News

Like the commandos who killed Bin Laden, the closing of the Delta Force Army and Navy store on Vernon Boulevard was a completely covert operation.  Always known as a forbidding kind of place, no one I know actually went in there on the rare occasions it was open.  Nevertheless, its quirkiness and grittiness were an ever present reminder to all of the old Long Island City, due to its prime location on the most well trafficked block in Hunters Point.

Out with the old, in with the new, and these days what’s a better example of new than children?  We have ranted about shortage of school capacity ad nauseam.  We have lamented that one of the quick fixes to alleviate, but far from fully cure this shortage, is to increase class size.  One of the things that many parents think about to augment their child’s chances of getting into the Ivies is classes outside the classroom.  Here in LIC they seem to be provided in a piecemeal manner.  Thus LICtalk is more than willing to act as a conduit for the providers.  Aqui esta un ejemplo perfecto de une clase just starting up and offered by an LIC local.  May my truncated Spanish be a perfect example of what happens when one’s child does not start learning the language until 7th grade.  You have been forewarned!

Amiguitos – Winter 2013 Semester – 12 weeks(no classes Feb. 16 and Mar. 30)

For children ages 4-6; Saturdays 10am-11am.  Classes are drop off at Lolly’s

$360, 20% sibling discount

For more information contact maestralilly@gmail.com

Delta Force Website – for those in need of camouflage

John Brown Smokehouse Hits the Big Time – on the small screen anyway

MoMA PS1 Has Chosen Its Summer Installation – super cool design gets one longing for the summer Warm-up series

Five days ago I errantly reported that the fourth and final TF Cornerstone plot on Center Boulevard lay dormant in the midst of winter, only to be corrected a day or two later by a comment announcing that actually, a large crane had just started being erected on the site.  This afternoon came word that said crane collapsed, and seven workers on the site were injured, three seriously.  I do not have much to add to the story that cannot be found on all the major news sites.  All the tri-state media have swarmed to Long Island City and the news is being picked up nationally as well.  I have linked to two of the stories, but a quick google search will garner you plenty of pictures, both professional and amateur, of the worksite, and the location will look very familiar.

Seven Construction Workers Hurt After Crane Collapses on LIC Work Site – Daily News

Seven Injured After Crane Collapse In Queens – NY Times

From the time I was five years old I wanted a dog.  Rebuffed by my parents straight through high school, by the time I got to NYC I always had one excuse after another for not getting one, but at the heart of it I was just too lazy and knew it.  Fortunately I ended up in the dog friendly town of LIC, and now have discovered that what I really wanted was to be the childless uncle who could have all the fun of having kids without the responsibilities.  Sadly, despite not being a dog owner, I am somewhat dismayed at the lack of open spaces for them to play outdoors.  Yet maybe like today’s generation of children, that ability is no longer what modern dogs crave.  If that is the case, then as the first article points out, LIC dog owners have many options to keep their pets from going stir crazy.  Hmm, I may have to reconsider and get a Leonberger, which for you non-dog people is not a dish at a beer hall.

Doggie Day Cares Meet Rise In Pooches In LIC – pet shampoo developed by NASA

Twisted Tales Of Elusive Gifts – ahh the Christmas spirit

Queens First Big Brewery In Decades Set to Open December 8th – how did I miss this big opening?  Oh, it’s way, way deep in Astoria

Queens Ex-Stripper Busted In Cold Case Murder – you know you want to read it because it says “stripper”

Sorry readers, but there are no beer hall putsch’s, brewery openings, bbq contests, pig roasts, offal tastings, or other childrens activities planned for this weekend in LIC.  The 7-train is working though, so maybe it is a good opportunity to head to Manhattan before the cold weather really hits.  In fact, they just lit up the tree at Rockefeller Center, what could be more in the Christmas spirit than taking a journey to midtown to see it?  With the throngs of strangers from New Jersey, Kansas, Scotland, and Beijing, my guess is the wait to get within three blocks of the tree is under ninety minutes this early in the holiday season.  Followed up with a trip to Toys R Us in Times Square and an early dinner at Bubba Gump’s, I think the penultimate NYC Xmas tradition is definitely doable in a day from LIC.  Or, if you prefer your fill of yuletide gemutlich to be a little more provincial, may I suggest the following:

For those of you still with dial-up service like myself, and don’t want to wait for the invitation to download, the ceremony will take place this Monday, December 3rd, 6pm at LIC Bar.  Also, here is another local holiday event, this one for dog owners and the people who worship them, planned for tomorrow:

Holiday Party For Pooches at Breadbox Cafe

Queens is renowned for its diversity, but sometimes we get so caught up in our everyday life that we do not get much of a chance to experience the neighborhoods nearby.  With that in mind, we at LICtalk have initiated a new category, RoadTrip, to explore these exotic locales, write about them, and sum it all up in a pictorial triptych(remember, you can click on pics to enlarge).  Hopefully, it will entice you, our readers, to break out of your comfort zone and forgo your regular Saturday night outing to Olive Garden in Times Square.  Or, if you prefer, you can view this series as ‘They do it for me, so I don’t have to leave my couch.’

For our first road trip destination, we have chosen the neighborhood most accessible to many residents in LIC: Greenpoint.  In doing so, we have immediately broken the three most important tenets of our RoadTrip series: 1) One does not need a car to visit Greenpoint, nor even a bike 2) Greenpoint is in Brooklyn, not Queens and 3) Is it really a roadtrip if it’s the next town over?  Fear not, because if you are a regular reader of this site, you know that LICtalk frequently exhibits a complete lack of decorum, as well as a passion for breaking all the rules, even if they are our own.  Most importantly, despite its proximity to LIC, once you step off the Pulaski Bridge and make your way west to Manhattan Avenue, it is like you have entered a different world far, far away!  There is one word that sums up the major difference between Long Island City and Greenpoint: quaint.  Whether it be the main retail drag of Manhattan Avenue, whose stores range from old world to so retro they are now an anachronism, or the residential housing stock, which is 45th Avenue in LIC times ten in terms of beautiful side by side brownstones.  Then there are the inhabitants: hipsters economically pushed out of Williamsburg, Polish emigrants, and the increasingly well-off who are buying up all those beautiful brownstones from the previous two.  What else differs vs. LIC?  Well they have more, and more diverse restaurants, and that alone is worth making a trip.  As for living there though, a large part of the small town feel comes at the price of inconvenience, particularly when it comes to commuting to Manhattan, which I get the strange feeling a lot of the inhabitants are not doing on a regular basis.  Fortunately, you live right next door, so throw caution to the wind like I did, and grab the golden donut …or pierogi.