All posts in: Manhattan

18 Aug 2016

Aging and Alone in Manhattan’s Chinatown

I had been hoarding this video/article in my tabs for exactly a month now and only this week was I able to finally watch it. After watching it, I asked myself a few questions, why did I keep it here for so long? Shouldn’t I have just watched it and either a) posted about it or b) moved on from it? The other option that also seems pretty likely is c) that I was scared of it. All I knew about it was the title and a screenshot of an elderly Asian woman walking through Chinatown – actually that same one above.

Growing up, my family and I went to Chinatown nearly every weekend in Seattle. To be politically correct, we call it the “International District” because it’s not just targeted towards Chinese people – it’s all Asian cultures. I remember when walking around wondering where their families were – where were their sons and daughters and grandchildren the way that my grandparents had me? Where did they live and did they have family gatherings the way we did? Today, I only have one Grandma left. I was recently told by someone at a funeral that I needed to get married soon so that she could be present at my wedding. Talk about the pressure! Well, if my Grandmother didn’t live 15 minutes away from my childhood home, could this woman in the video easily be her? Yes, probably. And it’s not the life that I would hope for her, but this is the reality for so many elderly people in International Districts all over the country. I don’t want to spoil anything for anyone because the woman’s story profiled in the video is worth watching. What I love about this video is that it gives me a sliver of the answers that I was always looking for, but I’m curious to know more. I want to dig deeper into the stories of those living in Chinatown and hustling every day like this woman. Maybe someday, we’ll be able to do that…

Just a warning, the video doesn’t have a happy ending, but DoobyBrain informed their readers that actually the woman is alive and still in Chinatown so hopefully, that puts you at ease. Elderly people can be hit pretty hard as they get older, they can find it hard to live in their own homes, see their family, and generally just do simple tasks, that is why there is support like assisted living in Omaha NE, or wherever they reside, as well home care programs so they know that they are not alone and there are people out there who care about their wellbeing, as we all should.

The video profile was created by Mantai Chow and you can watch it here.

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People

04 Oct 2013

Man Eats Dinner Every Night Solo in Manhattan

Dave Sanders for The New York Times

Just this week, we had a “Conversations from 20-Somethings” post in which I wrote about how difficult it can be for people to eat by themselves – myself included. It was interesting that in the same week I just happened to stumble across an article in The Times of a man who has been doing the same thing for years – every single night. Harry Rosen’s story will melt your hearts on this Friday. Check out the entire article here.

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10 Aug 2013

A Map of Manhattan From Hand-Written Directions

Direction-challenged is maybe one way someone could describe me (among my many other qualities, of course.) Last weekend, I found myself lost on the way to Jennie’s house in Queen Anne. It should have been a straight shot, but then I ended up too close to the water, on Aurora, off of Aurora, and finally 25 minutes later at my destination. Some people hate asking for directions, but I’ve never been someone who has been too afraid to ask for help. People are always willing, right?

A New York conceptional artist named Nobutaka Aozaki decided to embark on a project asking strangers for directions in order to piece together “Here to There.” The project is a collection of hand-drawn maps and it’s actually quite interesting!

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19 May 2013

The Weekend: 5 Things

quadstock2013

The weekend isn’t over yet, but Sundays are usually saved for rest and relaxation anyways. I’m okay with that because this weekend was packed with catch-ups and good food – lots of it. Now it’s time to prepare myself for Memorial Day Weekend and even though I think I have an idea of what I want to do… it might be a little last minute! Don’t those make the best adventures though?

1. This past weekend, I returned back to Seattle University for the annual Quadstock music festival. It was the same festival that I had planned the year before so it is still very near and dear to my heart, but I knew that it would probably be my last. Similar to how I said goodbye to the Search retreat last weekend, I knew I would be saying goodbye to Quadstock as well. The chairs did such a wonderful job and I’m glad I was able to see the final result of it.

2. Bake’s Place in Bellevue for brunch

Yesterday morning, a former office mate and I caught up over brunch at Bake’s Place in Bellevue. I wish I would’ve taken a picture of what I ordered – the crab and avocado omelette – because it was incredible. Also it doesn’t hurt that the whole time you’re eating there, you are being serenaded by extremely soothing jazz music.

3. Fruit Punch Gatorade

Yep.

4. Another trip to Lost Lake Cafe

Yes, I did have brunch food twice in one weekend.

5. Cocktails at Manhattan

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04 Apr 2013

Cardiknox

[soundcloud url=”http://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/86212789″ params=”” width=” 100%” height=”166″ iframe=”true” /]

I’ve been receiving some pretty interesting requests and propositions to collaborate with Yow Yow lately in my inbox, but this morning I received an email from someone that I didn’t expect at all. First off, you only need to read through the first few pages of Yow Yow! to know that I love all things having to do with Seattle music. I’ve been a supporter since I was a wee little teenager and Seattle music will always have a special place in my heart.

Every now and then I get new music in my inbox that I end up checking out. Today’s band is a Manhattan duo called Cardiknox comprising of Lonnie Angle and Thomas Dutton. Immediately, the name Thomas Dutton caught my eye and I had realized that I used to see Dutton perform in his band Forigve Durden throughout my teenage years at local shows. Such a surprise!

Anyways, Cardiknox’s 80’s inspired beats and catchy hooks will take you back to the days…that I wasn’t even alive for. It’s definitely something you can jam too and would make for some great music at your next party. Check out their two tracks here.

