Tag: New York City

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personal

Visiting Cypress Hills

The Cemeteries of Queens

The other day, I had to head to Queens for a client.

Not my usual part of Queens – which is typically the northeast or northwest part of Queens, but the southwest part, that I never go to.

For those of you not from here, there’s this HUGE cemetery – which are actually several contiguous cemeteries – roughly in the middle of Queens.

That’s it dead in the center of that image above, that large green mass.

Anywho, I’m rarely south of that green area and, in 53 years, I’ve actually never been inside the cemetery, although I’ve driven past it my entire life.

Think most people around here would say the same.

Because I had to travel all over that part of Queens that day, and because I wasn’t really interfacing with any clients, I did it all on my scooter, which was actually pretty fun – especially considering that it was a gorgeous day.

Afterwards, I had to get to a station to get home and decided to cut through the cemetery.

Honestly, it was one of the more peaceful things I’ve done in my life.

There almost wasn’t a soul around and it really felt like I was in a completely different part of the world.

I did see one somber group of people all dressed in black like a murder of crows but, aside from them and a few grounds-keepers, that was it.

It was weird, because I could hear the birds clearly and the roar of the cars and the city in general sounded distant, the opposite of how it normally is for me.

Even managed to come across the Chinese section.

I was only there for maybe 30 minutes or so, but it was sobering.

Figured that every single one of these headstones had a story that ended in tears in some manner.

Thought about my own dad and Alison.

It’s May again.

I’ve still never gone to see Alison and I don’t expect to any time soon.

The kid’s been asking questions, so I’ll have to address that at some point.

For some reason, seeing my dad isn’t quite as bad.

In any case, I managed to exit the cemetery and make it back to the real world not soon afterward, but it stayed with me the rest of the day.

That’s all for now, I guess.

I’ll tell you more some other time.

Location: back in the grind
Mood: irritated
Music: For their curses to be broken we go wander ‘neath the arches (Spotify)
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Playing by the water

Plus a PJ video

Him: Can we go for bike or scooter ride?
Me: Absolutely!

When I got back from our trip, I really wanted to spend some time with the kid so, on the first sunny day we were able to, we hopped onto my scooter and went down the Hudson River Greenway.

Ended up at the Pier 97 playground, where the kid immediately made some friends and did his thing.

Unfortunately, the whole time, he was complaining about pain in his leg, which I found stressful.

This was further exacerbated by the fact that A-MIL told me that, while my kid was with her, he was complaining about pain the entire time.

So, the next day, I took him to urgent care in the morning to get an extra in his leg just to rule out anything like that.

My friend Nikki, Bryson’s wife, is a pediatrician and she told me that it was most likely growing pains but, with my history and bad luck, I wasn’t taking any chances.

Unfortunately, the x-ray tech never showed up so the kid went to school, and we had to come back later that day.

But, alls well that ends well, it was exactly as Nikki said: growing pains.

Me: Heya, the x-rays were totally normal. The doc we spoke to agreed with your assessment that it’s most likely growing pains, although he’s never seen it quite this bad. Anywho, thanks, as always, for entertaining alla my ridic questions.
Her: Hooray! So glad X-rays were negative and you got some peace of mind.

Oh, I forgot to mention that I found this cute little video of Sara during the pajama night that always makes me laugh

We had eaten so well on that cruise, and I broke my “no carbs” rule so often that all I wanted was some New York City pizza once we got back.

Traveling’s great and all, but – really – there’s no place like home.

Mostly.

Her: What?
Me: (looking at receipt) This was almost $16 for two slices of pizza and a coke.
Her: (shrugging) That’s normal. We’re back in New York.
Me: Looks like we’ll have to rob a bank later.

Location: back in the grind
Mood: irritated
Music: we’re just made that way, made to brave the pain (Spotify)
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A walk uptown

Three miles on the westside

Me: What do you want to do on your actual birthday?
Her: Honestly? I just want to take a nice walk around NYC like we did when we were in Pasadena.
Me: Really? That’s easy. I can make that happen.

