When I first moved to the East Village, five years ago I used to see them sporadically, but very rarely outside my building. Today, the number of rats that I see outside of my building on a daily basis is close to five. Five, they are having a party every day after dark. They push garbage cans over, rip open garbage bags, in successful attempts to feed themselves and their families on leftover Chinese and chicken.

The reason could be many, I guess, but the increase of rats started when the parking lot next door was sold to developers and contractors started building a residential building. In addition, Mama Trini was told to stop looking after the garbage. Mama Trini has lived in the building since the 80’s and for as long as I have been in the building she has been making sure that residents placed their garbage and recycle in the right cans, made sure food was not spilling out from the garbage and that the area stayed relatively clean.

Sofia Douglas said” I have made several calls to 311 and reported this.”  Douglas has a dog and is worried that he could be bitten or accidentally poison by rat poison.  

I absolutely a hundred percent understand and agree that the ER main focus should be on saving lives and making patients feel better for the moment and not on the interior design of their place. But don’t you think that the depressing colors are adding to the distress that the patients already are feeling? A splash of yellow or blue color could perhaps calm and make patients feel better. Maybe even let children come in paint the walls with their drawings.

The first to come was the fruit stand, whose workers relayed so that they were open for business 24 hours a day. Soon to follow was the Gyro stand, with its mouth-watering aroma that fills the street day and night, the “Nuts 4 Nuts” cart that occasionally shows up, and the perfume table available on the sunny days. What’s amazing about some of these stands, however, is that they manage to be open at all hours of the day and night.

On a Thursday evening, around 11:30 p.m. last year, I met a student from Turkey, who was studying micro-engineering at Columbia University. He had a full scholarship, he said, but money from the fruit stand job helped him pay for rent.

A Sunday morning at 3:30, a couple of weeks ago, Cida, an Egyptian immigrant, was working at the gyro stand. When I passed by again around 8:30, he was still there. ”I do the 9 to 9 shift on Sundays,” he explained.

And everytime I walk to the train station in the wee hours of the morning, someone is sitting by the fruits, and someone is sleeping in the gyro stand. Do they rent out a piece of sidewalk from the city? Is staying there all night really profitable? It is worth a look…

Gilia Gomez, a resident of Jackson Heights and one the organizers of the “Dia de la Raza” (A day for Race), is very happy these days. She is one of the members of the committee that is behind the prestigious Hispanic event that has taken place in Queens and Manhattan for the past 40 years, and things couldn’t be going better for the 2008 event.

On October 12, a parade of carriages featuring the different Latin American countries will take 5th Avenue in Manhattan for a day of fun, pride, and beauty. 

Every year, young women of Latin heritage participate to become the queen of the parade. They can be as young as 16 and as old as 23 in order to participate in the competition. The participants must be single and have no children. Many girls participate because the winner will receive many prizes, including two tickets to the Latin American country of their choosing.

“The main idea is to show our warmth, our pride, and obviously out beautiful women,” said Gomez. “It’s a day to celebrate our unity and our folklore.”  

To see pictures of this event, click here

I also did not detect a difference.  I leave for school in the mornings around the same time the garbage truck turns the corner onto my block. I did not see anything new, but can also appreciate more money being added to the town. For more info Click Here.   

 Allow me to explain.

Walking around 71st Street and Rooselvelt Avenue, a man approaches me and, figuring that I speak Spanish and that as a young latino man I have ‘needs’, he offers me a wink and tells me in almost a whisper “chicas, chicas.” (Girls, Girls) He then proceeds to hand me a card that contains a cell phone number and pictures of topless girls (I sure doubt those are the girls they offer). In the lower left side of the card I can read “Delivery, from 11:00am to 3:00am.”

I couldn’t help wondering how these people can run such a business without getting penalized or without having anyone find out about it. I called and a woman picked up the phone. She asked me where I was calling from and I lied. I asked her to tell me how much it was to get a ”delivery.” She was very hesitant in her answer and told me the driver, who would wait outside until the girls are finished with their “date,” would let me know of the price. After she asked me for my address for the ‘delivery’, I told her that maybe another day, and freaked out hung up the phone.

 Rafael, a construction worker who moved to Elmhurst last year, assures that some of those girls may walk out with up to $1000 at the end of the night since most people request them for bachelor parties and similar events. “They brought two out to Long Island one time,” he recalled. “They made crazy money because they entertained a group.” 

The economy is at an all time low. The dollar is dweeby and milk costs more by the gallon then gasoline. What’s up? One would think in a desperate time like this people would be scared to open up their wallets let alone open up a business. Not in Greenpoint! New stores are going up left and right, but the most surprising store to open as of late is a Sleepy’s Mattress store.

Why is a Sleepy’s store so surprising you might ask? Well, when times are desperate people usually live with what they got.

“A bed would be nice, but my futon is fine for now”, James Potiez, a Brooklyn resident said peering into the new Sleepys store. “I have bills to pay and other things to buy for the time being, you know,” he smiled.

Potiez aside there must be people interested or Sleepy’s would not be setting up shop. The most apparent reason for a new bed, (Not including Bed Bugs), is new residents. People move and many times its an excuse to get a new bed. New apartment, new life, new bed…and so on. The opening of Sleepy’s in many ways means that Greenpoint is doing OK, despite the current recession.

The mattress store has a one year finance free plan that will also attract many people who otherwise wouldn’t be splurging on new springs. ( I should have told James about it.) The opening of Sleepy’s in Geenpoint is just one more example that New York is financially separated from the rest of the country.

As commuters walk at a fast pace through the busy station in Roosevelt Avenue in Jackson Heights, some can’t help to stop and listen to Alvaro Munoz and his partner deliver the soothing sound produced by their wind instruments. Alvaro belongs to the group Raices (Roots in Spanish) who, through their music from the Andes Mountains, wish to deliver their message of indian pride. 

“The problem nowadays is that people have no identity,” said 24-year-old Alvaro. “We try to educate people with the teachings that our ancestors left us in their music.”

Alvaro makes it very clear that their Andean music is not folklore, but a music genre very much like rock or country. “Folklore talks about legends or myths and that’s not what we’re about. We take contemporary music and make it our own.”

Raices uses wind instruments such as sinkus and quenas. Sinkus are composed of 13 to 15 tubes made out of of sugar canes which are tired horizontally together. Each tube makes a different sound. On the other hand, quenas are kinds of flutes that have six holes and are made from wood.

“Because of construction, there is no Flushing bound local train…” This is an ordinary announcement on the 7 line in Queens.  During April, the 7 line has more “service changes” than its original schedule.  When one way makes all local stops, there are not local trains working on the other way.  “This is annoying.  I have to go to Willets Pt-Shea Stadium, to transfer to Manhattan bound local train, and then back to 103rd St, Corona Plaza.  It takes me at least 20 more minutes going back and forth,” one of 7 line commuters complains. 

The frequent schedule changes on the 7 line are not only today’s issue, but what makes riders frustrated is the condition gotten worse.  The train comes rarely and runs slow when service changes, so it is usually packed.   The number of guides at subway stations seems to be reduced; only service changes notice posted on the walls at station.  Riders had to spend double time on their trip using trains and endure inconveniences. 

Even though, the MTA New York City Transit announced last year that they will improve services on the subways and buses, no improvement shows on the 7 line.  “There is no change, but only fare increases,” says a rider on the 7 line.