Our Town March 1, 2012 by Our Town

CAMP: Is Your Child Ready For Camp? Page 20 March 1, 2012

Since 1970

25,000 HOMEOWNERS?

PHOTO BY PATRICIA VOULGARIS

THE STUY TOWN TENANT’S ASSOCIATION PREPS A BID TO PURCHASE THE HISTORIC COMPLEX P. 4

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tapped in

Notes from the Neighborhood Compiled by Megan Bungeroth

UES SERIAL BURGLAR SENTENCED

Community

meeting Calendar Thursday, March 1 • Community Board 8 Parks Committee meeting, 6:30 p.m., New York Blood Center, 310 E. 67th St., Auditorium. Monday, March 5 • Community Board 8 Budget Committee meeting, 7 p.m., Community Board 8 Office, 505 Park Ave., Conference Room. Tuesday, March 6 • Community Board 8 Street Life Committee meeting, 7 p.m., Lenox Hill Neighborhood House, 331 E. 70th St., Auditorium. Wednesday, March 7 • Community Board 8 Transportation Committee meeting, 6:30 p.m., Lenox Hill Hospital, 131 E. 76th St., Einhorn Auditorium.

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CIVITAS, Carnegie Hill Neighbors and Ken Camilleri of ICF, the special consultant to the mayor’s Clean Heat program, will host a discussion for coop board officers, building managers and superintendents on how buildings can convert to cleaner fuels. Many buildings on the Upper East Side burn the “dirtiest” type of heating oil, No. 6 fuel oil, which contributes greatly to the neighborhood’s poor air quality. By 2015, all buildings must burn cleaner fuel as the city phases out No. 6 oil, switching to No. 2 fuel oil or natural gas. Con Edison reps will be at the meeting to discuss how buildings can make the switch and possibly group into clusters that will make it cheaper for the utility company to connect buildings. Tuesday, March 6, 6 p.m., at the Church of St. Thomas More Parish House, 65 E. 89th St. RSVP to info@civitasnyc.org or call 212-996-0745.

TAVERN ON THE GREEN GOES GLASS? As the fate of the Tavern on the Green site begins to take shape, some residents and preservationists aren’t thrilled with the proposed changes. Last week, the Landmarks Preservation Commission approved the city’s plans to revamp the historic space and spend $10 million to scale it down from its opulent past. The plans include restoring and uncovering the original Victorian gothic style of Jacob Wrey Mould’s 19th-century design, which local preservation groups like Friends of the Upper East Side Historic Districts and Landmark West applaud. What they aren’t as keen on, however, is the giant glass box pavilion addition planned for the east facade that would allow for year-round seating. In testimony before the LPC, Friends called the addition “unrefined, discordant and inconsistent with the architect’s approach toward returning the building to its historic form.” Landmark West testified, “The pavilion proposed is a hefty glass-and-metal box that does nothing but hide what is most exciting about the building’s primary facade: the east-facing central bay.” They claim that “approving the proposed addition opens

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A man who targeted female victims on the Upper East Side for a two-day crime spree in 2010 was sentenced to 18 years to life in prison this week. Tyrone Hunter, 56, pled guilty in January to one count of burglary in the second degree and two counts of attempted burglary in the second degree. According to court documents, in November 2010, Hunter forcibly entered the home of a woman at her East 69th Street apartment building, demanded that she give him her property and forced her to undress and don a blindfold. He absconded with jewelry, a TV and a laptop. Later that same day, he followed another woman into her building on East 83rd Street, clasped his hand over her mouth and demanded money but didn’t steal anything. The next day, he tried again, following yet another woman into her apartment on East 89th Street and tackling her to the ground before fleeing. District Attorney Cy Vance lauded the sentencing and said it “will keep a violent criminal off our streets and will prevent him from carrying out future attacks on women.”

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the door to insensitive additions in years to come and the Tavern on the Green begins down the slippery slope from which it is presently recovering.” While the design will move forward (the city expects to finished construction by summer 2013), the hunt for a new operator for the restaurant has also raised some debate. The city’s request for proposals calls for a casual atmosphere and reasonably priced eatery, which Community Board 8 disapproved and Community Board 7 on the West Side embraced. Aspiring operators have until March 30 to submit proposals.

FANCY FRE NCH WINE TASTING If you’ve ever wanted to hobnob with ritzy neighbors while sipping French vintages, here’s your chance! The group Le Cercle Rive Droite de Grands Vins de Bordeaux (Right Bank Circle of Great Bordeaux Wines) is hosting a wine event at the French consulate in the grand salons of its limestone mansion at 934 5th Ave. Master of Wine Jennifer Simonetti-Bryan will challenge guests with a series of “wine games,” including blind tastings, aroma quizzes and vintage comparisons. Wines will be paired with a selection of wine-friendly hors d’oeuvres and French pastries, including authentic Bordeaux canelés by Patissière Céline Legros, and guests will be serenaded with live French music. Key players in the French wine

Kenneth Alberty channels his inner Cuba Gooding Jr. while posing with an official Oscar statuette in Vanderbilt Hall at Grand Central Terminal. Sponsored by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, the “Meet the Oscars, Grand Central” exhibition featured Oscars in various stages of completion and the Best Actor statuette that was given to Michael Douglas. world will be on hand to answer questions. Wine lovers from connoisseurs to newbies are invited to the event, 5–7 p.m., Thursday, March 8. Tickets are $120 or $200 for two, with proceeds going to God’s Love We Deliver. RSVP by Thursday, March 1 at rightbank-ny. eventbrite.com.

NEW EXHIBIT OPENS AT JEWISH MUSEUM The Jewish Museum unveils its newest exhibition on Friday, March 9: Kehinde Wiley/The World Stage: Israel. The exhibition features a series of paintings by Wiley and is driven by the recent acquisition of his work Alios Itzhak, a 9-foottall portrait of a young Jewish EthiopianIsraeli man surrounded by an intricate decorative background inspired by a traditional Jewish papercut. The 14 paintings, all being displayed in the New York for the first time, feature the likenesses of Israeli youth from diverse religious and ethnic backgrounds. Wiley has said that his work represents a fusion of the orthodox with the secular and European traditions and those of North Africa and the Middle East. The exhibit will run through July 29. Thursday, March 15, 6:30 p.m., Wiley will join Thelma Golden, director and chief curator at the Studio Museum in Harlem, for a conversation about the work. At the Jewish Museum, 1109 5th Ave. Tickets for the talk are $15, $10 for members. Call 212-423-3337 to reserve. N EW S YO U LIV E B Y

Crime Watch Compiled by Megan Bungeroth

Greenhorn Burglar A greenhorn burglar spent the better part of Wednesday, Feb. 15, attempting to figure out the complexities of using a crowbar to break into several apartments in the same building on 85th Street. The would-be crook was finally able to gain entrance into one of the apartments, but the elation of this achievement was shortlived. The perpetrator’s day went from bad to worse when he slinked into the apartment and was caught red-handed by the owner who, after a scuffle, proceeded to call the police. The man was arrested and is being charged with attempted burglary and armed robbery.

Cab Ride from Hell Driving a cab may give you a lot of time to learn how to navigate the mean streets of Manhattan, but it does not prepare you for when those mean streets strike back! In the early morning hours of Saturday, Feb. 25, a cab driver picked up a man and drove him to the corner of East 79th Street and Second Avenue. When the cabbie turned to collect his fee, he was the one who ended up paying. The perpetrator did not have the cash to pay and, while trying to escape the cab, he attacked the driver with kicks, punches and elbows and even had time to nab $35. Luckily for the cabbie, the police were close by and were able to apprehend the wayward traveler.

Wallet Workout Although iPhones and iPads have become staple items in pockets or backpacks, some thieves keep it old-school, aiming their gaze at wallets and the ohso-valuable credit cards. On Monday, Feb. 27, while two unfortunate fitness buffs at a NY Sports Club on Park Avenue were building up their bods, a thief was boosting up his income. The two gymgoO u r To w n NY. c o m

crime watch Your girl is crying. You’re not sure what to do.

ers were victim to having their lockers and backpacks pilfered of their wallets, money, bank and debit cards and various forms of identification.

Welcome to America Coming to America from another country is a daunting task in itself, but the task is much more complicated when one does not speak the language and the local hoodlums are demanding your cash. A little after midnight on Tuesday, Feb. 28, an immigrant man was a victim of language barriers and assault and robbery. Four men approached the victim on Lexington Avenue between East 72nd and 73rd streets and proceeded to take the money and run, but not before roughing up the victim due to his inability to understand that he was being mugged. The attackers were described as younger black men and are still on the loose.

East 90s Bike Bandit While Mayor Michael Bloomberg and a bunch of bike aficionados express their love for the bike lanes of NYC, a cycling Dick Dastardly-like menace has found his niche in the criminal world by stealing and speeding in the green lane. This crook has a pair of nimble hands that he utilizes to steer his bike past unsuspecting pedestrians and pull a snatch and grab of their cell phones or other electronic devices. He has been patrolling the mean streets of the East 90s by First and Second avenues on the Upper East Side since early January, racking up a rap sheet of over five thefts. He still remains at large. He usually strikes in the late afternoons, with his most recent theft taking place on Monday, Feb. 28 at 4 p.m. Because of the nature of the crime, the victims’ only glance of the shystie rider has been of his back as he pedals furiously down the road. The perpetrator is described as a black man who rides a messenger’s bike with a basket and bright orange laces.

