NYC and data

Wired recently had an article about NYC's 311 service -- a non-emergency number residents can call to ask questions or report problems. It's a really interesting story about the value of crowd sourcing and data mining.  You can read it here.

My favorite line in the article, though, was less about raw data and more about human nature:

Even the biggest cities have small towns buried within them.

Discount Aifare

Yesterday (Monday, 2010-03-08) Jetblue celebrated 10 years of flight by offering $10 fares to select locations.  You can read more about that here:

JetBlue is holding a one-day sale offering $10 fares between New York's JFK airport and the carrier's first 10 destinations in celebration of its 10th year of operation.

...More

While that sale is over, it reminded me of one I did once take part in.

In 1989, Eastern Airlines was going through deep financial trouble, as were many other carriers.  On top of the competitive issues, Eastern had a terrible relationship with its unions.  The mechanics went on strike, and the airline filed for bankruptcy a few days later.

In the interim, however, they slashed prices on their east coast shuttle.  Karl, one of my fellow members of the Archbishop Molloy Speech and Debate team, and I decided to take advantage of this awesome $10 fare to Boston.  Heck, that was cheaper than taking a cab to the airport.

So we showed up at the airport, bought our tickets and went to Boston.  I'm not even sure what we did for much of the day, though I do recall going to Faneuil Hall.  I believe we also went to the JFK library, which seems and odd choice for us since at that point in my life I was at the height of my Republican-ness (Karl was slightly to the right of Rush Limbaugh). We did a few other historic related things and headed back to the airport.

And that was when I had my first "airport experience." We got to Logan, and wouldn't you know it? All those $10 fare drew a lot of people to the airport.  Despite the hourly shuttle flight, people just kept showing up.  We couldn't get on the first 3 or 4 flights we tried and got pretty nervous about being stuck in Boston.

We found ourselves in an interesting position.  We really wanted to get back to NYC that night because we had a speech tournament the next day. I was 17 and had my driver's license.  Karl was 15 and did not, so renting a car was unlikely to be an option.  We began to think we might not have a choice but to grab a hotel room someplace, and try to catch the first flight out to get to the tournament the next day. Or we'd just have to sleep in the airport.

Eventually, though, we got on a plane and made it back to NYC.

Was it worth the hassle to participate in those cheap fares?  Today, maybe not.  But in 1989? Absolutely.  It was an adventure to spontaneously go to another city while participating the in final decline of what was once America's biggest airline. Plus it was a great independent thing for a city kid to do.  BOS and NYC are very close to each other for most of the world, but while I was growing up in Queens, it may as well have been in California.  

 

Seeing stuff in Boston was almost incidental to just the exciting nature of the trip, and the opportunity to witness business history.

I just wish I recalled the details a little better.

Oh, and BTW, when I have to do the route now, I don't fly between NYC and BOS.  It's just silly.  That route is one of the things that Amtrak gets right.

For more information about the history of Eastern Airlines, check out the Wikipedia article.

Seattle Fire Department recognizes 9-11

On Saturday, the Seattle Fire Department is holding a stair climb in one of our taller buildings to remember 9-11.

Here is the event description from the Fire Dept. website.

Firefighters from around the region will take part in Seattle’s First Annual 9-11 Memorial Stair Climb on Saturday, September 12 at Two Union Square in Downtown Seattle. As they climb, each firefighter will carry a photo of one of the 343 firefighters who lost their lives in the line of duty in the attack on the Twin Towers on September 11, 2001.

Beginning at 9:30 a.m. firefighters will climb to the 55th floor of the tower twice, representing the 110 stories of the Twin Towers. The 9-11 Stair Climb was organized by Seattle Firefighter Melissa Woolsey and is sponsored by Seattle’s Bravest Charity and the Seattle Fire Department. All proceeds of the stair climb will benefit the New York City Widows and Orphans Fund.

Under the sea

Growing up in NYC in the 70s and 80s, it was common knowledge that the Hudson and East Rivers contained anything but water. Apparently, it's a little less heinous now. But what's under the surface? This article from NYMag.com highlight some entertaining and disturbing finds.

I really did not need to know about the 4 foot worms.

What lies beneath the surface of New York Harbor? For starters, a 350-foot steamship, 1,600 bars of silver, a freight train, and four-foot-long cement-eating worms.

The steady transformation of New York’s waterfront from wasteland to playground means more of us are spending time along the city’s edge. That can lead a person to wonder: What, exactly, is down there? Until recently, we had patchy knowledge of what lies beneath the surface of one of the world’s busiest harbors.

...More

Progress at Ground Zero

The rebuilding has been controversial, but it looks like they're making some progress. Or at least they're busy.

A classic

Hmm. I guess typing has made me hungry this week.

Generally, the best food in the city isn't in the high tourist areas, but Roxy's Deli in Times Square does make a heck of a sandwich.