Me: OK, I have an itinerary. Wanna see it?
Her: Sure! Whacha got?

We start at 14 St / 7 Ave
8 min walk to Chelsea Market
15–20 minutes at Chelsea Market
5 min walk to High Line at 16th Street
Walk 1 minutes to 23rd St and go to 10th Avenue and Hudson River Park
Waterfront walk for 12–15 minutes
Exit the park around W 50th St and east to 9th Avenue, stores along the way
Walking north on 9th Avenue to 852 9th Avenue and dinner
Walk to stores at Columbus Circle, train to 96th and home

Her: That sounds great!

Me: Crap.
Her: What?
Me: Did you see the weather?
Her: (checks her phone) Oh no!! It’s gonna rain. Wait, I know, let’s go to Hudson Yards. We can walk to the restaurant from there.

Me: Oh, but that stinks, I wanted you to get the city, parks, and waterfront.
Her: It’s ok. At least we’ll still get to do some window shopping and have dinner.
Me: Sweeeeeeeeet. Let’s go.

Me: You know, the last time I was here was with you. It’s so much busier now.
Her: Well, that’s a good thing, right? Oh, Kate Spade! Can I check out some stuff?
Me: It’s your birthday, for sure.
Her: Thanks!
Me: I’ll just get comfortable in the husband chairs. (later) Hey baby, we should get going.

Me: (walking past the Dyer Avenue / W 36th Street interchange) You know, when I was a young guy working in midtown, I’d never – in a million years – imagine there’d be all these expensive restaurants around here. Literally, this is where you would go to get shived.
Her: I can imagine.

Her: Logan, you gotta slow down.
Me: You know, walking speed is directly related to biological age. The faster a person walks, the younger – biologically – someone is.
Her: Yes, you’ve said that but… OH CRAP!!!
Me: What?
Her: OMG…eeeewwwwww…
Me: DID ANOTHER BIRD POOP ON YOU?!
Her: I hate pigeons, Logan. I hate them so much.

Me: Wait, aren’t we close to the restaurant?
Her: Lemme check. (looks up address) Shoot, Kashkaval Garden is on West 56th, not West 50th.
Me: OK, six more blocks…
Her: (after arriving) Finally!
Me: I’m starving.
Her: Me too.
Me: (after the food had arrived) OK, first of all, man, does it feel decadent to eat all this bread. Secondly, alla this is so good.
Her: The tapenade and the whipped beets are my favourites.
Me: Nuthin beats beets.

Me: Excuse me, waiter?
Him: Yes?
Me: We also ordered some meat skewers. Could you check to see how they’re doing? We’re about done with these.
Him: Of course!
Her: Good, I was getting full.
Me: Yeah, me too – I’m not used to eating all this bread.

Me: You up to walk to West 72nd instead of Columbus Circle to take the train home?
Her: Sure. We can walk off some of that food.
Me: (walking past my law school) Man, I can’t believe law school was 30 years ago. That’s…crazy.
Her: (after walking past Lincoln Center) It’s amazing we get to walk past things like this all the time.
Me: It’s amazing what we get used to.

Her: Hey, do you mind if we pop into the Apple Store?
Me: (shrugging) Sure.
Her: (after a few minutes) I was almost gonna get the new iPhone 17 but they’re closing in five minutes. I don’t wanna make someone stay late.
Me: Well, they do make a commission.
Her: I heard someone say that they’re not doing any more sales. I’ll come back. Besides, it’s late and I want to go home.
Me: Yeah, I’m exhausted – we walked three miles!

Me: (at home) Was it a good birthday?
Her: You were there, so yes.
Me: Sorry we didn’t get to do what I had planned.
Her: It’s fine. We’ll have lots of birthdays to do together.