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25,000 Homeowners? Stuy Town Tenants Association preps bid to purchase historic development By Allen Houston and Sean Creamer

“It would be a historic win for the tenants to take control of our future. It’s important to make sure that this will continue to be a stable place for people to live and raise their families,” said Council Member Dan Garodnick. future ownership of the property unclear. We simply cannot and will not sit idly by and wait for our future to be determined for us,” read a letter sent by the Tenants Association on Nov. 30, 2011. “We believe that the time is now right to put forth a conversion proposal that will give residents the opportunity to buy their apartments at a reasonable price while also allowing rent-stabilized tenants to continue renting without fear of harassment should they decide not to buy.” Stuy Town, as it’s commonly referred to, stretches on an 80-acre tract from 14th to 20th Street along First Avenue and the East River. It comprises more than 11,000 apartments. Since its inception in the late 1940s, Stuy Town has stood as a model of affordable housing for the middle class. In 2006, Tishman Speyer Properties purchased the complex from MetLife in a move that was widely lauded within the real estate community. Four years later, Tishman Speyer walked away from the site rather than let it go into bankruptcy. Back when the site was first put up for sale, the Tenants Association tried to put together a bid but was outgunned by Tishman Speyer. The group is hoping for

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photos by patricia voulgaris

esidents of Stuyvesant Town– Peter Cooper Village are attempting to wrest control of their destiny. Two tumultuous years after Tishman Speyer Properties relinquished control of the complex of 25,000 residents, the Stuyvesant Town–Peter Cooper Village Tenants Association is working with Brookfield Asset Management to put together a bid to purchase the 60-year-old housing community. “Our community has been through a lot over the past five years, and we continue to live in a state of limbo, with the

a different outcome this time around. East Side Council Member Dan Garodnick was raised and still lives in Stuy Town and has been instrumental in trying to help the Tenants Association in their quest to purchase the complex. “It would be a historic win for the tenants to take control of our future,” he said. “It’s important to make sure that this will continue to be a stable place for people to live and raise their families.” Garodnick said that without the protection of the Tenants Association conversion proposal, another real estate company could come in and create the same havoc and upheaval that happened five years ago. To prep for the upcoming bid, the Tenants Association held the first of a series of house parties last week. At the parties, a group of residents, numbering no more than 20, discusses the bid proposal. “We’re trying to solicit feedback and find out what’s a reasonable price that people would pay for their apartments,” said Al Doyle, president of the Tenants Association. They also hosted a recent telephone town hall where more than 2,000 people dialed in to hear about the conversion process. The Tenants Association hopes to have a bid plan together by the end of April. Doyle said that so far, the feedback

Kids play basketball at Stuyvesant Town–Peter Cooper Village. from residents has overwhelmingly been positive. “There’s a lot to work out still, but most of the residents seem excited about being able to purchase their apartments,” he said. Part of the purpose of the meetings is also to clear up any misinformation about what might happen during the conversion process. Some of the complex’s more elderly residents fear that the process might endanger their rent-stabilized apartments. “They have a fear because of what happened with Tishman Speyer, toss-

The Stuyvesant Town–Peter Cooper Village Tenants Association is trying to put together a bid to purchase the historic complex.

ing out as many people as they could,” Doyle said. “A lot of the older residents have lived here 50-60 years and they’ve never owned property, so it makes them nervous.” “If residents don’t want to take part in the process or purchase their apartments, they don’t have to and nothing will happen to them,” Garodnick said. Part of the reason for making a bid, according to Doyle and Garodnick, is that it would actually protect these vulnerable rent-controlled residents, something an outside company might not feel obligated to do. Joan Hamilton, a longtime Stuy Town resident, is leaning toward supporting the Tenants Association’s bid, though she doesn’t know if she will purchase her own apartment. “We would be more in charge of our own destiny,” she said. “It would certainly be better than the rent going up every 10 minutes like it seems to do now.” Tenants Association board member John J. Sheehy said that the group is striving to return the community to the stability of solid ownership. “It removes the fear of what happen if rent stabilization were removed in Albany and creates a sense of comfort,” he said. At the end of the day, Doyle said the residents have to do something. “One way or another, we have to gain control of the property,” Doyle said. “We can’t wait for another Tishman Speyer.” N EW S YO U LIV E B Y

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“Heaven and Earth Glow Red,” 1964, Horizontal scroll, ink and color on paper, Nanjing Museum.

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By Kate Prengel The title of The Metropolitan Museum’s new Chinese painting exhibit, Chinese Art in an Age of Revolution: Fu Baoshi (19041965), is misleading. The painter in question did live through the establishment of the Chinese Republic, the Sino-Japanese wars and the rise of the Communist party, but Fu is far more academic than revolutionary. It is his adaptability and willingness to lose himself in the river of history that makes this show so interesting. We begin with the young Fu training himself to paint by copying the masters. He inscribes each of his early paintings with an explanation of his influences (“Cheng Sui, active 1605-1691, modeled his landscapes after Dong Yuan, active 930s-960s…I love his simple, vigorous style and imitate it”). Fu was also a professional maker of seals, and the first room of the show includes many of his seals. Like the early paintings, these are well-realized, workmanlike pieces, far more imitative than original. Fu evidently became more dynamic in middle age. My favorite pieces in the exhibit are a series of rainy, romantic paintings of mountains and remote cottages, done at the end of World War II. “Whispering Rain at Dusk” is a wonderfully broody picture washed in purplegray; the trees and their leaves look like raindrops. In all the hugeness of nature, the eye goes to a tiny red figure laboring up a path to a house high up in the

mountains. “Myriad Bamboo in Mist and Rain,” similarly, is almost all green mist; trees and rain take over the picture except for some high, far-off mountain peaks and a clean-looking river. Three friends shelter in a cottage, and we can almost hear their crackling fire. After Mao Zedong took power, Fu found work as a propagandist. We generally expect to look down on propaganda, but in fact, Fu’s Mao-era work is wonderfully fresh. He traveled to the Soviet Union with a delegation of Chinese artists and painted the parks, cathedrals and airports he saw there. The trip obviously energized him; suddenly, the landscape is neither an academic study nor a reflection of mood but a real place that must be observed and recorded in detail. The trees and factory windows are charming in their sharp-outlined specificity. Fu’s homages to Mao are also effective. Soldiers, again closely observed in detailed uniforms, trudge bravely through the snow. A cowherd appears to assure peasants that more prosperous times are coming. A number of paintings are inspired by Mao’s poetry. It is not difficult to see in these late works the same capable young painter who so dutifully copied the works of the ancient masters. Chinese Art in an Age of Revolution: Fu Baoshi (1904-1965) Through April 15, Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1000 5th Ave., 212-5703894, www.metmuseum.org. N EW S YO U LIV E B Y

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New Budget Plan Would Give People Spending Powers By Megan Bungeroth Over 50 people gathered last Thursday night to hear their neighbors give presentations on exactly how they think $1 million should be spent in their district. In an experimental process called participatory budgeting, City Council Member Melissa Mark-Viverito has chosen to let the decisions on how to spend her district’s discretionary funding for the year fall into the hands of those who live there. Groups of budget delegates, volunteers from the community who were assigned the task of thinking up and researching projects that could use funding, presented their proposals in seven different categories: parks and recreation, education, transportation, seniors and social services, public health and environment, youth and public housing. Each proposal was accompanied by a colorful poster board highlighting why it should receive a portion of the funding, featuring photos of decrepit basketball courts, dangerously unlit passageways and antiquated computer labs alongside their aspirational opposites, showing how the dollars would directly improve that particular aspect of the community.

Speaking for the parks and recreation delegation, which was pushing for a renovated dog run at Jefferson Park and resurfacing the Booker T. Washington Park basketball court—which has puddles so deep they’ve been called “pools with no lifeguards”—Kioka Jackson first urged everyone to come back and bring friends to vote on the projects in March. Anyone 18 years old or over who resides in the district can vote for their top five projects, and the winners will receive portions of the funding, allocated in the capital budget. “It’s so important, because it’s the time when we get a chance to make decisions in our community,” Jackson said. Council District 8 encompasses parts of the Upper West Side and Manhattan Valley, as well as East Harlem and part of the Mott Haven section of the Bronx. It has the highest concentration of public housing in the city, and Mark-Viverito has made it a priority to improve the quality of life for NYCHA residents. Many of the project proposals sought funding for public housing repairs and improvements like security cameras, renovated playgrounds, barbecue pits and

rat-proof recycling bins, with enthusiastic support from the budget delegates who had conceived the proposals. Delegate Ray Figueroa presented his ambitious proposal for building a greenhouse on a NYCHA property, in the Mill Brook Houses in the Bronx. “What this greenhouse proposes to do is to deal with poverty at the root of poverty,” Figueroa said. “Building a greenhouse that will serve as a foundation for a youth-run food production and farming business.” He hopes that the $200,000 in startup money from the City Council would get the project going and that it would also qualify for state and federal grants. Laurie Frey, a member of the District 3 Community Education Council, presented several projects from the education delegation that would improve local schools. P.S. 163 needs an air conditioner in its gym so kids can use it year-round; P.S. 171 needs a new library and other schools could badly use new laptops and computers. “The nice thing about public schools is that they are public spaces, and this is a public process here,” Frey said. “And

unlike the Parks Department, we don’t have laws to protect our public school buildings in the same way. We need that.” Other projects included purchasing a new ultrasound machine for the Metropolitan Hospital Center, creating a skate park for kids to encourage exercise and keep them from skating illegally on sidewalks and constructing a 10-foot barrier wall between a Wagner Housing Project playground, where asthma rates are particularly high, and the FDR Drive to direct polluted air flow above the kids playing below. “A lot of these projects are really out of the box,” said Joe Taranto, deputy chief of staff for Mark-Viverito. Taranto said one of the fringe benefits of the process has been that community members gain insight into the sometimes thorny inner workings of city government. “People have a better idea of how much things cost, how many bureaucratic loopholes there are, how a capital project is actually defined,” Taranto said. “It really gives people a better understanding of how their government works at a local level, and we’re really excited about that part, too.”