This the dinner you get for just about $20.

Tbat's a pound of pastrami on on the bread, a bowl of cole slaw, two pickles and coffee. Yes, I'm sure I could have gotten dinner cheaper elsewhere, but it was convenient and awesome.

It takes practice to eat a sandwich like that. I di have to resort to the fork at some points, though.

Theatrical Tribute

A wistful smile crossed my face when I saw this marquee in Times Square the other night. It seems a fitting tribute to a great actor.

Today, most people now Jerry Orbach as Baby's father in Dirty Dancing or, more likely, as the wise cracking homicide cop Lenny Briscoe in Law and Order. Most don't realize he got his big break playing (and singing) El Gallo in The Fantasticks, making this theater naming all the more appropriate.

Thoughts on Flight 1549

By now, most everyone has heard about US1549, the flight that landed in the Hudson. It's now about 12 hours since all the excitement and the good news is that everyone survived.

I first heard about this flight when my Twitter feed exploded with activity. As with the Mumbai terror attacks, reports showed up in Twitter before they showed up in mainstream media. This is an important sociological shift that we see happening. The entire industry of breaking news is changing right in front of us. And not only are we lucky enough to witness this change, we are lucky enough to particpate and cause the change.

So after flipping through some Tweets, I quickly check my team's calendars to make sure none of my employees were on the flight, and then waited for more facts to come in.

It speaks to the excellent training of the pilot and crew, and their skill, that this did not become a disaster. It also speaks to the great engineering over at Airbus that the plane survived the water landing long enough for everyone to get out.

This also demonstrates the tremendous strides the NY area has made in cleaning up the river. Twenty years ago I imagine the fuselage would have just dissolved in what we called "water."

The bridges would have made this nearly impossible on the other side of the island. And in most other bodies of water, there would not have been so many watercraft readily available to rescue people.

And now we know that the whole water landing demonstration in the safety demo isn't just for show. A water landing is survivable when everything else falls into place.

US Airways is no longer listing the flight as delayed.

This is a fairly tactful way to do it.

Flight Stats, and website that tracks aircraft, however, still needs to update their descriptions. Apparently the flight is twenty minutes late.

Here is map showing more data about he flight.

I think the 300 foot altitude is an estimate.

And here's a view of where they think the plane is now.

I guess the current is pretty strong to pull it out of the river and all the way to NJ. (Actually, the plane is currently tied up in lower Manhattan.

And I never thought I would make a sentence like that in my life.

White Castle isn't a bank

This week when I was in Columbus, OH, there was a White Castle a couple blocks from my hotel. Since I had a refrigerator and microwave in my room, I decided to stock up. I'd have a good White Castle dinner the first night, and have left over snacks for the rest of the week.

I'd been to White Castle before, but only in NYC. This one was different.

I walked in and went up to the counter. There was no bullet proof glass. The cashiers stood at their registers and handed the sacks of mini burgers across the counter just like any store. I was shocked.

The White Castle I've dined at the most (mainly in the late-80s and early-90s) is in Queens, near the Queens Center mall. In that location, the counters and kitchen were in the middle of the restaurant, encased in bullet proof glass easily an inch think. The cashiers spoke to customer through the windows, just like the banks in New York. They had a lazy susan attached to the bullet proof glass that they used to hand food over.

I never quite understood why the White Castle was built like the Federal Reserve or local Citibank. The local McDonalds didn't have this kind of system. And I imagine a McDonalds might be a better target for armed robbery. Bigger burgers must bring in more money, right? Perhaps it was actually some sort of CIA front or something. If it was, well, good going with the "inconspicuous" thing, guys.

Dining at the secure White Castle facility did result in a tense evening one time, though. My friend Adam and I stopped by for some awesome burgers. We sat down and yammered on about whatever it is we were talking about at that point in our lives.

A few minutes later, some drunk kid comes up and start talking to us. He appeared to be a denizen of Howard Beach. He start loudly swearing up a storm and throwing racial epithets all over the place. He was not keen on the African American population in the city. At that point, Adam and I looked around and realized that even though the White Castle was pretty full, this lunatic and the two of us were the only white people there. As the guy ranted, more people started to stare.

At this point I wasn't sure if this guy was going to get us assaulted by the other patrons, or if he was going to attack us for our lack of sympathy to his cause. A few tense moments later, this character realized we weren't going to rally around his out rage. He got annoyed and left. People were still looking at us, but there wasn't a whole lot for us to do except shrug and finish off those tasty morsels of almost meat.

The point is, I was shocked at the lack of ballistic fortifications at the White Castle in Columbus. I guess not everyplace is New York.

No Rock and Roll! No Rock and Roll!