Location: all up and down the west side
Mood: sore
Music: Look myself in the eye, feel the crack of a smile (Spotify)
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Our birthday month 2025

Coffee was a mistake

Me: How’s my old lady today for her birthday?!
Her: Ooch, my back hurts.
Me: (laughing) That’s the appropriate answer. You’re getting older.
Her: Well, you are the authority on all things old, Logan Lo.

Sara and I both have April birthdays so her sister and brother-in-law took us both out to brunch with all the kids the other day.

We went to The Ribbon, which is this fancy joint near Central Park a little south of us.

I’d never been and always wanted to go.

Me: I dunno what I should order; it’s brunch so I want coffee, but I also want a drink.
S-SIL: Get an Irish coffee – best of both worlds!
Me: That’s not a bad idea!
S-BIL: It’s late, I can’t have coffee after 11AM.
Me: I usually can have coffee up to 2PM.

Turns out that coffee was a mistake

I forgot that I drink half-caf coffee at home, so I ended up significantly regretting my decision later on that evening as I had an almost completely sleepless night that night, especially since I was worrying about my mom.

But, at least at that moment, it was worth it.

Sara and I – and my sister – share a birth month.

Sara’s having a milestone birthday but I’m just having a regular one.

Still, after a certain age, all birthdays become milestones in some way.

I’ll be 53 before this month is out – it’s really hard for me to comprehend as I don’t feel like I’m 53, and yet, I do.

Suppose I’ll figure out some way to explain it to you in the coming entries.

Location: all up and down the west side
Mood: sore
Music: the memory of late nights and coffee in bed (Spotify)
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Unspoken carbohydrates

Plus, a soccer game

The weather’s always super weird during the shoulder months here in the city.

Last week it was 34 degrees one day and today it was 76 degrees.

Me: Maybe we could meet up in the middle of the day if the weather’s nice? You head west, I head south and we meet somewhere in the middle?
Her: (thinking) I dunno. I’m such a goody-two-shoes…
Me: It’d be like lunch! You’re allowed lunch, right? We could meet up for coffee and unspoken carbohydrates.
Her: Oooooh, I love unspoken carbohydrates.

Speaking of carbohydrates, Sara’s gotten really, really good at making sourdough bread and she’s essentially baking us two loaves every week or so.

We’ve been keeping track and neither of us have gained any weight nor has anyone felt bloated or anything of the sort.

Plus, it’s nice knowing that we’re eating something completely homemade with only four ingredients: Water, flour, salt, and butter.

That’s it. It’s pretty amazeballs.

We made pizza with it the other day per a suggestion by my buddy Mark from Ithaca – it turned out ok but nothing spectacular.

We’ll keep at it until we find something we like.

The kids liked it though.

Speaking of the kids, I think I mentioned to you that my son loves soccer and that Alison was a soccer star in her junior high school and high school.

It must be in his genes because he’s obsessed.

Welp, it turns out that Pac is obsessed as well. He told me that one of the kid’s heroes – Messi – was in town playing against his team so I got the two of them tix to see the game together in Yankee Stadium.

Pac: Are you sure you don’t wanna go? There are three seats available in the section.
Me: Alison loved soccer but it was never really my thing.

Well, that plus I couldn’t imagine sitting on those hard seats all those hours.

But, after they left, Sara told me that I really should do at least one game with the kid, so he had one memory of me at a game with him and I felt so guilty.

I’ll have to do something like that with him one of these days.

Still, they had a blast and came home all smiles.

It probably didn’t hurt that Uncle Pac spoiled the kid rotten with stuff like soda and a bowl of fried carbs bigger than his head.

After they made it back, Pac and I headed to my local bistro to get some coffee and catch up for a bit.

Presently, the kid and Sara came by as well to join us for dinner, and we all chatted for a while until it was time for Pac to leave.

Afterward, I heard all about it from the kid.

Me: Did you have a good time?
Him: It was so fun, papa! Even though my team lost.
Me: (laughing) Well, you can’t win ’em all, kiddo.