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Apps on a Train! Broaden your mobile pursuits By carib guerra OK, I admit it: I look over your shoulder on the train. I see you playing Angry Birds, poker and backgammon on your smart phones and, hey, I don’t blame you. But there are some great games that aren’t infringing on the intellectual property of whichever bored human invented throwing rocks at windows. Here are a few games for the iPhone that are trying something new: Superbrothers: Sword & Sworcery EP ($4.99) It’s hard to talk about this game without gushing praise, but jeez, talk about getting a game right! The art is all lowres and pixelated, but every element on the screen is intricately put together. Rustle the bushes and splash the water, no problem. The game is supposed to take a while, but that’s not a problem for the commuter—just close out and come back to it later on. In fact, after each ‘“session”—chapters of the game—it will urge you to take a break. Fine by me. Don’t rush it.

The greatest thing about Sword & Sworcery EP is how completely immersive it is, from composer Jim Guthrie’s atmospheric music to the quietly alive environs you’ll quest through. Real smart controls, too. For flight, just “tip-tap” wherever or touch and hold the screen for quick action. My Little Monster ($0.99) This game is flat-out adorable, as well as funny, dark and totally absurd. Styled after Monster trainers like Tamagotchi or Pokemon, My Little Monster is not quite the same. It’s fun and good-looking, with pixel art mixed up with celshaded graphics, but more than anything, the game serves to showcase Par Fredriksson’s humorous take on game design. On a mission to destroy the world, you and your monster battle foes like Lost Hiker, Lo-Res Mage and Skinned Fox. The one downside to it is, being such a short game, how limited it feels. There’s no chance to max out your monster, and less damage received trans-

lates into more points to spend, so the only upgrade worth buying is defense. Once you’ve beaten the game once, play through it again with a winner’s experience multiplier. The art and music are worth your buck alone—thankfully, it’s fun to boot. Desi Leaves Town ($3.99) The app store doesn’t have a games subsection for literature, but that’s just what this game is. Pajamahouse Studios was making a bold move when they released Desi. In a time when people throw actual tantrums over milliseconds of lag, Desi Leaves Town requests an audience—one with patience, at that. The game is an adaptation of the novel Against Nature by Joris-Karl Huysman. According to Wikipedia, the 1884 novel is about “Jean des Esseintes, an eccentric, reclusive aesthete and antihero who loathes 19th-century bourgeois society and tries to retreat into an ideal artistic world of his own creation.” I tip my hat to these guys, though. As a proud literate myself, the idea of mixing literature and technology is appealing. The story is dark and quirky, the music is intriguing and the animation is endearing. What the game lacks, however, is the part we’re all here for: the games! I hope we’ll

see some updates that revamp the app’s mini-games with the typical ADD player in mind. The Impossible Game ($0.99) The Impossible Game by FlukeDude is actually impossible. It’s so nauseatingly frustrating I feel like I’m going to have a heart attack. Why am I still playing it? It’s simple: the game is minimalistic and addictive. You control a box that moves unstoppably forward. Your only defense against inert triangles and other boxes is that you can jump. Timing is everything here. You’ll learn the course through brutal trial and error alongside a techno soundtrack programmed in time with the obstacles. It’s great. Simply put, this is a pure game. Grand Theft Auto III ($4.99) GTA III was rereleased for the game’s 10th anniversary so it’s not technically new, but in adapting the classic gang life free for all for iOS, Rockstar has done something special. The touch screen controls are excellent and slick and allow for a bit of customization if necessary. It’s best to leave the missions for your lunch break, lest you miss your stop. This is the same huge world we all remember, and it’s still just as fun as ever.

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Karma Komix History of Tibet Pop at Rubin Museum By Renfreu Neff Visitors entering the lobby of the Rubin Museum of Art are welcomed with soothing Eastern music played by live performers nestled in the curved foot of an elegant spiral staircase—the building is itself a landmarked structure created by the noted French architectural designer Andrée Putman for Barney’s, its previous incarnation—that rises six levels through galleries of priceless permanent collections and traveling exhibitions from countries bordering the 1,800-mile arc of the Himalayan mountain range. For the Sherpa-challenged, an elevator is recommended for the ascent to the top; take the stylish stairway down to see the exhibitions. The Rubin is the most user-friendly museum in the city; I know of no other that encourages the visitor to slide one of its small padded benches over and sit in unhurried contemplation before the thangkha painting of one’s choice. Spiraling all the way down to the lower level, one enters the realm of Hero, Villain, Yeti: Tibet in Comics, an extraordinary exhibition of vintage comic books and early action figures that, in keeping with the Buddhist principles of lineage and reincarnation, is the most complete and comprehensive collection of comics related to Tibet ever assembled. Curated by Dr. Martin Brauen, anthropologist, religious historian, author of several English-language and German publications on Tibetan and Himalayan art and culture and chief curator of the Rubin from 2008 to 2011, the exhibit includes comics from Germany, France, Belgium (The Adventures of Tintin), Italy, India and Japan, in their original languages and translated into English, some for the first time. They are presented for easy perusal in facsimile format in bound albums on a broad table flanked by stools. Headphones are also available for the enjoyment of a video narrated by Brauen. How could a mysterious country surrounded by the world’s highest, most perilous snow-covered mountains—the impenetrable “roof of the world”—inspire such fantastic stories? Walt Disney fell under the influence, too, as shown in Walt Disney presents Mickey Mouse in High Tibet and Donald Duck and Uncle Scrooge in Tralala, the Roof of the World, accompanied by Bugs Bunny and Porky Pig frolicking in the snow. There

A panel from Green Lama (no. 1), script by Richard Foster, art by Mac Raboy, 1944. were serious heroes, of course—Doctor Strange, Master of the Mystical Arts; The Green Lama, the Man Who Defies Death; Dalai Lama: Superhero—and here we see Flash Gordon and the beginnings of Batman, Iron Man and a lithe Tomb Raider Lara Croft, as well as sinister villains, as in Pharoan, where Nazi agents go to Tibet in search of occult secrets to advance Hitler’s doctrines. Sometimes there was an unfriendly crossover, where a villain could turn nasty: “It’s the Green Lama!! Get him boys!!” commands a really pissed off Bugs Bunny. The popularity of comics gave birth to action figures, and some are displayed here: Mickey Mouse and Donald Duck were proto-action figures but are not as scary as the tiny caped Doctor Strange. As for the Yetis, how long can a snowman stay abominable? My guess is that the Yeti evolved from the comics into an industry of its own, encompassing more dependably articulated movie icons like King Kong, Chewbacca, Yoda, vampires and lumbering, uncuddly robots. Hero, Villain, Yeti: Tibet in Comics Through June 11, Rubin Museum of Art, 150 W. 17th St., 212-620-5000, www. rmanyc.org. N EW S YO U LIV E B Y

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The Blur of Modernism From Japan to Sarah Sze By Mario Naves The advent and subsequent triumph of modernism did much to diminish the role of narrative in the visual arts, insisting, as it did, that the exigencies of craft should take precedence over anything smacking of literature. But modernism is an historical blip—a significant blip, mind you, but a blip all the same. Narratives have dominated world art. To ignore (or downplay) as much is to mistake The Annunciation for a flat surface covered with colors assembled in a certain order. Thoughts about narrative—about temporal flow, cultural myths and the human imagination’s range, influence and probity—came to mind while viewing Storytelling in Japanese Art, an exhibition at The Metropolitan Museum of Art. Which isn’t to suggest that the colors and flat surfaces assembled by the painters and sculptors featured in Storytelling don’t merit attention. A story is captivating to the extent to which it is told well, and the artisans responsible for this panel painting, that devotional carving or emaki, a form of illuminated handscroll, tell them well indeed. In the work, elaborate stylization coex-

ists with acute observation, generalization with specificity, charm with gravity. Hell is rendered in burnt copper tonalities and whiplash rhythms; the seasons with lucid economy. Shibata Zeshin’s “The Ibaraki Demon” (ca. 1839–40), the closest Storytelling comes to a showstopper, is a miraculous confluence of line, gesture, character and motion. The more Sarah Sze accumulates and organizes detritus—the more impressive her meticulous arrangements of this, that and the other thing become—the more you have to wonder what it is she’s concealing or, for that matter, running from. Sarah Sze: Infinite Line, a mid-career exhibition at Asia Society, does everything and goes nowhere simultaneously. Give the artist this much: She imagines what might have happened if Robert Rauschenberg had been a neatnik beholden to Alexander Calder and not the New York School—and if he had been a victim of information overload rather than its messenger. Immaculate confusion is the result, painfully choreographed and scrupulously inert, though the work hints at pictorial invention. The trouble is, Sze is a sculp-

Kaiho Yuchiku (1654-1728), “The Tale of Drunken Demon,” late 17th century. Scroll II from a set of three handscrolls, ink, color and gold on paper. Spencer Collection, The New York Public Library, Astor, Lenox and Tilden Foundations. tor—or an installation artist, whatever. Where to begin detailing her materials? Among them are a Rolodex, a tape measure, pocket change, rocks, an upturned driver’s license, rolled-up photographs of natural phenomena, a desk fan plugged in and working, exquisitely ordered confetti, a take-out coffee cup from “Bread Corrado Pastry” and string, lots of string. What Sze gleans from Calder is his gift for rendering line as a three-dimensional entity and the theatrical contingencies of his “Circus.” In the end, all those finicky agglomera-

tions of stuff don’t coalesce into anything with much vitality, personality or staying power. An ambitious blur of expertise—we should ask more from our artists. Sarah Sze: Infinite Line Through March 25, Asia Society, 725 Park Ave., 212-288-6400, www.asiasociety.org. Storytelling in Japanese Art Through May 6, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1000 5th Ave., 212-535-7710, www.metmuseum.org.

