An Astoria Bookshop!

Finally... A real book store in Astoria! Astoria Bookshop will be opening its doors at 31-27 31st Street. I can't wait. For those who don't know, Astoria had a bookstore until 2011. But Seaburn Books was a horrible bookstore (not withstanding the fact that Sam, the owner, is a swell guy). There was very little stock, and much of said stock was stoop-sale quality. Books couldn't be found because they weren't even sorted. Nor was there any bookstore culture. Just piles and piles of overpriced crap. It wasn't a great business model ("So, Sam, after you looked in vain for 15 minutes for a book you should know whether you have or not, you want me to place an order and come back in a four days and then pay much more than if I just ordered on Amazon, got the book sooner, and didn't have to make a second trip back to this cluttered mess? No thanks.") Once I went into Seaburn and suggested perhaps they could highlight local Astoria writers. Sam thought it was a great idea... and, as always, nothing happened. It was probably good that Seaburn closed. Not because we need another frozen yogurt store (indeed, that is what is now at the location) but because it's better to have it known that Astoria has no bookstore rather than have people think that market niche was filled, and not thriving. So now, yes indeed, Astoria will have a bookstore! A real bookstore. With books... Culture... Even alphabetization! I'm giddy just thinking about it. [And coming soon, perhaps just a block away: Astoria Coffee Shop. Try a sample. I'm drinking me some of Dennis's brew right now!]

Why Bike Share Doesn't Suck

From Bike Snob NYC:

This is New York City, the bikes will get stolen right away.

No they won't.  Why would anybody steal a klunky, ugly, worthless bike share bike with nonstandard parts when it's laughably easy to separate hipsters from their stupid $3,000 Chinelly X MUSH collabo bikes and then part them out on eBay?

Criminals are stupid, but they're not that stupid.  Stealing a bike share bike instead of a real bike would be like stealing a payphone instead of an iPhone.

To put it another way, I can go outside right now and steal a $500 wheel or a $200 saddle and seatpost from a locked bike in about 30 seconds, and all I need is a multitool.  Meanwhile, it takes about twice the upper body strength possessed by a typical cyclist to remove a bike share bike from a kiosk, even after you've legitimately paid for it.


People who want to ride bikes should just buy their own.

Yeah, OK.  And people who want to ride buses should also just buy their own.  And what the fuck is up with Netflix?  Anyway, it's useful even if you still own a bike.  I already own a toilet too, but it's still more convenient for me to use a different one when I'm not at home.  Plus, I don't even have to clean it!


Won't people ride around without helmets?

Yes.  Stop being such a fucking wussbag.


They only give you a half hour with the bike before hitting you with overcharges, that's stupid.

No, you're stupid.  That's the whole point, short trips for people who have jobs and lives.  You're supposed to ride the bike from one station and the other, not futz around on it all day.

You must be one of those people who spends 45 minutes in the Starbucks bathroom.


The tourists will run rampant all over the city.

Firstly, tourists already run rampant all over the city.  Secondly, the bikes are for people who live here.  The system is designed for short trips made by people who know where they are going.  Did you read the last part, idiot?  Tourists will still rent the goofy "Bike And Roll" bikes.


Noisy bike share stations with their corporate advertising will ruin the character of my landmarked neighborhood.

No, you're ruining the character of your landmarked neighborhood by being a douchebag.  Your landmarked neighborhood had character exactly until you moved there.  London and Paris both have bike share and they fart more beauty and history in their sleep than any Brooklyn neighborhood.  The average Tesco is more interesting than your stupid brownstone.

And yeah, bike share stations are so noisy, what with their loud motors and slamming doors and alarms going off all night long.


I think that about covers it.

Of course this doesn't directly affect Astoria, since we will have no bike share in Astoria. You see our local politicians don't want it. Vallone only supports bike parking if the bikes have loud motors to propel them. (Kudos to Jimmy Van Bramer and State Sen. Mike Gianaris for pushing for bike share.) Bramer's district goes as far north as 34th Ave, which is why the bike lane goes that far and no further.

Strike!

I haven't written much. True. But I'm not on strike. This is about Trade Fair. I love Trade Fair. But not when their butchers are on strike. Support the workers. They're just fighting to not have their hours cut in half. Key food is union. And the other butchers are all local.

Bike Share?

Is this the future? I hope so. But I'm no longer holding my breath.

From the Brooklyn Navy Yard:

Astoria Bookshop! Woo Hoo!

Coming soon... an honest to God real bookstore in Astoria. Shocking, I know. But true!

Change to Broadway (Manhattan) Bike Lane

Seems like a good idea, at least on this stretch of road. Even though there's nothing like a separated bike lane, what good is it if you can't use it? Though seems like a two-way bike path might do a better job of keeping pedestrians off.

MTA Recovery Map

And here's the MTA map as of Nov 1. Brooklyn and Queens and Northern Manhattan are now connected again via Jamaica/Sutphin Blvd!

Biking in the City

There's a good suggestion I heard to bike of the Triboro Bridge into Manhattan. It's little used by pedestrians.

What I don't get is how come when the bridge turns into a parking lot for cars, all the moving traffic (bike and peds) get's crammed into one lane and the most efficient way of moving (bike) has to walk?

Give more of the "traffic" lanes over to traffic that actually moves! It's more efficient. Using a bridge as a parking lot doesn't help anybody get into the City.

Support Bike Parking at Queens Kickshaw

Our fucking local community board (#1) sucks ass.

The latest stupidity (just the latest) is denying a request from Queens Kickshaw (40-17 Broadway) to provide bike parking in front of their store. Bike parking is more parking. Since our community board cares more about parking than the community (see the massive failure to vote for Newtown Ave Pedestrian Plaza), you'd think they would support more parking in front of a business. But no. Evidently they hate people without cars more than they love parking. That's to say: a lot!

Anyway, the least we can do is sign an on-line petition is support of Queens Kickshaw's request to create a bike parking space in front of their store.

How to ship a bike for (relatively) cheap

Not that you asked, but still might be useful to some. www.shipbikes.com. $100. I've never tried them. Here's a useful summary.

No Plaza

In a sham of a meeting -- where the speaker somehow ignored the fact the 3/4 of the people present supported the plaza -- the community board voted 25-7 against the plaza. The business owners of 30th Ave have spoken. Now I'm just waiting to see am ambulance go down Newtown Ave... it's never happened before.

But the part that really upsets me is that people on the board somehow decided that only those who live in 11102 get a voice... when HALF THE COMMUNITY BOARD DOESN'T FRIGGIN' LIVE IN ASTORIA! You'd think there might be some kind of residence requirement to sit on a local community board... or least a residency requirement to attack those who don't. But no.

Support the Newtown Ave Pedestria Plaza!

First sign this petition. That was easy. But even more important, go to the community board meeting/vote tomorrow, September 11, 2012, at Astoria Manor. 7pm. 25-22 Astoria Blvd.

Cycling in the Netherlands, 1950s

Not much of a plot, but a lot of nice shot great bikes (eg: the petrol man at 2:44) and people enjoying them.

Saturday, Aug 25: Newtown Ave Pop-up Plaza

Come and hang out tomorrow, Saturday, August 25, at Newtown Ave and 33rd St! Not only will it be great, but we can prove wrong the fools (primarily the lacking-in-manners people who own Alma Bank, Key Food, and United Bros) who think this will lead to Armageddon.

Randy Cohen, The Ethicist, on how cars kill

Preach on, my brother:

http://92yamericanconversation.org/randy-cohen-how-do-cars-kill/