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23 Jan 2013

Micro Apartments in Manhattan

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I love the look of these new micro apartments currently being developed in Manhattan. Right now, there are a few pod-ments within the Seattle area and especially one near Capitol Hill that I have seen renderings of, but what I didn’t like about that set up was that there were certain shared spaces like a shared kitchen or a shared bathroom. This apartment, however, looks comfortable enough for one person and is compact. I wonder how much it would cost to live there especially because it is in Manhattan, but I think this is a fantastic idea and convenient for a young professional.

When moving to a new place, it is important that you find an accommodation in which you feel comfortable so that you are able to enjoy the new chapter in your life. As convenient as a micro-apartment would be for some people, others may find that it is a bit too cramped and would prefer to rent an apartment in another part of the city to ensure that they live in a place that better suits their needs. It doesn’t matter whether you decide to live in an micro-apartment like this one, or an apartment fit for a family, the only thing that matters is that you feel comfortable in it. One of the biggest parts of moving into new accommodation is getting all your belongings from point A to B. This is why hiring a highly-rated moving company in NYC might be a good way of improving your moving experience in the city.

There are many real estate sites that you can look at to help you find the right apartment for you. In areas such as this, there is a wealth of properties for everyone to fit into, but finding the right one for you can seem like a massive job to take on, luckily there are companies like www.manhattanmiami.com who can help you find the right one. Make sure you look around, research questions, and enquire into things that you want to know, this will prepare you and make you feel happier about your choice.

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27 May 2011

In the News…

Fashion

– Now everyone can look like Terry Richardson with these frames! umm too bad they’re $290. [Source]

– Joe Zee’s television series All on the Line has been picked up for a second season by Sundance. [Source]

– Did Urban Outfitters rip off an Etsy designer? [Source]

– Take a peak inside designer Erin Fetherston’s beautiful apartment. [Source]

Music

– A Tribe Called Quest will be releasing their film in a number of theaters for several dates. [Source]

– Transformers 3 has released their soundtrack. [Source]

– Kanye West will perform a free show in Manhattan in June. [Source]

– Dom’s “Family of Love” EP will be released August 9th. [Source]

– P. Diddy has decided to change his name to “Swag.” Is that to indicate that he is free? Easy? I don’t know. [Source]

Television

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– Kerry Washington will be acting as “Olivia Pope” in ABC’s new series “Scandal.” [Source]

– MTV is footing a new pilot called “Married Young.” Stop it… just stop it. [Source]

– Scott Mccreery is the new American Idol. [Source]

– VH1 makes plans to bring back “Pop Up Video.” More music – less trashy reality television shows please! [Source]

Movies

–Ed Westwick will portray Tybalt in a new Romeo and Juliet film. [Source]

Seattle

– Joan Jett paid a visit to the students of Scriber Lake High School who are all at risk of dropping out. Jett took this time to urge these students how important it was to earn a high school diploma and pursue their dreams. [Source]

– A new service in Seattle called “I Have Munchies” will cater to all of your late night needs. [Source]

– Seattle is one of the nation’s safest pedestrian cities in America. [Source]

Other

– Tom Hanks gave the commencement speech to Yale’s Class of 2011. Students were encouraged to wear silly hats. [Source]

– Sofia Coppola and longtime boyfriend Thomas Mars (frontman of Phoenix) are getting married this summer. The couple have two kids together. [Source]

– In case you missed it, Kim Kardashian got engaged to Kris Humphries. [Source]

– Spiderman’s Andrew Garfield and Shannon Woodward have split. Not-so-secretly celebrating… [Source]

– The Kardashians need your help in deciding the title for their new novel. wut. [Source]

– The before and after shot of the damages left by the Joplin, Missouri tornado. [Source]

– Apparently it’s Asian Pacific American Heritage month so Buzzfeed rounded up a bunch of celebs that we may have not known were actually Asian. I didn’t know either of these things. [Source]

– A new study shows that those that immerse themselves in cultural activities ie) playing an instrument, attending concerts, taking trips to the art gallery – turn out to be healthier! [Source]

– Roughly 81% of the music in your iTunes library will never get played. [Source]

03 Apr 2011

If You Thought Your Apartment Was Small…

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A typical apartment in Manhattan’s Upper West Side rents for about $3,700 per month. In an effort to eliminate unnecessary costs, Felice Cohen opted for a 90 sq-foot studio in the area and only pays $700 per month. In the above video, Felice gives a tour of the space that she calls a home. I know that a lot of us would feel very claustrophobic in a place like that and we’d much rather live in a THESPACESTATION.CO.UK property, but you’ve got to commend the effort.

The impossible has been done.

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28 Oct 2010

Downtown From Behind

A backside is not beautiful. A backside riding a bike, however, is another story. Photographer Bridget Fleming has been capturing Manhattan locals for her blog Downtown From Behind featuring a variety of people from different backgrounds and occupations simply riding their bikes. As you can see, there is an array of personality and wonder for each individual as to where they are going. These photographs display a level of personality that we are seeing in their bodies rather than their faces and I love how Fleming shows this.

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11 Oct 2010

D’Espresso

This Manhattan library, just one away from the New York Public Library, looks exactly like a sideways library! The design was created by designer Anurang Nema and his team over at Nemaworkshop. I don’t know about you, but I’ve been staring at this photo for some time now and I have definitely cocked my head to the side to make sense of it all. Walking on that floor is like you are walking on many many books! It is a beautiful sight nonetheless. Take me here please.

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