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NEWLY CONSTRUCTED APARTMENTS FOR RENT West 39th Street Apartments is pleased to announce that applications are now being accepted for 41 affordable rental apartments under construction on West 39th Street, between Eighth and Ninth Avenues, in the Clinton section of Manhattan. This building is being constructed through the Inclusionary Housing Program of New York City’s Department of Housing Preservation and Development and the 80/20 Housing Program of New York State Homes and Community Renewal. The size, rent and income requirements of the 41 apartments are as follows: APARTMENT TYPE

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1 Bedroom

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2 Bedroom

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Note: Apartment Type Subject to Occupancy Criteria. Rent Includes Gas for Cooking and Heating. Rents and Income Requirements Subject to Change.

APPLICANTS WILL BE REQUIRED TO MEET INCOME, HOUSEHOLD SIZE AND ADDITIONAL SELECTION CRITERIA. To request an application, mail a POSTCARD, including your name and full address, to: West 39th Street Apartments, One Penn Plaza, Box 6121, New York, NY 10119. Or DOWNLOAD an application from www.west39apts.com Completed applications must be returned by regular mail only (no priority, certified, registered, express or overnight mail will be accepted) to a post office box that will be listed on the application, and must be postmarked by April 14, 2012.Applications postmarked after April 14, 2012 will be set aside for possible future consideration. Applications will be selected by lottery. Applicants who submit more than one application will be disqualified. Photocopied applications will not be accepted. Preference will be given to: Manhattan Community Board #4 residents for 21 units; mobility-impaired persons for 2 units; visual and/or hearing impaired persons for 1 unit; and City of New York municipal employees for 2 units. Preference for all units will go to New York City residents. No broker’s or application fee should be paid to anyone regarding these applications. ANDREW M. CUOMO, Governor MICHAEL R. BLOOMBERG, Mayor NYC Department of Housing Preservation and Development MATHEW M. WAMBUA, Commissioner New York State Homes and Community Renewal DARRYL TOWNS, Commissioner/CEO www.nyc.gov/hpd 12

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Heavy Metal Gothic ‘Ghost Rider’ redeems and critiques

By Armond White did. Like the Crank movies, Gamer and If the filmmaking team of Mark Jonah Hex, Spirit of Vengeance satirizes Neveldine and Brian Taylor wrote out purgatory. their thoughts on how contemporary Most junk movies (The Terminator, pop has traduced fun, warped thrills and Iron Man, Kick-Ass, Thor and othdebased energy in the art form they love, ers) cheat us out of moral reckoning; it would be a great, provocative piece of Neveldine/Taylor jokingly provoke our criticism—although few film publications conscience by heightening action tropes. would want such a principled view of the Narrative acceleration gets so technically destructive entertainment that’s routinely striking that viewers are forced to question sold to the public. That means this wildly their comprehension, where most movies sophisticated team remains obscure (and simply request intermittent attention. perplexing to some), but their new film Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance ought to be the movie news of the week. Ostensibly a sequel, Spirit of Vengeance turns Marvel’s death-and-action Ghost Rider comic book franchise into more than just an entertainment—it’s a spot-on cultural assessment. Neveldine/Taylor use the story of badass biker Johnny Blaze (Nicholas Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance. Cage) saving a child from the devil for a modern redemption allegory. Cage’s manic performance epitoNeveldine/Taylor redeem cinema mizes this challenge. It’s on the edge of unexpectedly by pushing its commercial corny yet desperate, evoking Conrad extremes: outré violence and sarcasm Veidt’s Gwynplaine in The Man Who (coin of the Tarantino/video game realm) Laughs. He’s a walking inferno whose where horror and comedy mix, as in their machines—motorbike and an earth-carvtwo terrific Crank movies. ing crane—catch fire. Blaze is always on After the troubled Jonah Hex project fire, consumed of his own cynicism; a (which Neveldine/Taylor wrote without post-Judeo-Christian hero. directing), their gallows humor finds In a remarkable montage, Blaze the basic Faust element in Ghost Rider. morphs into his possessed visage, a face/ When Blaze reneges on his deal with skull exchange of humanity and death. the devil, Neveldine/Taylor trace his This F/X recalls gothic paintings that madness to our sped-up, digital age cul- depicted debased human conditions ture. Tarantino exploits vengeance, but alongside spiritual beliefs and Godard’s Neveldine/Taylor explore the ramifica- compacted modernism. Neveldine/Taylor tions of the “lust to punish” in today’s ber- are cultured geeks. serk world—a criminals-and-monks alleIt’s all hyped by a guitar-shredding gory for how media mavens and private music score that helps equate Neveldine/ citizens act vengefully without humility Taylor’s frenzied filmmaking to a gifted or compassion. kid making up heavy metal chords in his Neveldine/Taylor’s moral clarity seems garage—improvs on classic riffs, solos paradoxical given their hyperbolic, delib- and melodies that actually critique the erately trashy-looking style, but there’s tired corporate-rock variety of metal. old-fashioned satisfaction to the way Much of Neveldine/Taylor’s fun comes they connect modern nihilism to a classic from the feeling that their genre critiques theme. Concerned with the preservation are made up as they go along, challenging of human values, they express them when the clichés that are built into decadent angel Moreau (Idris Elba) enlists Blaze Hollywood formula. Neveldine/Taylor’s to protect Danny (Fergus Riordan) from films are not only fresher than the current the satanic clutches of Roarke (Ciarán state of criticism, they’re inspired. Hinds). They work through contemporary Follow Armond White on Twitter decadence the same way medieval artists @3xchair. Courtesy of Columbia PiCtures

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8 MILLION STORIES

How Deborah Fenker knows the boy next door Remaining friendly with my ex-boyfriends has always been my M.O. Recently, however, I realized that this may have had more than a little to do with the fact that the post-breakup has historically found me and my ex on separate continents—or at least opposite coasts. More recently, I thought the distance from Chelsea to Brooklyn would adequately replicate that continental buffer. Until he moved next door. Not in the next building or across the street, kind of kitty-corner—I mean wall-sharing, within earshot, might-as-well-be-living-together, A3-to-A4 next door. In sleep, our bodies lie but 20 or so feet from one another. It’s weird, at best. In our building, these two ground-floor apartments have the New York City luxury of a humble courtyard behind them. With this most recent occupant, however, my previously prized haven of solace has been rendered a potentially hellish, too-close-for-comfort point of collision, divided only by a flimsy cedar fence and a thick dollop of resentment. My previous neighbors were the brilliant couple that introduced us. Approximately a year ago, when their twosome became nine months away from being a trio, they knew they would have to break their lease. Who better to fill the void than their old friend, her college buddy, his drinking buddy—my ex-boyfriend? We had actually reached a comfortable tolerance after a raspy breakup, but when my soon-to-be-ex-neighbor broke the news to me over dinner one night, I

don’t think I processed the depth of the situation. Despite a few hopeful lapses regarding a shoddy credit record and several delayed move-in dates, the lease was signed Nov. 15. Since then, I’ve seen him maybe three times, with just about as many words exchanged on each occasion. His nine-tofive and my inconsistent freelance schedule provide for thankfully few encounters. The frustration on my end lies simply in my insatiable curiosity; I honestly couldn’t care less what he feels about me at this point, though this might answer a few lingering uncertainties, but I do desperately want to know how he regards me, whatever it is. Disdain, disinterest, unrequited passion, animosity, vengeance (should I be wary?), fond nostalgia? I don’t know if I care which of these it might be (though my druthers would be the latter), I would just love to know whatever the hell he is thinking. Beyond that, my only point of contention thus far is that he plays his raucous thrash music loud enough that I can feel the bass in my chest. Nearing 10-ish on a weekday winter night, having endured a solid two hours of his iPod shuffle, I guess I’d had it. I thumped five times, hard, on our shoddy sheetrock dividing wall. It was only then that I bothered to recognize to tune that was invading my soundspace. I believe the band is Bread. I believe the title of the track is “Everything I Own.” Yup, that’s right: “Just to have you back again.” Do understand, though—it was coming from his Bose, not mine.

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2/21/12 PM O U R TO W N 4:19 • 13

Dining

Southwest Spain in a Bottle Stop being afraid of sherry and embrace it!

