Vignettes

To open, we're delighted to say that Derek Mead, author of the blog Blackfaded, calls us “the coolest women you’ll ever see on the street.” And who are we to disagree? We ran into Derek the same weekend we went to the Keith Haring show. Click here to see a little more of us, and to see more of Blackfaded. Thanks, Derek!

Now, for your viewing pleasure, a few random New York photos with some random stories behind them.

Not so long after we left Derek, we ran into this Corvette Stingray. Jean is the one going off to the races in Montreal, but she wouldn't pose territorially next to the Stingray. Valerie, who usually describes cars with such generic adjectives as "dark" or "big" or "old" (she'd be absolutely useless at a crime scene), sidled right up to the Stingray, as if she might at any moment swing her legs over the door.














When we asked the manager of the shop right in front of it if he knew who the owner was he said "That's her", and pointed to Carole. Carole obliged us by posing in the driver's seat, but told us that actually she's always the passenger, and her husband always drives. Best of both worlds!















We marvel at today's modern technology the way our grandparents marveled at "horseless carriages". Here, a woman on a bus watches Breakfast at Tiffany's. In this scene, George Peppard talks with his -um - patroness - Patricia O'Neal. This SO beats listening to the stranger next to you on the bus shouting into his/her cellphone "I'M ON THE BUS. YEAH, I JUST GOT ON. I'LL BE THERE IN FIVE MINUTES." Or maybe "He DID? So what did YOU say? So what did HE say? I woulda told him I DON'T THINK SO. Who does he think he IS?....."

















Favorite old hero Brian Ferry advertising - with his son? - for H&M. Not sure what we think of this. It would be so much nicer to see his face on a new album cover. Oh, CD cover. Of course, if we had the opportunity to advertise for H&M, we'd do it in a minute, so who are we to talk?! But then, no one ever adored us for our singing. And doesn't he make that suit look sharp? Doesn't HE still look sharp, despite being old enough to be our - oh, wait - um, brother?























This gent got himself a vacant lot, brought a backpack-ful of milk cartons (filled with sand?), took about ten at a time out of the backpack, and proceeded to practice his golf swing. He was chipping, to be precise. And after he'd knocked the first bunch out of the lot, he lined up the next bunch, and did the same thing in very short order.























This is a sight you see more commonly in Tokyo, but how nice to see it locally. This woman is dressed in a '30s kimono, which she has paired with striped stockings and - gasp - shoes! Not geta! Sort of like a woman in a white wedding dress, black Converse sneakers, and a nose ring. But doesn't she look great?!























So if you were a devotee of Sex and the City, you know that Patricia Field was SATC's go-to person for fashion and styling. Great bag! Not such a great photo, but you get the idea. When you've shopped at Patricia Field, people know.























This boarded up empty lot used to be home to a restaurant frequented by Rudy Giuliani while he was mayor. During the real estate boom, a lot of three story buildings came down to make way for million dollar condo apartments. This space was undoubtedly slated for the same treatment. Then the economic crisis hit, and these folks must have been unable to finance. So for three years, instead of a nice restaurant with a garden, there's been a huuuuuge hole in the ground. Someone came along and decorated the boarding with this wonderful drawing of a 1950s TV outlaw type.























And on a Brooklyn sidewalk:























And now for something completely different. This lady does her summer dress proud.






















Awwwwwwwww! Aren't they adorable?????????????? Five sets of twins!!!!!!!!!



















Man and his best friend, both prepared for the weather. (They're a bit blurry, but they were moving at quite a clip.)






















There are several grand old wisteria vines in the heart of Manhattan. Here's one in bloom.






















Thought you'd like to see more of the vine. It goes clear up to the top of the brownstone, and then travels over to the third floor of the next building, and blooms under an air conditioner (which couldn't fit in this photo).























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For those of you who take an interest in unusual dates, we hope you did something to mark today - 6/6/12.

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And finally, we would like to express our sorrow at the passing of Ray Bradbury on June 5 at the age of 91. In our youth, we all devoured such books as The Martian Chronicles, Fahrenheit 451, and Something Wicked This Way Comes, which were not only breathtaking in their originality, but elegantly crafted. Not surprisingly, Bradbury also worked on programs like Rod Serling's Twilight Zone and Alfred Hitchcock Presents.

He was a great friend we never met.

(photo from newyorker.com)