A Nantucket Sleighride

"Dad, when you were on the Midori how did the cook make dinner for 1200 sailors?" I asked my father a hundred years ago.

He put his sketch pen down and said, "On an aircraft carrier, cooks either carefully watch a good cook work, wing it, or use the fall back: serve sh*t on a shingle."

I'm not an organized person and have difficulty preparing a radio show with one guest. Last night I had three guests. I say with no hesitation, despite my best effort to burn the house down with me in it, it turned out pretty good.

Listen to the show at the Centanni link below:

http://www.centannibroadcasting.com/id56.html

Edward Rogers, Don Piper & Joe Hurley were terrific guests. The show was a two hour Nantucket Sleighride, the guys pulled me up and down through our tumbling nuthouse but we all hung on.

Ed, Don & Joe, please come back to the show anytime you like.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q0JrV86EKCs

Don Piper & Edward Rogers are playing next Wednesday @ December 8th At Bowery Electric.

Joe Hurley is playing with the Gents next Tuesday @ December 7th @ Joes' Pub.

http://www.myspace.com/adonpipersituation

http://www.edwardrogersmusic.com/

http://www.roguesmarch.com/

Here's some Slade to take you through the holidays. I forgot Goodbye To Jane was in heavy rotation up Ekis's house on Friday nights.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0A8KT365wlA

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CFAd-zpqWiU

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On the bottom of this page you see the item that made my belly hurt very bad on Sunday night. I ran out of food but found this unopened Sabra Roasted Garlic Hummus in the back of the bottom of my fridge. My weapon of choice was my left index finger. It took ten minutes. This must stop.

Ekis's Friday Night ~ 1969 ~ 1976

Having Michele Carlo on the Yorkville radio show tonight @ 9pm, reading Michele’s terrific memoir, “Fish Out of Agua,” brought back a strong Friday night memory.

Eddie Ekis’s mom worked at the local Five & Ten store, you know the ones with the mechanical jalopies and wild horses outside the store, a dime a ride. Friday night, Mrs. Ekis had to close the store at 9pm, that put Mrs. Ekis home at about 9:15pm.

Starting in 1969, every Friday the cocktail lamp was lit at 5pm and the first wave would roll in. There were eight to ten regulars, a poker game always got going, and the music blasted. J Geils, “Looking For a Love,” “Floyd’s Hotel,” Jeff Beck, "Truth," Humble Pie, “Thirty Days In The Hole,” Black Sabbath, “Paranoid,” Black Oak Arkansas, “Jim Dandy,” Jacksons, “Never Can Say Goodbye,” Led Zep, “Everything,” The Who, “Who’s Next,” “Quad,” Beatles, “Rubber Soul & Revolver”, Sly, “Everything, “Billy Preston, “Outer Space,” and every worth while 45 single from 1962 through the mid 70s.

Ekis had two monkeys, Chiquita & Toto. They loved beer and lived in the kitchen and had a terrace out the window when the weather was nice. Eddie fenced in the small tar roof of the beauty parlor under his second floor apartment that extended out the window about six by five feet towards York Avenue. A fine little terrace for everybody. If the weather was right we’d move the chairs out there and hang out with the monkeys, but if they didn’t like the music they went a little nuts and started pulling hair, so we had to watch what we played (they were not big fans of Black Oak Arkansas).

Most of the guys in the football team photo were regulars up Ekis’s. At five to nine everyone knew the drill. The brown bags came out, all the empties into the garbage, Ekis would move to the turntable for the “Go out,” song and we'd march out of the building on our way to somewhere never as much fun as Ekis's apartment.

I'm looking, I'm looking, I'm looking,

Somebody help me find my baby!

You go, Wolfman...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iRezwP_znTc

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If you enjoy this blog please vote for it in Category #5 "Best Neighborhood Blog, " in the Village Voice 2010 Web Awards at this link:

http://polls.villagevoice.com/polls/nyv/webawards2010/

Scenes From a Yorkville Stroller

My early trips through Central Park I was the passenger in a stroller. From this vantage point I saw things high in the sky, upside down or sideways. Sometimes, the stroller stopped and I could take things apart with my eyes and put them back together. I leaned forward and saw leaves raining over an avenue of tall buildings but the sky was blue.

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I had an excellent chauffeur who always pointed me to the best places. If I live five hundred years, these pictures will still be in my head.

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The Waterboys always cheer me.

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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AsNTmjlf1vI

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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VoGbbKV0hUU&feature=related

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This Tuesday @ 9pm on the Yorkville radio show my guest is Michele Carlo, an extraordinary storyteller http://www.michelecarlo.com/ and author of the terrific book "Fish Out Of Agua." Michele's memoir has received exceptional reviews. I love the book and the only thing better is hearing Michele tell her stories live. Tune in Tuesday @ 9pm on the Centanni link below, or listen to the show on my archive at your leisure.

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http://www.centannibroadcasting.com/

http://www.centannibroadcasting.com/id56.html

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If you enjoy this story blog please nominate under Category #5 ~ Best Neighborhood Blog ~ in the Village Voice's 2010 Web Awards.

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http://polls.villagevoice.com/polls/nyv/webawards2010/

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What Kids Dream

If you enjoy this blog please vote for it in Category #5 "Best Neighborhood Blog, " in the Village Voice 2010 Web Awards at this link:

http://polls.villagevoice.com/polls/nyv/webawards2010/

The 59th Street Bridge Song in Pictures

Walking to the river in 1967 took one minute from my 83rd Street stoop to the park drive. Our $64 rent included free deep fall sunsets that washed the 59th Street Bridge in last light colors.

Hello lamp-post, what cha knowin'?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4KZi-aV0VTk

If you enjoy this blog, please consider voting for it in category # 5, "Best Neighborhood Blog," in the Village Voice's 2010 Web Awards. If you did vote, thank you, so much, Tommy

The link to vote:

http://polls.villagevoice.com/polls/nyv/webawards2010/

Village Voice 2010 Web Awards ~ Please Vote For "Yorkville: Stoops to Nuts," as Best Neighborhood Blog

The Village Voice is running a Web/Blog Award poll. One of the categories (#5) is "Best Neighborhood Blog."

If you enjoy my neighborhood story blog, " Yorkville: Stoops to Nuts." If you enjoy my pictures.

Please go to the Village Voice link below and vote for http://yorkvillestoopstonuts.blogspot.com/

thank you, Tommy

Here is the Village Voice link to their poll, please make sure you vote for "Yorkville Stoops to Nuts, in category #5 "Best Neighborhood Blog."

http://polls.villagevoice.com/polls/nyv/webawards2010/