Topless Bar: The Best Headlines from America’s Favorite Newspaper in this case an editor should have picked up on this. It makes it seem like the Internet is an afterthought and the staff doesn’t bother to find the time to check what will end up on the screen. Big mistake: I would guess more people are reading the story this way than in print. Can anyone help me get the numbers to back this up?

You get another NY-based paper going through a web redesign [via: via] that prioritizes the display over content. The paper is a ditz with a status update and shiny pictures.

On the other hand the NY Times is doing neat things with their website – data visualizations, game, ads, facebook, facebook app, twitter, global edition, NY Times Reader.

RIP Free Events NY (2004-2008) / Finding Things to Do in NYC

Yaffa — Sun, 02 Nov 2008 19:32:37 +0000

I just deleted the Free Events NY group on Yahoo!. I started it on June 20, 2004. I had created a master list of free events going on in NYC organized by date for my benefit so I could look up a specific day and see what was on. I decided to share it with whoever would be interested via the Yahoo! group. Over the years thousands of events were posted.

I thoroughly enjoyed a lot of the events and was happy to share my efforts to organize them. I got some sweet thank you emails from a number of members. There were also the random emails from people who couldn’t figure out how to download the files, the messages I had to delete when people tried to post events that were not free – the title of the group was too mysterious and unclear and responding to RSVP emails when people didn’t notice that I was not the person who needed the response.

I have moved to England and so I finally pulled the plug today. There were still 1230 members even though it had not been updated in about a year. The upcoming.org group still exists, though I don’t post events, but I gladly moderate through what people choose to share every so often.

Besides the resources below, general tips on finding what to do with yourself in NYC…If there’s a venue or community organization you like – find their website and subscribe to their calendar. On the websites of book stores you can find out about author events in your area. Check out New York City’s Parks Department website for info about events in your local park. You can do the same for your local library. Also, if there is a college or university near you they may have events that are open to the public. Many cultural organizations have facebook pages and twitter feeds as another way to communicate with you – do a few searches on your favorite social networking site.

There are loads of things going on. Realize you can’t do it all. Give yourself some time to recharge. Enjoy every minute.

Online resources for NYC:

NewYorkology
The best guide to NYC for locals and tourists. It’s still in my RSS reader.
NewYorkology Links page
Links to official sites for NYC’s (mostly free) summer concerts and film series, Pro sports teams, Alt-cinema theaters and venues, Tours and tour guides (divided by categories), Broadway shows, Hotels, Essential blogs, Auction houses, Museums, Iconic shopping sites.
Brooklyn Vegan
Great music blog with a list of free events here
Oh My Rockness
Indie Rock show list
Free NYC
Online calendar for free events
Nonsense NYC
Weekly list for silly events
upcoming or eventful
Searchable databases of events by location.
HopStop
Directions to get where you want to go.
Menu Pages
View menus of restaurants online. Search by food type or neighborhood.
Serious Eats: New York
NY food blog with a great board you can ask questions on.
ask.mefi
Posts tagged with NYC on ask.metafilter.com. Not all will be event/visit related but there will definitely be some interesting reading.

NY Media with good listings:

Reduced price ticket opportunities:

TKTS Booths
They sell same day tickets for 25% or 50% off the regular price.
TDF
Reduced price tickets you can buy in advance as a member (annual fee of about $30). You can join if you are a full-time student or teacher, a union member, a senior (62 or over), a civil service employee, a staff member of a not-for-profit organization, a performing arts professional, a member of the armed forces or clergy. A great deal, if you can join, because they get big shows for reasonable prices.
Goldstar Events
Free for anyone to join, reduced price tickets. They will send you a weekly email with events. I have gotten some great tickets from them.
High 5
Reduced price ticket opportunities for teenagers 13-18.
Audience Extras
$85 annual fee plus $3.50 per ticket. You have to put money in your account with them which you draw from when you get tickets. Sometimes Broadway shows and lots of off and off-off-Broadway stuff. It is worth it if you will go a lot – quality of the performances is mixed.
Play-By-Play
A few annual membership types (online membership – $99 plus an $8 processing fee. phone membership – $125 plus an $8 processing fee. Double membership – $198 plus a $16 processing fee with access to listings and reservations online and via telephone.) $3.50 surcharge per ticket. Like Audience extras you need to set up an account that ticket charges can be debited from.
Theater Extras
Two different annual membership types ($99 – up to two tickets, and$175 up to 4 tickets per show.) $4 surcharge per ticket.
Theatermania’s Gold Club
Two different annual membership types ($99 – up to two tickets, and$169 up to 4 tickets per show.) $4.50 surcharge per ticket.

Filene’s Basement Bridal Sale

Yaffa — Fri, 02 Mar 2007 17:54:44 +0000

Went to Union Square to Filene’s Basement’s Bridal Sale held in NY today…if you think of going next year – it’s true women are stripping in the aisles between the racks of wedding dresses. There is no way you will get to the fitting rooms so most people come in bicycle shorts and sports bras. Lady in your nude colored thong and bra – not cool.

I didn’t get there super-early. My mom talked to some folks who had made there way from North Carolina and had been waiting since about 2 AM. Doors opened at 8:00. We got there about 9:30. There were plenty of dresses. Some of them were really gorgeous. Prices ranged from $250 (for dresses that cost about 900-1000) to $699. Some famous designers are in the mix.

Brides come with teams in matching silly hats and t-shirts. Though from what I’ve read about Boston it’s definitely not as crazy. Teams in NYC were happily trading gowns.

Here’s the thing – if you are not a size 10 or under it may not be worth your time. There are tons of amazing dresses for skinny folks…I am generally a size 10-14 (with broad shoulders). In theory bridal gowns should be one size up. I found that I could not close anything under a 16. Was trying on the few 16 and 18s I could find. My mom pointed out the ridiculousness of bridal gown sizes going up in number, at the time when you should feel your most attractive…There were also a couple of size 24s that were kind of ugly.

Also, if you do go take water and maybe snacks with you – wedding dresses are heavy so it is a workout to try them on for a few hours…staying hydrating is probably a good idea to keep you from getting irritated during what should be a happy, fun time.

Looking for any recommendations (NY based preferrable) for affordable wedding gowns that are not backless…in larger sizes.

Update: Wedding Dress Shopping Is Done