Writer, Photographer, Cartoonist, Old Woman, Reluctant Activist
Writer, Photographer, Cartoonist, Old Woman, Reluctant Activist
Blooms Behind Bars
Not much nature, not much nurture A salute to the brave plants of New York
Bushes in Bondage, 5th Ave., Greenwich VillageShrub takes the wrap. The old Firebird muscle car is a garden feature at the (late great) auto body shop on DelanceyLilies of the auto body on Delancey under the Williamsburg Bridge on the Lower East Side. Roses of the Firebird and the gardener/auto body shop ownerMinimum Security on Sullivan StreetStringing up Tomatoes on Grand Street, Lower East Side. Houseplant in Solitary, East VillageHostas in the Hole on Spring StreetOur father of chain link, BronxScruffy geraniums look guilty in the East VillageCity cow takes the rap in the East Village. Incarcerated ivy on Grand Street, Robust weeds grow at the old Fulton Fish Market. Now it’s under construction for a shiny new development. I like the weeds much better. Imposter daisies on the Lower East Side.
Weeds give me hope
I spent three years organizing and trying to save East River Park on my Lower East Side neighborhood from a boneheaded city flood control project–much less environmentally and soul crushingly destructive projects could have served the same purpose. We lost and I am devastated. But I see how greenery always finds a way.
In 2021, autumn blooming weeds grew along the riverfront where there is barely a crack in the pavement, but water from the fish cleaning station nurtured the plants. This is in East River Park, now demolished. Someday a levee will be built here to hold back storm surges. It’s was a horrible unnecessary destruction of a wonderful park, but these weeds give me hope. They will prevail.