About five or six years ago, it was on they end up throwing it out, declaring, the menu of every high-end restaurant “I’ll never understand how anyone can in the city. The now defunct Chanterelle drink this!” actually had a tasting menu that paired To understand why someone might seven courses with seven different drink it, it’s best to understand how it is types. Sherry-Lehmann had an entire made. Unlike port, which many people section devoted to them exclusively. place in the same category as sherry, this People who had always made fun of and product is not all that sturdy. Port was ridiculed the stuff were suddenly fair- designed for travel. High alcohol and weather converts, high sugar make it a praising its unique durable commodity. qualities and gulping Many sherries are it by the bottle. And very delicate. By Josh Perilo now, it is once again All sherry must difficult to find anycome from one of one anywhere who has a serious enthu- three small towns in the southwestsiasm for it. ern area of Spain: Jeres de la Frontera, I am referring to the often misun- Sanlúcar de Barrameda or El Puerto de derstood star of the southern Spanish Santa María. Back in the day, wine was wine world: sherry. Once one of the stored in barrels that were turned on most drunk beverages in the world, their sides and stacked on top of each this shy little quaffer is now exiled to other, three or four rows high. Two-thirds the back of most liquor stores, often of the wine was taken from the bottom displaying a generous coating of dust. barrel and bottled, then the remainder Then, when someone actually buys was filled from the row above. This was that ancient bottleWishes:Layout of fino and tries3 it 1/30/12 at repeated Q01244 FEC-Five 11:38until AM the Pagetop 1 row of barrels home (probably at room temperature), was refilled with the new wine from that

year. This was called the solera system and is still used to this day. Because of this, there are no vintages of sherry. It is all multi-vintage. But the solera system is only half of what made sherry unique. Sherries themselves were radically different depending on what city they were from and even which part of those cities the wine was made in. This was all because of humidity and yeast. In the towns that were more humid and closer to the ocean (Sanlúcar de Barrameda, in particular), the yeasts would “bloom” and form a skin on top of the wine in the barrel. This would keep the wine from being exposed to oxygen and thus make a lighter, crisper, drier wine. It was also a much more fragile wine, because as soon as it was exposed to the elements, it would begin to deteriorate. These dry sherries were given the classification “fino,” and the driest of the finos was called manzanilla. These, like the “La Guita” Manzanilla ($7.99 at 67 Wine, 179 Columbus Ave., at 68th St., 212-7246767) with sea air and raw almond fla-

vors, must be served cold and fresh. This isn’t a bottle you want to age. With the sherries that did not benefit from the yeast’s bloom, the resulting product was richer, nuttier and more complex. Amontillado is the name given to the style of sherry that had oxidized only a little bit. Amontillados like the Valdespino Amontillado “Contrabandista” ($26.99 at PJ Wine, 4898 Broadway, betw. 204th & 207th Sts., 212-567-5500), with flavors of hazelnut, orange peel and butterscotch, still retain a bit of the crisp flavor profile that the finos have, but are definitely in a class by themselves. There are other sherries, though, that are allowed to completely oxidize and are made from a sweeter, more robust grape. Pedro Ximénez sherries are dark as molasses and extremely sweet—so much so that a traditional dessert in Southern Spain was a scoop of vanilla ice cream with a drizzle of a PX like the Osborne Pedro Ximenez ($17.99, also at 67 Wine) on top. Don’t be afraid of the bottles in the back of the store! Try a sherry the next time you want an inexpensive trip to the Spanish coast. Follow Josh on Twitter: @joshperilo.

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March 1, 2012

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Dining

Speak Easy and Carry a Good Drink Jbird’s excellent cocktails are a secret worth revealing

they have to cross to brave it—or they may rors, leather booths and communal tables. run straight into its open arms. Back there you have a panoply of serPerhaps in recognition of this double- vice staff and the option of a full dinner, as edged sword, or perhaps because there modern bars feel they must supply. Here’s are fewer big scary clubs to hide behind, the secret: they don’t have to. There are the Upper East Side Jbird (339 E. 75th St., plenty of places to get dinner. There are betw. 1st & 2nd Aves., jbirdvery few places to get seriny.com) has its own storeous cocktails. You do the front, albeit a very small one. math. They’ve figured out that in Interesting bar snacks like this neighborhood, cocktails savory popcorn with avothis good don’t need the gimcado and Cholula hot sauce mick—locals are so desperor lardo on bread with “good ate for an interesting drink salts” are a pleasant diverthey stop at the awning and son, but a smoked chicken rub their eyes, convinced it’s panini just ruins the illusion an alcoholic’s mirage. that you are in a more sophisBut its looks are still ticated time and place. deceiving. Entering the narThe truly remarkable row room, bottles stacked One of Jbird’s Cocktails, drink menu that divides claustrophobically to the the Rx Julep. cocktails by type (old-fashceiling, it seems as if you’re in a century- ioneds, swizzles, sours), then runs wild old haunt, where waxed mustaches were with combinations of spirits and flavors prevalent the first time around. Keep that put other bars to shame. This almost going, though, and the room opens up to mathematical approach makes trying 21st-century scale, all white tile and mir- something new a reliable proposition, not Michel Ann O’MAlley

By Regan Hofmann The speakeasy trend hit New York City hard some six years ago, with bars like Employees Only, Pegu Club and Death & Co. springing up in every alleyway. Discerning drinkers were lured in with unlisted phone numbers, unmarked doors and strict codes of conduct that promised to keep unaccompanied ladies unmolested. But for some reason, the bars all managed to stay below the 49th (Street) parallel, leaving uptown high and dry. It’s not as if uptowners don’t like to bend the elbow, as the continued existence of establishments like Bill’s Gay Nineties, P.J. Clarke’s and Bemelmans can attest, but for some reason, intrepid cocktailiers felt no urge to move on up—until recently. Jbird’s first location opened in Midtown (241 w. 48th St., betw. Broadway & 8th Ave.), tucked away behind the mob scene of your standard high-gloss Times Square club. This is equal parts genius and misguided: Those susceptible to the allure of the comfortably underpopulated secret den may be too repulsed by the rubicon

a crapshoot—if you know you like oldfashioneds, a KSBW (bourbon, lemongrass acacia honey and bitters) is an easy jump. Aromatized cocktails are similarly familiar yet fascinating, and the Maddow, which added elderflower liqueur and whiskey barrel-aged bitters to Old Tom gin, was spirit-forward with layers of sweetness and smoke that transcended its martini predecessor. Jbird thoughtfully presents the different styles in the glasses that serve them best; a julep came in a proper silver cup with a steel straw to reach through the coarse crushed ice, while aromatized drinks are served in smaller-than-the-norm martini glasses with half the cocktail resting in a small decanter on ice, keeping the whole thing frosty as you sip. At Jbird, it seems even the pioneers who have brought the first speakeasy to the Upper East Side got cold feet and given the neighborhood what they think it wants. But if you ignore this and demand what they’re actually capable of, it’s a cocktail to to rival the best in the rest of the city.

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new york family

My Body Belongs to Me

Talking to children (in age-appropriate ways) about sexual abuse is key to helping them prevent it By Heather Ouida

few years ago, Jill Starishevsky, a prosecutor of child abuse and sex crimes in New York City, handled the case of a little girl who was regularly molested by her stepfather from the time she was 6 years old until she was 9. After three years of being abused and keeping it quiet, which is very common, all it took was watching an episode of Oprah for the young girl to stand up for herself. Focused on sexual abuse of children, the show’s message was: “If someone is hurting you, tell an adult. If you are too scared to tell your parents, tell a teacher.” Inspired by the episode, Starishevsky’s client told her teacher the very next day. It was this heartbreaking case that prompted Starishevsky to write the children’s book My Body Belongs to Me and to kick-start her campaign educating parents on how and why to start the difficult conversation with their children about body boundaries and the necessity of telling an adult if someone ever hurts or touches them inappropriately. What I love about your book is that it’s a conversation starter for children as young as 3 and as old as 10. The dialogue is very different from the one about “stranger awareness”; one of the things I learned from you is that sexual predators are often people the children already know. Jill Starishevsky: Parents think they have done a service to their child by only discussing stranger danger, and that if you’ve had this conversation with your

Hot Tip of the Week

Eat Your Veggies Whether your kiddos are vegans, vegetarians, healthy eaters or simply love good-for-you food, the second annual New York Vegetarian Food Festival is sure to please all palates. Tons of food vendors, restaurants and wellness companies will set up shop in Chelsea’s Metropolitan Pavilion this weekend, and children will not run out of things to do! It takes place 10 a.m.5 p.m. both days, and tickets are $5. For more information, visit nycvegfoodfest. com. And visit newyorkfamily.com for even more family fun. O u r To w n NY. c o m

child doing rea ly well in school suddenly does poorly or a child who always loves wearing short sleeves now only wants to wear long sleeves.

