Month: September 2007

What a kick in the nuts

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So how’s this for bullsh*t…

My hosting account was deactivated today because there was allegedly “adult content” posted on my server. 

There’s actually many websites that are hosted through my account.  A domain that I owned years ago, and have since sold, was for some reason tracked back to this account.  That old domain is now being hosted as a porno site, but I haven’t had anything to do with it forever. 

Somehow, the site was associated with my site somewhere in the Internet ether. 

So they shut down my account.  Of course, they never tried to contact me or anything…they just shut it off.  So that was fun.  Then trying to explain that I don’t own the domain any more was a whole other issue that was not being understood by them.

Anyway, thanks for being patient!  We’re back, and porno free. 

High School Kids: They’re Back

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I think the high school population in my neighborhood doubled this year.  Today, there were waaaay more kids waiting for the train than last year.

The girls really bother me.  They move in little packs of 2 or 3, and will not separate no matter what.  So instead of being able to navigate around just one of them at a time, you have to treat them as a single person.

They get on the already crowded train, and then stand on top of each other in the most inconvenient spots possible.  Then, as the ride continues, they don’t move with the natural flow of the train car.  As other people get on and off, they refuse to separate.  As if they weren’t going to the same place.

If they get separated or travel alone, immediately the iPod earbuds go in.  Also, oversized sunglasses go on so they can spot their girlfriends without people knowing they’re panicked.

Then there’s the guys.  They tend to be a bit more nomadic, however it depends on their race.  No, I’m not racist.  It’s just an observation.  Feel free to disagree.  Here we go:

White Guys:  They tend to gravitate to the pods of girls.  They move solo.  If no girls are around, two guys might ride together.  Otherwise, they go it alone, or  with a minimum of 2 girls.  You’ll usually see a group of girls with the token dude standing somewhere near by.  Shaggy haircuts and designer t-shirts a must.  They come off as way too cool for everyone on the train.  Oh and don’t forget the messenger bags

Hispanic Guys:  The true nomads.  They tend to do their own thing.  They’re often the least noticeable because they travel solo, move with the flow of people, and generally don’t get in the way.  I relate best to these guys.  They just look like they want to be left alone…like me.  As if they haven’t had their second cup of coffee just yet…like me again.  By the way, what do Mexican guys use in their hair to make it so slicked back?  What ever it is, it’s at the peak of slickness early in the morning.

Black Guys:  Always have a wing man.  They tend to travel in pairs.   More often than not, one tends to be much taller than the other.  There’s very little talking.  Almost telepathically, they set up position in the doorways.  They never move, even when the doors open.  Would simply turning their bodies 90 degrees to let people on and off work?  Of course!  Will it happen?  Not likely.  They’re easy to spot because they have those Nike sports bags that have the rope cords that cinched the bag shut at the top.  The guy could be 6 feet of torso, yet the bag cords are always long enough to let the bag hit them near the ass.

Only about 8 or 9 more months till summer vacation.

Open Thread

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Tonight, we asked our SUBWAYblogger Facebook friends to share their craziest experiences on the subway.  Here’s a few of the responses so far:

Franco Barbara
I told a dirty smelly begger to get the fu^k away from me. That was a bad idea. He threw his spare change at me and went nuts. I got him to calm down and he got off the train. Idon’tknowwhyIdidit. He smelledreallybad and I didn’t want him near my dog.

Chris Campbell
well on my way back from coney island to the bronx i was stuck on the 6 train between 125th st and 3 Av-138th st 4 bout an hour and everybody was just yellin and cursin and on the D line 2 coney island some kids under 12 were breakdancin i was like wtf

Taxi Strike: Over Hyped Non-Event

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Ok, could this taxi strike be any more over hyped?  I mean are you kidding?  7,000 cabbies at MOST will be out of service.  That means the remaining 37,000 cabbies will be out on the streets picking up the scraps.

So I’d fully expect to see absolutely no change in your day.  At worst, it’s going to be about as hard to get a cab as it would be on a rainy day.  A little harder, but not insane.

Just in case, the city’s OEM has released a plan (read here).  Here’s a snippet:

The MTA will be providing additional service on the M60 and Q33 bus routes to/from LGA. The M60 transports riders between LGA and Manhattan, running along 125th Street and making connections with the 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, A, B, C, and D subway lines, as well as Metro-North Railroad. The Q33 connects LGA with the 74th St. – Broadway Station in Jackson Heights, Queens, where connections to the 7, E, F, R, V, and G subway lines is available. Travelers at JFK can use the AirTrain to connect to the A train at the Howard Beach station, or the E, J, and Z trains at the Sutphin Boulevard station.

So, all they have to do is put a few extra buses in service, and we’re in business.

Honestly, the only people I could see being put out by this whole thing are the tourists coming out of Grand Central, Penn Station, or the airports.  Everyone else will figure it out.

We might see a little extra volume on the subways, but I’m not worrying about it.