The wild and the young
They all have their dreams
The wild and the young
They've got to be free

The sun never sets
For souls on the run
The wild and the young

In Queens, NY, in the mid-eighties we could not get cable (thank you, Donald Manes) and therefore had no MTV. But we did have U68, a UHF channel that broadcast music videos over the air.

That's where I first saw Quiet Riot's "The Wild and the Young." It's about a near-future fascist state that attempts to stamp out rock music and control the county's youth.

I don't recall if I liked it because of the rebellious attitude or because of the sheer silliness of it, but it quickly became one of my favorites.

It's awesome.

Books? We don't need no stinkin' books

I really hope there's more to this story because as it is, this just makes me angry.

Apparently, the NY Public Schools are in such fantastic shape, they can just start throwing out brand new books.

From the NY Daily News:

Queens' Intermediate School 73 angers staff over tossed books

Hundreds of new or slightly used books were tossed into a Dumpster outside of a Queens middle school early Friday, outraging staff members who can't believe the waste.

Several garbage bags filled with copies of classic literature like "Little Women," "Sarah, Plain and Tall" and "Treasure Island" were discarded in a Dumpster alongside Intermediate School 73 in Maspeth.

...More

Death notices just miss the bronze in Helena

You can't judge a book by its cover, but can you judge a city by what its citizens read?

Here are the most read stories from the Helena Independent Record on 2007-11-09:

Crosstown crossover (1086)
Reeder's Alley (620)
Talent search finalists to compete Saturday (397)
Funeral notices (373)
Veto override gives state water projects green light (371)
Kalispell-area woman fined in septic tank drowning (286)
Guard working to fill junior officer ranks (276)
State youth lead in wrong way (245)
Special Olympics, special friends (227)

For comparison, here are the most read stories from the Seattle PI:

· New details in grisly Italian slaying
· Roosevelt girls' coach Resler ousted
· Please hold: Businesses want to hear your order, not your call
· Amanda Knox and the Internet: Are we being fair?
· City looks too eager to scrap Memorial Stadium

And here are the most read stories from the NY Daily News:

1. I killed her with a yoga stick
2. Tejada third option for Yanks
3. Despite offer, Jorge plays hardball
4. JUST LET IT BE, CRIES PAUL EX
5. Mets to work on rotation
6. Maid stumbles in L.I. 'slave' trial
7. A-Rod ratings boost is remote chance
8. Saved from oncoming train
9. Bodega owner took slice outta crime
10. Murder in Manhattan jewelry store

Barbeque in NYC

It's tough to find authenticity in Times Square. Since the big changes in the mid nineties, the place has become a plastic playgound and show case for national brands. In many ways, it's simply a kid-friendly Las Vegas.

Toys R Us, Bubba Gump Shrimp Company, the Hershey Store, and similar businesses make it a destination for thousands of tourists a day. The bright, plastic nature of Time Square can be fun; but it's not entirely trust worthy.

Sure, the fake watch dealers are authentic. And the end of the world prophets are certainly real. Crazy, but real. The stand up comics barking about their upcoming shows and passing out flyers are also authentic with a helpful mix of anger, cynicism, and pure bitterness.

But how authentic is the other stuff? I still wonder if the Naked Cowboy is actually a corporate plant for Hanes. Is the sparkly police station actually about Law Enforcement, or is it for those who never got over the cancellation of Cop Rock?

Which brings me to Virgil's Barbeque. The large, two story restaurant is on 44th ST, just off Broadway. And it is awesome. I've waited up to an hour for a table there, though recently got right in. The ribs are meaty and tender. The wings are spicy hot, large and still have a strong enough flavor to push through the heat. The pulled pork is full of flavor. The mac and cheese is great.

The waitress was refreshingly honest. She specifically discouraged one of the specials, and didn't miss a beat when asked whether the Peanutbutter Pie was better than the Blueberry Cobbler. She recomended the Pie and it was right.

Go there if you get the chance.

It's not the best barbeque I've ever had, but it is definitely up there. I don't know if I can call it real, though. Most Barbeque places (including the legendary Oklahoma Joe's in Kansas City) are classic hole in the wall places. Virgil's can afford Times Square rent.

It's southern food in the middle of Manhattan. On the other hand, excluding hot dogs cooked in 9 year old fetid water, all the food in New York comes from someplace else, and New York is still the greatest food city in the world.

Virgil's isn't a chain, which does lend itself an air of authenticity. However, it is owned by the same restaurant group that operates Carmine's Italian, Artie's Deli, and Gabriela's Mexican.

I don't know if I can call Virgil's real Barbeque in New York. I don't know if I can call it authentic. What I can do is call it good.

I'm going to go lick my fingers now.

We Are Happy To Serve You

To get to high school I used to take the B22 bus (renamed the Q24 in 1988) and get off at the corner of Van Wyck and Jamaica. There was a small deli on the corner. Days when I wasn’t too late or too broke, I would stop off and get a buttered bagel and cup of hot chocolate. The bagel went in my pocket.