child, they’re safe. But the statistics reveal a very different truth: 93 percent of child sexual abuse happens at the hands of someone who is known to the child—someone in the child’s inner circle. Stranger danger only accounts for 7 percent of sexual abuse. How prevalent is sexual abuse of children? It is more pervasive than people [think]. Child sexual abuse affects one in every four girls and one in every six boys by the age of 18 in the United States. It could happen to anyone’s child. There are what I call three big truths about child sexual abuse: No. 1 is that it does not discriminate; it doesn’t matter if you’re black, white, rich or poor. The second big truth is that parents aren’t talking to their children about sexual abuse. They don’t want to scare the child or they think that if someone was harming their child, the child would tell them or that they would be able to tell or sense if their child was being abused. Which leads to the third big truth, which is that children do not immediately disclose sexual abuse. The only way to combat these truths is through prevention education. Why do children often not tell anyone when they are being abused? One of the main reasons children, especially young children, don’t tell is because the predator said, “This is our secret.” Children want to please this person. And they like having this special secret. How do we help children understand that it’s okay to say “no” to an adult? Saying “no” to an adult is something you actually have to practice with children, because we teach our children to be respectful of adults. For example, on my daughter’s first day of kindergarten, my husband said to her, “Have a great first day of school. Do everything your teacher says.” And I thought to myself, No, that’s not what we say. What we need to say to our children is, “Listen to everything the teacher says, unless the teacher is telling you to do something that hurts you—then you don’t have to listen to what the teacher

tells you.” We need to reinforce the message that if someone is hurting you, you can say “no,” you can run away and you should tell someone right away. Are there warning signs we can look for if we fear something has happened to our child? The physical signs may include redness to private body parts, but most often the emotional and behavioral signs are obvious first. It is important to note that there are often no physical signs, especially in cases where there is a delay in disclosure. A big red flag is age-inappropriate sexual behavior or knowledge. It’s so hard to tell, but what I do tell parents is that the signs are unique to each child; a

If we do sense something is going on with our child or if our child comes to us and says they are being sexually abused, what should we do and say? The first thing to do is believe your child. Even before you pick up the phone and call the police, the child is going to be looking for your reaction. I read somewhere that it’s more traumatic for a child to have a parent who didn’t believe them than dealing with the repercussions of the abuse itself. That means you can’t express anger or sadness in front of your child, because children think you are angry and sad at them. Also, children often disclose incrementally, so if a parent goes off the handle, the child is less likely to tell them the full story. Support the child. Tell them they made the right decision in telling you. Then you can seek professional assistance including the police, hotlines and advocacy centers. Heather Ouida is the co-president of babybites, a social and educational community of moms and moms-to-be, and a regular contributor to New York Family. For more from Heather, see newyorkfamily.com for her article “The Rising,” a conversation with three moms who lost loved ones on 9/11.

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Chelsea loft, 147 W. 15th St., $6,500,000, Richard Orenstein 212-381-4248. Retreat from the city to this 4,700-square-foot, full-floor loft offering grand rooms, brilliant light and multitextured finishes throughout. Step off the elevator into a massive 54-foot-wide studio space where 12-foot beamed ceilings, industrial columns, frescoed brick walls and sculptural steel doors all mingle to stunning effect. A comfortable light-flooded living area is warmed by a brick fireplace, while a private sitting area provides the perfect place to curl up with the Sunday Times. Floor-to-ceiling glass doors open onto a lush, landscaped terrace, which enjoys charming views of the neighboring ivycovered buildings and brownstone gardens. The master bathroom is a sanctuary unto itself, boasting floor-to-ceiling limestone, a deep soaking tub and a custom vanity with double sinks. At the opposite side of the loft you’ll find the oversized guest bedroom. The guest bathroom is equally soothing and offers hand-cut glass tiles and an over-

sized soaking tub with Waterworks fittings. Union Square condominium, 5 E. 17th St., $5,675,000, Sean Oakes 212-317-7894. This luxurious full-floor loft spans an entire city block, from 17th to 18th Street, with two private keyed elevators for ultimate privacy. Extremely exclusive sevenunit boutique building of 6,000-squarefoot lofts. The foyer opens up to a nearly 100-foot-long living room for a massive first impression. The loft also contains two master bedroom suites—one with its own living area, 20-by-14-foot master bath spa retreat, changing room and extensive walk-in closets. A luxurious limestone king-size master bath suite, adorned with Lefroy Brooks polished nickel fixtures, includes a Jacuzzi for two, a windowed oversized sit-down steam shower and a double vanity. A third bedroom, 12 by 18 feet in size, can double as an office or den, as it opens both to the bedroom hallway and the TV room with three 10-foottall frosted glass doors.

Soho loft, 561 Broadway/SoHo Grand, $5,950,000, Richard Orenstein 212-381-4248. This 5,000-square-foot mega-loft is located right in the heart of Soho and is guaranteed to take your breath away with epic proportions, historic details and superb luxury finishes throughout! Step off the key-locked elevator into a massive entertaining space with high ceilings, classic columns, gorgeous wide-plank flooring and spectacular landmark views from a 50-foot-wide expanse of mahogany-framed glass doors that open onto a magnificent 19th-century wrought-iron balcony. The grand master bedroom suite is a zen-like sanctuary featuring an enormous walk-in closet and a spa-quality master bathroom replete with a custom Thassos marble vanity, radiant heated stone flooring, and a separate glass-enclosed wetroom featuring a Kohler Sok infinity tub and a fabulous rain shower with dual Dorbracht showerheads. All listings compliments of Halstead Properties.

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June 24th – August 11th

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camps

Is Your ChIld readY For Camp?

Most kids have some trepidation the first time. Here’s how you can bolster their overall readiness (and yours) By Jess Michaels

our child going to summer camp for the first time is a big step in his or her life. While it is an exciting time, going to camp may cause some nervousness for both you and your child. So how do you know when the right time is to send your child to camp? “When considering camp, you want to make sure you look at your child with an objective eye,” said Adam Weinstein, executive director of the American Camp Association, New York and New Jersey. “How do other people describe your child to you? How well does your child interact with friends and adults? What activities does your child enjoy? Does your child need a great deal of nurturing or do they tend to be independent? Answering these questions will help you figure out if your child is ready for camp and which camp environment is right for him or her.” Interest & Readiness: How did your child become interested in going to camp? “Talk to your child in order to assess his or her readiness,” said Ross Coleman, director of Coleman Country Day Camp. “Does your child sound excited about the adventure? Is he or she comfortable separating from you for segments of time? Does your child enjoy playing with other children? Does he or she thrive on achieving milestones of independence?” Answering these questions will help you determine if your child is both interested and ready for camp. Remember, the decision to go to camp should be made together. Keep in mind that the more involved children are in the process, the more ownership they feel. This helps ease concerns about camp and can help make a child’s camp experience more successful. Age: You want to consider your child’s age when considering camp. Day camps are designed for children three years and up. Children can go to sleepaway camp at the age of seven. But families should keep in mind that just because a child is 7 years old, it doesn’t mean he or she is emotionally ready for

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sleepaway camp. Day or Sleepaway: If you are considering sleepaway camp, make sure your child has had successful overnights away from home with friends and relatives. Were these overnights positive experiences? You want to make sure your child is mature enough to go away for an extended period of time and that he or she can do certain things independently, like showering, getting dressed and brushing their teeth. Expectations: You should learn about the camp program ahead of time and create positive expectations for your child. Talk about camp throughout the year. “The known is comforting to a child so take a tour of the camp the summer before,” said Ann Young, director of Camp Hilltop in Hancock, N.Y. “Go into a cabin and meet and talk to the directors.

Touring will build your child’s excitement about camp while familiarizing them with the camp program, activities, camp layout, the cabins and the staff.” Many overnight camps also offer Rookie Days, which give future campers a chance to experience camp in session by joining in on camp activities for the day or for a weekend. The more a child feels involved in the process of choosing a camp, the more successful their camp experience is likely to be. Positive Messages: It is important for parents to share positive messages about summer camp. It is common for a child to have some apprehension as the first day of camp approaches—encourage your child to talk about these feelings. Let your child know you are confident in their ability to have a wonderful summer camp experience.

Tips for Getting Yourself Ready » Make sure you talk to the camp director. When you are choosing a camp, ask the camp director questions and get to know him or her. Ask the director to describe the camp’s philosophy and how the staff implements it. Make sure the philosophy reflects your own family’s value system. Find out about the camp director’s background and the staff training. Ask about the age of the counselors and the counselor-to-camper ratio. Talking to the camp director and learning about the camp program will help you feel more comfortable and will ease any nervousness you may have. » Keep in mind that camp directors have your child’s best interests in mind and the skill to guide your child towards an appropriate level of independence, self-confidence and success. » Remember that kids often get over the adjustment to a new experience and a new environment before parents get used to the next stage of development. While your child is adjusting to camp, don’t make pick up deals and offer to rescue your child from camp. Instead, offer positive encouragement that you know he or she will have a successful summer. » If your child is at sleepaway camp, don’t focus too much on correspondence from camp in the first few days. If you receive a discouraging phone call or a letter from your child, remember that like any new experience, adjusting to camp may take a few days and that severe homesickness is rare. Encourage your camper to enjoy all the exciting camp activities that camp has to offer and remind him or her of all the wonderful aspects of camp. » When your child is at camp, allow him or her to solve their own problems or ask a counselor for help. Camp is a setting that allows your child to experience the real world in a safe environment. Kids learn quickly to rely upon themselves and the staff they trust at camp instead of their parents.

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If you’re lookIng for the ultimate camping experience, then look no further than America’s oldest co-ed camp. We’ve been creating outdoor camping memories for kids of all ages for over 120 years. engaging “tech-free” activities build character and friendship — campers choose from water and field sports, hiking, • 700-Acre Campground arts, canoe trips • Mile-Long Private Lake and more — for • Close to New York less than you • Reasonable Rates might imagine.

