You are currently viewing the stories for January, 2023
A Magical Oasis in Queens
by Heidi Rain 01/21/2023Neighborhood: Sunnyside
I grew up in Sunnyside Gardens, Queens, during the 1950s, in an attached house between 48th and 49th streets. The houses had small gardens – front and back – with much larger communal gardens beyond our front yard. Small trees and flowering bushes were planted around the edges of two large square patches of well-mowed […]
Big Eric
by Dani Leshgold 01/13/2023Neighborhood: Greenpoint
Big Eric is an alcoholic. I know this because he talks to me about his life when we work together. He’s 40-years old, and he tells me he’s feeling stressed and alone, and that the only time he feels peace is when he drinks. He lives around the corner from the café and sometimes in […]
1982: Approaching the New Year
by Susan T. Landry 01/07/2023Neighborhood: Harlem, Tribeca
The Times Square ball has dropped, giving birth to 1982, unnoticed by me and my friends who have been prowling the city streets for hours. We ricochet from one dimly lit bar to another, drawn to brain-damaging music and access to drugs. In the Mudd Club, where we’ve landed, the entrance to both bathrooms is […]