Remove the Brown Spot

I had this idea back in October, and I had it again today, while passing through Tompkins Square Park: I'm going to send a request to the Parks Department to remove the stones from where the gimpy elm used to be, to make a circular area around the existing tree, instead of the ovular area that exists around the remaining tree and a brown spot on the ground.

Here are pictures of the area in question:

The brown spot is the area where the gimpy elm used to be.

Here it is from another angle:

Another angle.

January 26

I sent a suggestion to the Parks Department to do this, with a modified version of the picture above:

Ring around the elm tree.

I'll let you know what they say!

#eastvillage #gimpy #elm #tompkinssquarepark #311 #parksdepartment

New Gimpy Tree Update

It's been a couple of weeks since I called 311 regarding the new gimpy tree in Tompkins Square Park, on the East 7th Street side. I received an email saying "The Department of Parks and Recreation has reviewed this request and will visit the location to investigate the condition".

Tonight, I passed by and noticed something I hadn't before: many of the branches are dead.

Many branches are dead.

This tree is worse off than I thought! I have to call 311 again and alert them of this new finding.

#eastvillage #tompkinssquarepark #gimpyelm #7thstreet #311

Branch Puller

Walking through Tompkins Square Park last night, I saw this man pulling on the branch of the tree used as a Wishing Tree recently:

Pulling on a branch.

He wasn't pulling hard, just lightly.

After the demise of the gimpy elm, East Villagers don't want to take any chances!

#eastvillage #elm #tompkinssquarepark #wishingtree

311 Emergency

Last night, as I was passing through Tompkins Square Park, I noticed the backside of the new gimpy elm. By backside, I mean the side that faces into the park. This is what I saw:

New gimpy elm backside.

What might look like a hole in the tree is actually sap leaking out from a split:

Sap leaking from split.

This tree is splitting down the middle. There's a good chance it will fall before the Parks Department is able to cut it down.

People should call 311 before this tree splits open completely. I hope it's not too late!

Another Gimpy Elm?

I noticed this tonight, along the bottom of Tompkins Square Park, on East 7th Street, closer to Avenue B:

Another gimpy elm tree.

This shows many of the same symptoms as the gimpy elm in the circular area: heavily weighted to one side; hole at base; hollow at base.

One difference is that this tree is in an area where no one walks, and the listing branches do not hang over any walk areas.

Still, I don't see why it should be allowed to break apart piece by piece. It's better to handle these things all at once. Cheaper, too, I'm sure.

East Villagers love quick and cheap!

Name Change

While looking at the picture used in Groovy Arty People, two things occurred to me.

1) Now that the gimpy elm is gone, the Parks Department workers should take up the cobblestones that once surrounded it, and rebuild the circle to just surround the healthy elm.

Cobblestones encircling… nothing.

There's no sense in living in the past, right?

2) The name "bendy tree" isn't right. I'm going to call it the "gimpy elm" from now on, which is more descriptive, I think. It was an elm, after all!

It Seems So Long Ago

Recently, as I passed through Tompkins Square Park, I overheard some people talking. The older person (the parent?) pointed out to the younger person (her child?) that the bendy tree was gone.

"Oh!" she said. "This is the first time I've been here since it's been gone. (Pause.) It looks weird now. (Pause.) I have to say, I think it looks better".

Teenagers! What're ya gonna do?

Dendrolatry

If there's one thing East Villagers love, it's dendrolatry: the worship of trees! They love the trees, and they love their love of the trees. And they love themselves!

This past Sunday, there were two dendrolatral events in Tompkins Square Park. One was called The Wishing Tree. (I think that's what it was called.) The idea was to write down a wish on a piece of paper and hang it with string on the very long branch of the tree pictured here:

Hanging paper on a really long tree branch.

The idea is that the tree spirit will grant the wish. I think that's the idea. What else could it be?!

The other dendrolatrous event was on the other side of the fence behind the tree above. At this one, people gathered for a memorial for the bendy tree.

Bendy tree be with you!

There was even a minister (a dendrolatrist minister?) named Reverend Billy, who delivered a eulogy, before others led an animist ceremony praising the four directions and the physical phenomena associated with them. It reminded me of Avatar: The Last Airbender! (Not the movie, which I didn't like, but the Nickelodeon TV show.)

Great stuff! Brought to life right here in the East Village!

Fire Wood

What happens to the trees that get cut down in the East Village? Some people think they get turned into logs for fire places:

Storing up for a cold winter.

This tree in Tompkins Square Park will provide plenty of warmth for someone:

The bendy tree will provide many crooked logs.