Location: the gym, being turned into a pretzel
Mood: pretzel-y
Music: I’ve gone identity mad (Spotify)
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Filming in the hood

A refreshing jerk

We were all heading to my mom and sister’s the other day when we saw this huge crowd by the subway station, and we had a bit of time, so we got a closer look.

Turns out that they were filming something at the Ansonia, which is this gorgeous old building that’s one of the most famous buildings in my neighborhood of the Upper West Side.

It’s funny, but you see that old white-haired lady in the lower left-hand corner of the picture below in the black jacket?

I assume she’s been living in the area for a while and has dealt with people filming around her because she was absolutely not having it when they were trying to tell her they were filming.

PA: Excuse me, we’re filming here.
Her: I don’t care, I live here.
PA: But we’re in the middle of filming and…
Her: Arrest me, I don’t care. I live here, you don’t.

Honestly, she was kind of a jerk, but it was also refreshing that she was so honestly about just not giving a damn.

In any case, I couldn’t recognize the main actor – if you do, drop a comment below – but Sara thought it was maybe for a commercial?

Not sure, but it’s always pretty cool that they’re always filming stuff around the hood.

After alla that, we hopped the train and headed out to see my family.

I’ve been trying to see my mom once a month these days just because she’s getting older and I so, so, so wish I saw my dad more when I coulda.

I just wasn’t in the right frame of mind at all back then, for reasons most of you already know.

On a different note entirely, the kid’s been more and more like a teenager lately – that’s him with his headphones on listening to music.

When we got to Queens, my sister picked us up and I immediately took a nap while Sara and my mom got to talking.

Evidently, my mom made Sara a cuppa joe and gave her a sweet, which I discovered after I woke up and headed upstairs.

Sara: Oh, you’re up. You mom was just telling me that your father’s family had a rice factory.
Me: Yup.
Mom: They made this special powdered rice.
Me: I just learned something new in 52 years.
Sara: You’re welcome!

We ended up having that Greek food we had the last time we were out there, played some Big 2, took a drive in the burbs and daydreamed about living in the neighborhood, before we took the train back home because Sara was supposed to meet up with our friend from Vienna.

So, we thought.

Me: (picking up phone) Hey, you ok?
Her: Yes, but guess what I did?
Me: What?
Her: I got the date completely wrong. She’s not in town today, she’s in town NEXT week.

In any case, being in the burbs is nice, especially when I get to see my family.

But home is home.

And sometimes, people film movies/commercials around me.

Location: earlier today, my usual bistro with Pac
Mood: so. full.
Music: We always find our way back home (Spotify)
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All classic pizza comes from Lombardi’s

…and his assistants

Years ago, *early* in my club days when I was just getting into the biz, I met this mafioso.

Now, in NYC, you meet a ton of Italians who say they’re connected, just like every single army guy you meet was an Army Ranger or Green Beret so take that with a grain of salt BUT I recall that he really did seem the part.

Anywho, we got to chatting we started talking about pizza. I had my local pizza joint, John’s in Times Square, which is where I lived before I moved to the Upper Best Side.

Him: You know alla the best pizza in NYC comes from Lombardi’s downtown, yeah?
Me: Howso?
Him: See, years ago, Lombardi had four assistants – Totonno Pero, John Sasso, Patsy Lancieri, Patsy Grimaldi – and alla them left Lombardi and opened their own joints. Outta respect for Lombardi, Totonno opened in Coney Island, John’s opened in midtown, Patsy’s opened in Harlem, and Grimaldi opened in Brooklyn.
Me: No kidding?
Him: Yeah, no kidding.

Well, it turns out that alla that was mostly true – the Grimaldi part is the part that’s the most incorrect, at least according to this article.

Honestly, this means that alla what we generally consider to be pizza in the US – not stuff like that casserole people call deep-dish pizza – comes from Lombardi’s.

In any case, I thought of all of this because of the kid and Alison.

See, after the kid’s talent show, because his grandmother, Alison’s mom, was in town, I wanted to bring them both to Patsy’s, which is just a few blocks south of my pad – Patsy’s being one of the five original pizza joints in America if you also count the original, Lombardi’s.