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Text NKDC to 57394 for info & quick link to our camp video

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for life! We have a wonderful camp community and friendly atmosphere, which kids love. 90% of our children come back every year and that’s why we’re expanding.

A CAmp For

EvEry BudgEt If you’re worried about how to afford summer camp, here are some cost-saving steps to consider By Jess Michaels

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ummer camp is a wonderful opportunity for children to learn life lessons like leadership, independence and self-confidence, as well as trying new activities like sailing, ropes course and waterskiing. It’s hard to put a price tag on your child’s learning and growth experiences, but parents should know that with a little planning and research there are a number of ways—some perhaps obvious, some less so—to help make summer camp more affordable. Adam Weinstein, executive director of the American Camp Association, New York and New Jersey, said, “With careful planning, parents can find a camp that works within their families means. When you think about how much it costs to have a child home all summer, with child care and activities, you realize you can be paying a very small premium for a very rich experience.”

universalcamping@gmail.com • mgnlantern@aol.com • mdealy@bayridgeprep.org 24

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March 1, 2012

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An agency of UJA-Federation

Where Real New Yorkers Work Out.™

camps

Discover

Look for camp early—It isn’t too early to look for a summer camp for the summer of 2012 or even 2013. Tour camps this summer while the camp is in action. Some camps offer early bird specials for registering now so you can register soon after the camp tour for savings. Searching for camp early also gives families a longer time to plan financially for camp.

June 25 – August 3 • For PreK – Grade 12

Gifts—Camp can be given to children as part of birthday gifts and holiday gifts and parents can budget for these gifts throughout the year. Likewise, members of the extended family, like grandparents, may also contribute to a gift like camp.

• Academic and arts enrichment • Adventures in sports and healthy living • Leadership development and international explorations

Search camps by cost—There is a camp for every budget. Families can search the American Camp Association, New York and New Jersey’s website searchforacamp.org by cost as well as day/sleepaway, location, activities or single-sex/coed/brother-sister camps. (Therightcamp.com also has a good camp search engine.) Likewise, families can also call the American Camp Association, NY and NJ camper placement specialist at 212-391-5208 for free, one-on-one advice on finding the right camp at the right price for your family. Keep in mind that some Y camps, in particular, view it as part of their mission to accept a certain percentage of kids from families with modest means.

Summer Connections

at Dwight-Englewood School 315 E. Palisade Avenue • Englewood, NJ 201-569-9500, ext. 3501 www.d-e.org/summer

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y e l k c Bu mp ay D y r t n u o C

One-half mile south of the Long Island Expressway (exit 35)

Assistance offered from the U.S government—The government offers programs that may help families save money on summer camp. • A Dependent Care Flexible Spending Account—A Dependent Care Flexible Spending Account allows parents to be reimbursed on a pre-tax basis for child care or adult dependent care expenses that are necessary to allow parents to work, look for work, or attend school full-time while they are caring for qualified dependents. Visit the FSA Feds website at fsafeds.com for more information. In certain circumstances, day camp expenses, including transportation by a care provider, may be considered dependent care services. • Child and Dependent Care Tax Credit—the IRS allows an income tax credit of up to $6,000 of dependent care expenses if you have two or more dependents (up to $3,000 for one dependent). The amount of the credit is based on your adjusted gross income and applies only to your federal taxes. This applies to qualifying day camp expenses as well. Visit the FSA Feds website for more information. Talk to the camp director—Parents should talk to the camp director at the camp they are interested in sending their child to. Some camps offer sibling discounts or early bird specials for registering early and payment plans—and that’s just the official policy. If you have your heart set on a camp but can’t afford it, talk to the director to see if he or she would consider a sliding scale rate in your case. You never know. Hold a fundraiser—I know this might seem like an overly self-serving solicitation, but if you do it in a way that shows spunk and creativity—and your child helps take the lead on it—you’d be surprised how friends and neighbors might be charmed by the idea of an effort to raise money for camp. Even something as oldfashioned as a lemonade stand with good signage about where the money is going might be an attention-getter and profit-maker. But use real lemons. People appreciate authenticity.

Upcoming Open House on Sunday, March 25 • 11am –2pm

(516) 365-7760

www.buckleycamp.com

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CLASSI FI E DS Classified Advertising Department Information Telephone: 212-268-0384 | Fax: 212-268-0502 | Email: advertising@manhattanmedia.com Hours: Monday - Friday 9:00 am - 5:00 pm | Deadline: Monday 12 noon for same weeks’ issue

PUBLIC NOTICE

PROF. sERvICEs

nEw yOrk City DEPartMEnt OF transPOrtatiOn nOtiCE OF PubliC hEaring The New York City Department of Transportation will hold a public hearing on Wednesday March 14, 2012 at 2:00 P.M., at 55 Water St., 9th Floor Room 945, on the following petitions for revocable consent, all in the Borough of Manhattan: #1 New York University -to continue to maintain and use conduits under and across Waverly Pl., Washington Pl. and W 4th St., west of Greene St., and under and across Greene St., and north of W 4th St. #2 The Plaza Condominium - to continue to maintain and use two lamppost, together with conduits on the south sidewalk of W 59th St., west of Grand Army Plaza. #3 Timothy De Illy and Victoria Touchberry-to continue to maintain and use a fenced-in area on the west sidewalk of St. Nicholas Ave., north of 146th St. Interested parties can obtain copies of proposed agreements or request sign-language interpreters (with at least seven days prior notice) at 55 Water St., 9th Fl. SW New York, NY 10041, or by calling (212) 839-6550.

EMPLOYMENT Part tiME DrivEr wantED In my car. UES to NJ. Call David 646.672.1090 OFFiCE / COMPutEr wOrk Part time UES. Call David 646-672-1090 PrODuCEr, Talk Imaging at Sirius XM Radio Responsible for the conception, writing, and production of show and channel audio production for channels on the Talk Programming platform. At least 5 years production experience required. Apply at https://careers-siriusxm.icims. com/jobs/7069/job. MusiC PrOgraMMing COOrDinatOr at Sirius XM Radio Responsible for ensuring that all music elements and programs are prepared, edited, loaded and ready to air. BA/ BS preferred. Must have 6-12 months of music programming experience at a radio station. Please apply at www. siriusxm.com/careers.

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PrOFEssiOnal DrivEr looking for driving postion. Will drive to the airports,the Hamptons, etc. Non-smoker, very reliable. 917-734-4676 nEED a tutOr? Tutoring and Test Preparation All Subjects and Grade Levels Call Prima Tutoring at 212-920-6897 ♥ hEalth CarE aDvisOR ♥ Are you concerned about yourself or a loved one being alone during a medical emergency? This can get resolved with a touch of a fingertip. Call JaCQuElyn at 646-645-7616 to discuss putting an affordable 24 hr. personal Medical Alarm System for protection in your home and through your cell phone. (Nationwide Distributor)

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INTENT TO AWARD NOTICE OF A JOINT PUBLIC HEARING of the Franchise and Concession Review Committee and the New York City Department of Parks and Recreation to be held on Monday, March 12, 2012 at 22 Reade Street, Borough of Manhattan, commencing at 2:30 p.m. relative to: INTENT TO AWARD as a concession the operation and maintenance of a seasonal café and the development, operation and maintenance of a year-round satellite kiosk at Union Square Park, Manhattan (“Licensed Premises”), for one (1) fifteen-year term, to Chef Driven Market, LLC. Compensation to the City will be as follows: for each operating year, licensee shall pay to the City a license fee consisting of the higher of a minimum annual fee (Year 1: $300,000; Year 2: $309,000; Year 3: $318,270; Year 4: $327,818; Year 5: $337,653; Year 6: $347,782; Year 7: $358,216; Year 8: $368,962; Year 9: $380,031; Year 10: $391,432; Year 11: $403,175; Year 12: $415,270; Year 13: $427,728; Year 14: $440,560; Year 15: $453,777) or ten (10) percent of gross receipts derived from the operation of the Licensed Premises. A draft copy of the agreement may be reviewed or obtained at no cost, commencing Monday, March 5, 2012 through Monday, March 12, 2012, between the hours of 9 am and 5 pm, excluding weekends and holidays at the NYC Department of Parks and Recreation, located at 830 Fifth Avenue, Room 313, New York, NY 10065. Individuals requesting Sign Language Interpreters should contact the Mayor’s Office of Contract Services, Public Hearings Unit, 253 Broadway, 9th Floor, New York, NY 10007, (212) 788-7490, no later than SEVEN (7) BUSINESS DAYS PRIOR TO THE PUBLIC HEARING.

