After my euphoric report last night the wind died and the current reversed, sent us first SW and this morning straight W… We got down to 997 nm to finish, now it’s at 1008 and increasing by 1 knot, ie 1 nm/hr. Totally gray day again, not a glimmer of sun. Main batteries are at […]
Archives for July 2016
July 29
1775 – Founding of the U.S. Army Judge Advocate General’s Corps: George Washington appoints William Tudor as Judge Advocate of the Continental Army. 1858 – The United States and Japan sign the Harris Treaty. Negotiated by Townshend Harris, the first U.S. consul to Japan, the treaty provided for the opening of five ports to U.S. […]
Letters
To the editor, It’s a little difficult to follow the line of thought taken by the PA with regards to the relocation of “The Sphere”. Has there been opposition to it remaining in Battery Park, or is there just a push to bring it closer to the WTC site? The National September 11 Museum and […]
Libations, Exertion, and Socialization
The debut of one new venue for eating and drinking, plus two free events will round out this weekend in Lower Manhattan. City Vineyards, the new outpost of City Winery located in the Hudson River Park on Pier 26 (near North Moore Street) fully opens tonight, after a “soft” debut in the middle of the […]
Rowing The Atlantic
Good morning from the rocking “Fox II” in a dark, grey, slight but restless and disorganized, slight sea. Or so it seems. About 1 mile away is the hazy pale gray edge of fog… Bow is facing W into slight wind and when it rained an hour ago, it rained in underneath the canopy. So […]
July 28
1808 – Mahmud II became Sultan of the Ottoman Empire and Caliph of Islam. 1809 – Peninsular War: Battle of Talavera: Sir Arthur Wellesley’s British, Portuguese and Spanish army defeats a French force led by Joseph Bonaparte. 1866 – At the age of 18, Vinnie Ream becomes the first and youngest female artist to receive […]
Letters
To The Editor, I attended the July open house hosted by BPCA. During that meeting, BPCA stated that while in meetings with the DOT about safety aspects of South End Avenue, the BPCA decided to put safety concerns on hold while they investigated a beautification project of the street. The discussion with the DOT was […]
Cashing In on the Disabled
Community Board 1 (CB1) is taking a stand against attempts by two real estate developers to make a pair of Lower Manhattan properties more lucrative, under the guise of complying with provisions of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). Because both buildings are regulated by varying forms of landmarks protection, neither modification can be built […]
Rowing the Atlantic
Yesterday will be another day to forget! I rowed for two sessions in morning, never getting much speed and with wind from SSW tried first to go more E, but found short steep waves at 60 degrees to those with the wind. Less than a boat’s length between these transverse waves, so the rolling was […]
July 27
1299 – According to Edward Gibbon, Osman I invades the territory of Nicomedia for the first time, considered to be the founding day of the Ottoman Empire. 1663 – The English Parliament passes the second Navigation Act requiring that all goods bound for the American colonies have to be sent in English ships from English […]
Letters
To The Editor, One item addressed by the first public speaker you highlighted in Monday’s lead story, was that the residents of Gateway Plaza should not have any say in what occurs with the frontage of 21 South End to which she owns her apartment. Of course, many of my friends at Gateway, all who […]
Residents Reluctant to Catch the Sphere
Days after the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey determined to locate the iconic sculpture damaged by the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001 within the new Liberty Park, Community Board 1 (CB1) has passed a resolution criticizing the plan. The focus of these dueling decisions is “The Sphere,” a 1971 metallic orb […]
Rowing The Atlantic
I saw the horizon briefly 2 hours ago, now it’s all shades of gray and clammy fog yet again! Right now I can see no further than across an average school square, so especially my young readers – hope you are still there – must forgive me for boring reports. No fog means I see […]
July 26
1775 – The office that would later become the United States Post Office Department is established by the Second Continental Congress. 1788 – New York ratifies the United States Constitution and becomes the 11th state of the United States. In 1785 until 1789 New York City was the first capital under the Articles of Confederation, […]
Arterial Aesthetics
The median that separates a heavily traveled roadway beneath the FDR Drive from adjacent paths used by cyclists and pedestrians will soon get a splash of color, thanks to State Senator Daniel Squadron. Earlier this year, the Senator recruited the Hester Street Collaborative — a non-profit that seeks to empower residents of underserved communities with […]
Rowing The Atlantic
10 weeks at sea. Good moaning! Actually, apart from isolation, same meager, menu daily, miserable toilet and washing facilities, dirty clothes, unwashed hair, damp bed, calloused hands and pimpled bottom, I have nothing to moan about! On the contrary, during the night, Neptune decided to assist after all and gradually my speed increased and the […]
July 25
1603 – James VI of Scotland is crowned king of England (James I of England), bringing the Kingdom of England and Kingdom of Scotland into personal union. A personal union is the combination of two or more countries that have the same leader while their borders, laws, and interests remain distinct. Political union wouldn’t occur […]
EYES TO THE SKY
At the height of summer, a blue-white sapphire-of-a-star appears near the top of the sky in the east at dusk, soon followed by a pale citrine point of starlight below. By 9:15 p.m. a third, dimmer star completes one of the season’s great celestial patterns, the Summer Triangle. The stars, Vega, Altair and Deneb, are […]
Arcadian Rhythm: BPCA Says It Might Propose, But Not Impose, If Opposed
The Battery Park City Authority (BPCA) will host a Concept Development Open House tonight (July 25), to share preliminary ideas about how to reconfigure the streetscapes on South End Avenue and West Thames Street, and to solicit feedback from the residents. The session will take place at Six River Terrance (opposite the Irish Hunger Memorial […]