The last time I was there was with Alison, my brother, and some friends, on October 26th, 2013 – I wrote about it here.

Anywho, I heard that it was gonna close soon so I wanted them to try it before it closed but…

Me: Wait, is it closed?
Sara: Looks that way. (checks phone) It closed in January!
Me: What!?! Google said it was still open!

It was not.

Because of all the carbs, I don’t really eat all that much pizza but now I regret not going when I had the chance.

In any case, that’s why we went to the other joint – where we did NOT have pizza.

BUT we actually got a second bite at that same apple, purely by chance.

See, we were supposed to see my SIL, Alison’s sister, for the boys to go swimming this past weekend.

And she just happens to have a Grimaldi in Hoboken so that’s exactly what we had.

To wit, while we didn’t get to have Patsy’s, we still got to have some killer OG NYC-style pizza…in New Jersey.

We can just keep that last part to just the two of us, ok?

Oh, extra credit: If you head to Naples and order pizza from one of their oldest and most respected pizza joints, you’d be ordering from this family’s restaurant:

The Lombardi’s, which opened in 1892.

Here’s famous eater Mark Weins finding out that US pizza comes from Lombardi’s in Naples.

Location: my local supermarket, wondering if four pounds of corned beef is enough
Mood: dog-tired
Music: Hatee-hatee-hatee-ho! (Spotify)
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Have you ever had a chopped cheese?

A real NYC sammie

I’ve been cooking a lot these days because it was so cold recently – although today was weirdly 70 degrees – so it’s been a perfect time to warm up the pad with some home cooking.

The cool thing about Sara and her kid is that they’re both very not Asian but also pretty open to try new things.

Oddly, the thing that I make that Sara like’s the best is a simple fried tofu dish that I grew up with and loved.

I think that it’s just great that she loves the things that I loved as a kid.

Speaking of things that I loved as a kid, have you ever had a chopped cheese?

I didn’t have it as a kid, per se – it only came out after I graduated from college – but it’s quickly become the de facto sandwich of the city.

I’d argue that it’s more New York than the hot dog because other cities like Frankfurt (obvs), Copenhagen, and Chicago also have hot dogs.

And pizza is also pretty ubiquitous.

But the chopped cheese is only found here in the Big City.

Not only is the chopped cheese uniquely New York, it can be ordered literally in any bodega or corner grill in the five boroughs.

Legit, you can walk into any corner store and, even if it’s not on the menu, ask for a “chopped cheese, with, lettuce, tomato, and mayo, no ketchup (because ketchup is for kids and makes everything taste like…ketchup)” and you’ll get a killer sammie like a real New Yorker.

ABFF: Did you like the tart I got you?
Me: Oh, that was you?! We were wondering who got us that!
Sara: It was delicious! We ate the whole thing.
Me: I’m glad you told us – man, we have so many gifts from our cocktail party from people that didn’t put their names on anything.

You should always put your name on gifts, people.

In any case, I bring up alla this chop cheese stuff because we met up with the ABFF the other night for dinner and her kids had never heard of it, so my kid – of course – insisted on showing them the glory they were missing.

And it is, in fact, glorious.

I went to their local corner grill and, despite it not being on the menu – it almost never is – I asked for one.

And of course…

Me: Can I get a chopped cheese?
Him: Sure.

That’s the guy below whipping it up – in time-lapse.

Like I said, in 15 years, I’ve yet to walk into a bodega anywhere in the five boroughs and not been able to order one.

The next time you’re in town, def order one.

Just no ketchup, ok?

Location: Chinatown – but for work
Mood: worried
Music: I am done with my graceless heart (Spotify)
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Differently from me

An accident and loads better

Sara experiences the world a little differently than I do.

Her: Do you want an almond cookie?
Me: Sure. Where’d you get it from?
Her: I was downtown and I got lunch and the cashier pulled them out of the case and handed them to me. I got one for each of the boys too.
Me: (laughing) It pays to be a hot blonde.