The hot chocolate came in a blue and white paper cup with a Greek urn on the side and a rectangular pattern across the rim. In a white square on the front of the cup it said “We Are Happy To Serve You.”

I drank the hot chocolate during the rest of the 12 minute walk.

Those mornings came rushing back to me when I got an early birthday present.



The Sweetheart Cup Company released a ceramic version of the classic NY coffee cup. The cup thousands of us expats grew up drinking from is now available online.




It’s the same size and shape. The ceramic “seem” is right where the paper one was 20 years ago. Holding the cup feels right. Feeling it in my hand takes me right back to all those blustery mornings when I was getting ready to change the world.

FAA Unintentionally Banned JFK Flight

Apparently, it can cost $30,000 to de-ice a 747. Plus fuel. And on March 16, planes went through multiple de-icings because of FAA policy.

JFK made the news again with the storms on 2007-03-16. Airlines cancelled flights. Passengers had to spend hours of days in airports. And others sat on the tarmac for hours on end.

This storm was different, though. Planes were allowed to fly, but had to take off within 25 minutes of being de-iced. The problem was that a plane can't de-ice and reach takeoff position in 25 minutes at JFK and and other highly congested airports.

The FAA says they have to have this restriction in place. The airlines point out it is based on what they claim is a flawed study.

This article goes into greater detail on the subject.

See Seattle -- It IS possible to build major transportation infrastructure

Second Ave. subway plan picks up speed

Breaking ground on the Second Avenue subway - a dream for generations - is just months away, transit officials said yesterday.

The Metropolitan Transportation Authority hopes to award a contract to build a new tunnel for the East Side subway line by year's end, Mysore Nagaraja, president of the MTA's Capital Construction Co., said.

Only in NY Part 01

While walking from the Marriott Marquis in Times Square to the Javits Convention Center, we pass a few theaters.

Outside of one, we enocunters a woman who seemed to be in her 70s, and seemed to have been smoking for the past 85 years. As we passed her, we learned she was a scalper.

"Tickets. Martin Short matinee"

Now, this raises a few questions.
Are Martin Short matinees really selling out?
Is this the new Social Security program?
If someone else tries scalping tickets on 44 ST, is she going to beat them up?

Zanzibar

We had a great dinner tonight at a place called Zanzibar on 9 AVE. It's a Mediterranean Tapas Bar on 9 AVE and 45 ST.



Photo by eqqman -- available on flickr.



Half is a club, and half is a restaurant. It is filled with the requisite "pretty people" but doesn't have a stuffy or uncomfortable atmosphere. They seated us right away on booth benches at knee height coffee tables.

Everything we had was good, but if you go, I highly recommend the humus and the lamb chops.

Oh, by the way, like any good Mediterranean restaurant, they had Guinness on tap.

A thought for the day

It's been a long day of trade shows, TSA, flight delays and weather.

But there's nothing quite like a piece of cheesecake and cup of coffee at 2:00 AM in New York City diner.

Calling New York area cat lovers...

MacSurfer picked up yesterday's post where I predicted Apple will license the Mac OS to other hardware vendors as a way out of the hardware business, and focus more on the content and software business. More than 400 hundred people visited over the next 10 hours. This will be a slight change of pace.

I have two cats I am trying to find homes for.







Chase is the white cat. He is the friendliest cat I've ever met. He immediately gets know strangers and seeks out affection. Sit down in the same room and he will come right up next to you.
Layla is the other cat. She is also friendly, but in a more traditional cat-like manor. She gets along well with people without always being underfoot.

The cats have been been holding down the fort in an unoccupied house for nearly a year. Prior to that, they shared the house with a dog, a bird, some other pets and a human. It's a long story.

Amazingly, despite being on their own most fo the time, they have maintained strict litter box discipline.

The house, however, is being sold, and we need to find a new home for these two wonderful cats. I considered taking one myself, but my apartment, combined with my heavy travel schedule is not a pet friendly environment. Plus, it didn't seem fair to subject the cat to the cross country airplane flight.

I would like to find a home for one or both of these pets before we have to take them to shelter. If you, or someone you know would like to provide a good home for these cats, please contact me.

Here is some more information my mother provided:

The white cat, Chase, has green eyes and a pink nose. He is very affectionate and not afraid of strangers. Layla, the other cat is not as affectionate, but still very friendly, and also is not afraid of strangers. They are not skittish. They were raised in a house with dogs and have been together for almost two years. They have both been neutered and had shots, but I have no records on that. They are between two and three years of age. I cannot say whether or not they are good with children, as I don't think they were ever exposed to them. They get along with each other very well, mutually washing each other and sleeping together.

I don't want this to sound like an NPR fund raiser, but if you can help, please let me know.