This whole issue is such a crock in the first place.  The cabbies AGREED to the GPS systems when the city agreed to the last TWO fare hikes!  It was part of the f*cking deal.  Now, it’s time to shut up, and hold up their end of the deal.  Why are 37,000 other cabbies not kicking up a fuss?  Because they know what they agreed to in the negotiations.

Long Metrocard Lines Today

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Ahh the joy of coming back from a long holiday weekend only to be hit in the thighs by the turnstile because your Metrocard has expired.

That’s the joy that many New Yorkers experienced this morning. Lines at the Metrocard machines this morning were very long. It’s funny to see how many people buy their card right at the begining of the month.

Perhaps people are fueling up their cards today to avoid the rush during tomorrow’s taxi strike? Although, how many more riders in the system could that possibly mean? A few thousand? More on the taxi strike later today.

In the mean time, it’s back to work. Summer is gone. People are buying fresh Metrocards. The kids are back to school. All seems right in the world…at least for today.

Live from the subway, back to you in studio… .

19 Year Old Shot in Queens Subway Station

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Jose Sierra, 19, was shot in the head and pronounced dead at the scene. Witnesses say that they heard multiple shots, then saw Sierra laying on the ground with a large hole in his head.

Hopefully, the token booth clerk wasn’t asleep (like this woman) (and this guy) (and this guy) (and this guy) (and this guy) (and don’t forget this guy). WOW. I’m a little nauseous now after seeing all those TWU bastards sleeping on the job. They should be stripped of the union raise that is just handed to them, and it should be given to other workers that actually manage to stay AWAKE during their shift.

Police have no suspects but are looking for some people that were seen running from the scene. No arrests have been made.

This makes us wonder if there was a camera in that station. Wouldn’t you think that there should be a camera at every subway entrance/exit? Is that asking too much? That way, if a crime happens, you know you are going to catch the suspect on film when they enter or exit the station.

This whole topic is just making me too pissed off.

And I thought I’ve seen some strange sh*t

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I saw this posted on a group board in Facebook.  The question:  What’s the strangest thing you’ve ever seen on the subway?  Here was one guy’s answer…

I saw:

1. An Eastern European man get beatdown by a bunch of teenagers on the N train for yelling racial epithets at them just for playing their stereo.

2. A handpuppet play that took up the whole car.

3. A man with a bag full of chihuahuas in a car full of happy on-looking Mexicans.

If you take the train everyday you’re bound to see something!

Woah woah woah…slow that fare hike down

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Everywhere you turn in the transit world, people are talking about a looming fare hike.  However, as New York State Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli said a few days ago, we need to stop and take a look around.  It might just turn out that “Congestion Pricing” could provide the extra funds we need to avoid a fare hike.

Granted, I don’t know how much I believe that, but it sure would be nice.

It’s my understanding that a portion of the revenue generated, and the federal funds are supposed to go towards improving the transit system.  So the money should not go towards keeping fares down, but instead should go towards improving service.

Maybe a sharp increase in ridership would generate enough revenue to offset the need for another fare hike?  Who knows.

In general, I wouldn’t necessarily mind paying a higher fare if it meant better service.  That includes better trains, more trains, and less unforeseen delays, etc.

There’s another problem that I don’t think gets enough attention.  The MTA receives funds from way too many sources.  It must make the finances in that agency a nightmare.  The MTA gets money not only from fares, but also property sales tax, regular sales tax, and a handful of other areas.

Just the other day, Mayor Bloomberg announced the slashing of sales taxes on clothing items over $110.   Until just recently, shoppers paid about 4% tax to the state, and 4% tax to the city on clothing over $110.  Bloomberg has dropped the city’s portion of that tax, basically cutting the total in half.

However, I’ve heard that the MTA gets something like 0.375% of that revenue.  I guess the question is whether the MTA’s cut comes out of the city’s half or the state’s.  In any event, that’s a prime example of what makes the MTA’s finances so complicated.

There are so many factors that can throw the system’s finances into chaos from year to year.  The whole thing needs to be simplified if we ever plan on getting a grip on the future of city transit.

Subway Rats Are Entertainment

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Subway Rat

You know you’re in Manhattan when you are entertained by the rats in the subway while waiting for your train.

Admit it, you know you get a certain amount of enjoyment watching a rat run around on the tracks.  As long as that little bugger is down there and you’re up here, everything is cool.  You even find yourself wondering, “What’s gonna happen when the train comes?  Oh this is gonna be good.”

Sick bastard.

It’s even funnier late at night when a lot of people notice the rat.  It continues to cruise down the tracks.  One by one, people start to lean over to see where it went.  Before you know it, everyone is looking.

Sometimes you see more than one.  They chase each other like squirrels in the park.

The rats in NYC have adapted to subway life so much that their fur has evolved to match the exact color of the grime on the track bed.  It’s actually pretty hard to spot a rat if it isn’t moving.  They blend in very well.

What’s also a little odd is the number of subway rat photos on Flickr.