Then literally the next day.

Her: Hey, I got you a Boston Cream donut.
Me: Sweet, thanks! How come?
Her: (shrugging) I dunno. I got a Dunkin and the guy at the counter just handed it to me.
Me: What is happening here?!
Her: Oh, they’re just being nice.
Me: That is so whack.
Her: (rolling eyes) Whack? The 80s called, Logan. They want their word back
Me: OK, that’s just rude.
Her: Do you want the donut or not?
Me:…yes. Lemme get some peanut butter.

This happens to her all the time.

Speaking of the 80s, it reminds me a little of this old sketch – that I saw LIVE with my brother when we were little kids – on Saturday Night Live in 1984 with Eddie Murphy where he’s in whiteface and experiences the world as a white guy and is shocked at how the other half lives.

Kinda feel that I’d experience life really differently as well if I were in her shoes.

Think of all the free carbs…!

In other news, I had to pick up some milk for the kid after the gym tonight, so I went to the supermarket that’s open late just south of my pad and, when I exited the subway, I was greeted with the aftermath of an accident.

Someone was not having a good night.

Her: Whacha gonna write about tonight?
Me: I dunno. I think it’s gonna be about you.
Her: Me? What about me?
Me: How you always get free crap while the rest of us losers don’t.
Her: Oh, stop. That’s a rarity.
Me: It happened two days in a row! And it happens all the time.
Her: (waves hand dismissively then brightens) I know! You can write how much you love me, how you can’t stand to be apart from me, and how your life is just loads – LOADS – better now that we’re married and I’m in it.
Me: I’ll get right on it.
Her: You do that, Logan Lo.

Location: the supermarket, looking for the last half-gallon of whole milk in the joint
Mood: exhausted
Music: Then be with me all the way (Spotify)
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An unexpected night out

I’m such a fickle Finny

RE Mike: Hey, where are you guys tonight? There’s a Chinese New Year Party [right near you].
Me: We just ate but is that [our mutual friend that I did work for]?
Him: Yup. Sick house. Come.

A while ago, right before COVID, I did some legal work for a fella around the way.

It was COVID and my brain was still a mess from: COVID, Alison, my dad, and a buncha other things during that time so that whole time is super fuzzy.

This past weekend was the first in over two months where Sara and I had absolutely nuthin planned for the whole weekend.

Was just gonna sit around and just read. It was gonna be glorious.

That is, until RE Mike gave me a ring outta the blue and told me that our mutual friend was having a party and we should swing by.

While I really just wanted to stay home, this guy put millions – legit millions – into converting a multi-family townhouse into a single family one with a swimming pool in the basement, a garage, and an elevator – just a few blocks south of me.

When I last saw it, it was a shell, so I wanted to see what it looked like completed.

Me: Shoot, we just ate! Would love to come just to say hi and check out but we can’t stay long. Would that be ok? We’d bring a bottle of wine or something.
Him: Yes.

So, off we went.

The place was…gorgeous.

And the food was amazeballs.

But, we literally just ate.

Ended up chatting with a buncha lawyers that went to the same high school that I did – and pretty much everyone I spoke to went to an Ivy League.

Met this one guy who was a doctor, competed as a fencer and wrestler for Yale and – even at 70 – still competed.

Me: That’s wild, man.
Him: I’m still pretty fast so I thought, “why not?”
Me: Working out, it’s the fountain of youth.

It’s true, I thought he was in his early 60s, and he thought I was in my 30s.

Afterwards, RE Mike, my friends around the way, and I all walked home.

Soon, it was just Sara and me.

Me: That was nice – it’s nice having these unexpected nights out.
Her: Yes. I was just telling someone that we live such an interesting life.
Me: True. Although there’s a lot to be said about just staying home and doing nuthin.
Her: Oh, you’re such a fickle Finny, Logan Lo.

Location: Home all day. Glorious.
Mood: busy
Music: It’s time to light the fuse again (Spotify)
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