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Universal health care would ensure all women’s reproductive rights were covered By Cameron Page The birth control controversy of the past few weeks has focused our nation’s attention on an issue most of us would prefer to avoid. Not because birth control is an uncomfortable topic—for the vast majority of Americans, birth control is supremely uncontroversial. It’s the fact that birth control is so ubiquitous that makes the two-week kerfuffle we’ve all been subjected to even more surprising. It began when Kathleen Sebelius, secretary of health and human services, issued a rule that required employers to cover the cost of contraception for their female employees. Catholic institutions promptly declared that their religious freedom was being trampled. President Barack Obama gave the religious right some time to work themselves into a frenzy—presidential candidate Newt Gingrich called it an “attack on the Catholic church” and Mitt Romney called it an “assault on religion.” Rick Santorum got into trouble when one of his prominent backers commented, “back in my day, they used aspirin for contraception. Gals used to put it between their knees and it wasn’t that costly.” This led to closer scrutiny of Santorum’s statements on birth control, which include: “It’s not OK. It’s a license to do things in a sexual realm that is counter to how things are supposed to be.” In the second act of the drama, religious leaders got involved. Prominent members of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops stated that Obama was “waging a war on religion.” As the rhetoric escalated, liberals

March 1, 2012

There are currently 49.1 million uninfought back. They insisted that Obama support Sebelius and not back down. sured people in the United States. Half of Leftists who hadn’t thought about access them are women, and nearly 75 percent to birth control for more than five min- are of reproductive age. That makes a utes over the past five years were sud- grand total of 18.4 million women who denly incensed, demanding that Obama couldn’t go to the doctor last year. And when you can’t see a doctor, you can’t get throw himself under a bus for it. But of course, he didn’t. In the third your Ortho Tri-cyclen prescription. During the two-year period 2007act of this melodrama, Obama brokered a compromise: Catholic institutions will 2008, over 86 million Americans went without health insurance not have to pay for contrafor some period of time. ception, but women who So we’re talking about 32 work for those institutions million women whose lack won’t see an increase in coof insurance affected their pays either. (The solution: access to birth control. insurance companies are I don’t know how many required to foot the bill. It’s women work for Catholic so simple that you wonder institutions, but it’s a tiny if Obama and Sebelius may fraction of 32 million. have been fully aware of Yes, the Affordable how this would play out Cameron Page. Care Act has provisions from the start.) The result is that every Republican that will lower the number of uninsured presidential candidate found himself on women starting in 2014. But even the the wrong side of the issue. They went most optimistic estimate still leaves on record denigrating birth control, a more than a million women without product that has been used by 99 percent insurance and therefore without access of American women. Another win for to birth control. During the birth control controversy, Obama, right? Possibly. But before the curtain comes liberals fought for two weeks to protect down on this highly entertaining spec- access to birth control for a small number tacle, we should take a moment to more of women who work at Catholic instituseriously consider the question of access tions. Where is that rage when it comes to birth control. Who needs birth control to the millions of others? Let’s not cry over a drippy faucet while the most? Women who are young, unmarried or poor. Most of them are not plan- the water main is rupturing in the basening on getting pregnant and are unable ment. If we truly care about reproductive rights, we should be fighting for universal to support a child. What’s another characteristic of the primary care. young, unmarried, working poor? They Cameron Page is a doctor at Beth are the group most likely to lack health Israel Hospital. insurance.

TweeT SpeAK @FDNY Ladder 2 firefighters crawled past fire twice yesterday to save a woman trapped on the Upper East Side. @JessLappin Having presser at 11 am today on my bill to raise the fines on illegal eclectic bikes. Introducing the bill tomorrow. @TreydaBK Two Little Red Hens has some very good cakes if you ever need to take one

Member

No Winners in Birth Control Debate

to any event. It’s on the Upper East Side. @Arronhodges I’m a Jersey boy, so I don’t know much about NYC regional stereotypes. Do all Upper East Side women talk like Real Housewives? @Jm_mcgrath Residents of NYC fighting against disruptive subway construction. Except that’s impossible, because it’s not LRT, right?

@gelinee This morning I am riding one of the glorious new #MTA buses! So pleasant! Finally something positive. @michelle_zc Discovering a new corner of Central Park, the Upper East entrance at 110th and 5th. @mymomshops I think I’m in heaven: The new @Anthropologie store on NYC’s Upper East Side.

N EW S YO U LIV E B Y

IronIc Hopes

What Comes After Affirmative Action? New ways to add diversity as the policy nears its rightful end By Josh Rogers Affirmative action’s defenders and attackers finally agree on something: The policy probably won’t be around too much longer. Last week’s decision by the Supreme Court to revisit the issue clearly puts it in peril. Even if the court ends up retaining the legality of affirmative action for now, using race as a factor in school admissions was never seen as a permanent solution; there are fairer ways to add diversity. Current affirmative action plans typically benefit the most advantaged in a group, including those who are also members of a minority most of us would like to be in—the 1 percent. Large racial disparities, of course, persist everywhere. In New York City, even though over 75 percent of the students at the top-ranked public high schools are minorities, there are still deeply troubling numbers. Less than 4 percent

of the students are black or Hispanic at Stuyvesant High School, where the black population is a hair over 1 percent. At my alma mater, Bronx Science, 10 percent of the students are black or Hispanic. Compare this to the 72 percent of the city’s public school students who are Hispanic or black, roughly the same percentage of Asians at the two specialized schools. The city Department of Education has made only halfhearted attempts to diversify Stuyvesant and Bronx Science and the numbers have moved in the wrong direction. The Specialized School Institute does recruit “disadvantaged” middle school students of all races to help them pass the admission test, but the city has also expanded the number of specialized schools. Adding five schools was undoubtedly done with the best of intentions and has had mostly positive effects—but it also allows officials to downplay the prob-

lem at specialized schools, since the new schools have broader diversity. Higher scores are needed to enroll at the top two schools, but the DOE tries to maintain the fiction it has not set up a two-tier system by not publicizing the scores. This was made clear in the emails the agency sent this paper last year when our reporter Megan Bungeroth [then Finnegan] looked into the problem. One fair way to add more diversity at Stuyvesant and Bronx Science would be to give the best students at every middle school an added chance to attend, similar to a state college admission plan in Texas. Coincidentally, the Supreme Court is now reviewing a different part of the Texas system. The undisputed part of the law grants college admission to the top 10 percent of high school graduates in Texas, thus opening doors to the best students in schools with large numbers of minorities. Affirmative action supporters acknowledge that the non-racial component of the plan is working, but they

argue it is not as effective as using race. The same argument is also made when income is used. But if diversity were the only goal, strict quotas would work even better than affirmative action. Fairness can’t be ignored, which is why you’d be hard-pressed to find someone who favors legalizing racial quotas. Although affirmative action is going to end sooner or later, academia, for the most part, is not ready to give up. The energy used on these battles would be better spent on figuring out what causes racial disparity so it can be ended. Michael Roth, president of Wesleyan University, wrote on the Huffington Post, “It would be an enormous step backward to force our admissions offices to retreat to a homogeneity that stifles creative, broad-based education.” He won’t have to. There are other paths to diversity. Josh Rogers, contributing editor at Manhattan Media, is a lifelong New Yorker. Follow him @JoshRogersNYC.

DewIng THIngs BeTTer

The Light of Looking Better Energy-efficient bulbs zap life from the everyday By Bette Dewing “Looking better” does get our attention. But it’s the lighting, stupid (not you), that can make or break our appearance. Only a few—including Rep. Michele Bachmann—protest the so-called energy efficients for making us, our clothes and furnishings look rather, well, lifeless. To save lighting energy positively, sharply reduce the excess wattage that has so unhealthfully become the exorbitant norm. If fluorescents must sometimes be used, the warm white tubes and bulbs give off some life-giving rays. The cool whites take it away. The Lenox Hill Neighborhood House redecorators recently installed obligatory banks and banks of the cool whites, which made the boomers and seniors gathered there look rather weary and wan. Ironically, we were there for expert information on how best to get older. Don’t get me wrong, kudos galore for these roundtable forums initiated O u r To w n NY. c o m

by State Sen. Liz Krueger and her chief aide, Alice Fisher, in 2010. The information from various experts in the field of aging was just invaluable, and every official and wannabe should pick up this torch—pronto! For information about 2012’s final forum in March, call 212-490-9535. Now if only some 20/20-visioned philanthropists would fund the replacement of those cool white tubes with warm whites, this wonderful old neighborhood house would instantly become aesthetically neighborly. That white blight should be banned. Incidentally, white walls also accent the negative, unlike friendly, flattering, warm earth tones. Yup, all of this will make us look better. Back to the recent roundtable forum called “Planning Ahead: Boomers and Seniors Living in the 21st Century,” where thirtysomething Council Member Jessica

Lappin dropped by. Now, Lappin heads the City Council’s Committee on Aging and hopes to be the Manhattan borough president. I wished she’d stayed longer and spoken about lifelong family importance. If only she’d repeated her tweet this paper’s editor found fit to print: “Really miss my boys today. First day back after a long weekend is always hard.” Ah, mama Jessica, now think of the boomer and senior women and men whose sons and daughters are almost always away. Even some mental health professionals tell them, “Just be glad they see or call you at all.” So join my Families Forever movement, Jessica, where the generations stay vitally connected—forever. Incidentally, do go and see The Iron Lady. It shows how difficult elderhood can be, even for world-renowned and

financially secure people like Margaret Thatcher (Brooke Astor was not immune, either). And be most aware of how Thatcher’s Africa-based son has little time for her, even now. Like most parents of adults (grandparents, elder aunts, uncles and cousins too), she doesn’t protest this heartbreaking, socially acceptable indifference. If ever a screenwriter deserved an Oscar, it’s for The Iron Lady for bringing all-too-commonplace preventable elder life woes out of the closet. And how we need films, lyrics and forums to overcome our age apartheid system, which undergirds so many of these miseries. It would help inordinately to have more celebs like Stephen Colbert—when his mother fell ill, his show did not go on! Bravo! And amen to Cardinal Dolan for not forgetting his mother since becoming the world’s most likable priest. Ah, but I do not forget the many midand late-life people without children: An intergenerational interdependent culture is one absolute must. To be continued most surely. dewingbetter@aol.com March 1, 2012

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