the weather was so nice on saturday that i got out the bike and made myself remember how to ride it. My neighborhood, Sunnyside, isn't very exciting to bike around, so I pedalled south. (But it will be pretty there once the trees start budding; here's a picture a few blocks from my place.)
I stopped by the waterfront in Long Island City to see if there were any new developments in the Hunter's Point area. there weren't. okay, the sports park had some new landscaping + hardscaping going in, and the building parcels to the north of the giant Pepsi-Cola sign have been smoothed out into a vast gravel waste land. But nothing major like a new building going up.
i continued south to visit my old hood, Williamsburg. let me tell you, I miss being close to the water, even if the water i refer to is the East River, which isn't really a river. (it's an estuary.) But East River Park is really nice to have close by. it's not a manicured park at all; only half of the 'grass' is even mowed, and half the park is a leftover concrete building slab from the days of the large waterfront warehouses. but i'll miss it this summer. i guess it's only a short bike ride away.
I forgot how crowded Williamsburg gets. Biking along Bedford Avenue made me kind of happy to be gone. I never really fit in with all those hipsters. and while i loved all the shops and restaurants, i didn't really frequent them. well, sometimes. and it's nice knowing they're right there when you want them. Perhaps i'm just trying to convince myself that i don't miss the neighborhood that much.
I did see that my old corner finally got a stoplight. i can't tell you how many accidents i've seen there. Roomies and I would often hear screeching tires followed by the inevitable bang or crunch. we'd run to the window and usually catch the aftermath. lots of cars ended up on the sidewalk. thankfully they were mostly minor fender benders.
okay, Billyburg, i miss you. happy now?
look who opened a bodega in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. How hip!
