I was walking up Avenue B yesterday, when I saw this sign taped to a lamppost, at East 7th Street:
Take the city back.
Take the city back? Take it back where? Hasn't it always been here?
There was also this sign, outside the beloved Vazac's:
Torn sign.
It looks like someone took a disliking to this sign.
This concert was to commemorate a riot that occurred around Tompkins Square Park, Memorial Day weekend, 1991. (Even East Villagers need a reason to grill!)
When I got to the park, the first band, Karnage, was already playing. There was someone on stage dressed as a super hero — Wonder Man, Flash, I don't know. I thought he was part of the band, so I didn't hurry to video tape him, but it turns out he wasn't!
This is Karnage, without Wonder Man:
The ever-present swag table was present:
Present!
There were not a lot of people, but it is Memorial Day weekend. East Villagers are notoriously late anyway.
I couldn't stay either. I had to go to Metro Bikes, on East 14th Street, to buy a new wheel for my bike. (You can read about that here.)
When I got back, the band Universal Truth Machine was finishing up:
After them came Sewage:
After Sewage, this woman got onto the stage, who had been going up onto the stage during each band's set. It seemed like she was going to speak, but then she didn't:
After that incident came Coach + Commando:
It was getting late, and I had a date at home with some tacos, so I wasn't able to see the last two bands: The Nihilistics and The Undead.
Here is a picture of Mr. and Mrs. Undead though:
Mr. and Mrs. Undead.
The organizers should put on the good bands first, and the… less-good bands after. That way, people could come see the good bands in the afternoon, and then go home and eat!
I mean, East Villagers need medical arts as much as the next villager, but where am I going to get a new front wheel for my bicycle now? There's a Metro Bikes in Chelsea, but… I don't want to go to Chelsea!
A couple of weeks ago, I was walking through Tompkins Square Park, when I saw this toilet paper hanging from a tree:
Hanging from a tree.
At first, I thought it was a left-over anarchist decoration. Now, I'm not so sure!
Earlier this week, I saw what looked like the very same toilet paper, this time on East 4th Street:
On East 4th Street.
A long time ago, I saw a movie about an African immigrant living in Paris. He told a story about how back home, they believed evil spirits would inhabit inanimate objects to disguise themselves when they moved among people — even something like a plastic bag blowing by could be a spirit!
Me, I don't believe in such nonsense, but many East Villagers do. If you're one of those who do, watch out for this roving toilet paper — it might be the Devil!
Residents of East 4th Street awoke this past Wednesday to discover that Ropa Gratis had exploded!
Behold:
Exploded.
Later that day, a big thunderstorm passed through the area, drenching everyone and everything in its path. I wonder if this was a barometric-pressure-induced explosion?
It looks like someone finally started cleaning out the garbage left behind when the formerly-beloved East Village Cheese closed, back whenever that was:
Cleaning up the mess.
I wonder if they had to wear hazmat suits to protect themselves from the rotting cheese?
Finally, someone understands how trees should be in the East Village!
Behold, properly arranged and displayed trees, on East 6th Street:
Properly arranged and displayed.
Here is a close-up:
Close-up.
Earlier, I had the idea that all the trees should be cut down and replaced with artificial trees. Another good idea would be if they were all replaced with the same type of trees, like these birch trees.
The East Village is always getting better, from Department of Transportation workers fixing the streets, to painters painting, to step repairers repairing steps, like these, on East 5th Street:
I neglected to mention, on the same day as the April 29 punk rock concert in Tompkins Square Park, a group of anarchists met on the opposite side of the grassy area from the stage. This is where the masked fellow came from, mentioned in the previous post.
I'm not sure they did anything other than eat and sit around. They had a lot of banners:
A lot of banners.
Here are some more banners:
More banners.
Of course, the banners could only be read from their side of the fence — from the outside, it looked like they were being exclusive!
I was walking across East 7th Street the other week or so, when I saw these paintings lining the fence at the corner of Avenue A, outside Tompkins Square Park:
Lining the fence.
The one that caught my eye is the one fourth from the left. It says
"Mr. Bones. I whent bakc to Ohio".
East Villagers never forget their midwestern roots!
This past Sunday, April 29, was East Village anarchist May Day. For the rest of the world, it's today, May 1!
To celebrate, local celebrity Chris Flash sponsored another of the Tompkins Square Park punk rock extravaganzas he's famous for.
When I got there, this guy was speaking:
This guy.
This year, his speech was given in a single breath, in a format known as "word association".
It went something like this:
"Scott Pruitt religious fascist fracking Oklahoma earthquakes native Americans original inhabitants tens of thousands of years ago broken treaties Leonard Peltier no clemency Trump Obama man of the people Clinton August Spies May Day all political prisoners thank you."
As soon as he finished, the band began to play. The band's name was either Haram, or Headsplitters, or Junta, or Rubber. It was not Olor a Muerte.
This was them:
When they finished, some kid in a face mask got on stage and told us all about how terrible the police are.
"The policeman is not your friend."
Chris Flash got up afterward and told everyone that while other policemen were bad, today's police were fine people. They were from Midtown South — he didn't understand why they were here in the Ninth Precinct, but they were fine people indeed!
Then it was time for more music, and the band Olor a Muerte went on.
This was them:
East Village punks don't care if they stand in a puddle:
Standing in a puddle.
I didn't seen any crusties at this show. It is early for them — they don't arrive en masse until Memorial Day!
