I’m on twitter now - charmer128. I dig that you only have 140 spaces to type…I always think of things I want to blog but don’t want to make a full post out of it.

Like, today on the train, I almost didn’t make it off because I was standing in the middle of the car and people were crowding on before I could get out the door. I think there should be an electronic “fence” between the doors where people get shocked if people are still trying to get off. Don’t ask me how it would work - I just think people would finally get the point why the conductor yells, “LET THEM OFF FIRST, LET THEM OFF FIRST.”

U2 just dropped their new album. Bloomberg gave them a street - a block of West 53rd called “U2 Way.” Probably the best thing he’s done in the last year. Not enough to be worth another year, though. I <3 Bono.

I read that Gov Patterson has the lowest Gov rating in NY history. That means it’s lower than when Spitzer was discovered hooking up with some “high end” prostitute. That must suck - you’re blind AND you’re the worst Gov in NY history.

celebrities, mta, music, news | 1 Comment »

According to Gothamist.com, the Empire State building glowed green for Earth Day on Tuesday. It will be yellow on May 5th in honor of Project Sunshine, a non-profit org that offers children with medical problems free educational, recreational, and social programs. But the real meaningful light-up (hellooo sarcasm) will be today, in the lovely array of pink, purple and white in honor of Mariah Carey.

No, she didn’t cure cancer or donate millions to feed starving children in Africa. The reason is titled “Honoring a great New Yorker: Mariah Carey breaks records with E=MC2 album release”.

 Are you kidding me? (Boy do I regret downloading “Bye Bye” now.) This for the woman who reportedly cancels interviews because she’s “not a morning person,” brings 100 pairs of shoes with her on trips, and requires 11 bodyguards at a restaurant so no one can watch her eat? And like lighting the Empire State Building won’t add to  her ginormously inflated ego? What’s next? We erect a statue of the diva in Central Park? Oy.

*****This is so weird. About an hour after I wrote this, I was on my way to do a little shopping in the 34th Street area when lo and behold, who do I see getting out of a car with an entourage? None other than Ms. Mariah Carey herself. She (appropriately) was entering the Empire State Building and (predictably) wearing a shade of pink and purple. The irony of it all!! I didn’t bother to stop and try to get a picture. I had shopping to do!! 

celebrities, music, news, rants | No Comments »

When you’re on the subway as much as I am, you see (and hear) a lot of “musicians.” To be fair, some people can actually play well; there’s a blind man who travels on the subway with his violin and he’s amazing. Then there are the people who continually fumble through one song over and over. (I.e. the guy in the 7 line corridor who only plays “When the Saints go Marching In.”)

What drives me nuts, though, is when you’re walking through a corridor (like the one to the 7 train or the one in Times Square) and you pass four different people playing four different instruments AND four different songs in only a 20 foot span.  AH! It makes me cringe and wish my ipod volume could turn up higher.

So, I’ve come up with a fantastic solution. It’s called “Making the Subway Band: Season One.” We gather up a bunch of subway musicians and discover their real talent. And, in the true American form, we turn it into a reality show! Every week a subway musician gets kicked off, but in the end there’s enough people left for a band! The band gets signed, their lives change, blah blah. The only caveat is the people who get kicked off have to sign a waver that says they will never return to the subway to play songs such as “When the Saints Go Marching In.”

A little harsh you say? Then perhaps your ears have never been privy to this daily experience that is mine.

mta, music, rants | 2 Comments »